著名博主建议美国在中东减少干预,而不是更多

Noted¹ Blogger on Mideast Advises US: Intervene Less, Not More 著名博主建议美国在中东减少干预,而不是更多

HOUSTON—

In 2004, Middle East expert Joshua Landis followed the advice of an academic colleague at the University of Oklahoma and started a blog called Syria Comment. To his surprise, tens of thousands of people around the world began reading the online material and sent speaking invitations from far and wide.

Landis is scaling back his blogging, but he remains² intensely focused on the region through his role as the director of the university’s Center for Middle East Studies.

The Civil War in Syria and the Islamic State group’s rapid seizure³ of land in both Syria and Iraq have challenged and confused Western policymakers. One way of understanding what is happening there is to look at Central Europe a half century ago, Landis said.

“During World War II there was a great sorting out," he said. "Poland was 64 percent Polish before World War II; by the end of World War II, it was 100 percent Polish. Czechoslovakia had 32 percent minorities; all of them are gone. This is true right down Central Europe.”

Landis said a great sorting out is taking place in the Middle East now as fighters united by a fervent⁴ transnational Islamic identity expel Christians⁵, Jews and other minorities and seize territory from traditional rulers.

“All across the Middle East you had secular⁶ nationalist leaders," he said. "They are being wiped away, and we are getting a new world of religious nationalism.”

Landis said the United States is obligated to help Iraq fight IS because the uprising is a result of the U.S. intervention⁷ in that nation, but the goal is far from clear. His advice to policymakers is to intervene less, not more.

“I guess it is a plea for modesty⁸ and a bit of a sense that America really cannot control this region,” he said.

“Instead of arming various groups," Landis added, "try to keep the various factions⁹ from being armed. Convince the Iranians and the Saudis not to send in arms. We shouldn’t be doing it ourselves and facilitating it, because the more arms you throw in, the bloodier¹⁰ these civil wars become.”

Landis said college students around the United States are signing up for classes on Middle East culture, history and politics partly because of their interest in understanding the strife¹¹ they see in the news every day.

1 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

2 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

3 seizure   

n.没收；占有；抵押

参考例句：

• The seizure of contraband is made by customs.那些走私品是被海关没收的。
• The courts ordered the seizure of all her property.法院下令查封她所有的财产。

4 fervent   

adj.热的，热烈的，热情的

参考例句：

• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。
• Austria was among the most fervent supporters of adolf hitler.奥地利是阿道夫希特勒最狂热的支持者之一。

5 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

6 secular   

n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的

参考例句：

• We live in an increasingly secular society.我们生活在一个日益非宗教的社会。
• Britain is a plural society in which the secular predominates.英国是个世俗主导的多元社会。

7 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

8 modesty   

n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素

参考例句：

• Industry and modesty are the chief factors of his success.勤奋和谦虚是他成功的主要因素。
• As conceit makes one lag behind,so modesty helps one make progress.骄傲使人落后，谦虚使人进步。

9 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

10 bloodier   

adj.血污的( bloody的比较级 )；流血的；屠杀的；残忍的

参考例句：

11 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。