NPR 2010-04-11

In Warsaw, bells toll¹ for fallen leaders on one of the darkest days in Poland’s history. President Lech Kaczynski, his wife, and dozens of civilian² and defense³ chiefs were among 96 people killed today in a plane crash in Russia. Clusters of lit candles flicker⁴ outside the presidential palace where mourners are still leaving flowers. World leaders are also expressing shock over today’s plane crash, among them President Obama. NPR’s David Folkenflik has this report.

 

Mr. Obama is hailing Polish President Lech Kaczynski for his role in the Solidarity⁵ labor⁶ movement that challenged the Soviet⁷-backed regime in Poland. The president says Mr. Kaczynski left a legacy⁸ of advancing freedom and human dignity. Mr. Obama also underscores the strong bonds between Poland and the United States. But the two presidents disagreed over whether to deploy⁹ an American anti-missile shield in Poland. The Obama administration has been lukewarm about the idea. In his written remarks, President Obama notes the Polish delegation¹⁰ was traveling to commemorate¹¹ the infamous¹² Katyn massacre¹³. Seventy years ago, Soviet secret police killed an estimated 22,000 Poles on the orders of Joseph Stalin. Among them was the cream of the nation’s intellectual, military, and political leadership—a hideous¹⁴ echo of today’s crash. David Folkenflik, NPR News.

 

The Thai capital in the grip of more unrest today, security forces moved in on thousands of anti-government demonstrators who’ve been demanding new elections and for the prime minister to step down. At least 11 people were killed. More than 500 injured. The BBC’s Quentin Sommerville has more details on today’s clashes.

 

Fierce fighting saw troops used rubber bullets and tear gas in an attempt to clear the red shirts from one of their two encampments in the city. Protesters responded with petrol bombs. Live rounds may also have been fired. Soldiers and protesters are among the dead. The country’s army has now called for a truce¹⁵, saying its troops are pulling back. An army spokesman asked the red shirts also to withdraw. It’s the bloodiest¹⁶ violence since this political crisis began.

 

The BBC’s Quentin Sommerville reporting from Bangkok.

 

Emergency teams in West Virginia are still working to recover the bodies of more than 20 miners who died after Monday’s underground explosion in Montcoal. The victims included the four miners who have been unaccounted for since the blast. The death toll went up to 29. Authorities are investigating safety standards at the Upper Big Branch coal mine. President Obama has also asked for a safety report from federal officials in the coming week.

 

Several suspected pirates are in the custody¹⁷ of US Navy after a battle off the Horn of Africa. Six people were arrested.

 

This is NPR.

 

Astronauts will be spending the weekend transferring supplies from space shuttle Discovery to the International Space Station. We have more details from NPR’s Joe Palca.

 

Discovery’s trip to the space station is basically a supply mission. Much of the cargo¹⁸ is contained in the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module¹⁹ (MPLM) as it’s called by the Acronym-loving Space Agency. Basically, the MPLM is a pressurized moving van. On this mission, the cargo includes four experiment racks, seven RSPs, Resupply Stowage Platforms, and four RSRs, Resupply Stowage Racks. There’s also something called WORF, the Window Observational Research Facility. It’s basically a box with advanced optics for viewing Earth. Once the new cargo is off loaded from the shuttle, astronauts will begin filling the shuttle with refuse and completing experiments that will return with the shuttle to Earth. Joe Palca, NPR News.

 

The Vatican is defending Pope Benedict against a new round of criticism over his handling of sex abuse by priests. In a statement today, a Vatican lawyer accuses the media of a rush to judgment²⁰. At issue, it’s a letter dated 1985 in which Benedict, then Cardinal²¹ Joseph Ratzinger, tells a bishop²² in California that he needed more time to review a request to remove a priest, and the impact that might have on the Roman Catholic Church.

 

Former New Jersey²³ Congressman²⁴ Robert Franks has died at the age of 58. The state Republican political leader passed away last night at a New York City hospital after he was recently diagnosed with cancer. Franks rose to power in Congress in 1993 where he served four terms before he campaigned for the Senate in 2000.

 

1 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

2 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 flicker   

vi./n.闪烁，摇曳，闪现

参考例句：

• There was a flicker of lights coming from the abandoned house.这所废弃的房屋中有灯光闪烁。
• At first,the flame may be a small flicker,barely shining.开始时，光辉可能是微弱地忽隐忽现，几乎并不灿烂。

5 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

6 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

7 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

8 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

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。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

9 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

10 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

11 commemorate   

vt.纪念，庆祝

参考例句：

• This building was built to commemorate the Fire of London.这栋大楼是为纪念“伦敦大火”而兴建的。
• We commemorate the founding of our nation with a public holiday.我们放假一日以庆祝国庆。

12 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

13 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

14 hideous   

adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的

参考例句：

• The whole experience had been like some hideous nightmare.整个经历就像一场可怕的噩梦。
• They're not like dogs,they're hideous brutes.它们不像狗，是丑陋的畜牲。

15 truce   

n.休战，(争执，烦恼等的)缓和；v.以停战结束

参考例句：

• The hot weather gave the old man a truce from rheumatism.热天使这位老人暂时免受风湿病之苦。
• She had thought of flying out to breathe the fresh air in an interval of truce.她想跑出去呼吸一下休战期间的新鲜空气。

16 bloodiest   

adj.血污的( bloody的最高级 )；流血的；屠杀的；残忍的

参考例句：

• The Russians were going to suffer their bloodiest defeat of all before Berlin. 俄国人在柏林城下要遭到他们的最惨重的失败。 来自辞典例句
• It was perhaps the bloodiest hour in the history of warfare. 这也许是战争史上血腥味最浓的1个小时。 来自互联网

17 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

18 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。

19 module   

n.组件，模块，模件；(航天器的)舱

参考例句：

• The centre module displays traffic guidance information.中央模块显示交通引导信息。
• Two large tanks in the service module held liquid oxygen.服务舱的两个大气瓶中装有液态氧。

20 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。

21 cardinal   

n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的

参考例句：

• This is a matter of cardinal significance.这是非常重要的事。
• The Cardinal coloured with vexation. 红衣主教感到恼火，脸涨得通红。

22 bishop   

n.主教，（国际象棋）象

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• Two years after his death the bishop was canonised.主教逝世两年后被正式封为圣者。

23 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

24 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。