第一篇:美国总统乔治华盛顿第一次就职演讲
美国总统乔治华盛顿第一次就职演讲
乔治·华盛顿,美国开国总统,由于他扮演了美国独立战争和建国中最重要的角色,华盛顿通常被称为美国国父。学者们则将他和亚伯拉罕·林肯并列为美国历史上最伟大的总统。
Nothing filled me with greater anxieties than that of which the notification was transmitted by your order, and received on the 14th day of the present month.On the one hand, I was summoned by my country, whose voice I can never hear but with veneration and love, from a retreat which I had chosen with the fondest predilection, and, in my flattering hopes, with an immutable decision, as the asylum of my declining years a retreat which was rendered every day more necessary as well as more dear to me by the addition of habit to inclination, and of frequent interruptions in my health to the gradual waste committed on it by time.在人生沉浮中,没有一件事能比你们于本月14日送达的通知更使我焦虑不安。一方面,国家召唤我出任此职,对于她的召唤,我永远只能肃然敬从;而隐退是我以挚爱心情、满腔希望和坚定的决心选择的暮年归宿,由于爱好和习惯,时感体力不济,愈觉隐退之必要和可贵。且时光流逝,健康渐衰。
On the other hand, the magnitude and difficulty of the trust to which the voice of my country called me, being sufficient to awaken in the wisest and most experienced of her citizens a distrustful scrutiny into his qualifications, could not but overwhelm with despondence one who(inheriting inferior endowments from nature, and unpracticed in the duties of civil administration)ought to be peculiarly conscious of his own deficiencies.In this conflict of emotions all I dare aver is that it has been my faithful study to collect, my duty from a just appreciation of every circumstance by which it might be affected.All I dare hope is that if, in executing this task, I have been too much swayed by a grateful remembrance of former instances, or by an affectionate sensibility to this transcendent proof of the confidence of my fellow citizens, and have thence too little consulted my incapacity as well as disinclination for the weighty and untried cares before me, my error will be palliated by the motives which mislead me,and its consequences be judged by my country with some share of the partiality in which they originated.另一方面,国家召唤我担负的责任如此重大和艰巨,足以使国内最有才智和经验的人度德量力;而我天资愚钝,又无民政管理的实践,理应倍觉自己能力之不足,因而必然感到难以肩此重任。怀着这种矛盾心情,我唯一敢断言的是,通过正确估计可能产生影响的各种情况来克尽吾职,乃是我忠贞不渝的努力目标。我唯一敢祈望的是,如果我在执行这项任务时因陶醉于往事。或因由衷感激公民们对我的高度信赖,因而受到过多影响,以致在处理从未经历过的大事时,忽视了自己的无能和消极。我的错误将会由于使我误人歧途的各种动机而减轻,而大家在评判错误的后果时,也会适当包涵产生这些动机的偏见。
Such being the impressions under which I have, in obedience to the public summons, repaired to the present station, it would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official act my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations, and whose providential aids supply every human defect, that His benediction may consecrate to the liberties and happiness of the people of the United States a Government instituted by themselves for these essential purposes, and may enable every instrument employed in its administration to execute with success the functions allotted to his charge.既然这就是我在遵奉公众召唤就任现职时的感想,那么,在此宣誓就职之际,如不热忱地祈求全能的上帝就极其失当。因为上帝统治着宇宙,主宰着各国政府,它的神助能弥补人类的任何不足。愿上帝赐福,保佑一个为美国人民的自由和幸福而组成的政府,保佑它为这些基本目标而做出奉献。保佑政府的各项行政措施在我负责之下都能成功地发挥作用。
In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own, nor those of my fellow citizens at large less than either.No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than those of the United States.Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency;and in the important revolution just accomplished in the system of their united government the tranquil deliberations, along with an humble anticipation of the future blessings which the past seem to presage.These reflections, arising out of the present crisis, have forced themselves too strongly on my mind to be suppressed.在向公众利益和私人利益的伟大缔造者献上这份崇敬时,我保证这不仅表达了我自己的情感,这些话也同样表达了各位和广大公民的心意。没有人能比美国更坚定不移地承认和崇拜掌管人间事务的上帝。他们在迈向独立国家的进程中,似乎每走一步都有某种天佑的迹象;他们在刚刚完成的联邦政府体制的重大改革中,如果不是因虔诚的感恩而得到某种回报,如果不是谦卑地期待着过去有所预示的赐福的到来,那么,通过众多截然不同的集团的冷静思考和自愿赞同来完成改革,这种方式是不能与大多数政府的组建方式同日而语的。
You will join with me, I trust, in thinking that there are none under the influence of which the proceedings of a new and free government can more auspiciously commence.By the article establishing the executive department it is made the duty of the President, “to recommend to your consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.”The circumstances under which I now meet you will acquit me from entering into that subject further than to refer to the great constitutional charter under which you are assembled, and which, in defining your powers, designates the objects to which your attention is to be given.It will be more consistent with those circumstances, and far more congenial with the feelings which actuate me, to substitute, in place of a recommendation of particular measures, the tribute that is due to the talents, the rectitude, and the patriotism which adorn the characters selected to devise and adopt them.在目前转折关头,我产生这些想法确实是深有所感而不能自已。我相信大家会和我怀有同感,即除了仰仗上帝的力量,一个新生的自由政府别无他法能一开始就事事顺利。根据设立行政部门的条款,总统有责任对你们提出建议。如衡量权宜必要的判断之类的思路。但在目前与各位见面的这个场合,恕我不能进一步讨论这个问题,而只是提一下伟大的宪法,它使各位今天聚集一堂,它规定了各位的权限,提出了各位应该注意的目标。在这样的场合,更恰当、也更能反映我内心激情的做法。不是提出具体措施,而是称颂将要规划和采纳这些措施的当选者的才能、正直和爱国心。
In these honorable qualifications I behold the surest pledges that as on one side no local prejudices or attachments, no separate views nor party animosities, will misdirect the comprehensive and equal eye which ought to watch over this great assemblage of communities and interests, so ,on another, that the foundation of our national policy will be laid in the pure and immutable principles of private morality, and the preeminence of free government be exemplified by all the attributes which can win the affections of its citizens and command the respect of the world.I dwell on this prospect with every satisfaction which an ardent love for my country can inspire, since there is no truth more thoroughly established than that there exists in the economy and course of nature an indissoluble union between virtue and happiness;between duty and advantage;between the genuine maxims of an honest and magnanimous policy and the solid rewards of public prosperity and felicity;since we ought to be no a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained;and since the preservation of the sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government are justly considered, perhaps, as deeply, as finally, staked on the experiment entrusted on the hands of the American people.我从这些高贵品格中看到了最可靠的保证:其一,任何地方偏见或地方感情,任何意见分歧或党派敌视,都不能使我们偏离全局观念和公平观点,即必须维护这个由不同地区和不同利益所组成的大联合;因为,其二,我国政策将会以纯洁而坚定的个人道德原则为基础,而自由政府将会以那赢得民心和全世界尊敬的一切特点而显示其优越性。我对国家的一片热爱之心激励着我满怀喜悦地展望这幅远景,因为根据自然界的构成和发展趋势,在美德与幸福之间,有着密不可分的统一;责任与利益之间,恪守诚实宽厚的政策与获得社会繁荣幸福的硕果之间,因为我们应该同样相信,上帝亲自规定了永恒的秩序和权利法则,它决不可能对无视这些法则的国家仁慈地加以赞许;因为人们理所当然地、满怀觉悟地,也许是最后一次把维护神圣的自由之火和共和制政府的命运,系于美国人所遵命进行的实验上。
第二篇:乔治华盛顿就职演讲
