VOA标准英语2014--美国退伍军人因伊拉克动荡局势激起情感

 

Iraq Unrest Stirs Emotions in US Veterans 美国退伍军人因伊拉克动荡局势激起情感

PARIS, ILLINOIS — Paris, Illinois is a patriotic¹ town awash in red, white and blue. American Legion Post Commander Tom Noel said it’s been that way since the Iraq War began in 2003.

“Instantly, the flag sales went up, you see flags flying everywhere,” said Noel.

Noel said that while the patriotism² has not faded, the mood did change in 2004, when news of the mounting casualties from the town’s Illinois National Guard unit - the 1544th Transportation Company - starting filtering in.

“Five right here from our unit, right next door, all at once, that was a real shock,” recalled Noel.

Army Sergeant³ First Class Jeremy Deters⁴ served in Iraq with 1544th Transportation Company.  He is still with the unit. The cost of the 8-year long war is clear to him. He lost five friends in that mortar⁵ attack near Baghdad in 2004, including Sergeant Shawna Morrison, the first female Illinois National Guard soldier to die in the conflict.

“We heard the mortars⁶ falling… went over there and saw what had happened and everything,” said Deters. “You come to terms with it, but it never leaves you.

“I think about my colleagues, my comrades, my brothers in arms every day,” said Kristopher Skinner, another veteran.

Skinner served as a U.S. army officer near Mosul, an area now under the control of ISIL militants⁷.

“Seeing what’s happening there, it almost feels as if some folks gave their lives in vain. It’s hard not to consider it, especially now. But that’s a freedom, I guess that’s a liberty that I have because I came back and I am still here safely,” said Skinner.

Marine⁸ Sergeant Michael Hjelmstad spent part of three deployments to the region training the Iraqi National Army, which has suffered dramatic defeats in recent weeks.

“It is hard to watch them struggle and to know that maybe some of those guys [we] were training are the ones getting killed right now,” said Hjelmstad.

In a training environment using lessons learned from two combat tours in Iraq, Sergeant Deters now prepares a new generation of soldiers for the harsh realities of war.

He doesn't second-guess past decisions. Deters said that instead, he focuses on the mission ahead and passing on information that could help save lives in the future.

“We can’t just let the future generations go in it blind and not know what’s going to happen. Myself and the others that have stayed in, it’s because we believe it’s our job to pass on the knowledge, because we believe in it,” said Deters.

And if they are called to serve again, Tom Noel says they will return to a town that continues to be grateful for their service.

“We regret that we had to give lives, but to give service, there is no regret,” said Noel.

But a constant reminder⁹ of the cost of the Iraq War exists behind Noel’s American Legion hall… a baseball field named in honor of Shawna Morrison.

1 patriotic   

adj.爱国的，有爱国心的

参考例句：

• His speech was full of patriotic sentiments.他的演说充满了爱国之情。
• The old man is a patriotic overseas Chinese.这位老人是一位爱国华侨。

2 patriotism   

n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• They obtained money under the false pretenses of patriotism.他们以虚伪的爱国主义为借口获得金钱。

3 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

4 deters   

v.阻止，制止( deter的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The filth here deters all but the invited guest. 这里污秽不堪，除非有事，外人是裹足不前的。 来自辞典例句
• Many people believe that capital punishment deters crime. 很多人相信极刑能阻止犯罪。 来自互联网

5 mortar   

n.灰浆，灰泥；迫击炮；v.把…用灰浆涂接合

参考例句：

• The mason flushed the joint with mortar.泥工用灰浆把接缝处嵌平。
• The sound of mortar fire seemed to be closing in.迫击炮的吼声似乎正在逼近。

6 mortars   

n.迫击炮( mortar的名词复数 )；砂浆；房产；研钵

参考例句：

• They could not move their heavy mortars over the swampy ground. 他们无法把重型迫击炮移过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Where the hell are his mortars? 他有迫击炮吗？ 来自教父部分

7 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

8 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

9 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。