1. Pass stare down test admin­is­tered by Burmese Embassy offi­cial for visa. Check.
2. Get crisp, unfolded Ben­jamins dated odd years only from 2001 on. Check.
3. Store ‘journalist-like’ equip­ment with local con­tact in Bangkok. Check.

You know that scene in Deer Hunter when De Niro is coach­ing that other guy through a round of Russ­ian roulette in the Viet Cong POW camp? I was chan­nel­ing some­thing like, “You don’t do it, they’re gonna throw you in the pit. They throw you in the pit, you’re gonna die. Go ahead. You gotta do it. You can do it. Show ‘em you got balls” …

We just saw him buy his grand­daugh­ter some acne cream from the local phar­macy and he’s car­ry­ing it in that cute red plas­tic bag. What’s less sweet is the posi­tion his grand­daugh­ter will find her­self in later this evening — sans acne cream?