乔治·华盛顿,美国开国总统,由于他扮演了美国独立战争和建国中最重要的角色,华盛顿通常被称为美国国父。学者们则将他和亚伯拉罕·林肯并列为美国历史上最伟大的总统。
Nothing filled me with greater anxieties than that of which the notification was transmitted by your order, and received on the 14th day of the present month.On the one hand, I was summoned by my country, whose voice I can never hear but with veneration and love, from a retreat which I had chosen with the fondest predilection, and, in my flattering hopes, with an immutable decision, as the asylum of my declining years a retreat which was rendered every day more necessary as well as more dear to me by the addition of habit to inclination, and of frequent interruptions in my health to the gradual waste committed on it by time.在人生沉浮中,没有一件事能比你们于本月14日送达的通知更使我焦虑不安。一方面,国家召唤我出任此职,对于她的召唤,我永远只能肃然敬从;而隐退是我以挚爱心情、满腔希望和坚定的决心选择的暮年归宿,由于爱好和习惯,时感体力不济,愈觉隐退之必要和可贵。且时光流逝,健康渐衰。
On the other hand, the magnitude and difficulty of the trust to which the voice of my country called me, being sufficient to awaken in the wisest and most experienced of her citizens a distrustful scrutiny into his qualifications, could not but overwhelm with despondence one who(inheriting inferior endowments from nature, and unpracticed in the duties of civil administration)ought to be peculiarly conscious of his own deficiencies.In this conflict of emotions all I dare aver is that it has been my faithful study to collect, my duty from a just appreciation of every circumstance by which it might be affected.All I dare hope is that if, in executing this task, I have been too much swayed by a grateful remembrance of former instances, or by an affectionate sensibility to this transcendent proof of the confidence of my fellow citizens, and have thence too little consulted my incapacity as well as disinclination for the weighty and untried cares before me, my error will be palliated by the motives which mislead me,and its consequences be judged by my country with some share of the partiality in which they originated.另一方面,国家召唤我担负的责任如此重大和艰巨,足以使国内最有才智和经验的人度德量力;而我天资愚钝,又无民政管理的实践,理应倍觉自己能力之不足,因而必然感到难以肩此重任。怀着这种矛盾心情,我唯一敢断言的是,通过正确估计可能产生影响的各种情况来克尽吾职,乃是我忠贞不渝的努力目标。我唯一敢祈望的是,如果我在执行这项任务时因陶醉于往事。或因由衷感激公民们对我的高度信赖,因而受到过多影响,以致在处理从未经历过的大事时,忽视了自己的无能和消极。我的错误将会由于使我误人歧途的各种动机而减轻,而大家在评判错误的后果时,也会适当包涵产生这些动机的偏见。
Such being the impressions under which I have, in obedience to the public summons, repaired to the present station, it would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official act my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations, and whose providential aids supply every human defect, that His benediction may consecrate to the liberties and happiness of the people of the United States a Government instituted by themselves for these essential purposes, and may enable every instrument employed in its administration to execute with success the functions allotted to his charge.既然这就是我在遵奉公众召唤就任现职时的感想,那么,在此宣誓就职之际,如不热忱地祈求全能的上帝就极其失当。因为上帝统治着宇宙,主宰着各国政府,它的神助能弥补人类的任何不足。愿上帝赐福,保佑一个为美国人民的自由和幸福而组成的政府,保佑它为这些基本目标而做出奉献。保佑政府的各项行政措施在我负责之下都能成功地发挥作用。
In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own, nor those of my fellow citizens at large less than either.No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than those of the United States.Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency;and in the important revolution just accomplished in the system of their united government the tranquil deliberations, along with an humble anticipation of the future blessings which the past seem to presage.These reflections, arising out of the present crisis, have forced themselves too strongly on my mind to be suppressed.在向公众利益和私人利益的伟大缔造者献上这份崇敬时,我保证这不仅表达了我自己的情感,这些话也同样表达了各位和广大公民的心意。没有人能比美国更坚定不移地承认和崇拜掌管人间事务的上帝。他们在迈向独立国家的进程中,似乎每走一步都有某种天佑的迹象;他们在刚刚完成的联邦政府体制的重大改革中,如果不是因虔诚的感恩而得到某种回报,如果不是谦卑地期待着过去有所预示的赐福的到来,那么,通过众多截然不同的集团的冷静思考和自愿赞同来完成改革,这种方式是不能与大多数政府的组建方式同日而语的。
You will join with me, I trust, in thinking that there are none under the influence of which the proceedings of a new and free government can more auspiciously commence.By the article establishing the executive department it is made the duty of the President, “to recommend to your consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.”The circumstances under which I now meet you will acquit me from entering into that subject further than to refer to the great constitutional charter under which you are assembled, and which, in defining your powers, designates the objects to which your attention is to be given.It will be more consistent with those circumstances, and far more congenial with the feelings which actuate me, to substitute, in place of a recommendation of particular measures, the tribute that is due to the talents, the rectitude, and the patriotism which adorn the characters selected to devise and adopt them.在目前转折关头,我产生这些想法确实是深有所感而不能自已。我相信大家会和我怀有同感,即除了仰仗上帝的力量,一个新生的自由政府别无他法能一开始就事事顺利。根据设立行政部门的条款,总统有责任对你们提出建议。如衡量权宜必要的判断之类的思路。但在目前与各位见面的这个场合,恕我不能进一步讨论这个问题,而只是提一下伟大的宪法,它使各位今天聚集一堂,它规定了各位的权限,提出了各位应该注意的目标。在这样的场合,更恰当、也更能反映我内心激情的做法。不是提出具体措施,而是称颂将要规划和采纳这些措施的当选者的才能、正直和爱国心。
In these honorable qualifications I behold the surest pledges that as on one side no local prejudices or attachments, no separate views nor party animosities, will misdirect the comprehensive and equal eye which ought to watch over this great assemblage of communities and interests, so ,on another, that the foundation of our national policy will be laid in the pure and immutable principles of private morality, and the preeminence of free government be exemplified by all the
attributes which can win the affections of its citizens and command the respect of the world.I dwell on this prospect with every satisfaction which an ardent love for my country can inspire, since there is no truth more thoroughly established than that there exists in the economy and course of nature an indissoluble union between virtue and happiness;between duty and advantage;between the genuine maxims of an honest and magnanimous policy and the solid rewards of public prosperity and felicity;since we ought to be no a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained;and since the preservation of the sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government are justly considered, perhaps, as deeply, as finally, staked on the experiment entrusted on the hands of the American people.我从这些高贵品格中看到了最可靠的保证:其一,任何地方偏见或地方感情,任何意见分歧或党派敌视,都不能使我们偏离全局观念和公平观点,即必须维护这个由不同地区和不同利益所组成的大联合;因为,其二,我国政策将会以纯洁而坚定的个人道德原则为基础,而自由政府将会以那赢得民心和全世界尊敬的一切特点而显示其优越性。我对国家的一片热爱之心激励着我满怀喜悦地展望这幅远景,因为根据自然界的构成和发展趋势,在美德与幸福之间,有着密不可分的统一;责任与利益之间,恪守诚实宽厚的政策与获得社会繁荣幸福的硕果之间,因为我们应该同样相信,上帝亲自规定了永恒的秩序和权利法则,它决不可能对无视这些法则的国家仁慈地加以赞许;因为人们理所当然地、满怀觉悟地,也许是最后一次把维护神圣的自由之火和共和制政府的命运,系于美国人所遵命进行的实验上。
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第三篇:美国总统就职演讲
乔治-布什2001年就职演说
谢谢大家!
