美国国家电台 NPR 2012-08-17

 More American deaths in Afghanistan today. NATO says a US military helicopter crashed in the southern part of the country. Seven Americans and four Afghans were killed. 

 

It is a somber¹ day for law enforcement in Louisiana. Two sheriffs’ deputies were killed in the line of duty today as they were tracking shooting suspects at a trailer park. Sheriff Mike Tregre of St. John the Baptist Parish offered this emotional account.

 

“As we were interviewing the two persons, two suspects, another person exited that trailer with an assault weapon and ambushed², ambushed my two officers.”

 

A deputy was shot and wounded this morning while on traffic detail. When his colleagues tracked a shooting suspect back to a trailer park, two of them were shot and killed. And a third officer was injured. Several suspects are in custody³.

 

Republican Mitt⁴ Romney says his tax rate for the last decade has never dipped below 13%. NPR's Ari Shapiro reports this is a response to ongoing⁵ pressure to release more years of tax returns.

 

Mitt Romney released two years of his tax returns in January. Since then, he has adamantly⁶ refused to release anymore. New pressure came this week when his campaign revealed the people being considered for the vice⁷ presidential slot had to turn over several years of tax returns. In a South Carolina news conference, Romney said claims that he has paid little or no taxes are simply false.

 

“I did go back and look at my taxes, and over the past ten years I never paid less than 13%. I think the most recent year is 13.6% or something like that.”

 

That's a lower rate than most Americans pay since Romney's income generally comes from capital gains on investments. He said when charitable contributions are taking into account, he pays well over 20%. Ari Shapiro, NPR News, Washington.

 

In reaction to Romney's remarks, the Obama campaign says ‘Prove it.’ It says voters deserve more than Romney's word on his tax-paying history.

 

The Army has suffered what appears to be a sharp increase in suicides among active duty soldiers during the month of July. Details from NPR's Tom Bowman.

 

The Army says that during Jury there were 26% potential suicides among troops. That's more than double the number for June, when the Army said there were 12% potential suicides among active duty soldiers. Also during July, there were a dozen potential suicides among Army National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers. That's the same number for the month of June. Army officials say they have no immediate⁸ answer why the suicide numbers have increased so much among active duty soldiers. The Army's No. 2 officer General Lloyd Austin had this to say in a statement: “Suicide is the toughest enemy I have faced in my 37 years in the Army.” The general went on to say the Army must continue to address the stigma⁹ associated with behavioral health. Tom Bowman, NPR News, Washington. 

 

Dow is up 85 points before the close. 

 

This is NPR.

 

The man accused of yesterday's attack at a conservative lobbying group's building in Washington DC has appeared in court. Floyd Corkins is charged with assault with intent to kill. The security guard was wounded in yesterday's attack.

 

The United Nations mission in Syria is ending as of this weekend. Observers say the US mandate¹⁰ had a little impact on the conflict. The United States opposes keeping monitors in Syria while Bashar al-Assad remains¹¹ in power. However, Russia, one of Syria's allies, says the monitors should remain in the country.

 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is advising baby boomers to get tested for the virus that causes hepatitis C. NPR's Jon Hamilton reports it's part of an effort to identify hundreds of thousands of boomers who don't know they are infected.

 

About two million baby boomers carry the hepatitis C virus, but most of them don't know it. And without treatment, they are likely to develop cirrhosis and liver cancer. So the CDC is recommending screening for everyone born from 1945 through 1965. CDC officials say the infection rate in boomers is five times higher than in other adults. Hepatitis C virus can be transmitted through sharing needles. It was also spread through blood transfusions¹² and organ transplants before 1992. The latest treatment can cost 100,000 dollars and take many months, but it eliminates the virus about three-quarters of the time. Jon Hamilton, NPR News.

 

Interest rates on home loans are rising again. The mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says fix rate on 30-year loan has climbed to 3.62%; on the 15-year loan, it's up to 2.88%. 

1 somber   

adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• He had a somber expression on his face.他面容忧郁。
• His coat was a somber brown.他的衣服是暗棕色的。

2 ambushed   

v.埋伏( ambush的过去式和过去分词 )；埋伏着

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The military vehicles were ambushed. 军车遭到伏击。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 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。

4 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

5 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

6 adamantly   

adv.坚决地，坚定不移地，坚强不屈地

参考例句：

• "Come over here,"he told her adamantly. “到这边来，”他对她坚定地说。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His family were adamantly opposed to the marriage. 他的家人坚决反对这门亲事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

8 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

9 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。

10 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

11 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

12 transfusions   

n.输血( transfusion的名词复数 )；输液；倾注；渗透

参考例句：

• Still, transfusions have apparently never spread the disease, even among hemophiliacs. 还有，输血很明显从未传播过这种病，即使在血友病人之间也是如此。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 口蹄疫疯牛病
• Blood transfusions are a special, limited example of tissue transplantation. 输血是一个特殊的、有限制的组织移植的例子。 来自辞典例句