法官就职演讲
① 求里根总统的就职演讲和最后一次的演讲。要有中文翻译
就职演说:议员海特菲尔德先生、法官先生、总统先生、副总统布什、蒙代尔先生、议员贝克先生、发言人奥尼尔先生、尊敬的摩麦先生,以及广大支持我的美国同胞们:今天对于我们中间的一些人来说,是一个非常庄严隆重的时刻。当然,对于这个国家的历史来说,却是一件普通的事情。按照宪法要求,zf权利正在有序地移交,我们已经如此“例行公事”了两个世纪,很少有人觉得这有什么特别的。但在世界上更多人看来,这个我们已经习以为常的四年一次的仪式,却实在是一个奇迹。
总统先生,我希望我们的同胞们都能知道你为了这个传承而付出的努力。通过移交程序中的通力合作,你向观察者展示了这么一个事实:我们是发誓要团结起来维护这样一个政治体制的团体,这样的体制保证了我们能够得到比其他政体更为广泛的个人自由。同时我也要感谢你和你的伙伴们的帮助,因为你们坚持了这样的传承,而这恰恰是我们共和国的根基。
我们国家的商业在一步步地前进,这个国家正面临着大范围的经济困境,我们也正遭受着国家有史以来历时最长情况也最糟糕的通货膨胀。它影响了我们的经济决策,迫使我们重视节俭,同时也严重打击了奋发向上的年轻人们,甚至年长者也未能幸免于难。它威胁着千百万人的生活。
工业的疲软导致了大量的工人失业,也带来人民的苦难和更多的责难。我们的税收制度使得那些工作勤勤恳恳的人得不到应得的回报,它阻碍了成功的道路,使得我们无法全心投入工作之中。
最后一次演讲:
南希和我今晚应邀出席这次大会,与大家共度这一特殊时刻,感到很荣幸,我以总统身份在共和党大会上发表讲话,这是最后一次了。因此,我十分感谢在座的诸位。
每当听到有人说我是在1981年1月20日成为总统的,我就觉得我必须予以纠正,因为,我并不是自己成为美国总统的,我只是受权暂时管理一个叫做总统制的机构,而这个机构是属于人民的。
我曾经多次祷告,感谢所有给予我这一信托的美国人,今晚,请再次接受我们——南希和我的由衷的感谢,感谢你们赋予我们一生中这一特殊的时刻。
刚才,你们又用一篇感人肺腑的颂词给这种荣誉锦上添花,我只不过是个普通人,因此听到别人称赞我们取得的成就,也不免有点沾沾自喜。但是今晚,我们首先要记住,真正值得称颂的应是2亿4千5百万美国公民,是他们构成了我国宪法开宗明义的头四个字,也就是最伟大的四个字:美国人民。
美国人民承受过巨大的挑战,把我们从民族灾难的深渊中拯救出来,建立了我们强大的经济实力,重振了我国在国际上的声誉,他们是出类拔萃的人,也就是人们所说的美国人。所以,如果今晚要向谁表示敬意的话,就应该向遍布这块土地的英雄豪杰们致敬,他们是实干家、梦想家和新生活的建设者。没有他们,我们在民主制度下的光辉实践就将一事无成。
最近,我们常听到有人说现在是改革的时代了。女士们、先生们,我再善意地提醒一下,我们就代表着改革。
我们从1981年1月起就卷起袖子大干起来,我们满怀希望,从不灰心丧气,我们向过去失败的政策挑战,因为我们相信,一个社会之所以伟大,并不在于其政府做出多少许诺,而仅仅在于其人民取得了进步,这就是我们进行的改革。
我们相信,要实现持久和平,只能靠实力而不能靠我们对手的善意。
我们对政府持正当的怀疑态度,以制止它采取过分的行动,但在它帮助改善我国公民生活时,我们也乐于利用它的力量。
增加税收不是联邦政府固有的权力,我们认为通货膨胀对穷人、年轻人和老年人是冷酷无情的。
我们尊重把我们结合成一个家庭或一个国家的价值观点。
这就是我们的理想。你们在座的诸位、以及今晚像你们一样也在注视和聆听这次大会的人,都在为实现这个理想而献身。你们不是半途而废的懦夫,你们的行动也不仅仅是为了竞选,而是为了一个事业,你们代表着一种人,一种我所熟悉的为自由政府而奋斗的最杰出的斗士。
我知道以前我也这样说过,但是我相信,是上帝把这块土地放在了两个大洋之间,使世界各地的特殊人物发现了它,致使这些人因酷爱自由而远离故土云集到这片土地上,使之成为一束夺目的自由之光照亮了整个世界。
富有想象力是我们的天赋,我要告诉你们一个小男孩的想法,他在我就职后不久给我寄了一封信,信中写道“我爱美国,因为在美国只要愿意谁都可以参加童子军。我爱美国,在美国随便信仰什么都行,而且只要有能力,就可以成为你想要成为的那种人。我爱美国,因为在美国大约有二百种不同味道的冰激凌可以选择。”
这就是小孩子眼里的真理。结社自由、信仰自由、满怀希望,并且可以获得各种机会,对这个孩子而言,就是在二百种味道不同的冰激凌中进行挑选。
这就是美国,每个人不分男女都幻想着能给人以希望的美国。正因为如此,我们对全世界来说就像一块磁铁,吸引人们冒着被子弹击中的危险以生命为代价越过柏林墙来到这里,吸引人们冒着九死一生的危险乘一叶扁舟渡过波涛汹涌的大洋来到这里。
这块土地和土地上的人民,以及使之结为一体的自由——就是这些使美国能够高高地飞翔,一直飞到可以看见自由和希望的万里云天。
当我们的子孙后代追寻我们一生的踪迹时,我希望他们会明白,我们是想把国家尽可能完美地传给他们。在这个国家里崇尚正直、宽容、慷慨、忠实、勇敢、知识、公正和虔诚。
这就是我的想法,我感谢上帝保佑我活得很好,而且活得很长,得是当我在华盛顿收拾离任前的行装时,不要以为我喜欢人们谈论我已时事届暮,年近黄昏。
黄昏?美国没有黄昏。
我们这里,每天都是旭日东升,到处都是崭新的机会,可以编织各种梦想。
黄昏?那是不可能的,因为我坦白承认有时我觉得我还是个小伙子,在和弟弟比赛,看谁先从山上跑到罗克河铁路桥下可以游泳的小水湾。
要知道,哪一天也比不上新的一天更美好,在我们这个国家里,它就意味着在你身上会发生某种奇迹。
在我身上就确实发生了某种奇迹。
几年前,我们点燃了一场燎原烈火,我们将激昂的思想和执著的信念作为燃料,决心让它烧遍全美国,那是多么美好时光啊!
我们曾经在一起为我们热爱的事业而战斗,但是我们绝不能让火焰熄灭,或者退出战斗,我们必须一次又一次地捍卫我们的自由,一次又一次!
