CNN 2011-02-21

You're tuned¹ in to CNN Student News, where Fridays are always awesome²! Hi, everyone. Carl Azuz is off today. I'm Joyce Joseph. Let's get to the headlines.

First up, political protests turn violent in some of the Middle Eastern nations we've been talking about these past few weeks. The U.S. government says it's "deeply concerned" about the crackdown on anti-government protesters in Bahrain. Yesterday, several people were killed and hundreds more were injured in fighting between protesters and security forces. In Yemen, at least 20 people were hurt when groups that support and oppose that country's government threw stones at each other yesterday. And in Libya, some web sites called for a "Day of Rage" Thursday. That could be a sign that anti-government protests are picking up in the country.

In all of these countries protesters are calling for change. That's already happened in Egypt, where long-time President Hosni Mubarak has stepped down. Sandra Endo explains why Egypt should study history to see where things might go from here.

A revolution in Iran 32 years ago. Months of bloodshed, protest, but success: the ouster of the Shah and his oppressive government. Three decades later, a similar fight, this time powered by Egyptians. The sweet taste of victory, forcing a dictator out of office. But what's next?

For Iranians, more than thirty years later, the battle for freedom still remains³. Mehdi Amini was 17 years old when he took part in the Iranian revolution. He says the honeymoon⁴ was short lived after the Shah's regime was over and a repressive Islamic republic took charge. He wants Egyptians to learn from Iran's history.

We have Iran as a good example of the hopes that people had and what it eventually ended up being. So, I'm just hoping that they don't have the same outcome and that they should be under watch.

A big warning for Egyptians.

It's very positive that there's so much optimism, but it should not be translated into naivety⁵. This is where the hard work begins, to ensure that getting rid of a dictatorial⁶ system actually translates into achieving democracy. And that's a very, very hard path that the Egyptians will walk. But hopefully, they will be more successful than the Iranians were in 1979.

For Iranians like Amini, their fight will continue.

I hope to see a day where I can go and vote freely for someone who I choose. I hope to see a day when women and men have the right to just, basically, walk with each other, not be fearful of the repercussions⁷ of what's going to happen. And I hope to see, basically, a day when I can go back to my country.

Sandra Endo, CNN, Washington

1 tuned   

adj.调谐的，已调谐的v.调音( tune的过去式和过去分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• The resort is tuned in to the tastes of young and old alike. 这个度假胜地适合各种口味，老少皆宜。
• The instruments should be tuned up before each performance. 每次演出开始前都应将乐器调好音。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 honeymoon   

n.蜜月（假期）；vi.度蜜月

参考例句：

• While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。
• The happy pair are leaving for their honeymoon.这幸福的一对就要去度蜜月了。

5 naivety   

n.天真，纯朴，幼稚

参考例句：

• Mozart's music is characterized by its naivety and clarity.莫扎特的音乐特色是纯朴兴清澈。
• She has lost none of her naivety.她丝毫没有失去那份天真烂漫。

6 dictatorial   

adj. 独裁的，专断的

参考例句：

• Her father is very dictatorial.她父亲很专横。
• For years the nation had been under the heel of a dictatorial regime.多年来这个国家一直在独裁政权的铁蹄下。

7 repercussions   

n.后果，反响( repercussion的名词复数 )；余波

参考例句：

• The collapse of the company will have repercussions for the whole industry. 这家公司的垮台将会给整个行业造成间接的负面影响。
• Human acts have repercussions far beyond the frontiers of the human world. 人类行为所产生的影响远远超出人类世界的范围。 来自《简明英汉词典》