2006年VOA标准英语-Balancing Border Security with US Need for Work

By Mike O'Sullivan
Los Angeles
18 October 2006

Earlier this year, President Bush deployed¹ 6,000 National Guard troops to the southern U.S. border to help the Border Patrol with security.  This month, the president signed a bill that provides $1.2 billion for fencing on parts of the border.  From the border near San Diego, VOA's Mike O'Sullivan looks at the heightened security effort and the controversy² around it.

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In this border region near the Mexican city of Tijuana, the stepped-up security started in 1994, with an effort called Operation Gatekeeper.  Additional fencing was installed then.  It is now being strengthened and expanded.

Major Ken³ Witt  
  
Major Ken Witt of the California National Guard says troops and civilian⁴ contractors⁵ are building new sections of fence-line.

"What the fence-line does is that it prevents vehicles from coming through, and also smugglers.  Also you will see video cameras on top of certain areas, and that is to monitor the traffic that comes across this area," Major Witt says.

The National Guard is providing additional eyes and ears along the border.   

Troops man night-scopes to watch for those trying to sneak⁶ across.

"And it zooms⁷ in and out and you can focus.  And we use this to identify groups or individuals out there," a guard says.

Some critics in the United States and Mexico worry that the southern U.S. border is becoming militarized.  The National Guard says it is just providing backup, with surveillance, construction, and administrative⁸ work.  The Border Patrol says it can use the help.

Monica Monroy  
  
Agent Monica Monroy says she has sympathy for those who want to escape Third World poverty.  Her parents were immigrants from Mexico.  But she says immigration should be legal and the borders must be secure.

"I do not think we can solve or the United States has a solution for world hunger.  The solution I think may be out there, but letting everyone into the country is not the solution," Monroy says.

On a typical day, hundreds who try to cross the border illegally are detained near San Diego.  Most agree to go home voluntarily.  They are quickly processed and deported⁹.

Critics say security alone is not the answer.  

Immigrant farm workers in California   
  
U.S. industries from farming to apparel rely on immigrant workers.  Eleven or 12 million people may be in the country illegally. 

Activist¹⁰ Angelica Salas wants them legalized, and says lawmakers must realize why people are coming.

"That they are coming here to work, that they are actually contributing, and there is 12 million people that should be legalized in this country immediately," Salas says.

Maria Elena Durazo of the Los Angeles County Federation¹¹ of Labor¹² says the native-born workforce¹³ is shrinking, especially for low-skilled work.

"Those workers, those immigrants are a very important part of revitalizing the labor movement, rebuilding the middle class," Durazo says. "They work in service industries, jobs that are not going to be exported."

Others say in an age of terrorism, immigration laws must be enforced to keep the country safe.

President Bush and many in Congress say the solution is comprehensive reform of U.S. immigration law, an expanded guest worker program, with a possible path to citizenship¹⁴, coupled with tighter security at the border.  But other lawmakers, including many members from the President's party, oppose such measures.  Instead they favor making the border much more secure to prevent illegal immigration. 

1 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

2 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

3 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

4 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

5 contractors   

n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Contractors winning construction jobs had to kick back 2 per cent of the contract price to the mafia. 赢得建筑工作的承包商得抽出合同价格的百分之二的回扣给黑手党。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 sneak   

vt.潜行(隐藏,填石缝)；偷偷摸摸做；n.潜行；adj.暗中进行

参考例句：

• He raised his spear and sneak forward.他提起长矛悄悄地前进。
• I saw him sneak away from us.我看见他悄悄地从我们身边走开。

7 zooms   

n.嗡嗡声( zoom的名词复数 )；隆隆声；（车辆等）疾驰的声音；变焦

参考例句：

• A sneeze zooms out of your mouth at over 600 m.p.h. 从你口中打出的喷嚏速度可达每小时600里。 来自互联网
• When the camera zooms in, the whole world watches out. 当镜头对准（汶川），全世界都在关注。 来自互联网

8 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

9 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

11 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

12 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

13 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

14 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。