经济学人314:肯尼迪三世-巧克力蛋糕的诱惑

 　　THE tourists taking pictures of John Kennedy’s relatively² modest birthplace in Brookline on Presidents’ Day had not heard that the former president’s great-nephew had just entered the family business. But it seemed that everyone else in Massachusetts and beyond knew that the Kennedy family’s break from politics was over. Joe Kennedy III announced via YouTube on February 15th that he was entering the race for the open 4th congressional district seat. Even before he had formally announced his entry, he led his main Republican rival by two-to-one in a University of Massachusetts Lowell/Boston Herald³ poll. And he had won the endorsement⁴ of the state’s largest labour organisation⁵.

　　总统节这一天，在布鲁克莱，许多游客拿着相机对着美国前总统肯尼迪略显朴素的出生地一阵狂拍。他们可没有想到这位前总统的侄孙也继承了家族遗风，步入了政坛。然而美国人却都明白肯尼迪家族离别政坛的岁月已经告一段落。2月15日周二，约瑟夫?肯尼迪三世通过YouTube宣布他将竞选第4届国会马萨诸塞州选区的席位。在正式参选前，他已在马萨诸塞州大学洛威尔/波士顿先驱报的民调中以2:1的战绩领先共和党对手。此外，他还赢得了该州最大的劳工组织的支持。

　　The 31-year-old former prosecutor⁶ has inherited the Kennedy smile and the voluminous Kennedy hair (his is red; he looks more Irish than his forefathers⁸ did). But winning the seat, which stretches from the Rhode Island border to the outskirts⁹ of Boston, is not going to be easy. It is no longer the same district which for three decades voted by mostly wide margins¹⁰ for Barney Frank, recently the irascible head of the House Financial Services Committee. Redistricting has reconfigured the historically blue district to include conservative strongholds, while losing New Bedford, a Democratic bastion. Indeed Mr. Frank decided¹¹ not to seek re-election, in part, because he reckoned that the 325,000 new constituents¹² would require an extra $1.5m-$2m in fund-raising.

　　这位现年31岁的前检察官俨然继承了肯尼迪家族的微笑和浓密的头发(他满头红发，使他比自己的祖辈看上去更像爱尔兰裔)。马萨诸塞州选区从罗得岛延伸到波士顿市郊，要赢得这一选区席位，却并非易事。这个选区早已不是昔日那个三十年以来绝大多数选票都投给巴尼?弗兰克的选区了，如今这位性情暴躁的弗兰克成为了众议院金融服务委员会的主席。选区的再划分使保守党的据点并入了历史上的蓝区，而失去了民主党的堡垒重镇新贝德福德，整个选区重新组合。弗兰克确实也没有在寻求连任，部分原因在于他估计了下，获得325,000新选民的支持，还需要150万到200万美元的筹款。

　　Raising money will not be a problem for Mr Kennedy. The name alone is bound to fill seats at fund-raisers. Elsewhere it may put people off, as it did in New York, when Caroline Kennedy, JFK’s daughter, explored running for the Senate three years ago. Cynical¹³ New Yorkers resented her apparent sense of entitlement and her lack of political experience. But things are different in Massachusetts. Even though a third of voters think the Kennedys have too much influence in Bay State politics, a hefty 73% of them, including Republicans, view the family favourably¹⁴. Voters are astute¹⁵. They know a freshman¹⁶ representative at the bottom of Capital Hill’s totem pole is more likely to get a call returned if his name is Kennedy. They want their representatives to stand out, says Scott Ferson, a political consultant¹⁷ and Ted⁷ Kennedy’s former press secretary. Mr Frank, who is openly gay, is also notably¹⁸ outspoken¹⁹, and Ted, Mr Kennedy’s great-uncle, was the liberal lion of the Senate.

　　而筹款对于肯尼迪三世可不是什么问题。仅凭自己的姓名，募款者之位必定座无虚席。换作其他地方，人们可能会对这个名字感到厌烦，就像曾经在纽约发生的那样，三年前肯尼迪总统的女儿卡洛琳?肯尼迪也打算在参议院谋个位置坐坐。除了没什么政治资历，愤世嫉俗的纽约人对她那天经地义、非我莫属的感觉很看不顺眼。而在马萨诸塞州，事情可就完全两样了。尽管有三分之一的选民认为肯尼迪家族在海湾州的政绩势力过大，还是有高达73%的选民，包括共和党人，对他们很有好感。选民们精明着呢。他们很清楚在国会山图腾柱下，一个初出茅庐的代表有更多的可能让他们的要求得到回应，条件是这位年轻的代表得姓肯尼迪。爱德华?肯尼迪的前新闻秘书，现身为政治顾问的斯科特?福尔森表示，选民希望他们的代表能够脱颖而出。公开自己同性恋取向的弗兰克也是个直言不讳的人，肯尼迪三世的叔祖父爱德华?肯尼迪生前也是参议院的自由之狮。

　　And, like the rest of his kin¹, the political novice²⁰ knows how to campaign. In less than a week he went twice to Attleboro, which voted for Scott Brown, a Republican, in the election to fill the Senate seat held for 46 years by Ted. He was bred for this. His grandfather was Bobby Kennedy, once attorney-general; his great-uncle was JFK; his father, Joe II, served in Congress for 12 years. Bay State politicos say Joe III is the real deal, and would be a good candidate no matter what his name. So far he is scandal-free, which is a plus for any candidate, especially a Kennedy. Kennedy fatigue²¹ may yet rear its head, but it may not matter, says Thomas Whalen, a political historian at Boston University. For many in Massachusetts, voting Kennedy is like dessert addiction²²: “You swear off chocolate cake, but you keep coming back to it.”

