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VOA慢速英语2013 纪念肯尼迪总统

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AS IT IS 2013-11-22 Remembering a President: John F. Kennedy 纪念肯尼迪总统

From VOA Learning English, this is As It Is. I’m Caty Weaver1.

Fifty years ago today, the United States lost President John F. Kennedy. The president was shot and killed during a visit to Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963. His death shocked Americans and people around the world.

President Kennedy was 46 years old. He was the youngest man ever elected president. He served only 1,000 days in office. Yet many Americans remember him as a great and beloved leader.

Today on As It Is we report on the life of John F. Kennedy. VOA National reporter Jim Malone will join us in the studio to help us better understand Kennedy’s life, career and tragic2 death.

“And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you -- ask what you can do for your country.”

John Kennedy was elected president in 1960. It was a close battle between the Democratic Party senator from Massachusetts and the Republican nominee3 Vice4 President Richard Nixon.

The new president was just 43 years old. His wife, Jackie, was a beautiful, stylish5 and cultured young woman. She quickly captured the hearts of Americans and others. In fact, she had such an effect on the people of France during a presidential visit to that country that her husband later joked about it.

“I am the man who accompanied Jacqueline Kennedy to Paris, and I’ve enjoyed it.”

The Kennedys with their children, Caroline and John Jr., were the kind of family people dream of having. Their years in the White House were later likened to Camelot -- the imaginary castle and court of King Arthur.

Thurston Clarke is a historian. He wrote two books about John F. Kennedy. He describes a famous photograph that captures the romance between John F. Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline.

“…and he gets off the helicopter in Hyannis Port and she rushes up and they throw their arms around each other and give this incredible hug.”

In truth, the Kennedys had a complex relationship. John Kennedy had relationships with other women while he was married.

“For many years, she had to pretend that her marriage was perfect.”

President Kennedy faced difficult foreign policy decisions during his less than three years in office. The United States and the Soviet6 Union were in the midst of a cold war. John Kennedy came to office with the goal of fighting Communism.

He suffered early in his term with a failed invasion of Cuba. But his public image recovered during a visit to Germany. In Berlin, Kennedy became famous for a speech denouncing Soviet Communism.

Later, he ordered a naval7 blockade of Cuba in an effort to stop the shipment of Soviet missiles to the island. He successfully persuaded the Soviet Union to remove the missiles already there and disarm8 the weapons sites.

Kennedy’s creation of the PeaceCorps and his support of the space program were major victories at home during his presidency9. Kennedy also helped move forward civil rights efforts.

VOA’s national reporter, Jim Malone, researched and produced an extensive program on President Kennedy for the 50th anniversary of his death. Our own Christopher Cruise spoke10 with Jim to find out what he learned about America’s 35th president.

Jim, where were you when you heard that the president had been shot?

I was in 3rd grade in an elementary school in Massachusetts. I remember the reactions of family members, especially my parents. When you’re young, I think, that has an incredible impression on you: when you see your parents get sad, when you see your parents break down in tears, then you know something big is happening. And, of course you realize, over time, it was happening to the whole country.

Kennedy has a special place. A lot of John Kennedy is tied up in the idea of the hope, the promise, and then a leadership example that inspires people to this day and so people still are inspired by John Kennedy. And the fact that he was struck down in the prime of life: all the photographs, all the films, show him in the prime of his life.  It’s almost as though there’s a moment frozen in time.

And a deep and dispassionate look at his presidency would indicate that he probably would not rank in the greatest of presidents.

Most historians tend to rank John Kennedy in sort of the middle categories, in terms of how presidents fare. But, it’s interesting. Public opinion polls, to this day, of Americans show he remains11 one of the most popular and that many Americans consider him one of the best presidents. Even though John Kennedy served just a little more than a thousand days in office, less than three years and had, as you point out, some serious mistakes early on.

John Kennedy, before he became president, was a young man in a hurry. He had a lot of money. He had a very powerful father who financed his campaign. And he found the key to success early in politics: the use of television, which he used very effectively.

In your reporting what did you learn about John Kennedy that you didn’t know from years of being exposed to this?

