The U.S. economic gloom deepened Friday with word that the jobless rate soared to 8.1 percent last month, the highest level in 25 years.
美国失业率攀升到8.1%的消息在朝野各界引起剧烈震动。
There is no way to sugarcoat it - the latest jobs report is bad news for a country struggling to find a way out of a deepening recession.
没有任何办法可以粉饰美国经济的糟糕状况，而最新的失业报告对于正在苦苦挣扎、试图走出这场日益加深的经济衰退的美国来说，更是雪上加霜。
On a personal level, it's a blow for this South Carolina man looking for work.
落实到个人层面，对于这位正在到处找工作的南卡罗来纳人来说，这真是当头一棒。
"It's tough. It's tough for everybody," he said.
“太困难了。对于每个人来说，这都是太困难了。”
Even for those with jobs, like one Seattle newspaper reporter, benefits are being cut.
对于那些有工作的人们来说，日子也不好过。这位西雅图市的报社记者表示，他的各项福利都被削减了很多。
"Pay cut, less medical benefits, loss of my vacation and loss of my severance package when I get laid off here," he said.
“工资减少了，医疗补助也减少了，带薪假期取消了，要是哪天我也被解雇了，连遣散费都没有。”
And college students, like this woman from California, are bracing for a very difficult job market after graduation.
这位来自加利福尼亚州的女大学生说，毕业后找工作恐怕是难上加难。
"I want to get out, I want to get into the work force and start my life. But there is really no market right now, so what else can you do but go to graduate school," she said.
“我渴望毕业，找到工作，开始我的生活。可是现在根本没有工作可找。所以除了继续上研究生院以外，你还有什么其他选择呢？”
Economist Stuart Hoffman said a turnaround in the job market is not likely anytime soon.
经济学家斯徒亚特.霍夫曼说，就业市场在近期内看来不会出现好转。
"The first thing to do is to stop the bleeding. These numbers unfortunately tell us that the U.S. economy is still bleeding jobs. It suggests that at least over the spring and into the summer months, the job market is going to be a very tough place for people to hold onto their jobs, and if you've lost it, not easy to find a new one," he said.
霍夫曼说：“首要任务是止血。这些数据不幸地告诉我们，美国经济仍然在流血，导致就业机会流失。也就是说，从今年春天到夏天，在美国的就业市场上，对于那些有工作的人们来说，要保住自己的工作将是困难的，而对于那些已经失业的人们来说，要找到新的工作更是不易。”
University of Maryland economist Peter Morici said the latest jobs picture combined with other dismal indicators shows just how weak the economy is.
马里兰大学的经济学家彼得.莫里奇指出，最近的失业报告，再加上其他令人沮丧的各类指标，恰恰显示出美国经济是多么的疲弱不振。
"We've had a constant drumbeat of bad news-durable goods orders, factory orders, auto sales at really depression levels. The economy really is quite sick," he said.
他说：“各种坏消息劈头盖脸而来，耐用品订单、工厂订单、汽车销售都下滑到了萧条的水平。美国经济真是病得不轻。”
The economy obviously remains the number one priority for President Barack Obama.
对于美国总统奥巴马来说，经济显然是他的首要任务。
Mr. Obama told an audience in Ohio Friday that the job losses underscore the importance of his economic stimulus package, which he signed into law last month.
奥巴马总统在俄亥俄州告诉人们，失业人数增加更加说明了他所提出的经济刺激计划的重要性。奥巴马总统上个月把这个刺激计划签署成为法律。
But the president also urged the country to remain patient as experts and average citizens alike wait for signs of recovery.
不论是专家学者还是普通民众，大家都在等待经济复苏的迹象，但是奥巴马总统敦促全国人民要有耐心。
"All of this takes time and it will take patience. It will entail great effort and cooperation, but most of all it will require a new sense of responsibility from every American, a responsibility to ourselves and one another," said the president.
他说：“所有这一切都需要时间，需要耐心，需要我们做出巨大的努力与合作，尤其需要每个美国人都建立起一种新的责任感，既要对我们自己负责，相互之间也要负责。”
Obama supporter Patricia Irwin of Maryland is willing to give the president time - for now.
马里兰州的帕特丽夏.欧文是奥巴马总统的支持者，她表示愿意给总统一些时间，至少在目前。
"There is no guarantee that it is going to be turned around in a year, and I'm not going to blame the Obama administration for that. This is, I think, an unprecedented financial crisis. It is worldwide, so people should not expect that the situation in the U.S. is suddenly going to get so much better," she said.
欧文说：“谁也不能担保经济会在今年好转，我也不会因此而埋怨奥巴马政府。这是一次前所未有的金融危机，而且是世界性的。所以人们不应该期待美国的形势会突然好转。”
Republicans have kept up their drumbeat of opposition to the president's economic policies, charging Mr. Obama relies too heavily on government spending and tax increases for corporations and the wealthy.
不过，共和党人继续大张旗鼓地表示反对奥巴马总统的经济政策，指责奥巴马总统过份依赖大规模的政府开支和增加对企业和富裕阶层的税收。
But recent public opinion polls show a majority of Americans approve of the president's job performance and generally support his plans to increase government spending to boost the economy.
然而最近的民意调查结果显示，绝大多数美国人赞同奥巴马总统的工作表现，总的来说都支持他通过增加政府开支来振兴经济的计划。
Experts also noted that, at least for the moment, most Americans seem willing to give the new president time for his policies to take effect.
专家们注意到，至少在目前，绝大多数美国人都愿意给这位新总统一定的时间，以便让他的政策产生效果。
"Obama talks with a lot of confidence and confidence is what people need at the moment. And so, his talk of hope and some signs of hopeful recovery will be sufficient to keep public support," said Stephen Wayne, professor of government at Georgetown University in Washington.
斯蒂芬.韦恩是华盛顿乔治城大学的政府学教授。韦恩说：“奥巴马总统讲话时总是信心百倍，而信心恰恰是人们现在最为需要的。所以，他畅谈希望以及一些充满希望的复苏迹象，这就足以争取到广大公众的支持。”
What's needed now, of course, are some of those hopeful signs, and experts say, the sooner the better.
专家指出，现在人们最需要的就是这些充满希望的迹象出现得越快越好。 |