但是我要对你们说,如果火光暗淡了,我愿意留下我的电话号码和地址,一旦你们需要一名小卒,只须说一声,我召之即来——只要一息尚存,只要我们这个可爱的国家在这个最辉煌的时刻还在不断地进取求新。
让火光一直熊熊地燃烧下去吧!这样,当我们要见上帝的时候,回首往昔,我们就可以无愧地说,我们做了我们所能做的一切,从来不遗余力。
② 奥巴马2013年就职演说的题目是什么
就职演讲:重申美国建国精神 强调人人平等
MR. OBAMA: Thank you. Thank you so much. Vice President Biden, Mr. Chief Justice, Members of the United States Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow citizens:
谢谢,非常感谢大家。拜登副总统、首席大法官先生、国会议员们、尊敬的各位嘉宾、亲爱的公民们。
Each time we gather to inaugurate a president, we bear witness to the enring strength of our Constitution. We affirm the promise of our democracy. We recall that what binds this nation together is not the colors of our skin or the tenets of our faith or the origins of our names. What makes us exceptional – what makes us American – is our allegiance to an idea, articulated in a declaration made more than two centuries ago:
每一次我们集会庆祝总统就职都是在见证美国宪法的持久力量。我们都是在肯定美国民主的承诺。我们重申,将这个国家紧密联系在一起的不是我们的肤色,也不是 我们信仰的教条,更不是我们名字的来源。让我们与众不同,让我们成为美国人的是我们对于一种理念的恪守。200多年前,这一理念在一篇宣言中被清晰阐述:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
“我们认为下述真理是不言而喻的,人人生而平等。造物主赋予他们若干不可剥夺的权利,包括生存、自由和追求幸福的权利。”
Today we continue a never-ending journey, to bridge the meaning of those words with the realities of our time. For history tells us that while these truths may be self-evident, they have never been self-executing; that while freedom is a gift from God, it must be secured by His people here on Earth. The patriots of 1776 did not fight to replace the tyranny of a king with the privileges of a few or the rule of a mob. They gave to us a Republic, a government of, and by, and for the people, entrusting each generation to keep safe our founding creed.
今天,我们继续着这一未竟的征程,架起这些理念与我们时代现实之间的桥梁。因为历史告诉我们,即便这些真理是不言而喻的,它们也从来不会自动生效。因为虽 然自由是上帝赋予的礼物,但仍需要世间的子民去捍卫。1776年,美国的爱国先驱们不是只为了推翻国王的暴政而战,也不是为赢得少数人的特权,建立暴民的 统治。先驱们留给我们一个共和国,一个民有、民治、民享的政府。他们委托每一代美国人捍卫我们的建国信条。
For more than two hundred years, we have.
在过去的200多年里,我们做到了。
Through blood drawn by lash and blood drawn by sword, we learned that no union founded on the principles of liberty and equality could survive half-slave and half-free. We made ourselves anew, and vowed to move forward together.
从奴役的血腥枷锁和刀剑的血光厮杀中我们懂得了,建立在自由与平等原则之上的联邦不能永远维持半奴隶和半自由的状态。我们赢得了新生,誓言共同前进。
Together, we determined that a modern economy requires railroads and highways to speed travel and commerce; schools and colleges to train our workers。
我们共同努力,建立起现代的经济体系。架设铁路与高速公路,加速了旅行和商业交流。建立学校与大学,培训我们的工人。
Together, we discovered that a free market only thrives when there are rules to ensure competition and fair play.
我们一起发现,自由市场的繁荣只能建立在保障竞争与公平竞争的原则之上。
Together, we resolved that a great nation must care for the vulnerable, and protect its people from life’s worst hazards and misfortune.
我们共同决定让这个伟大的国家远离危险,保护她的人民不受生命威胁和不幸的侵扰。
Through it all, we have never relinquished our skepticism of central authority, nor have we succumbed to the fiction that all society’s ills can be cured through government alone. Our celebration of initiative and enterprise; our insistence on hard work and personal responsibility, these are constants in our character.
一路走来,我们从未放弃对集权的质疑。我们同样不屈服于这一谎言:一切的社会弊端都能够只靠政府来解决。我们对积极向上与奋发进取的赞扬,我们对努力工作与个人责任的坚持,这些都是美国精神的基本要义。
But we have always understood that when times change, so must we; that fidelity to our founding principles requires new responses to new challenges; that preserving our indivial freedoms ultimately requires collective action. For the American people can no more meet the demands of today’s world by acting alone than American soldiers could have met the forces of fascism or communism with muskets and militias. No single person can train all the math and science teachers we’ll need to equip our children for the future, or build the roads and networks and research labs that will bring new jobs and businesses to our shores. Now, more than ever, we must do these things together, as one nation, and one people.
我们也理解,时代在变化,我们同样需要变革。对建国精神的忠诚,需要我们肩负起新的责任,迎接新的挑战。保护我们的个人自由,最终需要所有人的共同努力。 因为美国人不能再独力迎接当今世界的挑战,正如美国士兵们不能再像先辈一样,用步枪和民兵同敌人(法西斯主义与共产主义)作战。一个人无法培训所有的数学 与科学老师,我们需要他们为了未来去教育孩子们。一个人无法建设道路、铺设网络、建立实验室来为国内带来新的工作岗位和商业机会。现在,与以往任何时候相比,我们都更需要团结合作。作为一个国家,一个民族团结起来。
This generation of Americans has been tested by crises that steeled our resolve and proved our resilience. A decade of war is now ending. An economic recovery has begun. America’s possibilities are limitless, for we possess all the qualities that this world without boundaries demands: youth and drive; diversity and openness; an endless capacity for risk and a gift for reinvention. My fellow Americans, we are made for this moment, and we will seize it – so long as we seize it together.
这一代美国人经历了危机的考验,经济危机坚定了我们的决心,证明了我们的恢复力。长达十年的战争正在结束,经济的复苏已经开始。美国的可能性是无限的,因 为我们拥有当今没有边界的世界所需要的所有品质:年轻与活力、多样性与开放、无穷的冒险精神以及创造的天赋才能。我亲爱的同胞们,我们正是为此刻而生,我 们更要在此刻团结一致,抓住当下的机会。
For we, the people, understand that our country cannot succeed when a shrinking few do very well and a growing many barely make it. We believe that America’s prosperity must rest upon the broad shoulders of a rising middle class. We know that America thrives when every person can find independence and pride in their work; when the wages of honest labor liberate families from the brink of hardship. We are true to our creed when a little girl born into the bleakest poverty knows that she has the same chance to succeed as anybody else, because she is an American, she is free, and she is equal, not just in the eyes of God but also in our own.
因为我们,美国人民,清楚如果只有不断萎缩的少数人群体获得成功,而大多数人不能成功,我们的国家就无法成功。我们相信,美国的繁荣必须建立在不断上升的 中产阶级的宽阔臂膀之上,我们知道美国的繁荣只有这样才能实现。只有当每个人都能找到工作中的自立与自豪时才能实现。只有当诚实劳动获得的薪水足够让家庭 摆脱困苦的悬崖时才能实现。我们忠诚于我们的事业,保证让一个出生于最贫穷环境中的小女孩都能知道,她有同其他所有人一样的成功机会。因为她是一个美国人,她是自由的、平等的。她的自由平等不仅由上帝来见证,更由我们亲手保护。
We understand that outworn programs are inadequate to the needs of our time. We must harness new ideas and technology to remake our government, revamp our tax code, reform our schools, and empower our citizens with the skills they need to work harder, learn more, and reach higher. But while the means will change, our purpose enres: a nation that rewards the effort and determination of every single American. That is what this moment requires. That is what will give real meaning to our creed.
