Burlesque - a musical excerpt.

"It's that old colonial legacy, Mr President, coming back to bite us on the bum. The invaded are now invading. And there ain't a thing we can do about it." General Kawaski stated flatly, standing next to the whiteboard at the front of the meeting room.

"What the Jesus Heck are you on about, General, we don't have the time to be tawkin' in colourful codes here, we need straight answers." President Wildsmith stipulated impatiently in his proud southern drawl. 

"Well Mr President the world as we know it, is changing."

"Over our deyad bodies, it is." the president reiterated patriotically as he looked around the table for support and to his delight saw frowned heads bobbing up and down in unison.

The general gave out an impertinent grunt as if to say 'Your wish may well come true, gentlemen."

"What's thait, General" enquired the president. General Kawaski cleared his throat and answered "Well they don’t give two hoots about what we think or care about. What's important to us isn't to them."

"Could you please elaborate, General, but please no colourful codes, ifen you don't maind." The uniforms let out a constricted snigger.

"Not much to say, Sir, except that they see things different to us."

"Well ain't there some way we can conneict with them?"

'Connect, Mr President?

"Yes, shurely there must be some way of connectin' with those people."

 "Nobody connects with anyone, nobody wants to, Mr President, we're all in it for ourselves. That's what it boils down to."

"You're a very cynicawl cretar, General."

"You get that way when you've lived as long as I have and done and seen stuff that I have." Kawaski stated proudly.

"Oh, so you feel you're more experienced than the rest of us in this room and that that entitles you to be scepticawl. You ain't alone here, General. We've all lived life. Could it be you just lurve hearin' the sound of your own voice and maiybe, just maiybe, thangs ain't as bad as you're makin' it out to be."

"They're worse, sir."

"We still have people willin' to put their godamn lives on the line in order to save the world from this invasion, heroes, General, who will try their beist to get us out of this mess."

"Only fools are heroes."

"GENERAL KAWASKI, PLEASE KEEP YOUR CURRENT ATTITUDE IN CHECK. REMEMBER YOUR POSITION AND YOUR OATH."

"Yes, you're right, Mr President, we'll need to combat this invasion somehow."

"Yeas, we will at that, General, we will at that." President Wildsmith replied, affirming his authority and position, after all he is the Commander in Chief and he demands respect from everyone, even from some five star General who just might think himself above the president's authority.

"YES SUUURR!" General Kawaski sprayed.

Everyone in the room felt the arrogant sarcasm blustering out of the General's mouth; everyone but the President; he wasn't in the club.

"Okay then, General what is your plan of action?"

"Well sir, how's this for starters?"...

 

...and as he utters those words, the General breaks into a song and dance routine like that of an old travelling Vaudeville show. Camera pans back to the table of gentlemen who are now wearing masks of different ethnicity as they sway from side to side to the hick music.

 

"Folks are dumb where I come from,

They went away and dropped the bomb

The natives got on their tom tom

And shouted on their intercom"... and the whole room joins in the chorus

"We're coming down to get ya now,

With our fried rice and our Pilau

We no capiche your lingo,

We get through with some spicy gumbo"

 

"Okay, that's a cut. Thank you that was great. Take five while we change scenery and time of day."