经济学人:重温过去的经验教训(2)

 After the Great Recession, in contrast, most central banks (the Bank of Japan being a notable exception) were content to prevent prices falling,  相比之下，大衰退后，大多数央行（日本银行是一个特殊的例外）都满足于防止物价下跌，

and have not actively¹ worked to make up lost output. 而且没有主动地去恢复失去了的产出。

As a result, the recovery has been much weaker than in previous cycles, including the Depression,  其结果就是，复苏要比在以前的周期中，包括大萧条，弱了很多；

and monetary² policy has taken longer to return to normal, leaving economies poorly prepared for the next recession. 同时，货币政策也用了更长的时间来恢复正常，从而就使得各个经济体对下一次危机准备不足。

Similarly, the Great Recession demonstrated the value of automatic fiscal³ stabilisers,  同样，大衰退展示了自动财政稳定机制的价值。

but governments failed to seize the opportunity to link tax and benefits more closely to the business cycle. 但是，各国政府却没能抓住机会，将税收和福利更加密切地与商业周期联系在一起。

Indeed, rules that have recently been adopted, such as Europe's fiscal compact, constrain⁴ rather than harness fiscal policy. 实际上，最近被采纳的一些规则，如欧洲的财政契约，与其说是驾驭财政政策，倒不如说是遏制财政政策。

The Depression enabled radical⁵ change by discrediting⁶ untrammelled capitalism⁷ and the elites⁸ who supported it. 通过让不受约束的资本主义和支持它的精英名誉扫地，大衰退是的激进改革成为可能。

That had dangerous side-effects: it also empowered fanatical and dangerous political outsiders. 这带来的危险的负面效应：它也让狂热和危险的政治局外人获得了权力。

Though financial and political elites were not spared a populist backlash after the Great Recession,  尽管政治和经济经营们在大衰退之后没有逃脱民粹主义的反攻倒算。

they have largely kept their seat at the table, blocking the enactment⁹ of bolder reforms. 但是他们大都抱住了自己的位置，阻碍了更大胆改革的施行。

The success of the response to the downturn helped avoid some of the disasters of the 1930s. 应对这场衰退的成功曾为避免上世纪30年代的那种灾难立下了汗马功劳。

But it also left the fundamentals of the system that produced the crisis unchanged. 但是，它也让造成了这场危机的这一体系的根本原封未动。

Ten years on, the hopes of radical reform are all but dashed. 十年过去了，激进改革的希望已经灰飞烟灭。

The sad upshot is that the global economy may have the opportunity to relearn the lessons of the past rather sooner than hoped. 这种不幸的结果在于，全球经济有可能比预想的还要快地有机会去重温过去的经验教训。

 

1 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

2 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

3 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。

4 constrain   

vt.限制，约束；克制，抑制

参考例句：

• She tried to constrain herself from a cough in class.上课时她竭力忍住不咳嗽。
• The study will examine the factors which constrain local economic growth.这项研究将考查抑制当地经济发展的因素。

5 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

6 discrediting   

使不相信( discredit的现在分词 )； 使怀疑； 败坏…的名声； 拒绝相信

参考例句：

• It has also led to the discrediting of mainstream macroeconomics. 它还使得人们对主流宏观经济学产生了怀疑。

7 capitalism   

n.资本主义

参考例句：

• The essence of his argument is that capitalism cannot succeed.他的论点的核心是资本主义不能成功。
• Capitalism began to develop in Russia in the 19th century.十九世纪资本主义在俄国开始发展。

8 elites   

精华( elite的名词复数 )； 精锐； 上层集团； （统称）掌权人物

参考例句：

• The elites are by their nature a factor contributing to underdevelopment. 这些上层人物天生是助长欠发达的因素。
• Elites always detest gifted and nimble outsiders. 社会名流对天赋聪明、多才多艺的局外人一向嫌恶。

9 enactment   

n.演出，担任…角色；制订，通过

参考例句：

• Enactment refers to action.演出指行为的表演。
• We support the call for the enactment of a Bill of Rights.我们支持要求通过《权利法案》的呼声。