I used to have a friend that ran ops for a friendly regime. She used to say things like "I've been invited to look at some farm property in New York." That was her code for "I'm flying out of JFK next week-- final destination is classified." Within a week or two there'd be a story on the front page of the NYT. You had to read between the lines, but you knew it was her and her group that were responsible. A week or so later she'd come back with her arm in a cast or worse. While I knew her, she caught a round of 9mm in the left tit. She did a few more of these jobs and then hung it up. Some people go looking for trouble.
I also had another buddy who thought it would be a great idea to attend a business meeting in Cairo just before the Arab Spring broke out. He got home with just a broken arm and a lung-fuc% from inhaling tear gas. Our military had to rescue him-- flew him out to Ramstein if I remember. He called me from Texas to tell me he was transferring to a civillian carrier for the last leg and wanted me to get him home from CVG. Sometimes it is being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
I also had a friend that used to travel the globe as a free-lance journalist. He accidentally ran afoul of some folks in Ireland that mistook him for IRA-- he was wearing a Candian field jacket and a black beret (the uniform of a highly violent faction at the time). The only thing that saved him in Mexico was that he raised an eyebrow at a local warlord; the locals decided he must have the Evil Eye and wouldn't touch him. However, he did get a visit from a crooked cop that wanted to know his meaning. He once got picked up on the Mall in DC for "impersonating a Secret Service Agent." The offense was caused by wearing a yellow map pin in his lapel. That was the sign that day. It was also the universal sign of American Mensa. He was on his way to a meeting. They had to call Mensa HQ in NYC to confirm it before they'd let him loose. Sometimes it's the little things that get you.
. . . and this does not even touch on the my buddy who ended up at Gitmo during the Cuban Missle Crisis. We'll save that one for later.
A trip to Dagestan? That sounds like a great invitation to make the front page of the NYT. With all those warnings, they're probably running low on Western hostages. Have fun.
Last edited by shaman; 02/18/20.
