美国国家电台 NPR 2012-10-24

 Investors are lowering their earnings¹ expectations and that's been helping² to push stocks sharply lower today. Before the close, Dow was down 243 points at 13,103; NASDAQ was off 27 at 2,990; and S&P 500 down 21 at 1,413; of course Apple cut some of its losses today after the company announced it was launching a smaller, cheaper tablet to rival competitors Google and Amazon.com. 

 

This hour, the Obama campaign is back in Ohio, a state critical to the incumbents³' reelection hopes. The day after debating mostly foreign policy, both candidates return to the issue dominating the race, the economy. In Delray Beach, Florida earlier today, the president asked voters to give him four more years.

 

Now it's up to you to choose the path we take from here. Starting on Saturday Florida, you can choose the top-down policies that got us into this mess, or you can choose the policies we are using to get us out of this mess. 

 

Earlier, the president released a new booklet that outlines his second term policies. Other Republicans have been slamming that outline as unworkable. Senator John McCain who is also in Florida, stumping⁴ for GOP nominee⁵ Mitt⁶ Romney, said during a teleconference, Mr. Obama's booklet doesn't get the job done. 

 

I urge you to go through that very important document and find any path to a balanced budget, any reductions and spending, any path that would lead this country back to some kind of fiscal⁸ solvency⁹.

 

Again, McCain been campaigning for Mitt Romney who is meeting with voters this hour in Henderson, Nevada.

 

A federal appeals court has ruled that Indiana can not cut off medicate funding to Planned Parenthood clinics in the state. NPR's Julie Rovner tells us the ruling continues to block the first in the nation law that would prevent the women's health organization from receiving funding for any health service not just abortion¹⁰. 

 

Most abortion funding under medicate has been illegal since 1977 under the Federal Hyde Amendment¹¹. But the Indiana law passed in 2011 would have barred any abortion provider from receiving Medicaid Reinbursement for any other health service. Planned Parenthood which provides a broader way of other services including contraception and cancer screening suit, and the law was blocked. The state appealed which led to the current ruling by a three-judge panel of the 7th circuit. The judges agreed with the lower court judge that federal medicaid law requires that patients be given the ability to choose their provider in most cases and Indiana's law violates that. Julie Rovner,  NPR News.

 

Today, U.S. stocks dropped sharply with the Dow off  243 points before the close 1.8% at 13,103.  This is NPR. 

 

Florida is moving ahead with plans to execute convicted murder John Ferguson within hours, after an appeals court lifted a last-minute stay. NPR's Greg Allen reports Ferguson's attorneys are now asking the U.S. Supreme¹² Court to intervene because they say their client is mentally incompetent¹³. 

 

John Ferguson, now 64, was convicted of eight murders in late 1970s in the Miami area, including six people killed during a home invasion in 1977. Ferguson's lawyers say their client is a paranoid schizophrenic, who suffers from delusions¹⁴ that he is the prince of God. A U.S. district judge granted their request for a stay of execution. Yesterday, a federal appeals court lifted the stay, saying the lower court judge abused his discretion¹⁵. Ferguson's lawyers note that one of the judges on the appeals panel decentered, saying the question of their clients competency merits full reflective consideration. In their emergency petition with the Supreme Court, Ferguson's lawyers say an inmate¹⁶ must have a rational understanding of the reason for and effect of his pending⁷ execution, a standard they say the client does not meet. Ferguson's scheduled to be executed this evening. Greg Allen, NPR News, Miami.

 

The BBC is expending¹⁷ its internal investigation¹⁸ of a sexual abuse scandal since allegations surfaced against the late children's TV host Jimmy Savile. The network says it's now looking into claims made against nine staffers and contributors who are accused of abuses dating back decades. The BBC, one of the world's largest broadcasters, is accused of perpetuating¹⁹ a culture that protected alleged²⁰ abusers. The scandal is being compared with that Penn state whose former coach Jerry Sandusky, had abused children for years before he was convicted. 

1 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

2 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

3 incumbents   

教区牧师( incumbent的名词复数 )； 教会中的任职者

参考例句：

• In general, incumbents have a 94 percent chance of being reelected. 通常现任官员有94%的几率会再次当选。
• This arangement yields a wonderful gain to incumbents. 这种安排为在职人员提供了意外的得益。

4 stumping   

僵直地行走，跺步行走( stump的现在分词 )； 把（某人）难住； 使为难； （选举前）在某一地区作政治性巡回演说

参考例句：

• She's tired of stumping up for school fees, books and uniform. 她讨厌为学费、课本和校服掏腰包。
• But Democrats and Republicans are still dumping stumping for the young. 但是民主党和共和党依然向年轻人发表演说以争取他们的支持。

5 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

6 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

7 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

8 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。

9 solvency   

n.偿付能力，溶解力

参考例句：

• Fears about the solvency of the banks precipitated the great economic crash.对银行偿付能力出现恐慌更加速了经济的崩溃。
• Their targets,including profitability ratios,solvency ratios,asset management ratios.其指标包括盈利比率、偿债能力比率、资产管理比率。

10 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。

11 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。

12 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。

13 incompetent   

adj.无能力的，不能胜任的

参考例句：

• He is utterly incompetent at his job.他完全不能胜任他的工作。
• He is incompetent at working with his hands.他动手能力不行。

14 delusions   

n.欺骗( delusion的名词复数 )；谬见；错觉；妄想

参考例句：

• the delusions of the mentally ill 精神病患者的妄想
• She wants to travel first-class: she must have delusions of grandeur. 她想坐头等舱旅行，她一定自以为很了不起。 来自辞典例句

15 discretion   

n.谨慎；随意处理

参考例句：

• You must show discretion in choosing your friend.你择友时必须慎重。
• Please use your best discretion to handle the matter.请慎重处理此事。

16 inmate   

n.被收容者；(房屋等的)居住人；住院人

参考例句：

• I am an inmate of that hospital.我住在那家医院。
• The prisoner is his inmate.那个囚犯和他同住一起。

17 expending   

v.花费( expend的现在分词 )；使用（钱等）做某事；用光；耗尽

参考例句：

• The heart pumps by expending and contracting of muscle. 心脏通过收缩肌肉抽取和放出（血液）。 来自互联网
• Criminal action is an action of expending cost and then producing profit. 刑事诉讼是一种需要支付成本、能够产生收益的活动。 来自互联网

18 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

19 perpetuating   

perpetuate的现在进行式

参考例句：

• Revenge leads to a self-perpetuating cycle of violence. 怨怨相报会导致永不休止的暴力。
• It'set out to eradicate heresy, and ended by perpetuating it. 它的目的只是要根除异端邪说，结果却巩固了异端邪说。 来自英汉文学

20 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为