尊敬的芮恩奎斯特大法官,卡特总统,布什总统,克林顿总统,尊敬的来宾们,我的同胞们,这次权利的和平过渡在历史上是罕见的,但在美国是平常的。我们以朴素的宣誓庄严地维护了古老的传统,同时开始了新的历程。
首先,我要感谢克林顿总统为这个国家作出的贡献,也感谢副总统戈尔在竞选过程中的热情与风度。
站在这里,我很荣幸,也有点受宠若惊。在我之前,许多美国领导人从这里起步;在我之后,也会有许多领导人从这里继续前进。
在美国悠久的历史中,我们每个人都有自己的位置;我们还在继续推动着历史前进,但是我们不可能看到它的尽头。这是一部新世界的发展史,是一部后浪推前浪的历史。这是一部美国由奴隶制社会发展成为崇尚自由的社会的历史。这是一个强国保护而不是占有世界的历史,是捍卫而不是征服世界的历史。这就是美国史。它不是一部十全十美的民族发展史,但它是一部在伟大和永恒理想指导下几代人团结奋斗的历史。
这些理想中最伟大的是正在慢慢实现的美国的承诺,这就是:每个人都有自身的价值,每个人都有成功的机会,每个人天生都会有所作为的。美国人民肩负着一种使命,那就是要竭力将这个诺言变成生活中和法律上的现实。虽然我们的国家过去在追求实现这个承诺的途中停滞不前甚至倒退,但我们仍将坚定不移地完成这一使命。
在上个世纪的大部分时间里,美国自由民主的信念犹如汹涌大海中的岩石。现在它更像风中的种子,把自由带给每个民族。在我们的国家,民主不仅仅是一种信念,而是全人类的希望。民主,我们不会独占,而会竭力让大家分享。民主,我们将铭记于心并且不断传播。225年过去了,我们仍有很长的路要走。
有很多公民取得了成功,但也有人开始怀疑,怀疑我们自己的国家所许下的诺言,甚至怀疑它的公正。失败的教育,潜在的偏见和出身的环境限制了一些美国人的雄心。有时,我们的分歧是如此之深,似乎我们虽身处同一个大陆,但不属于同一个国家。我们不能接受这种分歧,也无法容许它的存在。我们的团结和统一,是每一代领导人和每一个公民的严肃使命。在此,我郑重宣誓:我将竭力建设一个公正、充满机会的统一国家。我知道这是我们的目标,因为上帝按自己的身形创造了我们,上帝高于一切的力量将引导我们前进。
对这些将我们团结起来并指引我们向前的原则,我们充满信心。血缘、出身或地域从未将美国联合起来。只有理想,才能使我们心系一处,超越自己,放弃个人利益,并逐步领会何谓公民。每个孩子都必须学习这些原则。每个公民都必须坚持这些原则。每个移民,只有接受这些原则,才能使我们的国家不丧失而更具美国特色今天,我们在这里重申一个新的信念,即通过发扬谦恭、勇气、同情心和个性的精神来实现我们国家的理想。美国在它最鼎盛时也没忘记遵循谦逊有礼的原则。一个文明的社会需要我们每个人品质优良,尊重他人,为人公平和宽宏大量。
有人认为我们的政治制度是如此的微不足道,因为在和平年代,我们所争论的话题都是无关紧要的。但是,对我们美国来说,我们所讨论的问题从来都不是什么小事。如果我们不领导和平事业,那么和平将无人来领导;如果我们不引导我们的孩子们真心地热爱知识、发挥个性,他们的天分将得不到发挥,理想将难以实现。如果我们不采取适当措施,任凭经济衰退,最大的受害者将是平民百姓。
我们应该时刻听取时代的呼唤。谦逊有礼不是战术也不是感情用事。这是我们最坚定的选择--在批评声中赢得信任;在混乱中寻求统一。如果遵循这样的承诺,我们将会享有共同的成就。
美国有强大的国力作后盾,将会勇往直前。
在大萧条和战争时期,我们的人民在困难面前表现得无比英勇,克服我们共同的困难体现了我们共同的优秀品质。现在,我们正面临着选择,如果我们作出正确的选择,祖辈一定会激励我们;如果我们的选择是错误的,祖辈会谴责我们的。上帝正眷顾着这个国家,我们必须显示出我们的勇气,敢于面对问题,而不是将它们遗留给我们的后代。
我们要共同努力,健全美国的学校教育,不能让无知和冷漠吞噬更多的年轻生命。我们要改革社会医疗和保险制度,在力所能及的范围内拯救我们的孩子。我们要减低税收,恢复经济,酬劳辛勤工作的美国人民。我们要防患于未然,懈怠会带来麻烦。我们还要阻止武器泛滥,使新的世纪摆脱恐怖的威胁。
反对自由和反对我们国家的人应该明白:美国仍将积极参与国际事务,力求世界力量的均衡,让自由的力量遍及全球。这是历史的选择。我们会保护我们的盟国,捍卫我们的利益。我们将谦逊地向世界人民表示我们的目标。我们将坚决反击各种侵略和不守信用的行径。我们要向全世界宣传孕育了我们伟大民族的价值观。
正处在鼎盛时期的美国也不缺乏同情心。
当我们静心思考,我们就会明了根深蒂固的贫穷根本不值得我国作出承诺。无论我们如何看待贫穷的原因,我们都必须承认,孩子敢于冒险不等于在犯错误。放纵与滥用都为上帝所不容。这些都是缺乏爱的结果。监狱数量的增长虽然看起来是有必要的,但并不能代替我们心中的希望-人人遵纪守法。
哪里有痛苦,我们的义务就在哪里。对我们来说,需要帮助的美国人不是陌生人,而是我们的公民;不是负担,而是急需救助的对象。当有人陷入绝望时,我们大家都会因此变得渺小。
对公共安全和大众健康,对民权和学校教育,政府都应负有极大的责任。然而,同情心不只是政府的职责,更是整个国家的义务。有些需要是如此的迫切,有些伤痕是如此的深刻,只有导师的爱抚、牧师的祈祷才能有所感触。不论是教堂还是慈善机构、犹太会堂还是清真寺,都赋予了我们的社会它们特有的人性,因此它们理应在我们的建设和法律上受到尊重。
我们国家的许多人都不知道贫穷的痛苦。但我们可以听到那些感触颇深的人们的倾诉。我发誓我们的国家要达到一种境界:当我们看见受伤的行人倒在远行的路上,我们决不会袖手旁观。
正处于鼎盛期的美国重视并期待每个人担负起自己的责任。
鼓励人们勇于承担责任不是让人们充当替罪羊,而是对人的良知的呼唤。虽然承担责任意味着牺牲个人利益,但是你能从中体会到一种更加深刻的成就感。
我们实现人生的完整不单是通过摆在我们面前的选择,而且是通过我们的实践来实现。我们知道,通过对整个社会和我们的孩子们尽我们的义务,我们将得到最终自由。
我们的公共利益依赖于我们独立的个性;依赖于我们的公民义务,家庭纽带和基本的公正;依赖于我们无数的、默默无闻的体面行动,正是它们指引我们走向自由。
在生活中,有时我们被召唤着去做一些惊天动地的事情。但是,正如我们时代的一位圣人所言,每一天我们都被召唤带着挚爱去做一些小事情。一个民主制度最重要的任务是由大家每一个人来完成的。
我为人处事的原则包括:坚信自己而不强加于人,为公众的利益勇往直前,追求正义而不乏同情心,勇担责任而决不推卸。我要通过这一切,用我们历史上传统价值观来哺育我们的时代。
(同胞们),你们所做的一切和政府的工作同样重要。我希望你们不要仅仅追求个人享受而忽略公众的利益;要捍卫既定的改革措施,使其不会轻易被攻击;要从身边小事做起,为我们的国家效力。我希望你们成为真正的公民,而不是旁观者,更不是臣民。你们应成为有责任心的公民,共同来建设一个互帮互助的社会和有特色的国家。
美国人民慷慨、强大、体面,这并非因为我们信任我们自己,而是因为我们拥有超越我们自己的信念。一旦这种公民精神丧失了,无论何种政府计划都无法弥补它。一旦这种精神出现了,无论任何错误都无法抗衡它。
在《独立宣言》签署之后,弗吉尼亚州的政治家约翰?佩齐曾给托马斯?杰弗逊写信说:“我们知道,身手敏捷不一定就能赢得比赛,力量强大不一定就能赢得战争。难道这一切不都是上帝安排的吗?”
杰斐逊就任总统的那个年代离我们已经很远了。时光飞逝,美国发生了翻天覆地的变化。但是有一点他肯定能够预知,即我们这个时代的主题仍然是:我们国家无畏向前的恢宏故事和它追求尊严的纯朴梦想。
我们不是这个故事的作者,是杰斐逊作者本人的伟大理想穿越时空,并通过我们每天的努力在变为现实。我们正在通过大家的努力在履行着各自的职责。
带着永不疲惫、永不气馁、永不完竭的信念,今天我们重树这样的目标:使我们的国家变得更加公正、更加慷慨,去验证我们每个人和所有人生命的尊严。
这项工作必须继续下去。这个故事必须延续下去。上帝会驾驭我们航行的。
愿上帝保佑大家!愿上帝保佑美国!
