美国有线新闻 CNN 2012-10-14

 First up today, we are heading to the halls of Congress. Technically¹, Congress is in recess² until after next month’s elections. But yesterday, one House Committee held a hearing on last month’s terrorist attack against the US facility in Libya. On September 11th, the American consulate³ building in the Libyan city of Benghazi was attacked. Four Americans including the US ambassador to Libya were killed in a violence. American facilities in other countries are under the responsibility of the US State Department. And a lot of yesterday’s hearing focused on whether the State Department was prepared for this kind of attack. House members wanted to know if there were enough security agents in Benghazi. 

We’ll stay in D.C. for our next story, which takes us from Congress and the Capitol building over to a different branch of the US government – the US Supreme⁴ Court. Yesterday the court heard a case about affirmative action, specifically should race be a factor in college admissions? You can check out our show from Tuesday for details on the case. We asked for your opinions on our blog. Olivia said, I think that affirmative action is one of the best ways to give minority groups equal opportunities, but Brian disagreed, saying college admission should be based on ability, not appearance. He believes affirmative action keeps the idea that there is a difference between people. Our quick poll results were pretty definitive(最后的；权威的). 94 percent of you said race should not be a factor in college admissions.

 

With still Hispanic heritage month, so today we are talking about some words with Spanish origins. Did you know, some words we use actually have Spanish ties, like Cafeteria. You might be thinking about the one in school, but in Spanish it’s pronounced cafeteria, and in that language it means coffee house.

 

Gator sounds pretty American, but alligator⁵ dates back to the 1500s and the Spanish word el lagarto, which means "the lizard⁶." We have one more for you, key, not like the one in your pocket, we mean like a reef or an island like the Florida Keys. The word is a noun, and it comes from the Spanish word for key, which is cayo. 

Today is October 11th, which is the International Day of the Girl. The United Nations started the observance in order to raise awareness⁷ about the struggles that girls face around the world. That’s the same thing a Pakistani girl named Malala was doing when she wrote in her blog. Malala is the same age as some of you, she is 14. The area where she lives, had experienced a lot of violence from the Taliban, it’s a militant⁸ group, and one of its goals is to stop girls from going to school. Malala blogged about her struggle to get an education. This week Malala was targeted and attacked. Shot by the Taliban while she was riding home from school. Doctors worked for hours to remove a bullet from her neck, and yesterday they said Malala was slowly recovering. One Pakistani official described Malala as an icon⁹ of courage and hope. Reza Sayah has more on this remarkable¹⁰ young woman.

 

Many here in Pakistan know Malala, but if you lived outside the region, you may not have heard of her. We happen to interview this pine(松子；消瘦)-sized activist¹¹ late last year, she was incredibly articulate and confident. The best way to understand why she inspired so many people is just to listen to her speak. Here is a look at the interview.

So why do you risk your life to raise your voice?

 

Because I thought that my people need me, and I shall raise my voice, because, because if I didn’t raise my voice now, so when will I raise my voice?

 

Some people might say you are 14. You don’t have any right, you just have to listen to mom and dad.

 

No, I have rights, I have the right of education, I have the right to play, I have the right to sing, I have the right to talk, I have the right to go to market, I have the right to speak up.

 

But what if you give that advice to a girl who may not be as courageous¹² as you, and she says, Malala, I’m afraid, I just want to stay in my room.

 

So I’ll tell her then don’t stay in your room, because God will be asking you on the day of judgment¹³ that where were you when you people were asking you, when your school fellows were asking you, and when your school was asking you that I am being blown up, when your people need you, you should come up, you should come, and you should stand up for their rights.

 

If you were the president of this country, how would you handle the Taliban?

 

First of all, I would like to build so many schools in this country, because education is the must thing. If you have, if you don’t have educated people, so the Taliban will come to your area, but if you have educated people, they will not come.

 

That was Malala Yousufzai when we first met her, never backing down to any of our questions, fearlessly determined¹⁴ and confident. That’s why many say, she represents the best of Pakistan.

1 technically   

adv.专门地，技术上地

参考例句：

• Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说，这是最先进的设备。
• The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说，西红柿是一种水果，尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。

2 recess   

n.短期休息，壁凹（墙上装架子，柜子等凹处）

参考例句：

• The chairman of the meeting announced a ten-minute recess.会议主席宣布休会10分钟。
• Parliament was hastily recalled from recess.休会的议员被匆匆召回开会。

3 consulate   

n.领事馆

参考例句：

• The Spanish consulate is the large white building opposite the bank.西班牙领事馆是银行对面的那栋高大的白色建筑物。
• The American consulate was a magnificent edifice in the centre of Bordeaux.美国领事馆是位于波尔多市中心的一座宏伟的大厦。

4 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

5 alligator   

n.短吻鳄(一种鳄鱼)

参考例句：

• She wandered off to play with her toy alligator.她开始玩鳄鱼玩具。
• Alligator skin is five times more costlier than leather.鳄鱼皮比通常的皮革要贵5倍。

6 lizard   

n.蜥蜴，壁虎

参考例句：

• A chameleon is a kind of lizard.变色龙是一种蜥蜴。
• The lizard darted out its tongue at the insect.蜥蜴伸出舌头去吃小昆虫。

7 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

8 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

9 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

10 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

11 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

12 courageous   

adj.勇敢的，有胆量的

参考例句：

• We all honour courageous people.我们都尊重勇敢的人。
• He was roused to action by courageous words.豪言壮语促使他奋起行动。

13 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

14 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。