新奇事件簿 纽约市禁止无现金商店

The advance of technology in our lives has been halted somewhat in New York City. Lawmakers have passed a bill to ban cashless businesses. With many parts of the world in a seemingly relentless¹ drive to replace cash with plastic or digital payments, New York City officials have decided² cash still has a valuable part to play in our lives. The officials have approved legislation that prohibits stores, restaurants and other retail³ outlets⁴ from refusing to accept cash. They want to provide the ability for people who prefer to pay via traditional means, through notes and coins. This means businesses in the city will no longer be able to insist that customers make use of cashless payments in any transactions.

我们生活中的科技进步在纽约多少有些停滞不前。立法者通过了一项法案禁止无现金业务。世界很多国家似乎都在用信用卡或数字支付取代现金，但纽约市的官员认为现金仍在我们的生活中扮演重要角色。官员们已经通过了一项立法，禁止商店、餐厅和其他零售商店拒收现金。他们希望为喜欢传统支付方式，如纸币和硬币的人提供支付能力。这意味着城市中的商户将不再能够坚持要求客户在任何交易中使用无现金支付。

Businesses that violate the new regulation could face hefty fines of up to $1,500 for each offense⁵. Critics of cashless businesses say they discriminate⁶ against the poorer sections of society, many of whom do not have bank accounts or credit cards. One city resident said: "I worry about the real-world discriminatory effect that cashless business can have on New Yorkers, especially in communities of color." Another said: "I think it's incredibly discriminatory not to accept cash because some people can't get credit." An opponent of the bill said it was a sign of government interference: He said: "We are inserting ourselves in the business of business in a way that we don't have the right to."

违反新规定的商户将面临最高达1500美元的罚款。无现金商户的批评者称，这是对社会贫困阶层的歧视，他们中的许多人没有银行账户或信用卡。一位市民表示：“我担心在现实世界中，无现金业务可能会对纽约人产生歧视性影响，尤其是在有色社区。”另一位市民表示：“我认为我认为不收现金是非常歧视的，因为有些人没有信用卡。”一名法案反对者称这是政府干预的迹象：他说到：“我们以一种我们没有权利去做的方式把自己投入到生意中去。”

1 relentless   

adj.残酷的，不留情的，无怜悯心的

参考例句：

• The traffic noise is relentless.交通车辆的噪音一刻也不停止。
• Their training has to be relentless.他们的训练必须是无情的。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

4 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 offense   

n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪

参考例句：

• I hope you will not take any offense at my words. 对我讲的话请别见怪。
• His words gave great offense to everybody present.他的发言冲犯了在场的所有人。

6 discriminate   

v.区别，辨别，区分；有区别地对待

参考例句：

• You must learn to discriminate between facts and opinions.你必须学会把事实和看法区分出来。
• They can discriminate hundreds of colours.他们能分辨上百种颜色。