经济学人290:美国掀起限制堕胎的浪潮

 　　JANUARY is a busy month in capitals across America. New laws are implemented¹; Congress and legislatures reconvene, hoping to pass more. If one’s political party is in the minority, this is a terrifying prospect². For opponents of abortion³, the outlook could hardly be sunnier. As of January, for example, abortion providers in Arkansas must follow new rules for inspections⁴. Beginning this month, Utah and Nebraska bar private health plans from covering abortion. These laws follow an avalanche⁵ of abortion measures, passed last year, that are already in effect. As politicians return to capitals, more restrictions⁶ may come.

　　在美国，一月是各州首府繁忙的月份：新法的实施事宜；为了能有更多的法律出台，国会和立法机构会议反复召开。如若有一政党孤立沦为少数，那么将来的事情就不好办。对于不支持堕胎的人来说，堕胎这一议题的形势对他们最有利不过了：自一月起，在阿肯色州，堕胎服务提供者必须遵循新的检查规定。本月初，犹他州和内布拉斯加州出台法律宣布个人医疗保险计划不涉及堕胎。这些法律伴随着去年颁布的一系列堕胎措施而来，已经开始实行起来。政客们纷纷回归首府，随之而来的是更多的对堕胎的限制措施。

　　Last year saw a surge in social conservatism. It has been said that social issues inspire Americans to vote against their economic interests: a factory worker elects an anti-abortion Republican; in return he gets anti-union laws. Last year the adage⁷ was reversed. In 2010 Americans voted for economic austerity; in 2011 they got abortion restrictions. For those who oppose abortion, it was the most promising⁸ year in decades. For Barack Obama, it was a headache that looks set to grow worse.

　　美国去年掀起了一波社会保守主义热潮。据说这些社会议题，会激发美国人在投票时，割舍自己的经济利益：一名厂工投票支持了一位反对堕胎的共和党人；作为回报，他得到的是反工会法律。去年这个老生常谈的话题的局面得到了扭转。2010年，美国人支持经济紧缩政策；2011年他们得到限制堕胎法。对于反对堕胎的人来说，这是几十年来最高兴的一年。对于巴拉克.奥巴马而言，让他头疼的堕胎议题，看上去又要“强势回归”了。

　　The Supreme⁹ Court long ago ruled, in Roe¹⁰ v Wade¹¹, that women have the right to an abortion. Politicians, however, are testing more ways to limit access to one. Such efforts have little hope in Washington, DC, where Democrats¹² control the Senate. Nevertheless, last year Republicans in the House of Representatives tried to bar funding for abortions¹³ permanently¹⁴ (a yearly amendment¹⁵ already does as much). They tried to do the same for Planned Parenthood, a chain of health clinics that offer abortions. They even voted to bar funding for a family-planning programme created by Richard Nixon, hardly a raging feminist¹⁶.

　　美国联邦最高法院对’’柔伊对韦德”的判决距今已很久远，当时的结果是，女性有权利堕胎。然而，政客们正在尝试运用更多办法来限制人去堕胎。这样的努力放到华盛顿基本上是毫无希望的，因为那里的民主党人掌控着参议院。然而，去年众议院的共和党人努力永远禁止资助堕胎（一条年度修订案已经也这样做了。）他们对待美国计划生育联盟的态度一样，后者在美国各地都有提供堕胎的医疗诊所。这些共和党人甚至反对由脾气好的女权主义者理查德.尼克松开创的计划生育项目的集资。

　　As politicians bickered¹⁷ in Washington, state legislatures took action. The year was remarkable¹⁸ for the sheer number of new laws—91, reckons Elizabeth Nash of the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights. Many states barred abortion coverage¹⁹ from the health plans that will be offered on Mr Obama’s new health exchanges. Others banned abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy²⁰, arguing that they were shielding fetuses²¹ from pain. States made it harder for minors²² to receive abortions. Nebraska, for example, now requires notarised parental²³ consent. Sam Brownback, the outspoken²⁴ governor of Kansas, passed the year’s broadest anti-abortion package. More surprising, Indiana was not far behind. In 2010 Mitch Daniels, Indiana’s governor, insisted that fiscal²⁵ reform was more urgent than a divisive social agenda. In April 2011 he signed a broad anti-abortion bill.

