2016年经济学人 军装 真正隐形

 

Military uniforms

军装

Out of sight

真正隐形

Expense and stupidity too big to camouflage¹

迷彩服也不再能伪装目标巨大的支出和愚蠢

“I WEAR camo so I can feel safe,” says Sean, a member of the navy reserve. He cannot quite fathom² why his combat uniform is different from that of other American servicemen in the field, depending on whether they are members of the army, the air force or the marines. And soon it may be different no longer; for after years of ludicrously expensive design rivalry⁴, the defence appropriation⁵ for 2014 prohibits the services from designing new uniforms, unless they will be used by all members of the armed forces.

海军预备役成员肖恩说：“迷彩让我觉得安全。”他始终不能理解，为何根据军种的不同，作战的陆军、空军和海军的作战服样式不同。但这种现状即将改变，在数年荒唐可笑、花费巨大的设计竞赛之后，2014年国防拨款严禁军队设计新制服，除非该种制服能够用于全军。

Remarkably⁶, the Department of Defence has no single department dedicated⁷ to researching, developing and procuring⁸ the best uniforms for all troops. This caused no problems before 2002, when nearly every serviceman had a choice between a greenish camouflage uniform or a “coffee stain” desert pattern. But over the past 12 years the services have each created their own style of camouflage. The effect has been both costly⁹, and occasionally embarrassing.

但请注意，国防部并无专门部门负责研发和生产适用于全军的服装。在2002年之前，这不是问题，因此那时每个军人只有两种选择---绿色迷彩服或者咖色沙漠迷彩。但十二年过去了，各个军队都设计了自己的迷彩服。这不仅带来了浪费，有时还意味着尴尬。

The marines led the way in 2002 with a versatile¹⁰ and effective new combat uniform, which also served to boost corps¹¹ morale¹² because the marine³ insignia was embedded¹³ in the design. This inspired a cascade¹⁴ of one-upsmanship among the other services. The air force, for instance, spent several years and more than $3m designing a new “tiger-stripe” uniform that proved unsuitable for combat—the camouflage was ineffective, the trousers were uncomfortable and the fabric¹⁵ was too heavy, leading to “heat build-up”. The navy spent a lot less money developing the “aquaflage” uniform; but that is a silly blue ensemble¹⁶ that works best where sailors may least wish to blend, in the water.

海军陆战队在2002年率先发布了一款全能高效的新型作战服，该款服饰的设计包含了海军陆战队的队徽，因此对鼓舞士气也有奇效。这在全军掀起了一股争先浪潮。比如，空军部队耗时数年，斥资逾300万美元，设计了一种新型“虎纹”制服，但这种制服却不适合作战---它的保护色无用，裤装不舒适，布料太厚不利散热。海军用较少的花费，设计了所谓的“水蓝”军服（aquaflage），这套愚蠢的蓝色制服看上去只有在水中—海军最不愿意隐藏的地方—隐藏效果最好。

The worst offender¹⁷ has been the army. The service spent years and about $3.2m developing its own “universal” camouflage. This pattern was designed to work anywhere, but proved useless nearly everywhere. Soon after it was introduced in 2005, soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan began complaining that the pattern turned them into targets. Troops from Syria and China were clearly better equipped. Reports suggest that a high-ranking military official had chosen the pattern without consulting the data from years of studies. The army is said to have spent at least $5 billion on uniforms and equipment printed in this camouflage, which is still in use. In an emergency measure, the army kitted out soldiers in Afghanistan in a new pattern starting in 2010, spending more than $38.8m on replacement¹⁸ gear in fiscal¹⁹ 2010 and 2011.

最糟糕的设计来自陆军。陆军花费数年和约320万美元设计了一种所谓的“通用”迷彩。按照设计，它本该适用所有地形，但最终发现，它几乎在所有地形都派不上用场。2005年，在该种迷彩推出后不久，伊拉克和阿富汗的美国士兵就开始抱怨，说这种制服使他们成了活靶子。连叙利亚和中国的军队都明显比美军军备精良。调查显示，一位位居高位的军官在没有参考多年调查数据的情况下就选定了这种设计。据称，陆军至少砸了50亿美元在该种制服和迷彩上印的设备上。目前，这种迷彩仍在使用中。2010年，作为应急措施之一，陆军为驻伊拉克的士兵换上了新型样式的服装，据称这个过程花费了2010、2011年的财政中的388万美元。

Part of the problem, explains Timothy O'Neill, a retired²⁰ lieutenant-colonel and camouflage expert, is that officers can be a bit too preoccupied²¹ with a uniform's “CDI [chicks dig it] factor”. This vanity, together with bungled²² trials, missteps and a lack of co-operation, put the cost of developing these uniforms at more than $12m, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in 2012. This does not include the extra costs—which the GAO estimates in the tens of millions of dollars—of managing the stock and supply of so many different combat uniforms. Nor does it include the high costs of replacing ineffective camouflage in the field. The armed forces spent around $300m on camouflage uniforms in 2011 alone.

退休上校、迷彩专家蒂莫西·奥尼尔指出，问题一部分出在军官们过于关注军装华而不实的效果。根据美国政府问责局（GAO）2012年的一份报告，这种虚荣心，加上被搞砸的实验，失误和欠缺合作，使得开发这些制服的费用超过了1200万美元。这还不涵盖其他额外费用（根据政府问责局估计，单单这一块费用就数以百万），包括管理这些种类繁多的作战服的储存和供应。更不要提替换在战场上效果不佳的迷彩服的费用了。仅仅在2011年一年，全军花费在迷彩服上的费用就高达3亿美元。

Stunned²³ by these price tags, Congress in 2010 directed the Department of Defence to raise standards and cut costs. But little has been done. Many soldiers see the wisdom of returning to a shared uniform. But not the marines, who will stick to their pattern “like a hobo on a ham sandwich”, in the words of General James Amos, commandant of the marine corps.

