Passage Seventeen (On the President’s Program)
President Arling has put his long awaited economic restructuring program before the Congress. It provides a coordinated program of investment credits, research grants, education reforms, and tax changes designed to make American industry more competitive. This is necessary to reverse the economic slide into unemployment, lack of growth, and trade deficits that have plagued the economy for the past six years.
The most liberal wing of the President’s party has called for stronger and more direct action. They want an incomes policy to check inflation while federal financing helps rebuild industry behind a wall of protective tariffs.
The Republicans, however, decry even the modest, graduated tax increases in the President’s program. They want tax cuts and more open market. They say if federal money has to be injected into the economy, let it through defence spending.
Both these alternatives ignore the unique nature of the economic problem before us. It is not simply a matter of markets or financing. The new technology allows vastly increased production for those able to master it. But it also threatens those who fail to adopt it with permanent second-class citizenship in the world economy. If an industry cannot lever itself up to the leading stage of technological advances, then it will not be able to compete effectively. If it cannot do this, no amount of government protectionism or access to foreign markets can keep it profitable for long. Without the profits and experience of technological excellence to reinvest, that industry can only fall still further behind its foreign competitors.
So the crux is the technology and that is where the President’s program focused. The danger is not that a plan will not be passed, it is that the ideologues of right and left will distort the bill with amendments that will blur its focus on technology. The economic restructuring plan should be passed intact. If we fail to restructure our economy now, we may not get a second chance.
1. The focus of the President’s program is on
[A] investment.
[B] economy.
[C] technology.
[D] tax.
2. What is the requirement of the most liberal wing of the Democratic-party?
[A] They want a more direct action.
[B] They want an incomes policy to check inflation.
[C] They want to rebuild industry.
[D] They want a wall of protective tariffs.
3. What is the editor’s attitude?
[A] support.
[B] distaste.
[C] Disapproval.
[D] Compromise.
4. The danger to the plan lies in
[A] the two parties’ objection.
[B] different idea of the two parties about the plan.
[C] its passage.
[D] distortion.
5. The passage is
[A] a review.
[B] a preface.
[C] a advertisement.
[D] an editorial.
Vocabulary
1.reverse逆轉
2.slide滑坡
3.plague瘟疫；折磨，困擾
4.tariff 關稅
5.decry 譴責，詆毀
6.lever 杠桿；用杠桿撬動
7.crux癥結
8.ideologue空想家，思想家
9.intact原封不動的，完整無損的
10.investment credit投資信貸
11.research grant研究基金
難句譯注
1.This is necessary to reverse the economic slide into unemployment， lack of growth， and trade deficits that have plagued the economy for the past six years. 「參考譯文」這對扭轉經濟滑坡；滑到失業高，增長少和已經困擾經濟達6年之久貿易赤字來說是必要的。
寫作方法與文章大意
這是一則有關總統向國會提交的經濟計劃評論。作者采用對比手法來突出其計劃之正確性，第一段就講了計劃的涉及面：投資、研究、教育、稅收等，目的是制止經濟滑坡，提高美國工業競爭力。第二、三兩段敘述了計劃遭兩方面的反對，總統黨內的右翼要求更強硬，更直接的行動，而共和黨對即使逐漸稍稍提高一點稅收都予以譴責。第四段提出兩者都忽略我們面臨經濟問題的獨特性質。它不是市場或財政問題。掌握新技術的人大量增產，而不能采用新技術的人面臨在世界經濟中成為二等公民的危險。工業不能達到先進水平，就不能有效地競爭，
那么任何保護主義或進入外國市場都不能長期奏效。沒有技術優勢的經驗和利潤的再投資，工業經濟只能依然落后于外國競爭對手。最后一段點出總統計劃的要點就是工藝技術。作者提出：要求全面通過這一重新建設計劃。如果我們不能重建經濟，我們可能不會有第二次機會。
答案詳解
1. C 工藝技術。最后一段第一句“問題的癥結就在于工藝技術，這就是總統計劃的要點所在。”第四段：“對掌握新技術的人來說，新技術使他們大大增產，而新技術對不能掌握它的人來說，在世界經濟中他們面臨淪為永久性的二等公民的危險。如果不能做到這一點，那么任何政府保護主義，進入國際市場都不能有效地競爭。如果不能有技術優勢的利潤和經驗再投資，工業只能進一步落后于國外競爭對手。“這些都說明總統計劃的重點再工藝技術。
A.投資。
D.稅收。只是總統計劃的涉及面。
B.經濟。太籠統了。
2. A 更直接行動。第二段“總統的黨內幾段自由翼要求更強硬、更直接行動。他們要求用收入（稅收）政策來制止通貨膨脹；聯邦財政在關稅保護下，幫助重建工業。”
B.他們需要制止通貨膨脹。C.重建工業。D.保護關稅墻。都只是他們要求中的不分內容，不完整。
3. A支持。第四、五段集中了評論者的觀點，支持的理由和論點。
B.厭惡。
C.不贊成。
D.調和妥協。
4. D歪曲。最后一段第二句：“其危險不在于計劃將不被通過，而在于左和右的思想理論家們用修正案來歪曲提案，使計劃要點蒙塵模糊不清，經濟重建計劃應原封不動地通過。”這是作者的態度，也是他所擔心之處。
A.兩黨的反對。
B.兩黨對計劃的不同看法。
C.它的通過。 |
