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 约翰 肯尼迪的遗志50年不衰

Friday, November 22nd, marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most traumatic events in U.S. history, the 1963 assassination¹ of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas. Public opinion polls show he remains² popular and many Americans continue to be inspired by the ideals and hope his legacy³ represents.

11月22日星期五是约翰?肯尼迪总统1963年在得克萨斯州达拉斯市遇刺50周年纪念日。这是美国历史上最令人痛心的事件之一。民意调查显示，很多美国人仍旧非常热爱肯尼迪总统，继续被他的遗产代表的理念和希望所鼓舞。

Space exploration was an important part of Kennedy’s New Frontier.

太空探索是约翰?肯尼迪新边疆政策的重要内容。

The early success of the Mercury manned space missions under Kennedy set the stage for the moon landing later in the decade and remains one of his signature achievements.

肯尼迪总统任内，水星载人太空任务的早期成功为60年代后期的登月奠定了基础。这是肯尼迪总统标志性的成就之一。

“It was not about what I can do for you.  It was, you should do this because it is tough, it is difficult," said Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, who is Robert Kennedy’s eldest⁴ child and President Kennedy’s niece. "We are going to go to the moon because it is hard and it will take all our best energies.  But that will make us a better people when we do that."

肯尼迪总统侄女凯瑟琳?肯尼迪?汤森说： “这不涉及我能为你们做什么，而是因为这件事很艰苦，很困难，所以你们应该去做。我们将登上月球，因为这件事很难，要求我们付出最大的精力。但是，做这件事的时候，我们将变成一个更好的民族。”.

One of the most vexing⁵ issues John Kennedy faced while in office was civil rights.  A few months before he died, Kennedy made a fresh appeal for action to Congress.

约翰?肯尼迪任内的最棘手的问题之一是公民权利。在他去世前几个月，肯尼迪再次恳请国会采取行动。

“We are confronted primarily with a moral issue.  It is old as the scriptures⁶ and as clear as the American Constitution.  The heart of the question is whether all Americans are going to be afforded equal rights and equal opportunities," he said.

约翰?肯尼迪说 ：“我们面临的主要是个道德问题。它像圣经一样古老，像美国宪法一样明晰。这个问题的核心是是否所有美国人都将被赋予平等的权利和平等的机会。”

“We do not know what greatness he could have come to," said Harris Wofford, who advised President Kennedy on civil rights. "We lost somebody who was on the way toward greatness, in my opinion, at a time we needed that."

已故肯尼迪总统的顾问哈里斯?沃福德参议员说： “我们无法知道他会变得多么伟大。但我认为，在我们最需要的时候，我们失去了一个正在成为伟人的人。”

Many still wonder how the world might be different if John Kennedy had lived.

许多人仍在想象，如果肯尼迪还活着，世界将会多么不同。

“It is really sad.  Our country lost a lot in November, 1963, and when my father was killed.  It was a lot," said Kathleen Kennedy Townsend. "And I think we would have been a much better country had they lived.  I am not a believer in, you know, out of tragedy good can come.  I think a lot of pain came and a lot of bad things for our country."

凯瑟琳?肯尼迪?汤森说： “这非常令人伤心。我们的国家在1963年的11月以及我父亲被害时失去了很多。非常多。我想如果他们还活着，美国会是一个更好的国家。我并不相信塞翁失马焉之非福的说法。我认为这给我们的国家带来了很多伤痛和许多坏的事情。”

A few months before he died, President Kennedy spent a few days in his ancestral homeland of Ireland.

在他去世前几个月，肯尼迪总统在他的故乡爱尔兰度过了几天。

“You know, after President Kennedy went to Berlin he went to Ireland and he said that that was the happiest four days of his life.  And when he was killed he had a rosary in his pocket, and Jackie sent that rosary to the people of Ireland, to the town his grandfather came from, because she knew how much he believed his values came from that Irish immigrant experience," said Kennedy Townsend.

凯瑟琳?肯尼迪?汤森说：“肯尼迪总统离开柏林后又去了爱尔兰。他说那是他生命中最欢乐的四天。当他被刺杀时，他的口袋里放着一串祈祷念珠。杰奎琳将这串祈祷念珠送给了爱尔兰人民，送到了他的祖父的家乡，因为她知道肯尼迪相信他的价值观来自那段爱尔兰移民的经历。”

“The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it, and the glow from that fire can truly light the world,"  President Kennedy once said.

约翰?肯尼迪总统说 “我们带给这项事业的能量、信仰和献身精神将照亮我们的国家和所有为国家服务的人们。这团火焰的光芒将真正照亮世界。”

John Kennedy’s words still echo from the past and the flame atop his grave continues to burn, a beacon⁷ to those who strive to the make the world a better place.

约翰?肯尼迪的话言犹在耳，他墓地上的火焰还在熊熊燃烧，这团火焰是那些为把世界变得更好而努力的人们的指路明灯。