Airborne allies
By: Rabbi Dr David Fox
“I went last week to my doctor. You probably know him because he is one of you guys, same little hat, same religion.”
With a busy week behind me and more awaiting me once I landed, I slept deeply in flight until the announcement came that we were making an emergency stop midway across the country. As I slowly awoke, the captain’s stern voice announced that no one should move or leave their seat. Apparently, someone did stand up and the flight attendant screamed out for them to immediately return to their seat. Something was amiss. This was not the calming voice of a flight crew trying to maintain a sense of safety among the passengers. The captain announced then that someone had written a note on a bathroom mirror that there was a bomb on board. He demanded that person identify themselves, adding that they would ultimately discover who had done this and the penalties would be severe. We landed, were ordered to deplane on some remote runway, and were bussed to the terminal after an hour, as federal and local law enforcement agents surrounded and then boarded the silent aircraft.
The FBI arrived and methodically selected those who had been seated near the bathroom. It was a very large plane. Fortunately, my many accrued mileage credits had afforded me an upgrade not far from upper class seats. Unfortunately, my seat was in the row closest to that bathroom. I was interrogated. Actually, I was interrogated once then reinterviewed a second time. Three officers brought me into a room and asked me to identify myself, my profession, and the purpose of my trip. They asked if I had entered the bathroom at any point and what I had seen there. They asked if I had written that note. Once they were convinced of my innocence, the lead officer actually apologised to me and, now knowing about my profession as a forensic expert, asked me if I might have noted anything which drew my curiosity about other passengers’ appearances or conduct. We talked for a while, and they again apologised for insinuating that I might have been a suspect. I told them that I knew that they were doing their job. Still, I wondered whether the many passengers who saw me being interrogated might have wondered about whether I was in fact a suspect.
A half-day later, the source of the threat was apprehended, a suspicious article was removed, and the aircraft was searched, and we were allowed to line up for reboarding. Most of the passengers were engaged in cathartic joking, a frequent reaction when people are relieved and feeling safe once more. I caught the eye of another passenger in line. He was a tough looking fellow, tattoos and piercings adorning him. He approached me, shouldering his way past those in line ahead of him. He asked is I was from around where the flight departed. I told him that I was not but had departed from that airport. He told me that he was from a town near the airport. “I gotta tell you something. I found that I have a heart condition. One of my medicines is daily baby aspirin. I went last week to my doctor. You probably know him because he is one of you guys, same little hat, same religion. When he asked me if I was taking the aspirin, I told him that with everything else I was prescribed after surgery, it was just too much expense. Do you know what my doctor did? He came out with a big case of aspirin and gave it to me. Do you know what he said? He said, “Butch – that’s my name – take these. You always say that we Jews are cheap. This time you are being cheap by not spending money to stay healthy, and I am the one who is being generous. These are a gift. Remember that. Jews are good people. So I want you to know that I respect you people. I am sorry for what’s happening in your country Israel and if I didn’t have a heart condition I would go join your army and fight your enemies.” His booming declaration was audible to the passengers in the line. Whatever misperceptions might have been triggered by my being interrogated were likely dispelled by my vociferous ally. There was some poetic justice in Butch emerging from the crowd to defend the Jewish people. The bomb had been defused.
