纽约时报 吃肉的日子到此结束(2)

Despite this grisly reality — and the widely reported effects of the factory-farm industry on America's lands,

尽管现实已经如此可怕——尽管疫情来袭之前，

communities, animals and human health long before this pandemic hit —

有关工业化养殖行业对美国土地、社区、动物及人类健康的危害早已被广泛报道了许久——

only around half of Americans say they are trying to reduce their meat consumption.

依然只有一半左右的美国人表示自己正在努力降低肉类消费。

Meat is embedded¹ in our culture and personal histories in ways that matter too much,

感恩节的火鸡，棒球比赛现场的热狗，无论是哪种形态，

from the Thanksgiving turkey to the ballpark frank.

肉都早已深植于我们的文化以及我们个人的过往生活，我们对其早已无法割舍。

Meat comes with uniquely wonderful smells and tastes, with satisfactions that can almost feel like home itself.

肉有着独特的芳香和味道，能带来几乎可以和家相媲美的满足感。

And what, if not the feeling of home, is essential?

除了家的感觉，又有什么算得上缺之不可的东西呢？

And yet, an increasing number of people sense the inevitability² of impending³ change.

尽管如此，感觉到改变食肉这一习惯的潮流已经无可避免的人已经越来越多。

Animal agriculture is now recognized as a leading cause of global warming.

如今，畜牧业已经被认为是全球变暖的罪魁祸首之一。

According to The Economist⁴, a quarter of Americans between the ages of 25 and 34 say they are vegetarians⁵ or vegans,

《经济学人》的报道显示，25~34岁的美国人中有四分之一的人称自己是素食主义者或纯素食主义者，

which is perhaps one reason sales of plant-based "meats" have skyrocketed,

或许，植物“肉”销量的飙升就有这方面的原因，

with Impossible and Beyond Burgers available everywhere from Whole Foods to White Castle.

全食超市，白色城堡等各大品牌才会相继推出“不可思议汉堡”，“超越汉堡”等植物肉汉堡。

Our hand has been reaching for the doorknob for the last few years.

过去几年，我们一直在试图将手伸向植物肉这一大门。

Covid-19 has kicked open the door.

新冠肺炎却直接将其踹开了。

At the very least it has forced us to look.

最起码，它强行撑开了我们的眼睛。

When it comes to a subject as inconvenient⁶ as meat,

谈及肉这样棘手的话题时，

it is tempting⁷ to pretend unambiguous science is advocacy,

我们就会情不自禁地假装泾渭分明的科学才是我们应该提倡的东西，

to find solace⁸ in exceptions that could never be scaled and to speak about our world as if it were theoretical.

就会情不自禁地设法用无法延伸的特例自我安慰，用纸上谈兵的方式谈论现实世界。

Some of the most thoughtful people I know find ways not to give the problems of animal agriculture any thought,

我认识的部分有识之士都在设法回避畜牧业产生的问题，

just as I find ways to avoid thinking about climate change and income inequality, not to mention the paradoxes⁹ in my own eating life.

就像我努力回避气候变化、收入不平等问题——我自己的饮食生活中的悖论问题就更不用说了——一样。

One of the unexpected side effects of these months of sheltering in place is that it's hard not to think about the things that are essential to who we are.

究竟什么才是我们真正无法割舍的东西？我们已经很难不去想这一问题。连月以来的隔离带来了诸多意料之外的结果，对这一问题的思考便是其中之一。

We cannot protect our environment while continuing to eat meat regularly.

继续保持定期吃肉的习惯，我们就无法保护我们的环境。

This is not a refutable perspective, but a banal¹⁰ truism.

这一观点不仅不是什么可以推翻的观点，还是一个不言自明，再普通不过的真理。

1 embedded   

a.扎牢的

参考例句：

• an operation to remove glass that was embedded in his leg 取出扎入他腿部玻璃的手术
• He has embedded his name in the minds of millions of people. 他的名字铭刻在数百万人民心中。

2 inevitability   

n.必然性

参考例句：

• Evolutionism is normally associated with a belief in the inevitability of progress. 进化主义通常和一种相信进步不可避免的看法相联系。
• It is the tide of the times, an inevitability of history. 这是时代的潮流，历史的必然。

3 impending   

a.imminent, about to come or happen

参考例句：

• Against a background of impending famine, heavy fighting took place. 即将发生饥荒之时，严重的战乱爆发了。
• The king convoke parliament to cope with the impending danger. 国王召开国会以应付迫近眉睫的危险。

4 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

5 vegetarians   

n.吃素的人( vegetarian的名词复数 )；素食者；素食主义者；食草动物

参考例句：

• Vegetarians are no longer dismissed as cranks. 素食者不再被视为有怪癖的人。
• Vegetarians believe that eating meat is bad karma. 素食者认为吃肉食是造恶业。

6 inconvenient   

adj.不方便的，令人感到麻烦的

参考例句：

• You have come at a very inconvenient time.你来得最不适时。
• Will it be inconvenient for him to attend that meeting?他参加那次会议会不方便吗？

7 tempting   

a.诱人的, 吸引人的

参考例句：

• It is tempting to idealize the past. 人都爱把过去的日子说得那么美好。
• It was a tempting offer. 这是个诱人的提议。

8 solace   

n.安慰；v.使快乐；vt.安慰(物)，缓和

参考例句：

• They sought solace in religion from the harshness of their everyday lives.他们日常生活很艰难，就在宗教中寻求安慰。
• His acting career took a nosedive and he turned to drink for solace.演艺事业突然一落千丈，他便借酒浇愁。

9 paradoxes   

n.似非而是的隽语，看似矛盾而实际却可能正确的说法( paradox的名词复数 )；用于语言文学中的上述隽语；有矛盾特点的人[事物，情况]

参考例句：

• Contradictions and paradoxes arose in increasing numbers. 矛盾和悖论越来越多。 来自辞典例句
• As far as these paradoxes are concerned, the garden definitely a heterotopia. 就这些吊诡性而言，花园无疑地是个异质空间。 来自互联网

10 banal   

adj.陈腐的，平庸的

参考例句：

• Making banal remarks was one of his bad habits.他的坏习惯之一就是喜欢说些陈词滥调。
• The allegations ranged from the banal to the bizarre.从平淡无奇到离奇百怪的各种说法都有。