英文原版对话1000个:1202 Reasons for Riots

 　　Julia: So Todd we're talking about riots². Can you tell me about riots in America? You ever experienced any rioting³?

 

　　Todd: There has been a little bit, like there's been riots from, you know, fans going crazy, you know.

 

　　Julia: Oh yeah.

 

　　Todd: After their team won the championship that's usually a problem. Cities sometimes have to be on high alert⁴ if their team wins a championship which is absolute idiocy⁵. It's like "hey we won the championship, let's go turn over cars and, you know, burn things." It recently also happened in Canada.

 

　　Julia: Yes, I remember, yeah.

 

　　Todd: It's happened in Detroit, it's happened in Dallas. I think the most famous riot¹ we had was the LA riots but that was a long time ago, that was over twenty years ago. Now it's about social unrest.

 

　　Julia: Yeah.

 

　　Todd: And social injustice⁶ for like inner city people but I was in Thailand right when they had their riots.

 

　　Julia: The political riots.

 

　　Todd: Yeah, so I actually left the day before they came down and occupied downtown and things got serious.

 

　　Julia: Wow, and you wouldn't have been able to leave probably if that happened? Did they close the airports?

 

　　Todd: Oh no, I think the airport was still open yeah, yeah, but I did see them every day so I mean before that they would often ride, you know, the red shirts, would ride down and for people listening you had the red shirts who were against the government and they came and they occupied Bangkok and that was quite interesting. But to be honest, I never felt threatened but then again I'd left the day before anything happened so before things turned ugly.

 

　　Julia: And were tourists targeted during those riots?

 

　　Todd: No, not at all. Actually it was weird⁷ being a foreigner at the time when all this was going on because you felt like you were at somebody's house when they had a family fight. You know, have you ever been at somebody's house and maybe the daughter gets in a fight with the mother and they get so heated in the argument they forget that you're even there? That's what it was like in Thailand at the time.

 

　　Julia: So you didn't feel under threat in any way?

 

　　Todd: Oh no. And actually the red shirt people were trying to be careful not to hurt anybody. The government, the yellow shirt people, were trying to be helpful and not, make sure that no tourists were hurt. It was really an internal fight.

 

　　Julia: A domestic⁸ issue?

 

　　Todd: It was a domestic issue and it was quite interesting how both sides took so much care to make sure that no outsiders were harmed even though eventually it turned really violent for each other. So a family squabble you might say.

 

　　Julia: Hmm.

1 riot   

n.暴（骚）乱，（色彩等）极度丰富；vi.聚众闹事

参考例句：

• They had to call the police in order to put down the riot.他们只得叫来警察以平定骚乱。
• Flowers of all sorts are blooming in a riot of colour.百花盛开，万紫千红。

2 riots   

n. 暴乱, 骚乱, 暴动 vi. 骚乱, 闹事

参考例句：

• the instigators of the riots 煽动骚乱的人
• The riots are a clear manifestation of the people's discontent. 骚乱清楚地表明了人们的不满情绪。

3 rioting   

暴乱，骚乱

参考例句：

• There were ugly scenes in the streets last night as rioting continued. 昨晚暴乱持续之际，街上险象环生。
• They are rioting in the streets. 他们在街上闹事。

4 alert   

adj.机警的，活泼的，机灵的；vt.使...警觉

参考例句：

• Drivers must be on the alert for traffic signals.驾驶员必须密切注意交通信号。
• The rabbIt'seems to be very alert all its life.兔子似乎一生都小心翼翼，十分警觉。

5 idiocy   

n.愚蠢

参考例句：

• Stealing a car and then driving it drunk was the ultimate idiocy.偷了车然后醉酒开车真是愚蠢到极点。
• In this war there is an idiocy without bounds.这次战争疯癫得没底。

6 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

7 weird   

adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的

参考例句：

• From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来，他好像有点怪。
• His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。

8 domestic   

adj.家里的，国内的，本国的；n.家仆，佣人

参考例句：

• This is domestic news.这是国内新闻。
• She does the domestic affairs every day.她每天都忙家务。