词汇提示

1.encyclopedia 百科全书

2.hostile 敌对的

3.dictatorship 专政

4.legacy 遗产

5.igniting 点燃

原文

Bill Clinton: 'Second Inaugural Address' (3)

As this new era approaches we can already see its broad outlines.

Ten years ago, the Internet was the mystical province of physicists; today, it is a common place encyclopedia for millions of schoolchildren.

Scientists now are decoding the blueprint of human life.

Cures for our most feared illnesses seem close at hand.

The world is no longer divided into two hostile camps.

Instead,now we are building bonds with nations that once were our adversaries.

Growing connections of commerce and culture give us a chance to lift the fortunes and spirits of people the world over.

And for the very first time in all of history, more people on this planet live under democracy than dictatorship.

My fellow Americans, as we look back at this remarkable century, we may ask, can we hope not just to follow, but even to surpass the achievements of the 20th century in America and to avoid the awful bloodshed that stained its legacy?

To that question, every American here and every American in our land today must answer a resounding "Yes."

This is the heart of our task.

With a new vision of government, a new sense of responsibility, a new spirit of community, we will sustain America's journey.

The promise we sought in a new land we will find again in a land of new promise.

Our schools will have the highest standards in the world, igniting the spark of possibility in the eyes of every girl and every boy.

And the doors of higher education will be open to all.

The knowledge and power of the Information Age will be within reach not just of the few, but of every classroom, every library, every child.

Parents and children will have time not only to work, but to read and play together.

And the plans they make at their kitchen table will be those of a better home, a better job, the certain chance to go to college.

Our streets will echo again with the laughter of our children, because no one will try to shoot them or sell them drugs anymore.

Everyone who can work, will work, with today's permanent under class part of tomorrow's growing middle class.

New miracles of medicine at last will reach not only those who can claim care now, but the children and hardworking families too long denied.

We will stand mighty for peace and freedom, and maintain a strong defense against terror and destruction.

Our children will sleep free from the threat of nuclear, chemical or biological weapons.

Ports and airports, farms and factories will thrive with trade and innovation and ideas.

And the world's greatest democracy will lead a whole world of democracies.

Our land of new promise will be a nation that meets its obligations a nation that balances its budget, but never loses the balance of its values.

A nation where our grandparents have secure retirement and health care, and their grandchildren know we have made the reforms necessary to sustain those benefits for their time.

A nation that fortifies the world's most productive economy even as it protects the great natural bounty of our water, air, and majestic land.

翻译

比尔·克林顿:“第二次就职演说”(3)

随着这个新时代的临近，我们已经可以看到它的大致轮廓。
十年前，互联网是物理学家的神秘领域;今天，它是数百万学童的通用百科全书。
科学家们正在破译人类生命的蓝图。
治疗我们最可怕的疾病似乎近在咫尺。
世界不再分为两个敌对的阵营。
相反，现在我们正在与曾经是我们对手的国家建立联系。
日益增长的商业和文化联系使我们有机会提升世界各地人民的财富和精神。
有史以来第一次，这个星球上生活在民主统治下的人比生活在独裁统治下的人多。
我的美国同胞们，当我们回顾这个非凡的世纪时，我们可能会问，我们能希望不仅追随，甚至超越美国在20世纪取得的成就，并避免玷污其遗产的可怕流血事件吗?
对于这个问题，今天在座的每一个美国人以及我们国土上的每一个美国人都必须响亮地回答:“是的。”
这是我们任务的核心。
有了政府的新愿景，有了新的责任感，有了新的社区精神，我们将继续美国的征程。
我们在新的土地上寻求的希望，我们将在新的希望的土地上再次找到。
我们的学校将拥有世界上最高的标准，在每个女孩和每个男孩的眼中点燃可能性的火花。
高等教育的大门将向所有人敞开。
信息时代的知识和力量不是少数人可以接触到的，而是每个教室、每个图书馆、每个孩子都可以接触到的。
父母和孩子不仅有时间工作，还有时间一起读书和玩耍。
他们在厨房餐桌上制定的计划将是更好的家，更好的工作，上大学的肯定机会。
我们的街道将再次回荡着孩子们的笑声，因为没有人会再试图枪杀他们或卖给他们毒品。
每个能工作的人都将工作，今天的下层阶级将成为明天不断壮大的中产阶级的一部分。
新的医学奇迹最终将不仅惠及那些现在可以要求治疗的人，而且惠及那些长期得不到治疗的儿童和辛勤工作的家庭。
我们将以强大的力量捍卫和平与自由，并保持对恐怖和破坏的强大防御。
我们的孩子将在没有核武器、化学武器或生物武器威胁的情况下入睡。
港口、机场、农场和工厂将因贸易、创新和创意而蓬勃发展。
世界上最伟大的民主国家将领导整个民主世界。
我们这片充满新希望的土地将是一个履行其义务的国家，一个平衡预算但永不失去价值观平衡的国家。
在这个国家，我们的祖父母有保障的退休和医疗保健，他们的孙子知道我们已经进行了必要的改革，以便在他们的时代保持这些福利。
我们的国家在巩固世界上最具生产力的经济的同时，也保护着我们丰富的自然资源——水、空气和壮丽的土地。