January 20, 2001
President Clinton, distinguished guests and my fellow citizens:
The peaceful transfer of authority is rare in history, yet common in our country.With a simple oath, we affirm old traditions and make new beginnings.As I begin, I thank President Clinton for his service to our nation;and I thank Vice President Gore for a contest conducted with spirit and ended with grace.I am honored and humbled to stand here, where so many of America's leaders have come before me, and so many will follow.We have a place, all of us, in a long story.A story we continue, but whose end we will not see.It is the story of a new world that became a friend and liberator of the old, a story of a slave-holding society that became a servant of freedom, the story of a power that went into the world to protect but not possess, to defend but not to conquer.It is the American story.A story of flawed and fallible people, united across the generations by grand and enduring ideals.The grandest of these ideals is an unfolding American promise that everyone belongs, that everyone deserves a chance, that no insignificant person was ever born.Americans are called upon to enact this promise in our lives and in our laws;and though our nation has sometimes halted, and sometimes delayed, we must follow no other course.Through much of the last century, America's faith in freedom and democracy was a rock in a raging sea.Now it is a seed upon the wind, taking root in many nations.Our democratic faith is more than the creed of our country, it is the inborn hope of our humanity, an ideal we carry but do not own, a trust we bear and pass along;and even after nearly 225 years, we have a long way yet to travel.While many of our citizens prosper, others doubt the promise, even the justice, of our own country.The ambitions of some Americans are limited by failing schools and hidden prejudice and the circumstances of their birth;and sometimes our differences run so deep, it seems we share a continent, but not a country.We do not accept this, and we will not allow it.Our unity, our union, is the serious work of leaders and citizens in every generation;and this is my solemn pledge, “I will work to build a single nation of justice and opportunity.” I know this is in our reach because we are guided by a power larger than ourselves who creates us equal in His image and we are confident in principles that unite and lead us onward.America has never been united by blood or birth or soil.We are bound by ideals that move us beyond our backgrounds, lift us above our interests and teach us what it means to be citizens.Every child must be taught these principles.Every citizen must uphold them;and every immigrant, by embracing these ideals, makes our country more, not less, American.Today, we affirm a new commitment to live out our nation's promise through civility, courage, compassion and character.America, at its best, matches a commitment to principle with a concern for civility.A civil society demands from each of us good will and respect, fair dealing and forgiveness.Some seem to believe that our politics can afford to be petty because, in a time of peace, the stakes of our debates appear small.But the stakes for America are never small.If our country does not lead the cause of freedom, it will not be led.If we do not turn the hearts of children toward knowledge and character, we will lose their gifts and undermine their idealism.If we permit our economy to drift and decline, the vulnerable will suffer most.We must live up to the calling we share.Civility is not a tactic or a sentiment.It is the determined choice of trust over cynicism, of community over chaos.This commitment, if we keep it, is a way to shared accomplishment.America, at its best, is also courageous.Our national courage has been clear in times of depression and war, when defending common dangers defined our common good.Now we must choose if the example of our fathers and mothers will inspire us or condemn us.We must show courage in a time of blessing by confronting problems instead of passing them on to future generations.Together, we will reclaim America's schools, before ignorance and apathy claim more young lives;we will reform Social Security and Medicare, sparing our children from struggles we have the power to prevent;we will reduce taxes, to recover the momentum of our economy and reward the effort and enterprise of working Americans;we will build our defenses beyond challenge, lest weakness invite challenge;and we will confront weapons of mass destruction, so that a new century is spared new horrors.The enemies of liberty and our country should make no mistake, America remains engaged in the world by history and by choice, shaping a balance of power that favors freedom.We will defend our allies and our interests;we will show purpose without arrogance;we will meet aggression and bad faith with resolve and strength;and to all nations, we will speak for the values that gave our nation birth.America, at its best, is compassionate.In the quiet of American conscience, we know that deep, persistent poverty is unworthy of our nation's promise.Whatever our views of its cause, we can agree that children at risk are not at fault.Abandonment and abuse are not acts of God, they are failures of love.The proliferation of prisons, however necessary, is no substitute for hope and order in our souls.Where there is suffering, there is duty.Americans in need are not strangers, they are citizens, not problems, but priorities, and all of us are diminished when any are hopeless.Government has great responsibilities for public safety and public health, for civil rights and common schools.Yet compassion is the work of a nation, not just a government.Some needs and hurts are so deep they will only respond to a mentor's touch or a pastor's prayer.Church and charity, synagogue and mosque lend our communities their humanity, and they will have an honored place in our plans and in our laws.Many in our country do not know the pain of poverty, but we can listen to those who do.I can pledge our nation to a goal, “When we see that wounded traveler on the road to Jericho, we will not pass to the other side.”
America, at its best, is a place where personal responsibility is valued and expected.Encouraging responsibility is not a search for scapegoats, it is a call to conscience.Though it requires sacrifice, it brings a deeper fulfillment.We find the fullness of life not only in options, but in commitments.We find that children and community are the commitments that set us free.Our public interest depends on private character, on civic duty and family bonds and basic fairness, on uncounted, unhonored acts of decency which give direction to our freedom.Sometimes in life we are called to do great things.But as a saint of our times has said, every day we are called to do small things with great love.The most important tasks of a democracy are done by everyone.I will live and lead by these principles, “to advance my convictions with civility, to pursue the public interest with courage, to speak for greater justice and compassion, to call for responsibility and try to live it as well.” In all of these ways, I will bring the values of our history to the care of our times.What you do is as important as anything government does.I ask you to seek a common good beyond your comfort;to defend needed reforms against easy attacks;to serve your nation, beginning with your neighbor.I ask you to be citizens.Citizens, not spectators;citizens, not subjects;responsible citizens, building communities of service and a nation of character.Americans are generous and strong and decent, not because we believe in ourselves, but because we hold beliefs beyond ourselves.When this spirit of citizenship is missing, no government program can replace it.When this spirit is present, no wrong can stand against it.After the Declaration of Independence was signed, Virginia statesman John Page wrote to Thomas Jefferson, “We know the race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong.Do you not think an angel rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm?” Much time has passed since Jefferson arrived for his inauguration.The years and changes accumulate, but the themes of this day he would know, “our nation's grand story of courage and its simple dream of dignity.”
We are not this story's author, who fills time and eternity with His purpose.Yet His purpose is achieved in our duty, and our duty is fulfilled in service to one another.Never tiring, never yielding, never finishing, we renew that purpose today;to make our country more just and generous;to affirm the dignity of our lives and every life.This work continues.This story goes on.And an angel still rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm.God bless you all, and God bless America.美国复兴的新时代
比尔•克林顿 第一次就职演讲
星期三,1993年1月20日
同胞们:
今天,我们庆祝美国复兴的奇迹。这个仪式虽在隆冬举行,然而,我们通过自己的言语和向世界展示的面容、却促使春回大地--回到了世界上这个最古老的民主国家,并带来了重新创造美国的远见和勇气。
当我国的缔造者勇敢地向世界宣布美国独立,并向上帝表明自 己的目的时,他们知道,美国若要永存,就必须变革。不是为变革而变革,而是为了维护美国的理想--为了生命、自由和追求幸福而变革。尽管我们随着当今时代 的节拍前进,但我们的使命永恒不变。每一代美国人,部必须为作为一个美国人意味着什么下定义。今天,在冷战阴影下成长起来的一代人,在世界上负起了新的责 任。这个世界虽然沐浴着自由的阳光,但仍受到旧仇宿怨和新的祸患的威胁。
我们在无与伦比的繁荣中长大,继承了仍然是世界上最强大的经济。但由于企业倒闭,工资增长停滞、不平等状况加剧,人民的分歧加深,我们的经济已经削弱。
当乔治•华盛顿第一次宣读我刚才宜读的誓言时,人们骑马把 那个信息缓慢地传遍大地,继而又来船把它传过海洋。而现在,这个仪式的情景和声音即刻向全球几十亿人播放。通信和商务具有全球性,投资具有流动性;技术几 乎具有魔力;改善生活的理想现在具有普遍性。今天,我们美国人通过同世界各地人民进行和平竞争来谋求生存。各种深远而强大的力量正在震撼和改造我们的世 界,当今时代的当务之急是我们能否使变革成为我们的朋友,而不是成为我们的敌人。
这个新世界已经使几百万能够参与竞争并且取胜的美国人过上 了富裕的生活。但是,当多数人干得越多反而挣得越少的时候,当有些人根本不可能工作的时候,当保健费用的重负使众多家庭不堪承受、使大大小小的企业濒临破 产的时候,当犯罪活动的恐惧使守法公民不能自由行动的时候,当千百万贫穷儿童甚至不能想象我们呼唤他们过的那种生活的时候,我们就没有使变革成为我们的朋 友。我们知道,我们必须面对严酷的事实真相,并采取强有力的步骤。但我们没有这样做,而是听之任之,以致损耗了我们的资源,破坏了我们的经济,动摇了我们 的信心。
我们面临惊人的挑战,但我们同样具有惊人的力量,美国人历来是不安现状、不断追求和充满希望的民族,今天,我们必须把前人的远见卓识和坚强意志带到我们的任务中去。从革命,内战,大萧条,直到民权运动,我国人民总是下定决心,从历次危机中构筑我国历史的支柱。
托马斯•杰斐逊认为,为了维护我国的根基,我们需要时常进行激动人心的变革。美国同胞们,我们的时代就是变革的时代,让我们拥抱这个时代吧!