　　正如他的族人一样，身为政坛新秀的他对于如何竞选很有两下子。不到一周的时间他就去了两次阿特尔博勒。阿特尔博勒此前选的是共和党人斯科特?布朗，让他去填补爱德华曾坐了46年的参议院席位。而约瑟夫?肯尼迪似乎为此选举而生。他的祖父是前司法部长罗伯特?肯尼迪；他的叔祖父是美国前总统约翰?肯尼迪；他的父亲约瑟夫?肯尼迪二世在国会工作了12年。海湾州政界认为肯尼迪三世有真才实学，无论他姓什么都是个很不错的候选人。目前来看，他没有丑闻，对于任一个候选人这都是个加分项，尤其是个肯尼迪家族的人。波士顿大学政治史学家托马斯?维尔伦说，肯尼迪审美疲劳可能会稍有抬头，但这也没关系。对许多马萨诸塞州人而言，投肯尼迪的票就像上了吃甜品的瘾:“你发誓再不吃巧克力蛋糕了，但你就是忍不住还要吃。”

　　1. modest a.谦虚的；适度的；羞怯的

　　例句：The girl has a quiet, modest demeanor²³. 这个女孩子的态度娴静而谦逊。

　　2. stronghold n. 要塞, 堡垒, 大本营

　　例句：We took possession of the enemy's stronghold. 我们占领了敌人的要塞。

　　3. addiction n.沉溺，上瘾

　　例句：Drug addiction is a dangerous canker in society. 吸毒成瘾是腐蚀社会的一大祸害。

1 kin   

n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的

参考例句：

• He comes of good kin.他出身好。
• She has gone to live with her husband's kin.她住到丈夫的亲戚家里去了。

2 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

3 herald   

vt.预示...的来临，预告，宣布，欢迎

参考例句：

• In England, the cuckoo is the herald of spring.在英国杜鹃鸟是报春的使者。
• Dawn is the herald of day.曙光是白昼的先驱。

4 endorsement   

n.背书；赞成，认可，担保；签(注)，批注

参考例句：

• We are happy to give the product our full endorsement.我们很高兴给予该产品完全的认可。
• His presidential campaign won endorsement from several celebrities.他参加总统竞选得到一些社会名流的支持。

5 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

6 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

7 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

8 forefathers   

n.祖先，先人；祖先，祖宗( forefather的名词复数 )；列祖列宗；前人

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left. 它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All of us bristled at the lawyer's speech insulting our forefathers. 听到那个律师在讲演中污蔑我们的祖先，大家都气得怒发冲冠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 outskirts   

n.郊外，郊区

参考例句：

• Our car broke down on the outskirts of the city.我们的汽车在市郊出了故障。
• They mostly live on the outskirts of a town.他们大多住在近郊。

10 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

11 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

12 constituents   

n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素

参考例句：

• She has the full support of her constituents. 她得到本区选民的全力支持。
• Hydrogen and oxygen are the constituents of water. 氢和氧是水的主要成分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 cynical   

adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的

参考例句：

• The enormous difficulty makes him cynical about the feasibility of the idea.由于困难很大，他对这个主意是否可行持怀疑态度。
• He was cynical that any good could come of democracy.他不相信民主会带来什么好处。

14 favourably   

adv. 善意地，赞成地 =favorably

参考例句：

• The play has been favourably commented by the audience. 本剧得到了观众的好评。
• The open approach contrasts favourably with the exclusivity of some universities. 这种开放式的方法与一些大学的封闭排外形成了有利的对比。

15 astute   

adj.机敏的，精明的

参考例句：

• A good leader must be an astute judge of ability.一个优秀的领导人必须善于识别人的能力。
• The criminal was very astute and well matched the detective in intelligence.这个罪犯非常狡猾，足以对付侦探的机智。

16 freshman   

n.大学一年级学生(可兼指男女)

参考例句：

• Jack decided to live in during his freshman year at college.杰克决定大一时住校。
• He is a freshman in the show business.他在演艺界是一名新手。

17 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

18 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

19 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

20 novice   

adj.新手的，生手的

参考例句：

• As a novice writer,this is something I'm interested in.作为初涉写作的人，我对此很感兴趣。
• She realized that she was a novice.她知道自己初出茅庐。

21 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

22 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

23 demeanor   

n.行为；风度

参考例句：

• She is quiet in her demeanor.她举止文静。
• The old soldier never lost his military demeanor.那个老军人从来没有失去军人风度。