我们知道,我们已然陈旧的程序不足以满足时代的需要。我们必须应用新理念和新技术重塑我们的政府,改进我们的税法,改革我们的学校,让我们的公民拥有他们 所需要的技能,更加努力地工作,学更多的知识,向更高处发展。这意味着变革,我们的目标是:国家可以奖励每个美国人的努力和果断。这是现在需要的。这将给我们的信条赋予真正的意义。
We, the people, still believe that every citizen deserves a basic measure of security and dignity. We must make the hard choices to rece the cost of health care and the size of our deficit. But we reject the belief that America must choose between caring for the generation that built this country and investing in the generation that will build its future. For we remember the lessons of our past, when twilight years were spent in poverty, and parents of a child with a disability had nowhere to turn. We do not believe that in this country, freedom is reserved for the lucky, or happiness for the few. We recognize that no matter how responsibly we live our lives, any one of us, at any time, may face a job loss, or a sudden illness, or a home swept away in a terrible storm. The commitments we make to each other – through Medicare, and Medicaid, and Social Security – these things do not sap our initiative; they strengthen us. They do not make us a nation of takers; they free us to take the risks that make this country great.
我们,人民,仍然认为,每个公民都应当获得基本的安全和尊严。我们必须做出艰难抉择,降低医疗成本,缩减赤字规模。但我们拒绝在照顾建设国家的这一代和投 资即将建设国家的下一代间做出选择。因为我们记得过去的教训:老年人的夕阳时光在贫困中度过,家有残障儿童的父母无处求助。我们相信,在这个国家,自由不 只是那些幸运儿的专属,或者说幸福只属于少数人。我们知道,不管我们怎样负责任地生活,我们任何人在任何时候都可能面临失业、突发疾病或住房被可怕的飓风 摧毁的风险。我们通过医疗保险、联邦医疗补助计划、社会保障项目向每个人做出承诺,这些不会让我们的创造力衰竭,而是会让我们更强大。这些不会让我们成为充满不劳而获者的国度,这些让我们敢于承担风险,让国家伟大。
③ 关于奥巴马就职演讲
亲爱的同胞们:
今天我站在这里,为我们将面对的任重道远而慨叹。感谢你们对我寄托的信任,同时缅怀我们的前人所做出的牺牲。感谢布什总统为美国做出的贡献,以及他在总统任期交叠过程中的慷慨合作。
至此,共有四十四位美国人曾进行过总统宣誓。这一誓言曾在国家和平、欣欣向荣时做出过。然而这一誓词更曾在乌云笼罩和风暴袭来之时被宣读。美国人民之所以能够走过那些艰难的时刻,不仅仅是因为领袖的能力或远见;更是因为我们,我们人民,保持着对先人理想的忠诚,对我们国家创始文件的追随。
对于我们这一代美国人来说,也是这样,也必须这样。
国家正面临危机,这一点大家已经没有疑问。美国处在战争之中,面对一个有巨大影响力、充满暴力和仇恨的网络。我们的经济严重衰退。这来源于部分人的贪婪和不负责任,更由于作为一个整体,我们未能做出面对一个新时代的艰难决策。人民失去房屋、工作机会减少、商业活动遭到破坏。医疗保障过于昂贵,学校教育系统出现太多失败。而我们对能源的使用,日益让对手强大,与此同时又威胁着我们的星球。
这些,是从数据和统计中可以看到的危机信号。还有难以度量但同样深远的问题,那就是整个国家信心的缺失。那萦绕在我们头上的恐惧,认为美国的衰败不可避免,认为我们的下一代人不可能再有太高的期望。
今天我要对你们说,我们面临的挑战是真切的、严重的,而且有很多重。解决他们不可能很轻松,也不可能在短时间内发生。但美国人民,请记住这一点:这些挑战会被解决。
今天,我们聚集在一起,因为我们选择了希望而不是恐惧;我们选择了为共同的目标团结在一起,而不是冲突与争执。
今天,我们共同终结那些虚假的承诺、陈腐的教条、以及指摘与怨言。这些已经困扰了我们的政治体系太长时间。
我们的国家仍旧年轻,但借用圣经中的话,该是抛开那些孩子气的时候了。现在,需要重新拿出我们的坚韧精神,选择自己的历史。我们要延续代代相传的宝贵礼物,延续神圣的理想,那就是上帝赐予我们的承诺--人人平等,人人自由,人人都有机会去追求最大程度的幸福。
在重温我们国家伟大的同时,我们必须明白,伟大不是凭空而来的,而是赢得的。在我们的历程中,从来没有走捷径或是退而求其次。这一历程不是为懦弱者准备的,不是为那些享乐高于工作、只知追求名利的人准备的。相反,是那些甘于承担风险的人,实干家,创造者--有些众人皆知,而更多的在辛勤工作中默默无闻--是他们带着我们穿越漫长、崎岖的道路走向繁荣与自由。
为了我们,他们把仅有的财物装进行囊,漂洋过海追求新的生活。
为了我们,他们开拓西部,在条件恶劣的工厂中流血流汗;他们忍受鞭笞,开垦贫瘠的土地。
为了我们,他们战斗和牺牲在协和镇(Concord)、葛底斯堡(Gettysburg)、诺曼底和科萨恩(KheSahn)。
一次又一次,这些男男女女,他们奋斗和牺牲;他们将双手磨破为了给我们带来更好的生活。在他们眼中,美国超越了我们每个人雄心的总和,超越了个人、财富和派系的差别。
今天,我们仍在这样的历程上。我们仍旧是地球上最繁荣、最强大的国家。美国工人们的效率并不比危机开始之前低。我们的头脑具有同样的创造力。我们的产品与服务和上周、上月、或者去年一样有需求。我们的能力从未被削弱。但墨守陈规、维护狭隘的利益、面对艰难的决策畏首畏尾的日子将一去不复返了。从今天开始,我们必须重新找回我们自己,掸去身上的尘土,开始重塑美国的重任。
环顾四周,有无数工作等着我们。经济状况期待着我们大胆和快速的行动。我们会付诸行动--不仅仅是创造就业机会,同时还要为未来的增长打下新的基础。我们将建设公路、桥梁和电网,以及将我们紧密联系起来、提供商业信息的数字高速公路。我们会重新树立科学应有的地位,并利用技术手段提高医疗保障的质量,同时降低其费用。我们将利用太阳、风与土壤,来驱动我们的汽车和工厂。我们将改革我们的学校和大学,以满足新时代的需要。这些都有可能实现,更会去实现。
现在,有人还在怀疑我们的信心——他们认为我们的国家无法承担这样的重大计划。他们太健忘了,他们忘记了这个国家曾经取得的成就,他们忘记了当拥有了理想、共同的目标和必要的勇气,这些自由的人民曾经取得的辉煌成就。
这些愤世嫉俗的人无法理解这个国家所发生的转变——那些陈腐的政治已经缠绕了我们太久太长。我们现在面临的问题不是政府太大还是太小,而是政府所扮演的角色——应该帮助家庭获得体面的收入,购买他们的所需,有尊严地退休。当这些答案都是肯定的时,我们才能继续前进。如果答案是否定的,一切都将不复存在。我们这些管理公共财产的人应该负起责任——把钱花在刀刃上、改掉恶习、光明正大地行事——因为只有这样我们才能重塑人民和政府之间的信任。