我们的民主制度不仅要成为举世称羡的目标,而且要成为举国复兴的动力。美国没有任何错误的东西不能被正确的东西所纠正。因此,我们今天立下誓言,要结束这个僵持停顿、放任自流的时代,一个复兴美国的新时代已经开始。
我们要复兴美国,就必须鼓足勇气。我们必须做前人无需做的 事情。我们必须更多地投资于人民,投资于他们的工作和未来,与此同时,我们必须减少巨额债务。而且,我们必须在一个需要为每个机会而竞争的世界上做到这一 切。这样做并不容易:这样做要求作出牺牲。但是,这是做得到的,而且能做得公平合理。我们不是为牺牲而牺牲,我们必须像家庭供养子女那样供养自己的国家。
我国的缔造者是用子孙后代的眼光来审视自己的。我们也必须 这样做。凡是注意过孩子蒙?o人睡的人,都知道后代意味着什么,后代就是将要到来的世界--我们为之坚持自己的理想,我们向之借用这个星球,我们对之负有 神圣的责任。我们必须做美国最拿手的事情:为所有的人提供更多的机会,要所有的人负起更多的责任。
现在是破除只求向政府和别人免费索取的恶习的时候了。让我们大家不仅为自己和家庭,而且为社区和国家担负起更多的责任吧。
我们要复兴美国,就必须恢复我们民主制度的活力。这个美丽的首都,就像文明的曙光出现以来的每一个首都一样,常常是尔虞我诈、明争暗斗之地。大腕人物争权夺势,没完没了地为官员的更替升降而烦神,却忘记了那些用辛勤和汗水把我们送到这里来,并养活了我们的人。
美国人理应得到更好的回报。在这个城市里,今天有人想把事 情办得更好一些。因此,我要时所有在场的人说:让我们下定决心改革政治,使权力和特权的喧嚣不再压倒人民的呼声。让我们撇开个人利益。这样我们就能觉察美 国的病痛,并看到官的希望。让我们下定决心,使政府成为富兰克林•罗斯福所说的进行“大胆而持久试验”的地方,成为一个面向未来而不是留恋过去的政府。让 我们把这个首都归还给它所属于的人民。
我们要复兴美国,就必须迎接国内外的种种挑战。国外和国内事务之间已不再有明确的界限--世界经济,世界环境,世界艾滋病危机,世界军备竞赛,这一切都在影响着我们大家。
我们在国内进行重建的同时,面对这个新世界的挑战不会退缩不前,也下会坐失良机。我们将同盟友一起努力进行变革,以免被变革所吞没。当我们的重要利益受到挑战,或者,当国际社会的意志和良知受到蔑视,我们将采取行动--可能时就采用和平外交手段,必要时就使用武力。
今天,在波斯湾、索马里和任何其他地方为国效力的勇敢的美国人,都证明了我们的决心。
但是,我们最伟大的力量是我们思想的威力。这些思想在许多国家仍然处于萌芽阶段。看到这些思想在世界各地被接受,我们感到欢欣鼓舞。我们的希望,我们的心,与每一个大陆正在建立民主和自由的人们是连在一起的。他们的事业也是美国的事业。
美国人民唤来了我们今天所庆祝的变革。你们毫不含糊地齐声疾呼。你们以前所未有的人数参加了投票。你们使国会、总统职务和政治进程本身全都面目一新。是的,是你们,我的美国同胞们,促使春回大地。
现在,我们必须做这个季节需要做的工作。现在,我就运用我的全部职权转向这项工作。我请求国会同我一道做这项工作。任何总统、任何国会、任何政府都不能单独完成这一使命。同胞们,在我国复兴的过程中,你们也必须发挥作用。
我向新一代美国年轻人挑战,要求你们投入这一奉献的季节--按照你们的理想主义行动起来,使不幸的儿童得到帮助,使贫困的人们得到关怀,使四分五裂的社区恢复联系。要做的事情很多--确实够多的,以至几百万在精神上仍然年轻的人也可作出奉献。
在奉献过程中,我们认识到相互需要这一简单而又强大的真 理。我们必须相互关心.今天,我们不仅是在赞颂美国,我们再一次把自己奉献给美国的理想:这个理想在革命中诞生,在两个世纪的挑战中更新;这个理想经受了 认识的考验,大家认识到,若不是命运的安排,幸运者或不幸者有可能互换位置;这个理想由于一种信念而变得崇高,即我国能够从纷繁的多佯性中实现最深刻的统 一性,这个理想洋溢着一种信:美国漫长而英勇的旅程必将永远继续。同胞们,在我恻即将跨入21世纪之际,让我们以旺盛的精力和满腔的希望,以坚定的信心和 严明的纪律开始工作,直到把工作完成。《圣经》说:“我们行善,不可丧志,若不灰心,到了时候,就要收成。”
在这个欢乐的山巅,我们听见山谷里传来了要我们作出奉献的召唤。我们听到了号角声。我们已经换岗。现在,我们必须以各自的方式,在上帝的帮助下响应这一召唤。
谢谢大家。上帝保佑大家。
First Inaugural Address of William J.Clinton
January 20, 1993
My fellow citizens :
Today we celebrate the mystery of American renewal.This ceremony is held in the depth of winter.But, by the words we speak and the faces we show the world, we force the spring.A spring reborn in the world's oldest democracy, that brings forth the vision and courage to reinvent America.When our founders boldly declared America's independence to the world and our purposes to the Almighty, they knew that America, to endure, would have to change.Not change for change's sake, but change to preserve America's ideals;life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness.Though we march to the music of our time, our mission is timeless.Each generation of Americans must define what it means to be an American.On behalf of our nation, I salute my predecessor, President Bush, for his half-century of service to America.And I thank the millions of men and women whose steadfastness and sacrifice triumphed over Depression, fascism and Communism.Today, a generation raised in the shadows of the Cold War assumes new responsibilities in a world warmed by the sunshine of freedom but threatened still by ancient hatreds and new plagues.Raised in unrivaled prosperity, we inherit an economy that is still the world's strongest, but is weakened by business failures, stagnant wages, increasing inequality, and deep divisions among our people.When George Washington first took the oath I have just sworn to uphold, news traveled slowly across the land by horseback and across the ocean by boat.Now, the sights and sounds of this ceremony are broadcast instantaneously to billions around the world.Communications and commerce are global;investment is mobile;technology is almost magical;and ambition for a better life is now universal.We earn our livelihood in peaceful competition with people all across the earth.Profound and powerful forces are shaking and remaking our world, and the urgent question of our time is whether we can make change our friend and not our enemy.This new world has already enriched the lives of millions of Americans who are able to compete and win in it.But when most people are working harder for less;when others cannot work at all;when the cost of health care devastates families and threatens to bankrupt many of our enterprises, great and small;when fear of crime robs law-abiding citizens of their freedom;and when millions of poor children cannot even imagine the lives we are calling them to lead, we have not made change our friend.We know we have to face hard truths and take strong steps.But we have not done so.Instead, we have drifted, and that drifting has eroded our resources, fractured our economy, and shaken our confidence.Though our challenges are fearsome, so are our strengths.And Americans have ever been a restless, questing, hopeful people.We must bring to our task today the vision and will of those who came before us.From our revolution, the Civil War, to the Great Depression to the civil rights movement, our people have always mustered the determination to construct from these crises the pillars of our history.Thomas Jefferson believed that to preserve the very foundations of our nation, we would need dramatic change from time to time.Well, my fellow citizens, this is our time.Let us embrace it.Our democracy must be not only the envy of the world but the engine of our own renewal.There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America.And so today, we pledge an end to the era of deadlock and drift;a new season of American renewal has begun.To renew America, we must be bold.We must do what no generation has had to do before.We must invest more in our own people, in their jobs, in their future, and at the same time cut our massive debt.And we must do so in a world in which we must compete for every opportunity.It will not be easy;it will require sacrifice.But it can be done, and done fairly, not choosing sacrifice for its own sake, but for our own sake.We must provide for our nation the way a family provides for its children.Our Founders saw themselves in the light of posterity.We can do no less.Anyone who has ever watched a child's eyes wander into sleep knows what posterity is.Posterity is the world to come;the world for whom we hold our ideals, from whom we have borrowed our planet, and to whom we bear sacred responsibility.We must do what America does best: offer more opportunity to all and demand responsibility from all.It is time to break the bad habit of expecting something for nothing, from our government or from each other.Let us all take more responsibility, not only for ourselves and our families but for our communities and our country.To renew America, we must revitalize our democracy.This beautiful capital, like every capital since the dawn of civilization, is often a place of intrigue and calculation.Powerful people maneuver for position and worry endlessly about who is in and who is out, who is up and who is down, forgetting those people whose toil and sweat sends us here and pays our way.Americans deserve better, and in this city today, there are people who want to do better.And so I say to all of us here, let us resolve to reform our politics, so that power and privilege no longer shout down the voice of the people.Let us put aside personal advantage so that we can feel the pain and see the promise of America.Let us resolve to make our government a place for what Franklin Roosevelt called “bold, persistent experimentation,” a government for our tomorrows, not our yesterdays.Let us give this capital back to the people to whom it belongs.To renew America, we must meet challenges abroad as well at home.There is no longer division between what is foreign and what is domestic;the world economy, the world environment, the world AIDS crisis, the world arms race;they affect us all.Today, as an old order passes, the new world is more free but less stable.Communism's collapse has called forth old animosities and new dangers.Clearly America must continue to lead the world we did so much to make.While America rebuilds at home, we will not shrink from the challenges, nor fail to seize the opportunities, of this new world.Together with our friends and allies, we will work to shape change, lest it engulf us.When our vital interests are challenged, or the will and conscience of the international community is defied, we will act;with peaceful diplomacy when ever possible, with force when necessary.The brave Americans serving our nation today in the Persian Gulf, in Somalia, and wherever else they stand are testament to our resolve.But our greatest strength is the power of our ideas, which are still new in many lands.Across the world, we see them embraced, and we rejoice.Our hopes, our hearts, our hands, are with those on every continent who are building democracy and freedom.Their cause is America's cause.The American people have summoned the change we celebrate today.You have raised your voices in an unmistakable chorus.You have cast your votes in historic numbers.And you have changed the face of Congress, the presidency and the political process itself.Yes, you, my fellow Americans have forced the spring.Now, we must do the work the season demands.To that work I now turn, with all the authority of my office.I ask the Congress to join with me.But no president, no Congress, no government, can undertake this mission alone.My fellow Americans, you, too, must play your part in our renewal.I challenge a new generation of young Americans to a season of service;to act on your idealism by helping troubled children, keeping company with those in need, reconnecting our torn communities.There is so much to be done;enough indeed for millions of others who are still young in spirit to give of themselves in service, too.In serving, we recognize a simple but powerful truth, we need each other.And we must care for one another.Today, we do more than celebrate America;we rededicate ourselves to the very idea of America.An idea born in revolution and renewed through two centuries of challenge.An idea tempered by the knowledge that, but for fate we, the fortunate and the unfortunate, might have been each other.An idea ennobled by the faith that our nation can summon from its myriad diversity the deepest measure of unity.An idea infused with the conviction that America's long heroic journey must go forever upward.And so, my fellow Americans, at the edge of the 21st century, let us begin with energy and hope, with faith and discipline, and let us work until our work is done.The scripture says, “And let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due season, we shall reap, if we faint not.”
