VOA标准英语2012--Some Egyptians Admit Facing Depressing Choice in Runoff Election

 

Some Egyptians Admit Facing Depressing Choice in Runoff Election

The crowds on Tahrir Square last year were euphoric; they had forced their president of nearly 30 years to resign. The promise of the revolution was still there in round one -- 13 candidates on the ballot¹, the first real choice most voters had ever had.

But the fruits of that effort - a run-off between Islamist Mohamed Morsi and a candidate of the old guard, Ahmed Shafiq - have proved bitter to many.

The majority of Egyptians voted for neither. Going into round two, many face a depressing decision of which candidate they dislike the least.

Political sociologist² Said Sadek is no fan of the old government - he calls it “military fascism.” But, he says, one alternative is worse. 

“Politics is about relative points of views," said Sadek. "When you use religion, you're talking about the absolute: this is their opinion and that's it."

Sadek points to experiments with religious rule elsewhere.

“Are we going to repeat the Iranian revolution and what the Iranian secularists and liberals did? -- that out of their hatred³ to the Shah they collaborated⁴ with a worse political group that in the end slaughtered⁵ them," said Sadek.

For decades the Muslim Brotherhood⁶ has publicly renounced⁷ violence. But even among Egyptians who find the group less distasteful than the military, its current promise of moderation is less than convincing.

A columnist⁸ and advocate of the revolution, Rania el Malki, says the Muslim Brotherhood "would say something today and change their mind about it tomorrow. And this is what they have done even, you know, when it came to fielding their president in the first place."

Despite her reservations, el Malki says at least there is hope the Brotherhood's stated commitment to civil liberties is better than the known repression⁹ of the old guard.

“We are caught between the devil and the deep blue sea [two bad choices], the devil or drowning]] and I think, in the deep blue sea scenario¹⁰ some miracle could happen," said el Malki. "I’d rather take that chance than know we are going back to exactly where we were on 24th of January 2011.”

Adding to the sense of gloom, is the possibility of the worst of both.

“What I fear most is an alliance between military fascism and religious fascism and this has started from the beginning of the revolution,” said Said Sadek.

While such pessimism¹¹ is not shared by all, it is the sentiment of many, not just in Egypt, but across the region - where the hopes of the Arab Spring are tempered by political realities.

1 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

2 sociologist   

n.研究社会学的人，社会学家

参考例句：

• His mother was a sociologist,researching socialism.他的母亲是个社会学家，研究社会主义。
• Max Weber is a great and outstanding sociologist.马克斯·韦伯是一位伟大的、杰出的社会学家。

3 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

4 collaborated   

合作( collaborate的过去式和过去分词 )； 勾结叛国

参考例句：

• We have collaborated on many projects over the years. 这些年来我们合作搞了许多项目。
• We have collaborated closely with the university on this project. 我们与大学在这个专案上紧密合作。

5 slaughtered   

v.屠杀，杀戮，屠宰( slaughter的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The invading army slaughtered a lot of people. 侵略军杀了许多人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Hundreds of innocent civilians were cruelly slaughtered. 数百名无辜平民遭残杀。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

7 renounced   

v.声明放弃( renounce的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃

参考例句：

• We have renounced the use of force to settle our disputes. 我们已再次宣布放弃使用武力来解决争端。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Andrew renounced his claim to the property. 安德鲁放弃了财产的所有权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 columnist   

n.专栏作家

参考例句：

• The host was interviewing a local columnist.节目主持人正在同一位当地的专栏作家交谈。
• She's a columnist for USA Today.她是《今日美国报》的专栏作家。

9 repression   

n.镇压，抑制，抑压

参考例句：

• The repression of your true feelings is harmful to your health.压抑你的真实感情有害健康。
• This touched off a new storm against violent repression.这引起了反对暴力镇压的新风暴。

10 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

11 pessimism   

n.悲观者，悲观主义者，厌世者

参考例句：

• He displayed his usual pessimism.他流露出惯有的悲观。
• There is the note of pessimism in his writings.他的著作带有悲观色彩。