市场力量的好坏不是我们的问题。市场在创造财富和推进自由进程方面是无可代替的,但是这场危机也提醒了我们没有审慎的监管,市场的力量将如野马一样脱缰——一个仅有财富的国家不可能持续繁荣。我们在经济上所取得的成功不仅体现在我们的经济总量上,也体现在我们的繁荣程度上,体现在我们为每个渴望成功的心灵所提供的机会上—这并非出自恻隐之心,而是我们实现共同利益的必经之路。
我们拒绝在安全和理想之间妥协。我们的建国先辈们,面对我们无法想象的凶险,却依然用几代人的鲜血维护了神圣的法律和人权。那些理想依然在照亮着这个世界,我们不会因一时的困难而放弃这些理想。我要对那些正在看着我们的国家和人民说,无论你身处繁华的都市还是像养育了我父亲那样的小村庄:对于那些追求和平与尊严的男人、女人和孩子,美国将永远是你们的朋友,我们将继续和你们一起前进。
我们是这种传统的捍卫者。我们继续追寻这些信念的指引,我们将直面这些挑战并更加努力—更多的沟通与合作。我们会负责地将伊拉克还给当地的人民,并在阿富汗保卫来之不易的和平。我们将与老朋友和原来的敌人一道,共同消除核威胁,解决全球变暖的根源。我们不会为自己的做法道歉,更不会动摇捍卫和平的决心,对于那些崇尚恐怖、滥杀无辜的人,我们的精神是强大而不可战胜的。你拖不垮我们,我们将会打败你。
我们多种族混居是一种优势。我们是一个由基督徒、穆斯林、犹太教徒、印度教徒和无神论者共同组成的国家。我们吸收了各种文化的精髓,从世界的每个角落学习。因为我们经历过内战和种族隔离的痛苦洗礼,并在黑暗中更加坚强和团结,我们无法保证,但是我们相信憎恨终将消弭,分隔终将散去。随着世界越来越紧密地联系在一起,我们共同的人性将显露出来,美国必须承担引领新时代和平的重任。
对于穆斯林世界,我们将基于共同的利益和信仰,寻找更好的合作之路。对于那些在世界各个地方挑起冲突或一味批评西方不良影响的领导者:你的人民评判你的依据是你建立了什么,而不是破坏了什么。对于那些依靠腐败和欺骗并压制异议而追求权利的人们:你们站在了人类历史的对立面。如果你们能张开紧握的拳头,我们也将伸出友谊之手。
对于那些贫穷的人们,我们保证和你们一起建设繁茂的农场和干净的水源,滋养那些饥寒交迫的身体和心灵。对于那些与我们一样相对富裕的国家,我们不能再对外界的苦难漠不关心,更不能继续大肆索取世界的资源。世界必须改变,我们都必须改变。
当我们审视前方的道路时,我们会感激那些跨越千山万水来到这里的人们。今天,他们有话对我们说,也是安息在阿林顿国家公墓里的先烈们时刻提醒我们的。我们尊敬他们不仅因为是他们捍卫了我们的自由,更因为他们正是奉献精神的化身;他们致力于寻找远高于自身的生命真谛。而此时,在这个特殊的时代,我们更需让这种精神长存。
因为归根结底,政府所能做的,也是必须做到的,是体现每个美国人的信念和决心,这也是这个国家赖以生存的精神力量。这种力量是洪灾泛滥时,陌生人之间的温暖善举;是经济困难时期,人们自损利益保全朋友工作的无私忘我。这是消防员们毅然冲入浓烟火海的勇气,也是父母培养孩子的无私之心,这些都决定了我们的命运。
或许,我们今日遇到挑战前所未有,所有的情况完全陌生。但是,我们赖以走向成功的价值观从未改变——诚实、勤勉、勇敢、公正、宽容、好学、忠贞和爱国。我们的历史亦由这些真理推进,亘古不变。如今,我们面对的是一个全新的责任时代——人人都需重视,对我们自己,我们的国家乃至整个世界,都有一份责任。我们会欣然接受这份责任,人生也正因此而充实。
这是公民的价值和承诺。
这是我们信心的源泉——上帝赐予我们知识以应对无常的命运。
这是我们所崇尚的自由与信念的真谛——这就是为什么今天,不同肤色,不同信仰的男女老少在此汇聚一堂;这就是为什么六十年前,一位父亲走入餐厅甚至无人理睬,而今天他的儿子可以站在这里,在你们面前许下最庄严的誓言。
所以让我们记住这一天,记住自己,记住为此的付出。在我们的国家诞生之初,先辈们在最寒冷的日子里,围聚在结冰的河边靠微弱的篝火取暖。离乡背井,后有敌军,鲜血染红了白雪。就在革命的道路如此模糊,意志也开始踌躇之时,我们的国父有这样几句话:
“告诉未来的世界……当一切陷入寒冬,万物俱灭,只有希望和勇气可以长存……这座城市和这个国家,在共同的危机下团结起来,共同面对前方的艰难。”
美国,面对我们共同的危机,在这艰难的寒冬,让我们牢记那些永恒的字句。怀着希望和美德,让我们再一次勇敢地面对冰冷的现实,迎接任何可能的风浪。让我们的子孙传唱,当我们面对挑战时,我们没有怯懦、没有退缩,更没有踟蹰不前。我们在上帝的关爱下眺望远方,我们在自由的道路上继续前进,我们的精神将永远闪耀着光芒。
④ 奥巴马2013年就职演说的全文
MR. OBAMA: Vice President Biden, Mr. Chief Justice, Members of the United States Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow citizens:
Each time we gather to inaugurate a president, we bear witness to the enring strength of our Constitution. We affirm the promise of our democracy. We recall that what binds this nation together is not the colors of our skin or the tenets of our faith or the origins of our names. What makes us exceptional – what makes us American – is our allegiance to an idea, articulated in a declaration made more than two centuries ago:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Today we continue a never-ending journey, to bridge the meaning of those words with the realities of our time. For history tells us that while these truths may be self-evident, they have never been self-executing; that while freedom is a gift from God, it must be secured by His people here on Earth. The patriots of 1776 did not fight to replace the tyranny of a king with the privileges of a few or the rule of a mob. They gave to us a Republic, a government of, and by, and for the people, entrusting each generation to keep safe our founding creed.
For more than two hundred years, we have.
Through blood drawn by lash and blood drawn by sword, we learned that no union founded on the principles of liberty and equality could survive half-slave and half-free. We made ourselves anew, and vowed to move forward together.
