2006年VOA标准英语-Bush Commemoration of 9/11 Focuses on Iraq

By Peter Fedynsky
Washington, DC
13 September 2006
 
watch US Focus on Iraq

President Bush concedes that Saddam Hussein had nothing to do with the September 11, 2001 terror attacks on the United States.  But the president devoted¹ most of his attention to the war in Iraq during his address marking the fifth anniversary of those attacks Monday night.  VOA's Peter Fedynsky reports critics of Mr. Bush's Iraq policy say it has not made America more secure.

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President Bush delivering the address to the nation

President Bush said the lesson of the September 11th, 2001 attacks is that America must confront threats before they reach its shores.  He said toppled Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein posed such a threat.  Mr. Bush also warned that radical² dictators could obtain nuclear weapons and the Middle East could be overrun by terrorists if the United States fails to defeat its enemies in Iraq.

"The safety of America depends on the outcome of the battle in the streets of Baghdad. Osama bin³ Laden⁴ calls this fight 'the third World War' -- and he says that victory for the terrorists in Iraq will mean America's 'defeat and disgrace forever.' If we yield Iraq to men like bin Laden, our enemies will be emboldened⁵. They will gain a new safe haven⁶. They will use Iraq's resources to fuel their extremist movement."

But critics say the Iraq war is not only creating more terrorists than it eliminates, but also depriving the United States of an intangible resource --  international goodwill⁷, which emerged in the immediate⁸ aftermath of 9/11.

Ivo Daalder is a national security analyst⁹ at the Brookings Institution think tank in Washington, D.C., "We could have used that in order to marshal the grand coalition¹⁰ of nations and of people against the terrorist and we did that starting in Afghanistan. But we never finished in that kind of sense and we basically threw away the goodwill, the power that came with that goodwill and dug a hole.

And the hole now is so deep and we are so alone at the bottom of that hole that few people are willing to help."

The United States invaded Afghanistan to remove the Taleban regime. The Taleban had given safe haven to al-Qaida terrorists who carried out the September 11th attacks. 

But critics say the Iraq war has diverted American resources from the effort in Afghanistan, resulting in the dispersal rather than destruction of al-Qaida. 

Former President Bill Clinton says the Bush administration made an improper¹¹ link between Iraq and last month's London-based plot to blow American-bound airplanes from the skies.

"I don't think foiling that London bomb plot has any bearing on our Iraq policy.  They seem to be anxious to tie it to al-Qaida.  If that's true, how come we got seven times as many troops in Iraq as in Afghanistan?"

President Bush insists that he is honoring his pledge made soon after 9/11 to use every element of national power to fight terrorists, wherever they may be, including Iraq.  "One of the strongest weapons in our arsenal¹² is the power of freedom. The terrorists fear freedom as much as they do our firepower. They are thrown into panic at the sight of an old man pulling the election lever, girls enrolling¹³ in schools, or families worshiping God in their own traditions. They know that given a choice, people will choose freedom over their extremist ideology¹⁴."

The day after the president's speech, police in Baghdad found the bodies of at least six decapitated people, apparently¹⁵ killed in sectarian violence.  Mr. Bush acknowledges a difficult road ahead in the war against terror.  But he says the building of a more hopeful Middle East holds the key to peace for America and the world.

1 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

2 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。

3 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

4 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

5 emboldened   

v.鼓励，使有胆量( embolden的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Emboldened by the wine, he went over to introduce himself to her. 他借酒壮胆，走上前去向她作自我介绍。
• His success emboldened him to expand his business. 他有了成就因而激发他进一步扩展业务。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

7 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

8 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

9 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

10 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

11 improper   

adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的

参考例句：

• Short trousers are improper at a dance.舞会上穿短裤不成体统。
• Laughing and joking are improper at a funeral.葬礼时大笑和开玩笑是不合适的。

12 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

13 enrolling   

v.招收( enrol的现在分词 )；吸收；入学；加入；[亦作enrol]( enroll的现在分词 )；登记，招收，使入伍（或入会、入学等），参加，成为成员；记入名册；卷起，包起

参考例句：

• They lashed out at the university enrolling system. 他们猛烈抨击大学的招生制度。 来自辞典例句
• You're enrolling in a country club, Billy. 你是注册加入乡村俱乐部了，比利。 来自辞典例句

14 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

15 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。