　　正当华盛顿政客们吵得不可开交之际，各州立法机构已经开始采取行动。支持享有堕胎权的古特马赫研究院的伊丽莎白.纳什认为，这一年是非凡的一年，因为新法竟然达到了91条。医保方案将会根据奥巴马新的指示意见呈现出来，而很多州都会把堕胎从中拿掉。其它州持保护胎儿免受痛苦的意见禁止怀孕20周后堕胎。许多州让未成年女性更不容易堕胎。比如内布拉斯加州就要求堕胎必须得到公证确认的父母的同意。直率的堪萨斯州州长山姆.布朗巴克通过了年度波及范围最为广泛的反堕胎配套计划方案。让人更为吃惊的是，印第安纳州也不甘落后。该州州长米奇.丹尼斯坚持认为2010年的财政改革比任何一个存在意见分歧的社会议题都要紧迫。2011年四月他签署了一条内容广泛的反堕胎法案。

1 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

2 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

3 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

4 inspections   

n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅

参考例句：

• Regular inspections are carried out at the prison. 经常有人来视察这座监狱。
• Government inspections ensure a high degree of uniformity in the standard of service. 政府检查确保了在服务标准方面的高度一致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 avalanche   

n.雪崩，大量涌来

参考例句：

• They were killed by an avalanche in the Swiss Alps.他们在瑞士阿尔卑斯山的一次雪崩中罹难。
• Higher still the snow was ready to avalanche.在更高处积雪随时都会崩塌。

6 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

7 adage   

n.格言，古训

参考例句：

• But the old adage that men grow into office has not proved true in my experience.但是，根据我的经验，人们所谓的工作岗位造就人材这句古话并不正确。
• Her experience lends credence to the adage " We live and learn!"她的经验印证了一句格言: 活到老，学到老！

8 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

9 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

10 roe   

n.鱼卵；獐鹿

参考例句：

• We will serve smoked cod's roe at the dinner.宴会上我们将上一道熏鳕鱼子。
• I'll scramble some eggs with roe?我用鱼籽炒几个鸡蛋好吗？

11 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

12 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 abortions   

n.小产( abortion的名词复数 )；小产胎儿；（计划）等中止或夭折；败育

参考例句：

• The Venerable Master: By not having abortions, by not killing living beings. 上人：不堕胎、不杀生。 来自互联网
• Conclusion Chromosome abnormality is one of the causes of spontaneous abortions. 结论：染色体异常是导致反复自然流产的原因之一。 来自互联网

14 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

15 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

16 feminist   

adj.主张男女平等的，女权主义的

参考例句：

• She followed the feminist movement.她支持女权运动。
• From then on,feminist studies on literature boomed.从那时起，男女平等受教育的现象开始迅速兴起。

17 bickered   

v.争吵( bicker的过去式和过去分词 )；口角；（水等）作潺潺声；闪烁

参考例句：

• The afternoon sun bickered through the leaves. 午后的阳光闪烁于树叶之间。 来自辞典例句
• They bickered over [about] some unimportant thing. 他们为芝麻小事争吵。 来自辞典例句

18 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

19 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

20 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

21 fetuses   

n.胎，胎儿( fetus的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• DNA was extracted from fetuses at mid-gestation, about 10 days past conception. DNA从受孕大约10天后的中期妊娠胚胎中提取。 来自互联网
• Brucellosis is a disease that causes fetuses to abort in cattle. 普鲁士菌病是一种可以导致牲畜胎儿夭折的疾病。 来自互联网

22 minors   

n.未成年人( minor的名词复数 )；副修科目；小公司；[逻辑学]小前提v.[主美国英语]副修，选修，兼修( minor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors. 法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had three minors this semester. 这学期他有三门副修科目。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 parental   

adj.父母的；父的；母的

参考例句：

• He encourages parental involvement in the running of school.他鼓励学生家长参与学校的管理。
• Children always revolt against parental disciplines.孩子们总是反抗父母的管束。

24 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

25 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。