Bank holiday是國定假日,不是「銀行假期」,這是英國人用來形容連續假期。連銀行都休假了,這些懶骨頭上班族何必上班,難怪大英帝國逐漸式微。
Noun to describe a series of vacation days in the old country. The banks are on holiday... so why should the rest ofthe lazy slobs go to work? Is it any wonder that the empire was lost.
●The offices will be closed for the Bank holiday (and wewill probably go out of business but who cares).
●On the bank holidays, we go to Blackpool for a grand old time on the sands.
●“It is hard to tell if the poor efficiency is due to incompetence or the volume of bank holidays”.
2. Zombie Company
僵屍公司:是指那些早該倒閉,卻一直得到政府資助的公司。
●A technically bankrupt company that is kept alive withlarge infusions of government money for the sake of“stability”in the U.S. financial system.
●A large financial company with negative net worth thatcontinues to operate, despite having no clear path to solvency.
●“AIG is the premier example of a zombie company -- kept alive only by $120 billion in federal bailout money. Apparently, it,s considered too large to fail.”
An all-purpose excuse that people use during a recessionto justify doing things that are below their usual standard. Often these things in reality have little or nothing to do with the economic circumstances.
Senator:“Mr. Paulson, you really want to give the greedy, soulless bankers who caused this mess $700 billion with no strings attached?”
Henry Paulson:“Hey guys, bad economy. Just do it.”
●The term Fourth Estate refers to the press, both in itsexplicit capacity of advocacy and in its implicit abilityto frame political issues. The term goes back at least to Thomas Carlyle in the first half of the 19th century.
●None of our political writers... takes notice of any more than three estates, namely, Kings, Lords, and Commons...passing by in silence that very large and powerful body which form the fourth estate in this community...
5. moonshine
不一定是月光,也指私釀烈酒。因為人釀私酒都是在月光底下半夜偷偷摸摸。
Moonshine is illegally distilled homemade whisky, usuallywith a very high alcohol content. It got its name becauseit was normally distilled at night“by the light of the moon.”Most moonshine is distilled in West Virginia, Kentuckyand Virginia.
The only reason that moonshine is illegal is because there anyone who distills spirits in the U.S. has to pay a federal tax. Moonshiners don,t pay the tax. Local police usually ignore moonshiners because“they ain,t hurting anyone.”
6. mug shot
不是被馬克杯擊中,是指拍照存檔。mug為馬克杯。18世紀初英國流行怪異面孔裝飾造型的馬克杯,因此mug遂有“面孔”的意思。歹徒被捕後到警察局 get a mug shot,就是拍照存檔。
●A picture of a person,s face, especially those in police files.
●There is a mug shot of the escaped convict in the newspaper.
Window1001: Atlas Shrugged
●《亞特拉斯聳聳肩》:52年,經濟危機從預言到現實
很奇怪,《Atlas Shrugged》這本書在美國紅得不得了,受歡迎程度僅次於「聖經」,是美國政治家、企業主必讀經典,還有人讀了這部大作之後,發誓從此不再讀其他的書,台灣不但沒有出版譯本,知道的人也很少,簡體版譯成《亞特拉斯聳聳肩》。不久前華爾街日報的資深評論員Stephen Moore,寫了一篇文章叫“Atlas Shrugged:From Fiction to Fact in 52 Years”,他說“假若要求每一個國會成員和歐巴馬政府官員都讀一讀《亞特拉斯聳聳肩》(也有人譯成《地球顫慄》),相信我們會更快擺脫當前的經濟危機。”什麼書這麼神奇?就算沒有時間讀一千頁的版本,7分鐘影音版的Executive summary,你一定要看。請上www.window1001.com。
以下節譯自Stephen Moore華爾街日報文章
幾年前,當我在卡托學院工作的時候(卡托學院是位於美國華盛頓哥倫比亞特區的自由意志主義智庫),我們把沒有讀過《亞特拉斯聳聳肩》的人稱為“處女”。這部經典著作主要描寫政府不當作為而導致經濟大蕭條。假若要求每一個國會成員和歐巴馬政府官員都讀一讀《亞特拉斯聳聳肩》,那麼,相信我們會更快擺脫當前的經濟危機。(If only“Atlas” were required reading for every memberof Congress and political appointee in the Obama administration. I,m confident that we,d get out of the current financial mess a lot faster.)
這本超過1000頁的小說,作者是俄裔的安蘭德(Ayn Rand),1957年首版時便一炮而紅,1991年一項在國會圖書館和每月讀者俱樂部的調查中顯示,《亞特拉斯聳聳肩》是美國僅次於《聖經》的第二影響力著作。(A survey by the Library of Congress and the Book of the Month Club found that readers rated“Atlas”as thesecond-most influential book in their lives, behind only the Bible.)
“Escorted tours are structured group tours, with a groupleader. The price usually includes everything from airfareto hotels, meals, tours, admission costs, and local transportation.”(紐約時報/旅行版)
還有一種叫做套裝旅遊行程,有一點像中文的「自由行」,叫 package tour。
Package tours are simply a way to buy the airfare, accommodations, and other elements of your trip (such as car rentals, airport transfers, and sometimes even activities) at the same time and often at discounted prices.(紐約時報/旅行版)
Package的意思是把一切都像打包似的包在一起,包含門票、機票、旅館費用等。商業交易有一大堆的條件,也可用package,叫做package deal,只有當包括的所有條件都接受後買賣才能繼續下去。同理,要是制定出一大堆措施,就叫做 a package of measures,走在國外的大街上,猛一抬頭看到一個招牌,上書 Package Store,千萬不要以為一個什麼東西都賣的雜貨鋪。只要你進去就會發現,它是一家酒的專賣店。