VOA标准英语2012--Debate: How To Fix The Economy

 

Debate: How To Fix The Economy

Austerity measures angered many Greeks, including some who threw gasoline bombs and rocks at police. 

They protested plans to cut government spending on services and raise taxes in a bid to repay loans. Those loans were needed to make up for deficits¹ when government spending exceeded revenue.

Nobel prize-winning economist² and author Paul Krugman says austerity is the wrong way to go. "We have had an unprecedented³ fall in public employment, unprecedented cutback in purchases of goods and services," he said.

George Mason University scholar Verinoque de Rugy says Japan’s experience shows that government spending increases costs but not growth.

"They have, for years and years and years, tried to get out of their recession, or their slow or non-growth, through spending and spending and spending and being in debt and that has not worked," De Rugy said.

During recessions, many governments spend money on public infrastructure⁴ to create jobs and spur long term growth. But De Rugy says, if government spending boosts demand and growth during recessions, it should not be needed when the economy is strong.

"In times of boom or economic growth, government should be cut. The size of government, government spending, should go down. And that never happens," De Rugy said.

German Chancellor⁵ Angela Merkel says governments that spend more than they take in must eventually pay back the loans they use to cover their deficits. Austerity advocates argue that, without spending cuts, lenders will lose confidence they will be repaid. That lost confidence could mean future loans will be unavailable or expensive.

Merkel’s opinion is important here because Germany is Europe’s largest economy and the main contributor to the emergency loans used to bail⁶ out economically troubled neighbors.

But Krugman says austerity has failed. "We have had one hell of an experiment in austerity and the results are in.... Austerity has been contractionary with a vengeance,” he said.

Some voters in Germany may share Krugman's views. Merkel's political party lost a state election recently where arguments about spending and austerity were part of the political debate.

1 deficits   

n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损

参考例句：

• The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句

2 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。

3 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

4 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

5 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

6 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。