时代周刊:美国如何落到今天这步田地?(4)

Civil service is another great American reform that in the last 50 years has become a great American moat, protecting incompetent¹ or corrupt² workers,

公务员制度是在过去50年里成为了美国的巨型护城河，保护着那些不称职或腐败的劳动者，

like those who supervised the Veterans Affairs hospitals where patient waiting lists were found to have been falsified.

比如管理候诊名单被发现存在造假现象的荣民医院的人的另一项伟大改革。

On the other side are the unprotected many.

另一头是未被保护的多数群体。

They may be independent and hardworking,

他们或许也很勤奋独立，

but they look to their government to preserve their way of life and maybe even improve it.

但他们还是要依靠政府来维持甚至改善他们的生活水平。

The unprotected need the government to provide good public schools so that their children have a chance to advance.

他们需要政府提供良好的公立学校，这样，他们的孩子才有机会进步。

They need a level competitive playing field for their small businesses,

他们需要一个让自己的小本生意也能公平竞争的环境，

a fair shake in consumer disputes and a realistic shot at justice in the courts.

需要陷入消费者纠纷时能够得到公平待遇，在法庭上能得到公正的审判。

They need the government to provide a safety net to ensure that their families have access to good health care,

他们还需要政府提供一个安全网，确保他们的家庭有机会享受良好的医疗保健服务，

that no one goes hungry when shifts in the economy or temporary setbacks take away their jobs

确保经济变化或暂时的挫折夺走他们的工作时他们的家人不会挨饿，

and that they get help to rebuild after a hurricane or other disaster.

确保飓风或其他灾难袭击后重建家园时他们能得到帮助。

They need the government to ensure a safe workplace and a living minimum wage.

他们也需要政府保障他们拥有安全的工作环境和保底工资。

They need mass-transit systems that work and call centers at Social Security offices that don't produce busy signals.

需要运转良好的公共交通系统，以及不会提示“坐席忙”的社保局客服中心。

They need the government to keep the political system fair and protect it from domination by those who can give politicians the most money.

他们需要政府维持政治体系的公平，保护它不被那些能给政客们出价最高的人玩弄于鼓掌。

They need the government to provide fair labor³ laws

他们还需要政府提供公平的劳动法，

and to promote an economy and a tax code

促进经济和税法的发展

that tempers the extremes of income inequality and makes economic opportunity more than an empty cliché.

缓和收入不平等的极端化问题，使经济机会不再是一句空洞的套话。

The protected need few of these common goods.

而受到保护的那群人几乎是不需要这些公共利益的。

They don't have to worry about under-performing public schools, dilapidated mass-transit systems or jammed Social Security hotlines.

公立学校表现欠佳、公共交通系统过于破旧或社保热线总是占线，这些问题他们都无需担心。

They have accountants and lawyers who can negotiate their employment contracts or deal with consumer disputes, assuming they want to bother.

因为他们有会计师和律师帮他们谈雇佣合同，处理消费者纠纷，如果他们愿意费这个神的话。

They see labor or consumer-protection laws, and fair tax codes, as threats to their winnings—

劳工或消费者保护法，以及公平的税法在他们眼里都是威胁他们的战利品的存在——

which they have spent the last 50 years consolidating⁴ by eroding⁵ these common goods and the government that would provide them.

过去50年里，他们也一直在使用侵蚀这些公共利益和提供这些利益的政府等手段巩固他们的战利品。

That, rather than a split between Democrats⁶ and Republicans, is the real polarization that has broken America since the 1960s.

这一分裂不是民共两党的分裂，而是自20世纪60年代以来搞垮美国的，真正的两极分化。

It's the protected vs. the unprotected, the common good vs. maximizing and protecting the elite⁷ winners' winnings.

是受到保护的群体与未被保护的群体之间的两极分化，是公共利益与最大化精英赢家们的战利品并捍卫这些战利品之间的两极分化。

1 incompetent   

adj.无能力的，不能胜任的

参考例句：

• He is utterly incompetent at his job.他完全不能胜任他的工作。
• He is incompetent at working with his hands.他动手能力不行。

2 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

3 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

4 consolidating   

v.（使）巩固， （使）加强( consolidate的现在分词 )；（使）合并

参考例句：

• These measures are meant for consolidating the system of basic medical care. 这些举措旨在夯实基层医疗体系，让老百姓看大病不必出远门。 来自互联网
• We are consolidating the Chinese and English versions of our homepage. 我们将为您提供中英文版本一起的主页。 来自互联网

5 eroding   

侵蚀，腐蚀( erode的现在分词 )； 逐渐毁坏，削弱，损害

参考例句：

• The coast is slowly eroding. 海岸正慢慢地被侵蚀。
• Another new development is eroding the age-old stereotype of the male warrior. 另一个新现象是，久已形成的男人皆武士的形象正逐渐消失。

6 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。