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The Hypothetical

Writer's picture: Peter K F Cheung SBSPeter K F Cheung SBS
  1. FADE IN.


  2. Act 1


  3. INT. SITTING ROOM - DAY


  4. PETER is relaxing on a sofa, as his pet, KAJI, cleans his face.


  5. PETER (V.O.): Her love for us is unconditional.


  6. Peter checks his phone casually.


  7. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Here's a hypothetical answer request from a Quoran. I don't usually answer such questions as there're too many unknowns, and my answers may not have predictive power.


  8. We read on the screen: If you could choose 10 people (doctor, biologist, engineer, etc) to have alongside you during a nuclear fallout, who would you pick?


  9. PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): The hypothetical is actually about how a human unit can survive during and after a nuclear fallout.


  10. Pausing.


  11. PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): But what's the point of surviving without my family? My family is my life.


  12. Pausing.


  13. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): So, 10 people would mean: my wife and me; and my four children and their partners.


  14. Pausing.


  15. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Do we have the skill sets to survive during a nuclear fallout?


  16. FLASHBACK


  17. INT. CINEMA - DAY (1964)


  18. Peter (10) and his FRIEND (11) are watching the film Robinson Crusoe. The HERO in the film is shipwrecked in a storm. Using tools salvaged and stuff he makes, the hero survives...


  19. PETER (V.O.): Yes, I believe I can be Robinson Crusoe too.


  20. END FLASHBACK


  21. PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): And my children and their partners can procreate.


  22. Pausing.


  23. PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): I wouldn't leave other loving beings behind. Kaji will follow us around, and I'll take care of our two pet tortoises.


  24. After inserting an image of Kaji to a draft, Peter types his answer on the phone.


  25. Act 2


  26. INT. SITTING ROOM - DAY


  27. Peter checks a link from a chat group.


  28. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): My law classmates sent me this link: The Coming War On China.


  29. Pausing.


  30. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): War since the WWII has been outlawed under international law. But small-scale wars are still fought here and there.


  31. Pausing.


  32. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Trade war against China aside, US and UK etc have been encroaching China in technology, trade etc.


  33. Peter taps on the video link.


  34. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): It's about US' military built up all over the world; and China is US' perfect enemy.


  35. Peter is thoughts as he continues to watch the film.


  36. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): As tension between US and China has been building up, the possibility of a nuclear war by design or accident can't be ruled out at all.


  37. Pausing.


  38. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): However, there's the possibility that some humans could survive if their cities weren't the hardest hit.

  39. Pausing.


  40. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Has Hong Kong, China, be aimed at? It seems that the big US Consulate hasn't vacated yet.


  41. Pausing.


  42. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But the aftermath of a nuclear war could involve a nuclear winter and widespread radiation sickness...


  43. Pausing.


  44. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): So the hypothetical posed to me isn't that hypothetical after all.


  45. Pausing.


  46. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): It's quite a wake-up call.


  47. Pausing.


  48. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've been too complacent with peacetime and its abundance.

  49. Pausing.


  50. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Just one crazy guy in authority can destroy the planet.


  51. Peter looks out of the window.


  52. Act 3


  53. INT. SITTING ROOM - CONTINUOUS


  54. Peter watches TV news.


  55. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The US Secretary of State is visiting UK...


  56. Peter surfs the web and we hear from his phone: I was a CIA director. We lied. We cheated. We stole... the glory of the American experiment.


  57. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): That's how he'd direct. If lying, cheating and stealing won't make America great again, will they be preparing for a war against China?

  58. '

  59. Pausing.


  60. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Fortunately, US' nuclear monopoly has long gone. Otherwise, nuclear bombing under the pretext of national security won't be improbable.


  61. Pausing.


  62. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But the phenomenon allows for more low-intensity conflicts like what has been happening regarding Hong Kong, China.


  63. Thinking.


  64. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In the age of chaos, civilised institutions like logic, knowledge, morality, and law have all become irrelevant. Power politics trumps all.


  65. Reflecting.


  66. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): From the hypothetical, I've got a spiritual enlightenment.


  67. Kaji jumps up to the sofa to keep Peter company.


  68. THE END


  69. FADE OUT.


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