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The Air Force occasionally organized short excursions so that we could visit nearby places of interest. In 1964, a busload of Able men took an organized Air Force excursion to one of the Greek monasteries high in the mountains. It was a drab place but an enjoyable experience -- talking with the old monks who spoke broken English. On the return to base, however, the trip took on its unforgettable moments. The bus pulled into a quiet Greek village for a scheduled stop. Sitting in the back seat was an Able ditty bop we called “Boo.” This nickname came from a large, scary-looking scar on his face. When the bus stopped, Boo took out a Turkish fez and put it on. It was the equivalent of war being declared. (Greeks and Turks have feuded for years and continue to be natural enemies.) One of the Greek villagers, thinking that Boo was a Turk, quickly spread the news and immediately that quiet village was transformed into a noisy uprising.
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Highly offended, perturbed and aroused, every Greek in the area swarmed around the bus, hollering angrily, demanding that Boo be handed over to them. The Greeks wanted to string him up! The bus driver, an Air Force sergeant, not believing his eyes and ears, frantically beseeched the angry mob to calm down. The Greeks would have no part of being calmed and, if anything, became even more menacing. Boo’s fez was like blood to sharks and they wanted him. It was only the quick arrival of two local policemen that prevented the Greeks from breaking into the bus, dragging Boo out and hanging him. But the two policemen were little match against this raging mob and the best they provided was a delaying action. The policemen screamed at the mob to disperse but they refused. They milled around the bus, shouting at Boo inside, waving clenched fists murderously at him. While Boo and everyone else remained within the questionable safety of the bus, helpless and petrified, the bus driver, swearing angrily, was escorted to a phone where he dutifully put in a quick call to the base, apprising the commander there of the riotous Greeks holding the bus under siege, wanting Boo’s neck.
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