Thursday, March 15, 2007

The Lebanon evacuation thing

This worries me. I'm worried that it will cause a scandal and then they'll introduce additional checks and balances that will ultimately delay future evacuations. I'm afraid that one day I'll be stuck in some emergency requiring consular assistance and I won't be able to get it in time because of the red tape.

I remember from when the Lebanon evacuation was in the news, they said it didn't go very well. People were stuck waiting for days and days. They had to go days without showering. There was no air conditioning on the boat. People were getting seasick and there was no medical attention. That doesn't sound very pleasant, and I certainly wouldn't want red tape to make it worse.

As a citizen, I would want my government to evacuate me as quickly and efficiently as possible, preferably in greater comfort than the Lebanon evacuation, regardless of the cost. As a taxpayer, I don't begrudge them whatever it costs to evacuate, even if some money is wasted in the process of getting it done as quickly as possible. One thing I have learned in life is that is what money is for - to throw at emergency situations and make them all better.

If something was done wrong and it can be corrected or remedied, go ahead and do so. If someone was taking advantage of the situation, go ahead and expose them. If the quality of the evacuation (not value for money, but the evacuee experience) could have been improved, go ahead and do so. But do not go around introducing new checks and balances that will make it harder to pull off a quick evacuation next time it's necessary. It's not worth it. Accept any financial loss as collateral damage, and move on.

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