英语播客EnglishPod 436

 A:    You should have seen the T.V. show that was on
        last night, the topic it covered was really interest-
        ing; animal rights.

 B:     Do you really believe in that? If they are going
       to focus on something,  they should do it on civil
        rights.

 A:    Yes, but we can ’t deny that animals are vulnera-
        ble, defenseless, and are completely at the mercy
       of human beings.

 B:     I understand your point, but we continue to have
       transgressions¹ against human rights.  If so much
       attention weren’t devoted² to the topic of animals,
       we would then concentrate more on saving³ a hu-
        man being instead of protecting a koala.
 A:    You can ’t compare apples and oranges; I be-
        lieve that both topics are important and that we
       can ’t ignore them, the mistreatment of animals
       can cause a great environmental imbalance.I be-
        lieve  that  governments  should  prohibit  activities
        like poaching.

 B:    Well, you are right on that point. This is the reason
       that I don ’t buy leather and I try to buy synthetic⁴
        products.

 B:    At least you ’re doing your part. My contribution
        is to have a pet in the house that I treat like a
        member of the family.

 A:    As long as you don ’t treat it better than your wife,
        it’s fine.

1 transgressions   

n.违反，违法，罪过( transgression的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Many marine transgressions occur across coastal plains. 许多海运是横越滨海平原。 来自辞典例句
• For I know my transgressions, and my sin always before me. 因为我知道我的过犯，我的罪常在我面前。 来自互联网

2 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

3 saving   

n.节省，节约；[pl.]储蓄金，存款

参考例句：

• Energy saving is term strategic policy of our country.节约能源是我国长期的战略国策。
• Old-fashioned housewives were usually very saving.旧时的家庭主妇通常都很节俭。

4 synthetic   

adj.合成的，人工的；综合的；n.人工制品

参考例句：

• We felt the salesman's synthetic friendliness.我们感觉到那位销售员的虚情假意。
• It's a synthetic diamond.这是人造钻石。