VOA标准英语2012--Venezuelan Voters to Decide Whether to Continue Chavez Rule
时间：2018-12-16 作者：英语课 分类：VOA标准英语2012年(十月)
Venezuelan Voters to Decide Whether to Continue Chavez Rule
As Sunday's election nears, President Chavez has stepped up new government building projects in Caracas that provide jobs and free housing to the poor. By using Venezuela's vast oil resources to pay for billions of dollars worth of social programs and subsidies 1, the president has in the past been able to maintain the support of a majority of voters.
A tank of gasoline in Venezuela costs less than a bottle of water.
And Chavez supporters like Ramon Gonzales are not bothered if they have to wait in long lines for limited supplies of subsidized food.
“We are all accustomed to waiting in line. Everyone is used to it. It is all good," said Gonzales.
But critics say Chavez's seizure 2 of private companies and the imposition of price and currency controls have undermined economic development. His critics also blame him for the soaring violent crime rate.
In this election, Venezuela's opposition 3 has united around Henrique Capriles, a former governor who says he wants to maintain the popular social programs but make the country more business-friendly. Capriles supporter Luis Maceto says Venezuela needs new leadership.
“Because he offers change for the entire situation in which we are living: the violence, the unemployment, the insecurity," said Maceto.
Independent pollster Luis Vicente Leon says Chavez is leading but the race is close. He says even Chavez supporters are increasingly critical of government cronyism 4 and inefficiency 5.
"It goes beyond ideological 6 themes, it goes beyond the left and the right, it goes beyond radicalism 7 or moderation. The perfect grade for Chavez’s government is...very poor," said Leon.
When they head to the polls on Sunday, Venezuelan voters will decide to either continue Chavez's brand of socialism or seek change.
- European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
- Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- The seizure of contraband is made by customs.那些走私品是被海关没收的。
- The courts ordered the seizure of all her property.法院下令查封她所有的财产。
- The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
- The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。
- Many small town mayor and city official practice cronyism.许多小镇的市长和大城市的官员都有任人唯亲的行为。
- Bringing business people into politics can also produce corruption and cronyism.商人从政也容易带来腐败和任人唯亲。
- Conflict between management and workers makes for inefficiency in the workplace. 资方与工人之间的冲突使得工厂生产效率很低。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- This type of inefficiency arises because workers and management are ill-equipped. 出现此种低效率是因为工人与管理层都能力不足。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
- He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。
- His radicalism and refusal to compromise isolated him. 他的激进主义与拒绝妥协使他受到孤立。
- Education produced intellectual ferment and the temptations of radicalism. 教育带来知识界的骚动，促使激进主义具有了吸引力。