I don’t like either Donald or Hillary

2016/11/08 08:41:16 網誌分類: 生活

08 Nov

         Who will American voters elect as the next president of the United States? The world is waiting with bated breath. To wait with bated breath means to wait very anxiously, eagerly, or excitedly. We will know the answer tomorrow. I am an American voter but have decided not to vote. I don’t like either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton. Both are not in the same league as Barack Obama. To “be in the same league as” means to be at the same level, or to be as good as. I voted for Obama in 2008 and also in 2012 when he ran for re-election. America’s constitution (system of laws and regulations) does not allow a president to run for a third term.

         Obama is an excellent orator. An orator is a very good public speaker or a person who is very good at speeches. Obama supports Hillary Clinton because they are both in the Democratic Party. Last week Obama gave an excellent speech in Ohio criticizing Trump as a con man. The American slang word con man means a person who cheats or tricks others into believing things that are not true. I watched part of the speech on the internet. Obama’s speech was scathing (extremely critical) yet funny. He urged voters not to be bamboozled by Trump. The American slang word “bamboozle” means to trick, fool, or deceive people. The slang words “dupe” and “hoodwink” have similar meanings.

         Obama said Trump stiffed small businesses. The word “stiff” has many meanings and can be used in many ways. But it is also an American slang word that means to cheat someone out of money. For example, if your boss doesn’t pay you for overtime work, you can say your boss stiffed you out of overtime pay. Obama accused Trump, a billionaire, of cheating small businesses. It is well-known that Obama despises (loathes, dislikes, hates) Trump. He feels that Trump has bamboozled working-class people into believing he cares about them but has, in fact, stiffed many small businesses.

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        美國選民到底會選誰做美國下任總統？全世界也在屏息（bated breath）以待。 To wait with bated breath意即非常焦急、急切或興奮地等待。明天我們便會知道答案。我是美國選民，但已決定了不會投票。特朗普和希拉莉，兩個我也不喜歡。二人都比不上（not in the same league as）奧巴馬。 Be in the same league as 意思就是同等級數，或與之一樣的好。我在二○○八年投了給奧巴馬，二○一二年他競逐連任時我也投了他。美國的憲法（constitution）不容許同一人做三任總統。

        　　奧巴馬是個一流的演說家（orator）。Orator就是非常優秀的演講者，或是很懂得演說的人。奧巴馬支持希拉莉，因為他們同屬民主黨。上星期，奧巴馬就在俄亥俄州發表了一場極佳的演說，批評特朗普是個con man。美式俚語con man意即騙子。我在網上看了演講的一部份。奧巴馬的演說很尖刻（scathing）卻又有趣。他力勸選民別被特朗普所迷惑（bamboozled）。美式俚語bamboozle是指去欺騙或迷惑他人，俚語dupe和hoodwink都有相近的意思。

        　　奧巴馬說，特朗普騙了（stiffed）小企和小商戶。Stiff有許多意思，也可以有許多用法。但它也是個美式俚語，是指去坑人家的錢。譬如，若你的老闆不付你超時工作的薪水，你便可以說your boss stiffed you out of overtime pay 。奧巴馬指責特朗普這名億萬富翁，欺騙了小企和小商戶。眾所周知，奧巴馬鄙視（despises）特朗普。他認為特朗普迷惑了（bamboozled）勞動階層，使他們以為他關心他們，卻其實是欺騙了（stiffed）眾多小企。

        中譯：七刻 Michael Chugani褚簡寧



        中譯:七刻

        Michael Chugani 褚簡寧

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I don’t like either Donald or Hillary

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