美国有线新闻 CNN 2013-10-22（在线收听） |
A deal in D.C. after weeks of accusations and negotiations, news broke yesterday that Democrats, Republicans and the president had more or less agreed on the plan. It would end the partial U.S. government shutdown that started on October 1st, and it would avoid the country hitting the debt ceiling, which experts said would happen today. The deal came from the U.S. Senate, where Democrats hold a majority, though it was a bipartisan agreement there. The Senate was expected to vote on a deal last night that would be followed by a vote in the Republican-led House of Representatives. Yesterday, House Speaker John Boehner urged his fellow Republicans to support the plan. If it passes both Houses of Congress, the president still has to sign it. And one thing to keep in mind: this is an interim deal, it's temporary. It would fund the government through mid-January, raise the debt ceiling until early February. So, this is not a long term solution. Teachers, as always, you can get the latest details at cnn.com.
Our next story today is about a tragedy that allegedly started with bullying, both in person and online. It led to a 12-year old in Florida committing suicide and later the arrest of two other girls.
"Police say Rebecca was bullied for a year. It apparently started when a 14-year old began dating a boy that Rebecca had dated beforehand. The bullying got worse over time. Police found social media messages to Rebecca that said things like you should die and why don't you go kill yourself. Rebecca's mom transferred her to another school, but that didn't stop it."
"I remember telling her, you know, you don't listen to them, you're beautiful, they are just jealous of you and she would say -- you are my mom, you have to say that."
"Eventually, the middle school student killed herself. But police say the bullying didn't stop afterward. They say the 14-year-old who'd been doing some of it, posted on Facebook, essentially saying, yes, I bullied Rebecca and she killed herself, but I don't care. They arrested the 14-year old and another girl, a 12-year old, charging them with felony, aggravated stalking. The lawyer for the older girls says she didn`t have access to Facebook at the time the message was posted."
"She denies them. She says that this is not as clear cut as it seems. That these things that were posted on Facebook recently were not by her."
"But Rebecca's mother says that the arrest means justice is being served."
"Something is finally being done about these girls that were bullying her. That`s all she ever wanted was somebody to listen and do something about it."
"Police had been arresting minors more often because of cases like this, the goal is to cut down on cyber bullying."
"Well, I can tell you we're all devastated by this. And I can tell you all of us that worked that case and worked around that case, we lost sleep over that child dying needlessly." |
| 原文地址：http://www.tingroom.com/lesson/cnn2013/10/236418.html |