Together, we determined that a modern economy requires railroads and highways to speed travel and commerce; schools and colleges to train our workers。
Together, we discovered that a free market only thrives when there are rules to ensure competition and fair play.
Together, we resolved that a great nation must care for the vulnerable, and protect its people from life’s worst hazards and misfortune.
Through it all, we have never relinquished our skepticism of central authority, nor have we succumbed to the fiction that all society’s ills can be cured through government alone. Our celebration of initiative and enterprise; our insistence on hard work and personal responsibility, these are constants in our character.
But we have always understood that when times change, so must we; that fidelity to our founding principles requires new responses to new challenges; that preserving our indivial freedoms ultimately requires collective action. For the American people can no more meet the demands of today’s world by acting alone than American soldiers could have met the forces of fascism or communism with muskets and militias. No single person can train all the math and science teachers we’ll need to equip our children for the future, or build the roads and networks and research labs that will bring new jobs and businesses to our shores. Now, more than ever, we must do these things together, as one nation, and one people.
This generation of Americans has been tested by crises that steeled our resolve and proved our resilience. A decade of war is now ending. An economic recovery has begun. America’s possibilities are limitless, for we possess all the qualities that this world without boundaries demands: youth and drive; diversity and openness; an endless capacity for risk and a gift for reinvention. My fellow Americans, we are made for this moment, and we will seize it – so long as we seize it together.
For we, the people, understand that our country cannot succeed when a shrinking few do very well and a growing many barely make it. We believe that America’s prosperity must rest upon the broad shoulders of a rising middle class. We know that America thrives when every person can find independence and pride in their work; when the wages of honest labor liberate families from the brink of hardship. We are true to our creed when a little girl born into the bleakest poverty knows that she has the same chance to succeed as anybody else, because she is an American, she is free, and she is equal, not just in the eyes of God but also in our own.
We understand that outworn programs are inadequate to the needs of our time. We must harness new ideas and technology to remake our government, revamp our tax code, reform our schools, and empower our citizens with the skills they need to work harder, learn more, and reach higher. But while the means will change, our purpose enres: a nation that rewards the effort and determination of every single American. That is what this moment requires. That is what will give real meaning to our creed.
We, the people, still believe that every citizen deserves a basic measure of security and dignity. We must make the hard choices to rece the cost of health care and the size of our deficit. But we reject the belief that America must choose between caring for the generation that built this country and investing in the generation that will build its future. For we remember the lessons of our past, when twilight years were spent in poverty, and parents of a child with a disability had nowhere to turn. We do not believe that in this country, freedom is reserved for the lucky, or happiness for the few. We recognize that no matter how responsibly we live our lives, any one of us, at any time, may face a job loss, or a sudden illness, or a home swept away in a terrible storm. The commitments we make to each other – through Medicare, and Medicaid, and Social Security – these things do not sap our initiative; they strengthen us. They do not make us a nation of takers; they free us to take the risks that make this country great.
We, the people, still believe that our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves, but to all posterity. We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations. Some may still deny the overwhelming judgment of science, but none can avoid the devastating impact of raging fires, and crippling drought, and more powerful storms. The path towards sustainable energy sources will be long and sometimes difficult. But America cannot resist this transition; we must lead it. We cannot cede to other nations the technology that will power new jobs and new instries – we must claim its promise. That is how we will maintain our economic vitality and our national treasure – our forests and waterways; our croplands and snowcapped peaks. That is how we will preserve our planet, commanded to our care by God. That’s what will lend meaning to the creed our fathers once declared.
We, the people, still believe that enring security and lasting peace do not require perpetual war. Our brave men and women in uniform, tempered by the flames of battle, are unmatched in skill and courage. Our citizens, seared by the memory of those we have lost, know too well the price that is paid for liberty. The knowledge of their sacrifice will keep us forever vigilant against those who would do us harm. But we are also heirs to those who won the peace and not just the war, who turned sworn enemies into the surest of friends, and we must carry those lessons into this time as well.
We will defend our people and uphold our values through strength of arms and rule of law. We will show the courage to try and resolve our differences with other nations peacefully – not because we are naïve about the dangers we face, but because engagement can more rably lift suspicion and fear. America will remain the anchor of strong alliances in every corner of the globe; and we will renew those institutions that extend our capacity to manage crisis abroad, for no one has a greater stake in a peaceful world than its most powerful nation. We will support democracy from Asia to Africa; from the Americas to the Middle East, because our interests and our conscience compel us to act on behalf of those who long for freedom. And we must be a source of hope to the poor, the sick, the marginalized, the victims of prejudice – not out of mere charity, but because peace in our time requires the constant advance of those principles that our common creed describes: tolerance and opportunity; human dignity and justice.
We, the people, declare today that the most evident of truths – that all of us are created equal – is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall; just as it guided all those men and women, sung and unsung, who left footprints along this great Mall, to hear a preacher say that we cannot walk alone; to hear a King proclaim that our indivial freedom is inextricably bound to the freedom of every soul on Earth.
It is now our generation’s task to carry on what those pioneers began. For our journey is not complete until our wives, our mothers, and daughters can earn a living equal to their efforts. Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law – for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well. Our journey is not complete until no citizen is forced to wait for hours to exercise the right to vote. Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity; until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than expelled from our country. Our journey is not complete until all our children, from the streets of Detroit to the hills of Appalachia to the quiet lanes of Newtown, know that they are cared for, and cherished, and always safe from harm.
That is our generation’s task – to make these words, these rights, these values – of Life, and Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness – real for every American. Being true to our founding documents does not require us to agree on every contour of life; it does not mean we will all define liberty in exactly the same way, or follow the same precise path to happiness. Progress does not compel us to settle centuries-long debates about the role of government for all time – but it does require us to act in our time.
For now decisions are upon us, and we cannot afford delay. We cannot mistake absolutism for principle, or substitute spectacle for politics, or treat name-calling as reasoned debate. We must act, knowing that our work will be imperfect. We must act, knowing that today’s victories will be only partial, and that it will be up to those who stand here in four years, and forty years, and four hundred years hence to advance the timeless spirit once conferred to us in a spare Philadelphia hall.
My fellow Americans, the oath I have sworn before you today, like the one recited by others who serve in this Capitol, was an oath to God and country, not party or faction – and we must faithfully execute that pledge ring the ration of our service. But the words I spoke today are not so different from the oath that is taken each time a soldier signs up for ty, or an immigrant realizes her dream. My oath is not so different from the pledge we all make to the flag that waves above and that fills our hearts with pride.
They are the words of citizens, and they represent our greatest hope.
You and I, as citizens, have the power to set this country’s course.
You and I, as citizens, have the obligation to shape the debates of our time – not only with the votes we cast, but with the voices we lift in defense of our most ancient values and enring ideals.
Let each of us now embrace, with solemn ty and awesome joy, what is our lasting birthright. With common effort and common purpose, with passion and dedication, let us answer the call of history, and carry into an uncertain future that precious light of freedom.