From this joyful mountaintop of celebration, we hear a call to service in the valley.We have heard the trumpets.We have changed the guard.And now, each in our way, and with God's help, we must answer the call.Thank you, and God bless you all.里根第一任总统就职演说
罗纳德-里根 第一次就职演说
第40任总统(1981年-1989年)
议员海特菲尔德先生、法官先生、总统先生、副总统布什、蒙代尔先生、议员贝克先生、发言人奥尼尔先生、尊敬的摩麦先生,以及广大支持我的美国同胞们:今天对于我们中间的一些人来说,是一个非常庄严隆重的时刻。当然,对于这个国家的历史来说,却是一件普通的事情。按照宪法要求,政府权利正在有序地移交,我们已经如此“例行公事”了两个世纪,很少有人觉得这有什么特别的。但在世界上更多人看来,这个我们已经习以为常的四年一次的仪式,却实在是一个奇迹。
总统先生,我希望我们的同胞们都能知道你为了这个传承而付出的努力。通过移交程序中的通力合作,你向观察者展示了这么一个事实:我们是发誓要团结起来维护这样一个政治体制的团体,这样的体制保证了我们能够得到比其他政体更为广泛的个人自由。同时我也要感谢你和你的伙伴们的帮助,因为你们坚持了这样的传承,而这恰恰是我们共和国的根基。
我们国家的事业在继续前进。合众国正面临巨大的经济困难。我们遭遇到我国历史上历时最长、最严重之一的通货膨胀,它扰乱着我们的经济决策,打击着节俭的风气,压迫着正在挣扎谋生的青年人和收入固定的中年人,威胁着要摧毁我国千百万人民的生计。
停滞的工业使工人失业、蒙受痛苦并失去了个人尊严。即使那些有工作的人,也因税收制度的缘故而得不到公正的劳动报酬,因为这种税收制度使我们无法在事业上取得成就,使我们无法保持充分的生产力。
尽管我们的纳税负担相当沉重,但还是跟不上公共开支的增长。数十年来,我们的赤字额屡屡上升,我们为图目前暂时的方便,把自己的前途和子孙的前途抵押出去了。这一趋势如果长此以往,必然引起社会、文化、政治和经济等方面的大动荡。
作为个人,你们和我可以靠借贷过一种人不敷出的生活,然而只能维持一段有限的时期,我们怎么可以认为,作为一个国家整体,我们就不应受到同样的约束呢?为了保住明天,我们今天就必须行动起来。大家都要明白无误地懂得--我们从今天起就要采取行动。
我们深受其害的经济弊病,几十年来一直袭击着我们。这些弊病不会在几天、几星期或几个月内消失,但它们终将消失。它们之所以终将消失,是因为我们作为现在的美国人,一如既往地有能力去完成需要完成的事情,以保存这个最后而又最伟大的自由堡垒。
在当前这场危机中,政府的管理不能解决我们面临的问题。政府的管理就是问题所在。
我们时常误以为,社会已经越来越复杂,已经不可能凭借自治方式加以管理,而一个由杰出人物组成的政府要比民享、民治、民有的政府高明。可是,假如我们之中谁也管理不了自己,那么,我们之中谁还能去管理他人呢。
我们大家--不论政府官员还是平民百姓--必须共同肩负起这个责任,我们谋求的解决办法必须是公平的,不要使任何一个群体付出较高的代价。
我们听到许多关于特殊利益集团的谈论,然而。我们必须关心一个被忽视了大久的特殊利益集团。这个集团没有区域之分,没有人种之分,没有民族之分,没有 政党之分,这个集团由许许多多的男人与女人组成,他们生产粮食,巡逻街头,管理厂矿,教育儿童,照料家务和治疗疾病。他们是专业人员、实业家、店主、职 员、出租汽车司机和货车驾驶员,总而言之,他们就是“我们人民”--这个称之为美国人的民族。
本届政府的日标是必须建立一种健全的、生气勃勃的和不断发展的经济,为全体美国人民提供一种不因偏执或歧视而造成障碍的均等机会,让美国重新工作起 来,意味着让全体美国人重新工作起来。制止通货膨胀,意味着让全体美国人从失控的生活费用所造成的恐惧中解脱出来。人人都应分担“新开端”的富有成效的工 作,人人都应分享经济复苏的硕果。我国制度和力量的核心是理想主义和公正态度,有了这些,我们就能建立起强大、繁荣、国内稳定并同全世界和平相处的美国。
因此,在我们开始之际,让我们看看实际情况。我们是一个拥有政府的国家--而不是一个拥有国家的政府。这一点使我们在世界合国中独树一帜,我们的政府 除了人民授予的权力,没有任何别的权力。目前,政府权力的膨胀已显示出超过被统治者同意的迹象,制止并扭转这种状况的时候到了。
我打算压缩联邦机构的规模和权力,并要求大家承认联邦政府被授予的权力同各州或人民保留的权利这两者之间的区别。我们大家都需要提醒:不是联邦政府创 立了各州,而是各州创立了联邦政府。因此,请不要误会,我的意思不是要取消政府,而是要它发挥作用--同我们一起合作,而不是凌驾于我们之上;同我们并肩 而立,而不是骑在我们的背上。政府能够而且必须提供机会,而不是扼杀机会,它能够而且必须促进生产力,而不是抑制生产力。
如果我们要探究这么多年来我们为什么能取得这么大成就,并获得了世界上任何一个民族未曾获得的繁荣昌盛,其原因是在这片土地上,我们使人类的能力和个 人的才智得到了前所未有的发挥。在这里,个人所享有并得以确保的自由和尊严超过了世界上任何其他地方。为这种自由所付出的代价有时相当高昂,但我们从来没 有不愿意付出这代价。
我们目前的困难,与政府机构因为不必要的过度膨胀而干预、侵扰我们的生活同步增加,这决不是偶然的巧合。我们是一个泱泱大国,不能自囿于小小的梦想,现在正是认识到这一点的时候。我们并非注定走向衰落,尽管有些人想让我们相信这一点。我不相信,无论我们做些什么,我们都将命该如此,但我相信,如果我们 什么也不做,我们将的确命该如此。
为此,让我们以掌握的一切创造力来开创一个国家复兴的时代吧。让我们重新拿出决心、勇气和力量,让我们重新建立起我们的信念和希望吧。我们完全有权去做英雄梦。
有人告诉我们在他的身上发现一本日记。扉页上写着这样的标题:“我的誓言”。他写下了这样的话语:“美国必须赢得这场战争。为此,我会奋斗,我会拯救,我会牺牲,我会忍受,我会并将尽我最大的努力英勇奋战,就好比所有的战争问题都将由我一个人来肩负。”
First Inaugural Address of Ronald Reagan TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 1981
Senator Hatfield, Mr.Chief Justice, Mr.President, Vice President Bush, Vice President Mondale, Senator Baker, Speaker O'Neill, Reverend Moomaw, and my fellow citizens: To a few of us here today, this is a solemn and most momentous occasion;and yet, in the history of our Nation, it is a commonplace occurrence.The orderly transfer of authority as called for in the Constitution routinely takes place as it has for almost two centuries and few of us stop to think how unique we really are.In the eyes of many in the world, this every-4-year ceremony we accept as normal is nothing less than a miracle.Mr.President, I want our fellow citizens to know how much you did to carry on this tradition.By your gracious cooperation in the transition process, you have shown a watching world that we are a united people pledged to maintaining a political system which guarantees individual liberty to a greater degree than any other, and I thank you and your people for all your help in maintaining the continuity which is the bulwark of our Republic.The business of our nation goes forward.These United States are confronted with an economic affliction of great proportions.We suffer from the longest and one of the worst sustained inflations in our national history.It distorts our economic decisions, penalizes thrift, and crushes the struggling young and the fixed-income elderly alike.It threatens to shatter the lives of millions of our people.Idle industries have cast workers into unemployment, causing human misery and personal indignity.Those who do work are denied a fair return for their labor by a tax system which penalizes successful achievement and keeps us from maintaining full productivity.But great as our tax burden is, it has not kept pace with public spending.For decades, we have piled deficit upon deficit, mortgaging our future and our children's future for the temporary convenience of the present.To continue this long trend is to guarantee tremendous social, cultural, political, and economic upheavals.You and I, as individuals, can, by borrowing, live beyond our means, but for only a limited period of time.Why, then, should we think that collectively, as a nation, we are not bound by that same limitation?
