212. Suing the city council控告市议会 subsist-suited
“Thanks to suburbanization, sufficient attention has not been paid to our cities. What little attention there has been has not been substantive. That’s why I’m suing the city government.” Grant Franks seemed suited for the task. The son of 60’s radicals, he’s now a lawyer, railing against big business and a city government that willfully plays along. “Am I subversive?” He asks. “No, it’s the government that’s been subverting the people. Three successive city councils have acted in subterranean fashion, so subtle and cunning. They’ve suffused the suburbs with big businesses while they’ve failed to provide substantial aid to meet the basic subsistence needs of city dwellers. The citizens have silently succumbed to this sort of chicanery. I’m sorry, but that doesn’t suit me at all. I just don’t find that situation suitable.”
He claims his suit is not against suburbanites per se, but rather it is against those who seek to eradicate city life altogether by substituting one version of life for another. “We need a balance. Let’s take elementary subtraction as an example. To be succinct, if you have six on one side and give away three to another, balance remains. If you take two more, the original side is left with only one. You have to add two back to the original side to retain balance. But the city council only sees the subtractive element when it comes to cities. Take away from the city and give to the suburbs. When so much has been taken away, how can city folks subsist anymore?”
Critics of Mr. Franks point out that he fails to substantiate many of his claims and exaggerates when he speaks of the city council. For example, on one occasion, Mr. Franks spoke of the council as “dictators.” But citizens are quick to point out that due to suffrage, no dictatorship exists. The case is set to begin in court next Tuesday.
subsist vi.活下去,生存
subsistence n.生存,生计,存活
substantial adj.相当的,可观的,坚固的
substantiate vt.证实,加强
substantive adj.真正的,实际的,有实质的
substitute vt.代替n.代替者,代替品
subterranean adj.地下的,地表下的
subtle adj.微妙的,细微的
subtraction n.减少,减法
subtractive adj.减去的,负的
suburb n.郊区
suburbanite n.郊区居民
suburbanization n.近郊化,郊区建造
subversive adj.颠覆性的,破坏性的
subvert vt.颠覆,推翻
successive adj.连续的,相继的
succinct adj.简明的,简洁的
succumb vi.屈服,屈从
sue v.向…请求,请愿,提出诉讼,控告
sufficient adj.足够的,充足的
suffrage n.选举权,投票权
suffuse v.(色彩等)弥漫,充满
suit vt.适合,适应
suitable adj.适当的,相配的
suited adj.适合的,匹配的 |