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奥巴马呼吁采取行动制止枪械暴力

Tuesday, U.S. Vice¹ President Joe Biden is expected to unveil recommendations for curbing² gun violence in America, which claims thousands of lives each year. The recommendations come one month after a deadly shooting rampage at a Connecticut elementary school that re-ignited a long-simmering debate on gun control.

美国总统奥巴马在星期一发表演讲时再次呼吁朝野各界共同努力，防止犯罪分子利用枪支滥杀无辜。预计，美国副总统拜登星期二将公布遏制枪支暴力的建议。美国每年有几千人死于枪支暴力。一个月前，康涅狄克州的一所小学发生枪击血案，重新点燃了长期不休的管制枪支辩论。

“这里有伤亡，快派救护车。”

Gunfire erupted on December 14 at Sandy Hook Elementary School, where a heavily armed young man shot and killed 20 children and several school administrators³. The entire nation recoiled⁴ in grief and horror.

12月14号，康州桑迪胡克小学爆发枪击案，一名全副武装的年轻人开枪打死20名孩子和几名教职员工，让全美国陷入悲痛和恐惧中。

比华利?查普是一位反枪支暴力抗议者。她说：

“20名小孩被谋杀？还有老师？”

Days later, President Barack Obama issued a call to action.

几天后，奥巴马总统呼吁采取行动。他说：

“We cannot tolerate this anymore.  These tragedies must end," he stated. "And to end them, we must change.”

“我们再也不能容忍这样的事件了，必须制止类似悲剧。要制止，就必须改革。”

As victims were laid to rest and the country continued to mourn, Obama appointed Vice President Joe Biden to head a task force on preventing gun violence.

就在安葬遇难者，全国民众沉浸在悲痛中的同时，奥巴马总统指定拜登副总统领导一个工作小组来预防枪支暴力。拜登说：

“If our actions result in only saving one life, they are worth taking,” said Biden.

“即使我们的行动结果只挽救了一个人的生命，那也是值得的。”

Biden has met with a broad spectrum⁵ of interested parties in the gun-control debate, including gun rights advocates. Far from restricting access to firearms, the National Rifle Association urges a greater armed presence in America’s schools.

拜登会见了枪支管制辩论中的各界人士，包括支持拥有枪支权利的人士。反对限制枪支的美国全国步枪协会则敦促美国学校加强警力来保护师生。这个协会的负责人韦恩?拉皮埃尔说：

“The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun,” said NRA chief Wayne LaPierre.

“制止持枪坏人的唯一办法就是让好人也有枪。”

Others say steps can be taken to keep the most lethal⁶ weapons out of the hands of evildoers without strangling Americans’ constitutional right to bear arms.

也有人说，可以采取措施既不让最危险的武器落入坏人手中，同时又不损害美国宪法规定可以携带武器的权利。支持管制枪支的丹?格罗斯说：

“NRA members know there are solutions to this problem that exist without taking away the right of any law-abiding citizen to own a gun,” said gun-control advocate Dan Gross.

“全国步枪协会成员知道，我们有办法既解决问题，又不损害遵纪守法的公民拥有枪支的权利。”

Possible recommendations from Vice President Biden include banning assault weapons as well as high-capacity ammunition⁷ clips, strengthening regulation of gun sales, and improving U.S. mental health services.

拜登副总统提出的建议中可能包括禁止个人拥有攻击性武器和强力杀伤性子弹，加强枪支出售管理条例，并且改善美国的精神疾病医疗。

Firearms merchants report a spike⁸ in purchases by gun owners who fear stricter laws will soon be enacted⁹.

武器商说，近来购买枪支的人数急速上升，那些人担心政府不久会推出更加严格的法律。

Solutions to gun violence crafted in Washington will be only marginally successful, according to analyst¹⁰ Trevor Burrus.

卡托研究所的研究员特雷弗?伯勒斯说，华盛顿制定的解决枪支暴力的措施只会取得微弱的成效。他说：

“I am most afraid of doing cosmetic¹¹ legislation. There is a very big temptation in these situations to do something like an assault weapons ban," he explained. "And say, ‘We did something. Let us pat ourselves on the back and go home,’ even though this is not going to solve the problem.'”

“我最怕那些装饰性立法， 这些立法很可能会作出禁止攻击性武器这类的规定，然后说，‘我们做事了，让我们拍拍肩膀回家去吧，’尽管这是解决不了问题的。”

But the post-Sandy Hook mobilization extends well beyond the nation’s capital. Some states, like New York, are considering tougher gun-control laws of their own.

可是，桑迪胡克案件带来的枪支管制动力不仅仅限于美国首都，纽约等州正在考虑制定本州的更加严格的法律。纽约州长安德鲁?科莫说：

“It is simple. No one hunts with an assault rifle. No one needs 10 bullets to kill a deer. And too many innocent people have died already," said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.. "End the madness now!”

“很简单，没有人会用攻击性步枪去打猎，没有人需要10颗子弹来杀一头鹿。太多无辜的人丧失了生命，现在就停止这场疯狂！”

The Sandy Hook shootings stunned¹² a nation long accustomed to gun violence. Vice President Biden’s recommendations come at a time of continued universal outrage¹³ over the incident. But congressional consideration of his proposals will likely occur later in the year, when the immediacy of Sandy Hook may have faded.

桑迪胡克学校枪击案让长期见惯枪支暴力的美国人都感到震惊。在全球仍然为之愤怒的同时，拜登副总统提出了防止枪支暴力建议，可是国会可能要等到下半年才会讨论，那时桑迪胡克案件的直接效应可能早已淡却。