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    The Monk, the Clerk and the General
    The Monk, the Clerk and the General
    The Monk, the Clerk and the General
    Ebook9 pages8 minutes

    The Monk, the Clerk and the General

    By Dictafone Danny

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    About this ebook

    This short piece is a meditation on the last series of protests in Burma, back in 2007. It deals with the attempted uprisings from the point of view of three symbolic protagonists, a humble clerk who works for the regime, a senior Buddhist monk who has found himself embroiled in the politics of the barbaric military government and the dying general who is still able to justify his barbaric actions yet worries about whether he has accumulated enough merit for his next life.

    Some useful background information from the BBC.

    A popular uprising was forcibly crushed in 1988 and mass demonstrations were not seen again until 2007, when a small string of protests about living standards gained momentum among a public normally too cowed to voice any dissent.

    Burma has been under military rule since 1962; the regime stifles almost all dissent. The first elections for 20 years were held in November 2010.

    Thein Sein was sworn into office in March 2011, officially launching a nominally civilian government to replace almost 50 years of military rule.

    Former general Thein Sein was sworn into office in March 2011, officially launching a nominally civilian government to replace almost 50 years of military rule. He succeeded Senior General Than Shwe, who had been paramount leader since 1992, as the new head of state.

    The primary source for part of this description is BBC News.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDictafone Danny
    Release dateDec 11, 2011
    ISBN9781466196216
    The Monk, the Clerk and the General
    Author

    Dictafone Danny

    Dictafone Danny is a man with a dictafone. He speaks into it and then writes down the words, hoping to make sense. He lives in Europe, mainly in the UK but has been known to travel. He sometimes reads his work aloud but not always. He likes wine and yoga, meditation and rugby as well as jogging but never does any of these things at the same time - it would be dangerous, very dangerous. He has no schedule or business plan and hopes to die peacefully in his bed with a carrot stuck up his arse. He thinks he might release some more work sometime soon ... but then again he may not.

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      Book preview

      The Monk, the Clerk and the General - Dictafone Danny

      The Monk, the Clerk and the General

      by Dictafone Danny

      Copyright 2011 Dictafone Danny

      Smashwords Edition

      The Clerk to the Ministry of Affairs washes a cup, to ensure a clean offering. He uses green tea bought on the way to work. Since the fuel prices went up it now takes almost an hour to cycle - a bus ticket is out of the question. It takes an hour not just because both he and his bike are old but also because the front wheel is buckled and minus most of its spokes. He is lucky, most of his friends have either

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