NPR 2009-6-12

President Barack Obama kicked off a campaign for health care reform today in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He disputed claims he wants to socialize medicine. He also said there's a moral-led economic imperative¹ to make health care more affordable² and accessible. From Wisconsin Public Radio, Patty Murray reports.

President Obama said he came to Green Bay because the area has high quality care at lower-than-average prices compared to the nation as a whole. He said it’s a model that can be emulated³ elsewhere. The president is proposing what he calls a health insurance exchange where people can go to pick out an insurance plan. Someone who can't afford a private plan could pick a public option.

"If you've got a private plan that works for you, that's great. But we want some competition. If the private insurance companies have to compete with a public option, it'll keep them honest and it'll help keep their prices down."

Mr. Obama said he is open to hearing other ideas on health care reform and that he is willing to "steal" them. He said the only things he won't accept are more delay and denial. The president wants a bill on his desk by October. For NPR News, I'm Patty Murray in Green Bay.

Authorities now say the 88-year-old white supremacist accused of entering the US Holocaust⁴ Memorial Museum and opening fire yesterday has been charged with the murder of a security guard. According to a filing in a federal court, James von Brunn has been charged with the premeditated murder of 39-year-old Stephen Johns who was on duty at the time of the shooting. FBI officials say they are also pursuing hate crimes charges against von Brunn who in postings on the internet and elsewhere has railed against Jews and Blacks. Officials say a notebook found in von Brunn's car read “the holocaust is a lie.” von Brunn is hospitalized in critical condition. He was wounded by other guards inside the museum who returned fire.

Powerful thunderstorms have torn through Dallas, leaving tens of thousands without power. From Dallas, NPR's Wade⁵ Goodwyn reports.

The storms began hitting Dallas and Fort Worth yesterday afternoon with 70-mile-an-hour winds, hundreds of bolts of lightning and more than half a foot of rain. The damage was extensive. Trees, chimneys and fences were felled across the northern counties and flights out of DFW and Love Field were canceled and delayed. Hundreds of thousands of homes lost electricity, but linesmen trailed in the storms’ wake, restoring the power within hours. Lightning balls were striking the ground at a rate of 100 every five minutes and knocked out a major flood water pumping station in west Dallas. Residents were forced to evacuate⁶ as electricians worked to repair the pump which was struck twice by lightning. Wade Goodwyn, NPR News, Dallas.

The government says first time jobless claims fell by 24,000 last week to a seasonally⁷ adjusted 601,000, however, the number of people collecting unemployment benefits for more than one week is now at 6.8 million. That's the highest number on records dating back more than 40 years.

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 31 points. The NASDAQ gained nine points today.

 This is NPR.

In a weak economy, airplane builder Boeing is lowering its forecast for the commercial aviation market. Citing declining traffic and volatile⁸ fuel prices, the Chicago-based company says it expects the market for passenger and cargo⁹ planes to decline by 1.4% over the next two decades. Boeing said today, over the next twenty years it projects sales of around 29,000 airplanes valued at $3.2 trillion. Tight credit markets have made it more difficult for customers to finance airplane purchases.

Insurance industry crash tests show many of the very small cars that will become popular sustained thousands of dollars worth of damage in fender-benders. NPR's Dave Mattingly reports.

Seven mini cars were run through the low-speed crash test. Average repair bills for the Hyundai Accent about 2,100 dollars; the Honda Fit nearly 2000; the Mini Cooper more than $1,600. Joe Nolan is with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The worst was the Kia Rio. To cite an example, in one test alone we racked up about 30% of the car's purchase price in damage in a 60-mile-an-hour collision.

In four crash tests, repairs to the Kia Rio averaged about $2,700. None of the fuel-efficient mini cars tested received a top rating. Dave Mattingly, NPR News, Washington.

You are like many people, you are feeling a little poorer these days apparently¹⁰ with a good reason. Federal Reserve in a new report says falling stock prices and declining home values have eroded¹¹ upwards¹² of $1.3 trillion in household wealth in the first three months of the year. According to the Fed, household net worth declined to just over $50 trillion, down just over 2.5% from last year.

1 imperative   

n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的

参考例句：

• He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
• The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。

2 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

3 emulated   

v.与…竞争( emulate的过去式和过去分词 )；努力赶上；计算机程序等仿真；模仿

参考例句：

• The havoc that months had previously wrought was now emulated by the inroads of hours. 前几个月已经使他垮下来，如今更是一小时一小时地在恶化。 来自辞典例句
• The key technology emulated by CAD and the circuit is showed. 对关键技术进行了仿真，给出了电路实现形式。 来自互联网

4 holocaust   

n.大破坏；大屠杀

参考例句：

• The Auschwitz concentration camp always remind the world of the holocaust.奥辛威茨集中营总是让世人想起大屠杀。
• Ahmadinejad is denying the holocaust because he's as brutal as Hitler was.内贾德否认大屠杀，因为他像希特勒一样残忍。

5 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

6 evacuate   

v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便

参考例句：

• We must evacuate those soldiers at once!我们必须立即撤出这些士兵！
• They were planning to evacuate the seventy American officials still in the country.他们正计划转移仍滞留在该国的70名美国官员。

7 seasonally   

参考例句：

• The price of vegetables fluctuates seasonally. 蔬菜的价格随季节变动。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They moved seasonally among various vegetation types to feed on plants that were flourishing. 它们还随着季节的变化而在各种类型植物之间迁移，以便吃那些茂盛的植物。 来自辞典例句

8 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

9 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

10 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

11 eroded   

adj. 被侵蚀的，有蚀痕的 动词erode的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The cliff face has been steadily eroded by the sea. 峭壁表面逐渐被海水侵蚀。
• The stream eroded a channel in the solid rock. 小溪在硬石中侵蚀成一条水道。

12 upwards   

adv.向上，在更高处...以上

参考例句：

• The trend of prices is still upwards.物价的趋向是仍在上涨。
• The smoke rose straight upwards.烟一直向上升。