被这些价格标签吓到，国会在2011年令国防部提高标准，降低成本。但应对措施不多。许多士兵看到了重新开始共享同款军服的好处。但海军陆战队不这么想，海军陆战队总司令、上校詹姆斯·阿莫斯说，海军陆战队队员对他们自己的设计就像“流浪汉对火腿三明治”。

It is unclear what all this means for the army, which has been spending millions of dollars testing different patterns for a new camouflage since 2010. It recently started tests for possible new uniforms, which will continue until the end of September. Replacing the service's flawed camouflage and equipment could cost another $4 billion over five years, according to the GAO. “Research and development in government is always a long and painstaking²⁴ process,“ says Mr O'Neill. “But if it were easy, then the government would waste even more money, and faster.”

这一切对全军意味着什么，现在还不清楚。自2010年以来，全军在一种新型迷彩的测试上已经花费了上百万资金。最近，它又对一种疑似新军装展开了新一轮测试，测试将一直持续到九月底。政府问责局称，在未来五年，替换军队中存在缺陷的迷彩和装备将花费400万美元。奥尼尔说：“政府的研发过程总是路漫漫其修远兮，但如果这个过程过于简单，那么政府会浪费更多的资金，更加草率。”

1 camouflage   

n./v.掩饰，伪装

参考例句：

• The white fur of the polar bear is a natural camouflage.北极熊身上的白色的浓密软毛是一种天然的伪装。
• The animal's markings provide effective camouflage.这种动物身上的斑纹是很有效的伪装。

2 fathom   

v.领悟，彻底了解

参考例句：

• I really couldn't fathom what he was talking about.我真搞不懂他在说些什么。
• What these people hoped to achieve is hard to fathom.这些人希望实现些什么目标难以揣测。

3 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

4 rivalry   

n.竞争，竞赛，对抗

参考例句：

• The quarrel originated in rivalry between the two families.这次争吵是两家不和引起的。
• He had a lot of rivalry with his brothers and sisters.他和兄弟姐妹间经常较劲。

5 appropriation   

n.拨款，批准支出

参考例句：

• Our government made an appropriation for the project.我们的政府为那个工程拨出一笔款项。
• The council could note an annual appropriation for this service.议会可以为这项服务表决给他一笔常年经费。

6 remarkably   

ad.不同寻常地，相当地

参考例句：

• I thought she was remarkably restrained in the circumstances. 我认为她在那种情况下非常克制。
• He made a remarkably swift recovery. 他康复得相当快。

7 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

8 procuring   

v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的现在分词 )；拉皮条

参考例句：

• He was accused of procuring women for his business associates. 他被指控为其生意合伙人招妓。 来自辞典例句
• She had particular pleasure, in procuring him the proper invitation. 她特别高兴为他争得这份体面的邀请。 来自辞典例句

9 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

10 versatile   

adj.通用的，万用的；多才多艺的，多方面的

参考例句：

• A versatile person is often good at a number of different things.多才多艺的人通常擅长许多种不同的事情。
• He had been one of the game's most versatile athletes.他是这项运动中技术最全面的运动员之一。

11 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

12 morale   

n.道德准则，士气，斗志

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is sinking lower every day.敌军的士气日益低落。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

13 embedded   

a.扎牢的

参考例句：

• an operation to remove glass that was embedded in his leg 取出扎入他腿部玻璃的手术
• He has embedded his name in the minds of millions of people. 他的名字铭刻在数百万人民心中。

14 cascade   

n.小瀑布，喷流；层叠；vi.成瀑布落下

参考例句：

• She watched the magnificent waterfall cascade down the mountainside.她看着壮观的瀑布从山坡上倾泻而下。
• Her hair fell over her shoulders in a cascade of curls.她的卷发像瀑布一样垂在肩上。

15 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。

16 ensemble   

n.合奏(唱)组；全套服装；整体，总效果

参考例句：

• We should consider the buildings as an ensemble.我们应把那些建筑物视作一个整体。
• It is ensemble music for up to about ten players,with one player to a part.它是最多十人演奏的合奏音乐，每人担任一部分。

17 offender   

n.冒犯者，违反者，犯罪者

参考例句：

• They all sued out a pardon for an offender.他们请求法院赦免一名罪犯。
• The authorities often know that sex offenders will attack again when they are released.当局一般都知道性犯罪者在获释后往往会再次犯案。

18 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

19 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

20 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

21 preoccupied   

adj.全神贯注的，入神的；被抢先占有的；心事重重的v.占据（某人）思想，使对…全神贯注，使专心于( preoccupy的过去式)

参考例句：

• He was too preoccupied with his own thoughts to notice anything wrong. 他只顾想着心事，没注意到有什么不对。
• The question of going to the Mount Tai preoccupied his mind. 去游泰山的问题盘踞在他心头。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 bungled   

v.搞糟，完不成( bungle的过去式和过去分词 )；笨手笨脚地做；失败；完不成

参考例句：

• They bungled the job. 他们把活儿搞糟了。
• John bungled the job. 约翰把事情搞糟了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

23 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

24 painstaking   

adj.苦干的；艰苦的，费力的，刻苦的

参考例句：

• She is not very clever but she is painstaking.她并不很聪明，但肯下苦功夫。
• Through years of our painstaking efforts,we have at last achieved what we have today.大家经过多少年的努力，才取得今天的成绩。