THE RICHEST NATION ON EARTH

From CBS News (emphasis mine):

A commercial ship escorted by a U.S. destroyer will start evacuating some Americans from war-torn Lebanon on Tuesday, and more military helicopters will be used to fly others direct to Cyprus, a U.S. official said....

At the State Department, [spokesman Sean] McCormack said the cost of a massive evacuation was beyond U.S. resources. He said evacuated Americans would be asked to pay commercial rates, and if they did not have the money, to promise to pay in the future....

What the hell? Is this normal? Does our government usually bill citizens for evacuation from war zones? Has this always been the case? Or is this another wonderful benefit from all those tax cuts?

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UPDATE: Via Joyful Alternative in comments, I learn that the State Department is waiving this fee for future evacuees -- though some have already paid the fee. Watch the report from Keith Olbermann's show here (click on "Evacuees make way to Cyprus"). In any case, the fee's still mandated by law -- the government is just waiving it in this case, undoubtedly just to head off bad publicity.

Here's an earlier MSNBC story:

...[Joanne] Nucho [a student at American University in Beirut] does not even know what she's allowed to pack. The State Department told her she's allowed a 30-pound duffel bag, but she has heard rumors that she will not be allowed to a camera or her laptop -- her main method of communicating with relatives over the last year....

Nucho said there was talk that Americans would have to pay a $300 evacuation fee and be left to sleep on the streets of Cyprus....

"As of now, the talk of sleeping on streets and not being able to put laptops in the one bag we do take with us are unconfirmed rumors that we are desperately hoping are untrue," Nucho said. "However, we do know for a fact that the French have just left and they were allowed to take entire suitcases, whereas we will only be able to take a tote bag."

Nucho added that all evacuees have signed promissory notes pledging to pay the U.S. back for safe passage to Cyprus, plus interest. Once in Cyprus, she said the government would not pay for hotel fees nor a return flight to the U.S.

In statements e-mailed to Americans in Lebanon and posted on the embassy's Web site, the State Department has stressed "that the U.S. government does not provide no-cost transportation but does have the authority to provide repatriation loans to those in financial need. For the portion of your trip directly handled by the U.S. Government we will ask you to sign a promissory note and we will bill you at a later date." ...

So they really were going to stiff everyone. And the management of information is of FEMA quality. But should we have expected anything else?