Quickie 10/17

Once again, dear readers, it is time for you not to hear from me for a week at least, but this time I actually have a good reason. Early tomorrow morning, owing to my dogged perseverance in dealing with the security/military Establishment, I will be flying on some sort of Sri Lankan Air Force craft to the city of Jaffna, in the northern extreme of Sri Lanka beyond the totally-off-limits Vanni region, where the recently-ended war ground to its brutal conclusion.

I have absolutely no idea what I am going to find in Jaffna and the surrounding areas, but I do know this: I'm not stupid enough to write about it while I'm still there. If there is anything the Sri Lankan military hates, it is terrorists, followed shortly by "journalists". And, seeing that the phrase "journalist" can be used rather expansively, and the fact that Sri Lanka ranks 162nd out of 175 nations in Press Freedom (just ahead of, let's see.... scroll down until you get to the bright red bit... YES! They just beat SAUDI ARABIA!), I think I'll just handle these things later.

So to recap: Submitting myself to the custody of the Sri Lankan military, exploring war-ruined towns and villages, back in a week. Don't worry about it being dangerous. I've done my research. The most explosive ordnance I'll be handling is the pickled chillies. They've killed better men than me. No, that's untrue. There is no man better than me.

-GFB