We must act today in order to preserve tomorrow.And let there be no misunderstanding--we are going to begin to act, beginning today.The economic ills we suffer have come upon us over several decades.They will not go away in days, weeks, or months, but they will go away.They will go away because we, as Americans, have the capacity now, as we have had in the past, to do whatever needs to be done to preserve this last and greatest bastion of freedom.In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem.From time to time, we have been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule, that government by an elite group is superior to government for, by, and of the people.But if no one among us is capable of governing himself, then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else? All of us together, in and out of government, must bear the burden.The solutions we seek must be equitable, with no one group singled out to pay a higher price.We hear much of special interest groups.Our concern must be for a special interest group that has been too long neglected.It knows no sectional boundaries or ethnic and racial divisions, and it crosses political party lines.It is made up of men and women who raise our food, patrol our streets, man our mines and our factories, teach our children, keep our homes, and heal us when we are sick--professionals, industrialists, shopkeepers, clerks, cabbies, and truckdrivers.They are, in short, “We the people,” this breed called Americans.Well, this administration's objective will be a healthy, vigorous, growing economy that provides equal opportunity for all Americans, with no barriers born of bigotry or discrimination.Putting America back to work means putting all Americans back to work.Ending inflation means freeing all Americans from the terror of runaway living costs.All must share in the productive work of this “new beginning” and all must share in the bounty of a revived economy.With the idealism and fair play which are the core of our system and our strength, we can have a strong and prosperous America at peace with itself and the world.So, as we begin, let us take inventory.We are a nation that has a government--not the other way around.And this makes us special among the nations of the Earth.Our Government has no power except that granted it by the people.It is time to check and reverse the growth of government which shows signs of having grown beyond the consent of the governed.It is my intention to curb the size and influence of the Federal establishment and to demand recognition of the distinction between the powers granted to the Federal Government and those reserved to the States or to the people.All of us need to be reminded that the Federal Government did not create the States;the States created the Federal Government.Now, so there will be no misunderstanding, it is not my intention to do away with government.It is, rather, to make it work-work with us, not over us;to stand by our side, not ride on our back.Government can and must provide opportunity, not smother it;foster productivity, not stifle it.If we look to the answer as to why, for so many years, we achieved so much, prospered as no other people on Earth, it was because here, in this land, we unleashed the energy and individual genius of man to a greater extent than has ever been done before.Freedom and the dignity of the individual have been more available and assured here than in any other place on Earth.The price for this freedom at times has been high, but we have never been unwilling to pay that price.It is no coincidence that our present troubles parallel and are proportionate to the intervention and intrusion in our lives that result from unnecessary and excessive growth of government.It is time for us to realize that we are too great a nation to limit ourselves to small dreams.We are not, as some would have us believe, loomed to an inevitable decline.I do not believe in a fate that will all on us no matter what we do.I do believe in a fate that will fall on us if we do nothing.So, with all the creative energy at our command, let us begin an era of national renewal.Let us renew our determination, our courage, and our strength.And let us renew;our faith and our hope.We have every right to dream heroic dreams.Those who say that we are in a time when there are no heroes just don't know where to look.You can see heroes every day going in and out of factory gates.Others, a handful in number, produce enough food to feed all of us and then the world beyond.You meet heroes across a counter--and they are on both sides of that counter.There are entrepreneurs with faith in themselves and faith in an idea who create new jobs, new wealth and opportunity.They are individuals and families whose taxes support the Government and whose voluntary gifts support church, charity, culture, art, and education.Their patriotism is quiet but deep.Their values sustain our national life.I have used the words “they” and “their” in speaking of these heroes.I could say “you” and “your” because I am addressing the heroes of whom I speak--you, the citizens of this blessed land.Your dreams, your hopes, your goals are going to be the dreams, the hopes, and the goals of this administration, so help me God.We shall reflect the compassion that is so much a part of your makeup.How can we love our country and not love our countrymen, and loving them, reach out a hand when they fall, heal them when they are sick, and provide opportunities to make them self-sufficient so they will be equal in fact and not just in theory?
Can we solve the problems confronting us? Well, the answer is an unequivocal and emphatic “yes.” To paraphrase Winston Churchill, I did not take the oath I have just taken with the intention of presiding over the dissolution of the world's strongest economy.In the days ahead I will propose removing the roadblocks that have slowed our economy and reduced productivity.Steps will be taken aimed at restoring the balance between the various levels of government.Progress may be slow--measured in inches and feet, not miles--but we will progress.Is it time to reawaken this industrial giant, to get government back within its means, and to lighten our punitive tax burden.And these will be our first priorities, and on these principles, there will be no compromise.On the eve of our struggle for independence a man who might have been one of the greatest among the Founding Fathers, Dr.Joseph Warren, President of the Massachusetts Congress, said to his fellow Americans, “Our country is in danger, but not to be despaired of....On you depend the fortunes of America.You are to decide the important questions upon which rests the happiness and the liberty of millions yet unborn.Act worthy of yourselves.”
