The People's Liberation Army's Hong Kong garrison may not be the men for killing chickens, but Quarry Bay is prepared to bet they are man enough to put up with whatever underwear the provisioning department doles out to them.
This proves they are hardier and infinitely better disciplined than their German counterparts.
Alternatively, it may mean they are just less well paid. Decide for yourself, dear reader, once you have read the following news from the BBC: 'The German defence ministry has decided to give soldiers a grant to allow them to buy their own choice of underwear. An army spokesman said a one-off payment of US$193 (about HK$1,494) would be made to each soldier to buy his preferred style of undies.' Apparently the top brass now accepted that many soldiers disliked the regulation army-issue, and it was a waste of money to supply them with clothes that were not going to be worn.
The Bundeswehr, the spokesman added, would not be making any inspections.
A good thing, too. Indeed, had the British army adopted this approach with the Black Watch (think back, readers, to the picture of Lance Corporal Lee Wotherspoon's wind-blown kilt on the front-page of the Post ), they might have saved themselves not only the bother of inspections but the cash too.
Among the few international political superstars joining the 30,000 top British people in the latest edition of Who's Who : UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin, and Hong Kong's first leader since the end of British rule, Tung Chee-hwa.
Grand Bauhinia Medal-holders, step aside.