Thank you, God Bless you, and may He forever bless these United States of America. 谢谢,非常感谢大家。拜登副总统、首席大法官先生、国会议员们、尊敬的各位嘉宾、亲爱的同胞们。
每一次我们集会庆祝总统就职都是在见证美国宪法的持久力量。我们都是在肯定美国民主的承诺。我们重申,将这个国家紧密联系在一起的不是我们的肤色,也不是我们信仰的教条,更不是我们名字的来源。让我们与众不同,让我们成为美国人的是我们对于一种理念的恪守。200多年前,这一理念在一篇宣言中被清晰阐述:
“我们认为下述真理是不言而喻的,人人生而平等。造物主赋予他们若干不可剥夺的权利,包括生存、自由和追求幸福的权利。”
今天,我们继续着这一未竟的征程,架起这些理念与我们时代现实之间的桥梁。因为历史告诉我们,即便这些真理是不言而喻的,它们也从来不会自动生效。因为虽然自由是上帝赋予的礼物,但仍需要世间的子民去捍卫。1776年,美国的爱国先驱们不是只为了推翻国王的暴政而战,也不是为赢得少数人的特权,建立暴民的统治。先驱们留给我们一个共和国,一个民有、民治、民享的政府。他们委托每一代美国人捍卫我们的建国信条。
在过去的200多年里,我们做到了。
从奴役的血腥枷锁和刀剑的血光厮杀中我们懂得了,建立在自由与平等原则之上的联邦不能永远维持半奴隶和半自由的状态。我们赢得了新生,誓言共同前进。
我们共同努力,建立起现代的经济体系。架设铁路与高速公路,加速了旅行和商业交流。建立学校与大学,培训我们的工人。
我们一起发现,自由市场的繁荣只能建立在保障竞争与公平竞争的原则之上。
我们共同决定让这个伟大的国家必须关照弱势群体,保护她的人民不受生命威胁和不幸的侵扰。一路走来,我们从未放弃对集权的质疑。我们同样不屈服于这一谎言:一切的社会弊端都能够只靠政府来解决。我们对积极向上与奋发进取的赞扬,我们对努力工作与个人责任的坚持,这些都是美国精神的基本要义。
我们也理解,时代在变化,我们同样需要变革。对建国精神的忠诚,需要我们肩负起新的责任,迎接新的挑战。保护我们的个人自由,最终需要所有人的共同努力。因为美国人不能再独力迎接当今世界的挑战,正如美国士兵们不能再像先辈一样,用步枪和民兵同敌人作战。一个人无法培训所有的数学与科学老师,我们需要他们为了未来去教育孩子们。一个人无法建设道路、铺设网络、建立实验室来为国内带来新的工作岗位和商业机会。现在,与以往任何时候相比,我们都更需要团结合作。作为一个国家,一个民族团结起来。
这一代美国人经历了危机的考验,经济危机坚定了我们的决心,证明了我们的恢复力。长达十年的战争正在结束,经济的复苏已经开始。美国的可能性是无限的,因为我们拥有当今没有边界的世界所需要的所有品质:年轻与活力、多样性与开放、无穷的冒险精神以及创造的天赋才能。我亲爱的同胞们,我们正是为此刻而生,我们更要在此刻团结一致,抓住当下的机会。
因为我们,美国人民,清楚如果只有不断萎缩的少数人群体获得成功,而大多数人不能成功,我们的国家就无法成功。我们相信,美国的繁荣必须建立在不断上升的中产阶级的宽阔臂膀之上,我们知道美国的繁荣只有这样才能实现。只有当每个人都能找到工作中的自立与自豪时才能实现。只有当诚实劳动获得的薪水足够让家庭摆脱困苦的悬崖时才能实现。我们忠诚于我们的事业,保证让一个出生于最贫穷环境中的小女孩都能知道,她有同其他所有人一样的成功机会。因为她是一个美国人,她是自由的、平等的。她的自由平等不仅由上帝来见证,更由我们亲手保护。
我们知道,我们已然陈旧的项目不足以满足时代的需要。我们必须应用新理念和新技术重塑我们的政府,改进我们的税法,改革我们的学校,让我们的公民拥有他们所需要的技能,更加努力地工作,学更多的知识,向更高处发展。这意味着变革,我们的目标是:国家可以奖励每个美国人的努力和果断。
这是现在需要的。这将给我们的信条赋予真正的意义。
我们,人民,仍然认为,每个公民都应当获得基本的安全和尊严。我们必须做出艰难抉择,降低医疗成本,缩减赤字规模。但我们拒绝在照顾建设国家的这一代和投资即将建设国家的下一代间做出选择。因为我们记得过去的教训:老年人的夕阳时光在贫困中度过,家有残障儿童的父母无处求助。我们相信,在这个国家,自由不只是那些幸运儿的专属,或者说幸福只属于少数人。我们知道,不管我们怎样负责任地生活,我们任何人在任何时候都可能面临失业、突发疾病或住房被可怕的飓风摧毁的风险。
我们通过医疗保险、联邦医疗补助计划、社会保障项目向每个人做出承诺,这些不会让我们的创造力衰竭,而是会让我们更强大。这些不会让我们成为充满不劳而获者的国度,这些让我们敢于承担风险,让国家伟大。
我们,人民,仍然相信,我们作为美国人的义务不只是对我们自己而言,还包括对子孙后代。我们将应对气候变化的威胁,认识到不采取措施应对气候变化就是对我们的孩子和后代的背叛。一些人可能仍在否定科学界的压倒性判断,但没有人能够避免熊熊火灾、严重旱灾、更强力风暴带来的灾难性打击。通向可再生能源利用的道路是漫长的,有时是困难的。但美国不能抵制这种趋势,我们必须引领这种趋势。我们不能把制造新就业机会和新行业的技术让给其他国家,我们必须明确这一承诺。这是我们保持经济活力和国家财富(我们的森林和航道,我们的农田与雪峰)的方法。这将是我们保护我们星球的办法,上帝把这个星球托付给我们。这将给我们的建国之父们曾宣布的信条赋予意义。
我们,人民,仍然相信持久的安全与和平,不需要持续的战争。我们勇敢的士兵经受了战火的考验,他们的技能和勇气是无可匹敌的。我们的公民依然铭记着那些阵亡者,他们非常清楚我们为自由付出的代价。明白他们的牺牲将让我们永远对那些试图伤害我们的势力保持警惕。但我们也是那些赢得和平而不只是战争的人们的后代,他们将仇敌转变成最可靠的朋友,我们也必须把这些经验带到这个时代。
我们将通过强大的军力和法制保护我们的人民,捍卫我们的价值观。我们将展现试图和平解决与其它国家分歧的勇气,但这不是因为我们对面临的危险持幼稚的态度,而是因为接触能够更持久地化解疑虑和恐惧。美国将在全球保持强大的联盟,我们将更新这些能扩展我们应对海外危机能力的机制。因为作为世界上最强大的国家,我们在世界和平方面拥有最大的利益。我们将支持从亚洲到非洲、从美洲至中东的民主国家,因为我们的利益和良心驱使我们代表那些想获得自由的人们采取行动。我们必须成为贫困者、病患者、被边缘化的人士、异见受害者的希望来源,不仅仅是出于慈善,也是因为这个时代的和平需要不断推进我们共同信念中的原则:宽容和机遇,人类尊严与正义。
我们,人民,今天昭示的最明白的事实是——我们所有人都是生而平等的,这是依然引领我们的恒星。它引领我们的先辈穿越纽约塞尼卡瀑布城(女权抗议事件)、塞尔马(黑人权力事件)和石墙骚乱(同性恋与警察发生的暴力事件),引领着所有的男性和女性,留下姓名和没留姓名的人。在伟大的征程中,一路上留下足迹的人。曾经听一位牧师(马丁-路德-金)说,我们不能独自前行。马丁-路德-金说,我们个人的自由与地球上每个灵魂的自由不可分割。
继续先辈开创的事业是我们这代人的任务。直到我们的妻子、母亲和女儿的付出能够与她们的努力相称,我们的征途才会结束。我们的征途不会终结,我们要让同性恋的兄弟姐妹在法律之下得到与其他人同样的待遇。如果我们真正是生而平等的,那么我们对彼此的爱也应该是平等的。我们的征途没有结束,直到没有公民需要等待数个小时去行使投票权。我们的征途不会结束,直到我们找到更好的方法迎接努力、有憧憬的移民,他们依旧视美国是一块充满机会的土地。直到聪颖年轻的学生和工程师为我们所用,而不是被逐出美国。我们的征途不会结束,直到我们所有的儿童,从底特律的街道到阿巴拉契亚的山岭,再到康涅狄格州纽镇安静的小巷,直到他们得到关心和珍视,永远避免受到伤害。
那是我们这一代的任务——让生存、自由和追求幸福的言语、权力和价值切实体现在每个美国人的身上。我们的立国文本没有要求我们将每个人的生活一致化。这并不意味着,我们会以完全一样的方式去定义自由,沿着同样的道路通向幸福。进步不会终止几个世纪以来一直纠结的关于政府角色的争论,但这要求我们现在就采取行动。
目前是由我们决策,我们不能拖延。我们不能将绝对主义当作原则,或者以表象代替政治,或将中伤视作理性的辩论。我们必须行动,要意识到我们的工作并不完美。我们必须行动,意识到今天的胜利是并不完全的。这些将有赖于未来4年、40年或是400年致力于这项事业的人,去推进当年在费城制宪会议大厅传承给我们的永恒精神。
我的美国同胞,我今天在你们面前宣读的誓词,如同在国会山服务的其他人曾宣读过的誓词一样,是对上帝和国家的誓词,不是对政党或是派别的,我们必须在任期内忠实地履行这些承诺。但我今天宣读的誓词与士兵报名参军或者是移民实现梦想时所宣读的誓词没有多少差别。我的誓词与我们所有的人向我们头顶飘扬的、让我们心怀自豪的国旗所表达的誓言没有多大差别。
这些是公民的誓词,代表着我们最伟大的希望。
你和我,作为公民,都有为这个国家设定道路的权力。
你和我,作为公民,有义务塑造我们时代的辩题,不仅是通过我们的选票,而且要为捍卫悠久的价值观和持久的理想发声。
现在让我们相互拥抱,怀着庄严的职责和无比的快乐,这是我们永恒的与生俱来的权利。有共同的努力和共同的目标,用热情与奉献,让我们回应历史的召唤,将珍贵的自由之光带入并不确定的未来。
感谢你们,上帝保佑你们,愿上帝永远保佑美利坚合众国。
⑤ John F. Kennedy就职演说(中文版)
Vice President Johnson, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chief Justice, President Eisenhower, Vice President Nixon, President Truman, Reverend Clergy, fellow citizens:
We observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom, symbolizing an end as well as a beginning, signifying renewal as well as change. For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three-quarters ago.
The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe -- the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God.
We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans -- born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage -- and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.
Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
This much we pledge -- and more.
