An exercise in creative writing

Finally my course in Dien Bien Phu history is coming to an end. We had a simulation of the court martial the Commander-in-Chief Henri Navarre for the charge of malfeasance resulting in French defeat in that decisive battle in 1954. My group played the role of the politician Joseph Laniel, trying to evade from blame of not supporting the indochina war, and an equal culprit for causing the defeat. The following is a diary entry written in the first person of Joseph Laniel at the conclusion of the trial, which found Navarre guilty as charged, of course.

Dear Diary,

Finally, it’s over. France got rid of that donkey Navarre who tarnished her imperial legacy forever. No, France wasn’t meant to leave Indoina like the beaten dogs the troops were at Dien Bien Phu; I promised my fellow Frenchmen an honorable solution, to leave the Viet ingrates with the glory of our French imperial glory intact. To think I went before the Assembly last March and insisted the VM evacuate the Red River delta as a condition for ceasefire, that defeat cost us both Hanoi and Haiphong. Why did Navarre wage a battle he couldn’t win? What the hell was he thinking? Didn’t he assure Admiral Cabanier in 1953 the military situation would turn in our favor and we could negotiate out of this mess? The defense lawyers were definitely right; Ely is as stupid as the imbecile he appointed as C-in-C of the far east command.

I’m equally appalled by the bitch-fight between Navarre and Cogny this afternoon. What is wrong with the French army?? Navarre, you brought untold disgrace upon yourself for not firing that media whore and let him screw up your unfortunate decision to take DBP. Worse still, you ADMITTED to incompetence due to lack of operational experience as your defense?! Who’s going to believe that?

It seems that the Yanks are as gullible today as they were in ‘53. The French public would never allow us to prosecute a decisive military victory against the vm. Eight years in IndoC with superior firepower and mobility and all we managed was a stalemate, and ol’ Dulles still expects Navarre to score a victory for the Free World. Get over it. Navarre’s defense seemed to suggest he went on the offensive (when his plan was to avoid one) because the Yanks wished for it. Here in Paris I was doing all I could for an honorable settlement for France and Navarre wants to play Genghis!! That judge is another dumbass for even taking Castries’ note seriously and asked me why I authorized Navarre’s plan without authorizing reinforcements. The French wants out and Navarre should obey when his superiors instructed him to keep the safety of his troops as his top priority. As a servant of the state, Navarre owes obedience to the state, not to his ego and certainly not to the bloody Yanks. Good riddance.

My blood is boiling,
Joseph

Ego is a stronger driving force than pain

Took part in the SAFRA half marathon this morning. It was an achievement for me because i outdid my last pathetic attempt by at least 30min. DCFC's hymn-like Soul Meets Body had been ringing in my head as I struggle through the first 17km: So brown eyes i hold you near/ cause you're the only song i want to hear/ a melody softly soaring through my atmosphere/ where is soul meeeets bodeeeey... Then my brother started pulling away at the 17km mark, and I can't let that fat ass outrun me. And "soul meets body" was replaced by the chant: "Get that fat ass, get that fat ass.." :P

1911 revolution

Time to dust some dusty kobwebs off this blog. I have been busy lately trying to come up with an essay on the 1911 Revolution of China when the Manchu monarchy was replaced by a republican government and how the revolutionary Chinese students in Japan played a part in influencing it. I can imagine how excited those overseas students were, far from home and family, plotting a revolution in their dim and cramped dormitories.

wala+dcfc

Just back from Wala with a gorgeous gal who digs Pink Floyd and thinks it's ok to try pot. Welcome to the sixties, Kobito! The cover band wasn't too bad, Remy--now with a goatie--was on lead G, with another good-looking drummer and a forgettable singer. I like them more unxpected actually. The downside was I failed to get them to play a dcfc song. :(

So here's one from youtube:


I LOVE DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE!!

I don't care if this is emo, it's a great mv:

Botanical gardens

I went running with Claud at the Botanical Gardens this morning. I knew people were going to give strange looks at me in shorts on a regular workday at the bus interchange. You just don't see a lot of leisurely people 8am when everyone else is heading for work.
The Gardens was beautiful, tranquil, and there were some photographers. It was the first time I jogged there, and it felt like the next best thing after Central Park, which was a lot more scenic and the morning air chill and dry. But I gotta learn to love what I have, at least here at the Gardens there's a swan lake.
Claud was late 15 minutes so I had some time to visit the clean public toilet (a pleasant surprise!) There's a UN Summit at the main building, and a lot of VIPs. They're probably handing out the UN public service award mentioned in yesterday's papers to our civil servants or something.
When she finally arrived we started to run. I didn't how fit she was then, she had been with the NJ dragonboat and they win every freakin' year and the year-end marathon idea was hers, so I flippantly suggested an hour's run for starters. It didn't take long for me to regret not restraining my ego and suggest 30min instead. The place was hilly and we kept running until we kinda got lost and ended up at Farrer Rd. Phwah..

Prices going up...

Today the price of my favourite prawn noodles went up 20 cents, a 10% increase from $2. I tried to find out if the reason was the GST hike, but the 'uncle' made a hasty retreat after my first question confirming the price hike. To be fair, $2.20 is still relatively cheap for a good bowl of prawn noodles.

I find myself more attuned to the costs of living these days. Maybe it's the education. Or maybe it's just the imminent reality of graduation and debts. I wanted to say "financing my own wants and needs" as well, but I don't think my expectations are likely to explode out of my means immediately, although I do want to see the world so badly.