时间:2019-01-13 作者:英语课 分类:VOA标准英语2012年(八月)


英语课

 


German Housewife Hailed as Euro Solution



In the parks of Stuttgart, the regional capital of Swabia, there are few signs of a crisis, and the economy is growing.


In a speech, at the start of the global financial crisis, German Chancellor 1 Angela Merkel praised the qualities of the ‘Swabian housewife’ - famed in Germany for thriftiness 2 and the ability to run a household.


Claudia Bauder and Gaby Weber have plenty of advice on that. They are members of the German - American Women’s Club in Stuttgart. “There is a deeply ingrained honesty in Swabians and Germans that would not take advantage too much of other people and the state itself," Weber said.


Polls show a majority of German taxpayers 3 back Chancellor Merkel’s pro-austerity stance, forcing troubled economies to slash 4 spending in return for bailouts. Bauder and Weber say it is basic household economics.


This week, the German finance minister said money should not be thrown ‘into a bottomless pit’ to save the euro, a view echoed by Bauder and Weber.


“You do want to help of course, but you also say, 'What is their plan to improve their situation?' I think it is justifiable 5 to say, ‘How do you plan to fix it?’” Bauder pondered.


If Germany pays the bills, it must have a say in how the European Union ‘household’ is run, says analyst 6 Ferdinand Fichtner of the German Institute for Economic Research.


“We have institutions in the monetary 7 union like the ECB [European Central Bank], but also like the bailout funds, that can actually stop the euro from falling apart by investing a huge amount of money. I do not think that this is necessarily a good thing," Fichtner stated. "I think we have to discuss about whether countries should leave the monetary union, I think this is actually healing.”


Germany says it does not want the euro to break up and European leaders have failed to come up with a solution. But Chancellor Merkel believes the simple household economics of prosperous Swabia could hold valuable lessons for the whole of Europe.




n.(英)大臣;法官;(德、奥)总理;大学校长
  • 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。
节俭,节约
  • Taoism has always advocated thriftiness and plain life. 道教历来倡导节俭、朴素的生活。
  • That's a positive feeling. Now I added only to my thriftiness but also independence and endurance. 通过这事,我不仅长了点经济头脑,也变得更加独立,更具忍耐力了。
纳税人,纳税的机构( taxpayer的名词复数 )
  • Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育经费来自纳税人。
  • She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money. 她慷慨陈词猛烈抨击对纳税人金钱的浪费。
vi.大幅度削减;vt.猛砍,尖锐抨击,大幅减少;n.猛砍,斜线,长切口,衣衩
  • The shop plans to slash fur prices after Spring Festival.该店计划在春节之后把皮货降价。
  • Don't slash your horse in that cruel way.不要那样残忍地鞭打你的马。
adj.有理由的,无可非议的
  • What he has done is hardly justifiable.他的所作所为说不过去。
  • Justifiable defense is the act being exempted from crimes.正当防卫不属于犯罪行为。
n.分析家,化验员;心理分析学家
  • What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务?
  • The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。
adj.货币的,钱的;通货的;金融的;财政的
  • The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
  • Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。
学英语单词