To those old allies whose cultural and spiritual origins we share, we pledge the loyalty of faithful friends. United there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. Divided there is little we can do, for we dare not meet a powerful challenge at odds and split asunder.
To those new states whom we welcome to the ranks of the free, we pledge our word that one form of colonial control shall not have passed away merely to be replaced by a far more iron tyranny. We shall not always expect to find them supporting our view. But we shall always hope to find them strongly supporting their own freedom -- and to remember that, in the past, those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside.
To those people in the huts and villages of half the globe struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help them help themselves, for whatever period is required -- not because the communists may be doing it, not because we seek their votes, but because it is right.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.
To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a special pledge: to convert our good words into good deeds, in a new alliance for progress, to assist free men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty. But this peaceful revolution of hope cannot become the prey of hostile powers. Let all our neighbors know that we shall join with them to oppose aggression or subversion anywhere in the Americas.
And let every other power know that this hemisphere intends to remain the master of its own house.
To that world assembly of sovereign states, the United Nations, our last best hope in an age where the instruments of war have far outpaced the instruments of peace, we renew our pledge of support -- to prevent it from becoming merely a forum for invective, to strengthen its shield of the new and the weak, and to enlarge the area in which its writ may run.
Finally, to those nations who would make themselves our adversary, we offer not a pledge but a request: that both sides begin anew the quest for peace -- before the dark powers of destruction unleashed by science engulf all humanity in planned or accidental self-destruction.
We dare not tempt them with weakness. For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond doubt that they will never be employed. But neither can two great and powerful groups of nations take comfort from our present course -- both sides overburdened by the cost of modern weapons, both rightly alarmed by the steady spread of the deadly atom, yet both racing to alter that uncertain balance of terror that stays the hand of mankind's final war. So let us begin anew -- remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof.
Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.
Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.
Let both sides, for the first time, formulate serious and precise proposals for the inspection and control of arms, and bring the absolute power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all nations.
Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science instead of its terrors. Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths, and encourage the arts and commerce.
Let both sides unite to heed, in all corners of the earth, the command of Isaiah -- to "undo the heavy burdens . . . [and] let the oppressed go free."
And if a beachhead of cooperation may push back the jungle of suspicion, let both sides join in creating a new endeavor -- not a new balance of power, but a new world of law -- where the strong are just, and the weak secure, and the peace preserved.
All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days; nor in the life of this Administration; nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.
In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than mine, will rest the final success or failure of our course. Since this country was founded, each generation of Americans has been summoned to give testimony to its national loyalty. The graves of young Americans who answered the call to service surround the globe.
Now the trumpet summons us again -- not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need -- not as a call to battle, though embattled we are -- but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.
Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?
In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility -- I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it. And the glow from that fire can truly light the world.
And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.
My fellow citizens of the world, ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.
Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us here the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.