You could see, through the reading I did, and just watching numerous films that we have of him and looking at his decisions, how he grew in office. Kennedy came in a little unsure how to deal with the great threat of the time, which was the Cold War, the Soviet Union. And he was determined12 to see if he could do something about Fidel Castro in Cuba.

That proved to be a failure. The counterpoint to that comes two years into his presidency, a little more than that, by his very expert handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis and being able to find a way to being the United States and the Soviet Union a step back from nuclear war…which was a real possibility at that time when the Russians had put missiles into Cuba...a great threat to the United States.

So, Kennedy comes into office, inexperienced, but learns on the job, and toward the end of his presidency was able to complete a limited test ban treaty on nuclear weapons with the Soviets13.

It looks like you’ve interviewed historians; professors; members of the Kennedy family; Clint Hill, the Secret Service agent. Is there anybody out there you didn’t interview and wanted to? It seems like people are more accessible now than they were.

I’m very happy that we spoke with Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, who is the eldest14 child of Robert Kennedy, who was John Kennedy’s brother; later assassinated15, himself, in 1968. I was surprised that, after all these years, it still can strike an emotional chord. And Kathleen Kennedy Townsend was surprisingly emotional. To the point where she could hardly bring herself, when talking about the assassination16, to say that John Kennedy had been killed. She actually stumbled over the word.

So, this was a revelation. This time in our history was poignant17. And, 50 years have gone by. But for those who remember it, it can seem like it was yesterday. And for those who had a personal involvement with it, or a personal connection to it, the memories never fade.

Jim, thank you.

You’re welcome. Thank you.


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1 weaver LgWwd     
n.织布工;编织者
参考例句:
  • She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快,而且布的质量很好。
  • The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。
2 tragic inaw2     
adj.悲剧的,悲剧性的,悲惨的
参考例句:
  • The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
  • Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。
3 nominee FHLxv     
n.被提名者;被任命者;被推荐者
参考例句:
  • His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
  • Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。
4 vice NU0zQ     
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。
5 stylish 7tNwG     
adj.流行的,时髦的;漂亮的,气派的
参考例句:
  • He's a stylish dresser.他是个穿着很有格调的人。
  • What stylish women are wearing in Paris will be worn by women all over the world.巴黎女性时装往往会引导世界时装潮流。
6 Soviet Sw9wR     
adj.苏联的,苏维埃的;n.苏维埃
参考例句:
  • Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
  • Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。
7 naval h1lyU     
adj.海军的,军舰的,船的
参考例句:
  • He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
  • The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。
8 disarm 0uax2     
v.解除武装,回复平常的编制,缓和
参考例句:
  • The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
  • He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。
9 presidency J1HzD     
n.总统(校长,总经理)的职位(任期)
参考例句:
  • Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
  • Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。
10 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
11 remains 1kMzTy     
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。
12 determined duszmP     
adj.坚定的;有决心的
参考例句:
  • I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
  • He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。
13 soviets 95fd70e5832647dcf39beb061b21c75e     
苏维埃(Soviet的复数形式)
参考例句:
  • A public challenge could provoke the Soviets to dig in. 公开挑战会促使苏联人一意孤行。
  • The Soviets proposed the withdrawal of American ballistic-missile submarines from forward bases. 苏联人建议把美国的弹道导弹潜艇从前沿基地撤走。
14 eldest bqkx6     
adj.最年长的,最年老的
参考例句:
  • The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
  • The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。
15 assassinated 0c3415de7f33014bd40a19b41ce568df     
v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 );中伤;诋毁;破坏
参考例句:
  • The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
  • Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后,肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句
16 assassination BObyy     
n.暗杀;暗杀事件
参考例句:
  • The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
  • Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年,林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。
17 poignant FB1yu     
adj.令人痛苦的,辛酸的,惨痛的
参考例句:
  • His lyrics are as acerbic and poignant as they ever have been.他的歌词一如既往的犀利辛辣。
  • It is especially poignant that he died on the day before his wedding.他在婚礼前一天去世了,这尤其令人悲恸。

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