VOA标准英语2010年-On Memorial Day, Remembering US War De

Monday was observed as Memorial Day, a day to pause and reflect on the many who have died serving in the military.  President Barack Obama and Vice¹ President Joe Biden attended services to honor the dead.  Some of those who died gave their lives not for their homeland but for their adopted country. 

Rifle volleys for the most recent member of the military buried at Arlington National Cemetery². He was killed in Afghanistan.

A Marine³ presents the widow with a folded American flag. But it is not the flag of his birthplace.  Nicolas Parada-Rodriguez moved from El Salvador to the United States when he was five years old.

Immigrants began serving in the military during America's Revolutionary war in the late 1700s. Currently 29,000 legal immigrants are serving in the U.S. military.  About 8,000 enlist⁴ every year.

 

Major Dan Wood is a commander in the U.S. Army.  Ten percent of his unit are immigrants.

"Someone who emigrates to the United States certainly views those freedoms that America offers as something to be sought after," Wood explained. "Otherwise they wouldn't come.  So their fighting for those freedoms would seem for me to be a natural occurrence."

Sergeant⁵ Uday Singh moved from his home in Chandigarh, India to Chicago, more than 16,000 kilometers away.

There he enlisted⁶ in the US Army and was transferred to Fort Riley, Kansas. He was the gunner on a humvee in Iraq when his unit came under fire and he was killed.

The U.S. Army flew Singh's body back to India for cremation⁷ and burial.

Some of Singh's ashes were buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.

His two aunts visited his gravesite in Section 60, the area reserved for those who die in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Had he loved India more, he would have gone back to India to join the defense⁸ forces.  He chose to join the U.S. defense forces.  Maybe that shows how much he loved America," said Neere Princy, Singh's aunt from Jharkhand, India.

Meters away, on the same sacred ground, Vice President Joe Biden laid the traditional Memorial Day wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns, honoring all U.S. war dead, be they American citizens or not.  President Barack Obama did the same at a cemetery near Chicago.

Immigrants who enlist in the U.S. military earn an expedited route to citizenship⁹.  Singh's aunt says that is not the only reason immigrants join.

"I feel when we move to these countries we have to adopt everything good, bad, brave and not so good about these countries.  So I feel the immigrants belong in the army as much as the non-immigrants do," sais Rak Brar, Singh's aunt from Edmonton, Canada.

The U.S. military feels the same way and offers full honors at the end of their lives, no matter where they began them.
 

1 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

2 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

3 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

4 enlist   

vt.谋取(支持等)，赢得；征募；vi.入伍

参考例句：

• They come here to enlist men for the army.他们来这儿是为了召兵。
• The conference will make further efforts to enlist the support of the international community for their just struggle. 会议必将进一步动员国际社会，支持他们的正义斗争。

5 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

6 enlisted   

adj.应募入伍的v.（使）入伍， （使）参军( enlist的过去式和过去分词 )；获得（帮助或支持）

参考例句：

• enlisted men and women 男兵和女兵
• He enlisted with the air force to fight against the enemy. 他应募加入空军对敌作战。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 cremation   

n.火葬，火化

参考例句：

• Cremation is more common than burial in some countries. 在一些国家，火葬比土葬普遍。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Garbage cremation can greatly reduce the occupancy of land. 垃圾焚烧可以大大减少占用土地。 来自互联网

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

9 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。