⑥ 奥巴马就职演讲词
My fellow citizens:I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.同胞们,我今天站在这里,因为面前的任务而感到谦卑,因为你们的信任而心存感激,同时铭记先辈们做所出的巨大牺牲。感谢布什总统为这个国家做出的贡献,同时也谢谢他在整个政权交接期间表现出的慷慨与合作。Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken ring rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.迄今已经有44名美国人宣誓就任总统。这些誓词曾出现在繁荣的上升趋势和如水般平静的和平中,当然,也经常会出现在乌云密布和狂风暴雨之时。在这各种时刻,美国一直在继续前行,这不仅仅是因为执政的技巧或者有先见之明,而是因为我们的人民一直在坚守先辈们的理想,忠实履行我们的建国宣言。So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.过去是这样,这一代的美国人仍将会坚持这样做。That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.众所周知,我们目前正处在危机之中。我们的国家正在对暴力和仇恨宣战。我们的经济也被严重削弱,这是一些人贪婪和不负责任的后果,但在做出艰难 选择和准备迎接新时代方面,我们出现了集体性的失误。房屋失去了;工作丢掉了;商业萧条了;我们的卫生保健耗资巨大;我们太多的学校不合格;每天都能找到 更多的证据表明我们利用能源的方式使得对手更加强大,并且威胁到了我们整个星球。These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights. Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met.这些数据和统计都是危机的表现特征。虽然无法具备测量,但产生的深远影响是我们的信心受到了侵蚀–担心美国的衰退不可避免,担心下一代会降低 他们的期待。今天我要向你们说的是,我们面临的挑战是真实存在的。这些挑战很多,而且非常严重,它们不会轻易地或者在短时间内就能得以解决。但大家也必须 认识到,美国,终将会解决这些困难。On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.今天,我们聚集在这里,是因为我选择用希望来战胜恐惧,用团结来战胜冲突与分歧。On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.今天,我们来到这里将结束悲戚和错误的承诺,抛弃指责和教条主 义这些扼杀我们政治的东西。We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.我们仍然是一个年轻的国家,但现在应该摒弃充满孩子气的行为,重申我们不朽的精神;选择我们更好的历史;宏扬那些珍贵而且高尚 的理念,并将这一代一代地传递下去。上帝认为天下众生皆平等,众生皆自由,而且都应该拥有追求幸福的机会。In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.在重申我们国家的伟大时,我们必须明白,伟大绝对不会是一种馈赠,而是要靠我们去努力争取。我们的征途从来没有捷径,也不属于那些胆怯懦弱、消遣工作或者只追求财富名利的人。For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.为了我们,他们整理起自己不多的物品开始穿越大海寻找新的生活;For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; enred the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.为了我们,他们在血汗工厂辛苦劳作,忍受着皮鞭的抽打并且 犁开坚硬的土地;For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.为了我们,他们在诸如康科得、盖茨堡、诺曼底等等地方作战并献出生命。Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our indivial ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.这些男男女女们不停地奋斗和牺牲,一直工作直到双手生疼,目的只是为了过上更好一些的生活。在他们的眼中,美国比他们个人的报负更加重要,也比 所有出身、财富或者宗派之间的差别更加重要。This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less proctive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, st ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.这就是我们今天仍在继续的征程。我们仍然是世界上最繁荣、最强大的国家。当这场危机开始后,我们工人的生产力 并没有下降;我们的思想也没有失去创造力;我们现在需要的商品和服务,并没有比上周、上月或者去年减少;我们的生产力并没有降低。从今天开始,我们必须振 作起来,拂去身上的灰尘,重新开始振兴美国。For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.环视周围,到处是要做的工作。目前的经济状况要求我们采取大胆和迅速的行动,我们将采取行动,不仅是创造新的工作岗位,而且是为经济的增长奠定 新的基石。我们将建设道路和桥梁、电网和数字网络,它们将为我们的商业活动服务,把我们联系在一起。我们将使科学回归其位,应用科学技术来提高医疗的质量 并降低其费用。我们将利用太阳能、风能、潮汐能来驱动我们的汽车,运营我们的工厂。我们将变革我们的学校、学院和大学以满足新时代的需求。这些是我们能够 做的,我们将做这一切。
⑦ 奥巴马就职演讲时哪里说错了
实际情况是:带读法官首次参与总统就职宣誓带读,是他搞错了。奥巴马早已把只有个单词的誓辞背得滚瓜烂熟,突然听到不同带读,他一时不知怎么办好:跟着法官做,明显错了;按照自己理解做,好象当众不尊重法官,--- 而这个时刻,是总统必须听从法官的,结果,奥巴马以停顿暗示法官有错。带读法官意识到自己搞错了,赶紧纠正;于是,奥巴马正确地做完了宣誓。
以下是当时的全文:
ROBERTS: I, Barack Hussein Obama...
OBAMA: I, Barack...〔罗伯茨没等奥巴马重复他的名字,就开始了下面的话。〕
ROBERTS: ... do solemnly swear...
OBAMA: I, Barack Hussein Obama, do solemnly swear...
ROBERTS: ... that I will execute the office of president to the United States faithfully...〔罗伯茨把“忠实地”(faithfully)放到了句子的最后;应该是 that I will execute faithfully the office of president to the United States 〕
OBAMA: ... that I will execute...〔而使奥巴马没能重复〕
ROBERTS: ... faithfully the office of president of the United States...〔罗伯茨正确地把“忠实地”(faithfully)放到了句首〕
OBAMA: ... the office of president of the United States faithfully...〔奥巴马重复时又把“忠实地”(faithfully)放到了句子的最后〕
ROBERTS: ... and will to the best of my ability...
OBAMA: ... and will to the best of my ability...
ROBERTS: ... preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
OBAMA: ... preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
ROBERTS: So help you God?
OBAMA: So help me God.
ROBERTS: Congratulations, Mr. President.
宣誓应该是这样的: “我郑重宣誓,将忠实地执行美国总统的职务,我将竭尽我的全力维护,保护和捍卫美利坚合众国宪法”。 “I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
要是他们用汉语宣誓就没有这问题啦。英语可以把副词放在动词的前边或后边,汉语的副词一般只能放在动词的前边。哈哈。
⑧ 林肯就职演讲
主讲:亚伯拉罕·林肯
时间:1863年11月19日
地点:美国,宾夕法尼亚,葛底斯堡
八十七年前,我们先辈在这个大陆上创立了一个新国家,它孕育于自由之中,奉行一切人生来平等的原则。
我们正从事一场伟大的内战,以考验这个国家,或者任何一个孕育于自由和奉行上述原则的国家是否能够长久存在下去。我们在这场战争中的一个伟大战场上集会。烈士们为使这个国家能够生存下去而献出了自己的生命,我们来到这里,是要把这个战场的一部分奉献给他们作为最后安息之所。我们这样做是完全应该而且非常恰当的。
但是,从更广泛的意义上说,这块土地我们不能够奉献,不能够圣化,不能够神化。那些曾在这里战斗过的勇士们,活着的和去世的,已经把这块土地圣化了,这远不是我们微薄的力量所能增减的。我们今天在这里所说的话,全世界不大会注意,也不会长久地记住,但勇士们在这里所做过的事,全世界却永远不会忘记。毋宁说,倒是我们这些还活着的人,应该在这里把自己奉献于勇士们已经如此崇高地向前推进但尚未完成的事业。倒是我们应该在这里把自已奉献于仍然留在我们面前的伟大任务——我们要从这些光荣的死者身上吸取更多的献身精神,来完成他们已经完全彻底为之献身的事业;我们要在这里下定最大的决心,不让这些死者白白牺牲;我们要使国家在上帝福佑下自由的新生,要使这个民有、民治、民享的政府永世长存。