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- PEOPLE, Page 78Old Comrades Just Want to Have Fun
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- By Howard G. Chua-Eoan
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- In hindsight, DENG XIAOPING'S ingenuity in overcoming purge
- after political purge seemed to be in the cards. Over New
- Year's, Beijing's gray eminence showed once again that he knows
- how to play his hand, beating out 63 other elderly players in
- the sixth annual Old Comrades bridge tournament at the Great
- Hall of the People. Explained the chain-smoking Chinese leader:
- "I swim to exercise my body and play bridge to exercise my
- mind." Deng, however, was quick to point out that he plays only
- for fun, since gambling is illegal. During the Cultural
- Revolution, Deng did get into trouble when his enemies accused
- him of commandeering a train to transport card-playing buddies.
- But that's water under the bridge.
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