Well, I believe we, the Americans of today, are ready to act worthy of ourselves, ready to do what must be done to ensure happiness and liberty for ourselves, our children and our children's children.And as we renew ourselves here in our own land, we will be seen as having greater strength throughout the world.We will again be the exemplar of freedom and a beacon of hope for those who do not now have freedom.To those neighbors and allies who share our freedom, we will strengthen our historic ties and assure them of our support and firm commitment.We will match loyalty with loyalty.We will strive for mutually beneficial relations.We will not use our friendship to impose on their sovereignty, for or own sovereignty is not for sale.As for the enemies of freedom, those who are potential adversaries, they will be reminded that peace is the highest aspiration of the American people.We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it;we will not surrender for it--now or ever.Our forbearance should never be misunderstood.Our reluctance for conflict should not be misjudged as a failure of will.When action is required to preserve our national security, we will act.We will maintain sufficient strength to prevail if need be, knowing that if we do so we have the best chance of never having to use that strength.Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women.It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have.It is a weapon that we as Americans do have.Let that be understood by those who practice terrorism and prey upon their neighbors.I am told that tens of thousands of prayer meetings are being held on this day, and for that I am deeply grateful.We are a nation under God, and I believe God intended for us to be free.It would be fitting and good, I think, if on each Inauguration Day in future years it should be declared a day of prayer.This is the first time in history that this ceremony has been held, as you have been told, on this West Front of the Capitol.Standing here, one faces a magnificent vista, opening up on this city's special beauty and history.At the end of this open mall are those shrines to the giants on whose shoulders we stand.Directly in front of me, the monument to a monumental man: George Washington, Father of our country.A man of humility who came to greatness reluctantly.He led America out of revolutionary victory into infant nationhood.Off to one side, the stately memorial to Thomas Jefferson.The Declaration of Independence flames with his eloquence.And then beyond the Reflecting Pool the dignified columns of the Lincoln Memorial.Whoever would understand in his heart the meaning of America will find it in the life of Abraham Lincoln.Beyond those monuments to heroism is the Potomac River, and on the far shore the sloping hills of Arlington National Cemetery with its row on row of simple white markers bearing crosses or Stars of David.They add up to only a tiny fraction of the price that has been paid for our freedom.Each one of those markers is a monument to the kinds of hero I spoke of earlier.Their lives ended in places called Belleau Wood, The Argonne, Omaha Beach, Salerno and halfway around the world on Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Pork Chop Hill, the Chosin Reservoir, and in a hundred rice paddies and jungles of a place called Vietnam.Under one such marker lies a young man--Martin Treptow--who left his job in a small town barber shop in 1917 to go to France with the famed Rainbow Division.There, on the western front, he was killed trying to carry a message between battalions under heavy artillery fire.We are told that on his body was found a diary.On the flyleaf under the heading, “My Pledge,” he had written these words: “America must win this war.Therefore, I will work, I will save, I will sacrifice, I will endure, I will fight cheerfully and do my utmost, as if the issue of the whole struggle depended on me alone.”
The crisis we are facing today does not require of us the kind of sacrifice that Martin Treptow and so many thousands of others were called upon to make.It does require, however, our best effort, and our willingness to believe in ourselves and to believe in our capacity to perform great deeds;to believe that together, with God's help, we can and will resolve the problems which now confront us.And, after all, why shouldn't we believe that? We are Americans.God bless you, and thank you.我们都是地球的乘客
理查德-尼克松 第一次就职演讲
星期一,1969年1月20日
历史的每一个时刻转瞬即逝,它既珍贵又独特。可是,其中某些显然是揭开序幕的时刻,此时,一代先河得以开创,它决定了未来数十年或几个世纪的航向。
现在可能就是这样一个时刻。
现在,各方力量正在汇聚起来,使我们第一次可以期望人类的许多夙愿最终能够实现。
不断加快的变革速度,使我们能在我们这一代期望过去花了几百年才出现的种种进步。
由于开辟了大空的天地,我们在地球上也发现了新的天地。
由于世界人民希望和平,而世界各国领袖害怕战争,因此,目前形势第一次变得有利于和平。
从现在起,再过8年,美国将庆祝建国200周年。在现在大多数人的有生之年,人类将庆祝千载难逢的、辉煌无比的新年——第三个百年盛世的开端。
我们的国家将变成怎样的国家,我们将生活在怎样的世界上,我们要不要按照我们的希望铸造未来,这些都将由我们根据自己的行动和选择来决定。
历史所能赐予我们的最大荣誉,莫过于和平缔造者这一称号。这一荣誉现在正在召唤美国——这是领导世界最终脱离**的幽谷,走向自文明开端以来人类一直梦寐以求的和平高坛的一个机会。
我们若获成功,下几代人在谈及现在在世的我们时会说,正是我们掌握了时机,正是我们协力相助,使普天之下国泰民安。
这是要我们创立宏伟大业的召唤。
我相信,美国人民准备响应这一召唤。
经过一段对抗时期,我们正进入一个谈判时代。
让所有国家都知道,在本届政府任期内,交流通道是敞开的。
我们谋求一个开放的世界——对各种思想开放,对物资和人员的交流开放,在这个世界中,任何民族,不论大小,都不会生活在怏怏不乐的孤立之中。
我们不能指望每个人都成为我们的朋友,可是我们能设法使任何人都不与我们为敌。
我们邀请那些很可能是我们对手的人进行一场和平竞赛——不是要征服领土或扩展版图,而是要丰富人类的生活。
在探索宇宙空间的时候,让我们一起走向新的世界——不是走向被征服的新世界,而是共同进行一次新的探险。
让我们同那些愿意加入这一行列的人共同合作,减少军备负担,加固和平大厦,提高贫穷挨饿的人们的生活水平。
但是,对所有那些见软就欺的人来说,让我们不容置疑地表明,我们需要多么强大就会多强大:需要强大多久,就会强大多久。
自从我作为新当选的国会议员首次来到国会大厦之后的20多年来,我已经出访过世界上大多数国家。
我结识了世界各国的领导人,了解到使世界陷于四分五裂的各种强大势力,各种深仇大恨,各种恐惧心理。
我知道,和于不会单凭愿望就能到来——这需要日复一日,甚至年复一年地进行耐心而持久的外交努力,除此别无他法。
我也了解世界各国人民。
我见到过无家可归的儿童在忍饥挨饿,战争中挂彩负伤的男人在痛苦呻吟,失去孩子的母亲在无限悲伤。我知道,这些并没有意识形态和种族之分。
我了解美国。我了解美国的心是善良的。
我从心底里,从我国人民的心底里,向那些蒙受不幸和痛苦的人们表达我们的深切关怀。
今天,我在上帝和我国同胞面前宣誓,拥护和捍卫合众国宪法。除了这一誓言,我现在还要补充一项神圣的义务:我将把自己的职责、精力以及我所能使唤的一切智慧,一并奉献给各国之间的和平事业。
让强者和弱者都能听到这一信息:
我们企求赢得的和平不是战胜任何一个民族,而是“和平天使”带来的为治愈创伤的和平:是对遭受苦难者予以同情的和平;是对那些反对过我们的人予以谅解的和平;是地球上各族人民都有选择自己命运的机会的和平。
就在几星期以前,人类如同上帝凝望这个世界一样,第一次端视了这个世界,一个在冥冥黑暗中辉映发光的独特的星球。我们分享了这一荣光。
阿波罗号上的字航员在圣诞节前夕飞越月球灰色的表面时,向我们说起地球的美丽——从穿过月距而传来的如此清晰的声音中,我们听到他们在祈祷上帝赐福人间。
在那一时刻,他们从月球上发出的意愿,激励着诗人阿奇博尔德•麦克利什写下了这样的篇章:
“在永恒的宁静中,那渺小、斑斓、美丽的地球在浮动。要真正地观望地球,就得把我们自己都看作是地球的乘客,看作是一群兄弟,他们共处于漫漫的、寒冷的字宙中。仰赖着光明的挚爱——这群兄弟懂得,而今他们是真正的兄弟。”
在那个比技术胜利更有意义的时刻,人们把思绪转向了家乡和人类——他们从那个遥远的视角中发现,地球上人类的命运是不能分开的;他们告诉我们,不管我们在宇宙中走得多远,我们的命运不是在别的星球上,而是在地球上,在我们自己手中,在我们的心头。
我们已经度过了一个反映美国精神的漫漫长夜。可是,当我们瞥见黎明前的第一缕曙光,切莫诅咒那尚未消散的黑暗。让我们迎接光明吧。
我们的命运所赐予的不是绝望的苦酒,而是机会的美餐。因此,让我们不是充满恐惧,而是满怀喜悦地去抓住这个机会吧——“地球的乘客们”,让我们以坚定的信念,朝着稳定的目标,在提防着危险中前进吧!我们对上帝的意志和人类的希望充满了信心,这将使我们持之以恒。
First Inaugural Address of Richard Milhous Nixon MONDAY, JANUARY 20, 1969
Senator Dirksen, Mr.Chief Justice, Mr.Vice President, President Johnson, Vice President Humphrey, my fellow Americans--and my fellow citizens of the world community:
I ask you to share with me today the majesty of this moment.In the orderly transfer of power, we celebrate the unity that keeps us free.Each moment in history is a fleeting time, precious and unique.But some stand out as moments of beginning, in which courses are set that shape decades or centuries.This can be such a moment.Forces now are converging that make possible, for the first time, the hope that many of man's deepest aspirations can at last be realized.The spiraling pace of change allows us to contemplate, within our own lifetime, advances that once would have taken centuries.In throwing wide the horizons of space, we have discovered new horizons on earth.For the first time, because the people of the world want peace, and the leaders of the world are afraid of war, the times are on the side of peace.Eight years from now America will celebrate its 200th anniversary as a nation.Within the lifetime of most people now living, mankind will celebrate that great new year which comes only once in a thousand years--the beginning of the third millennium.What kind of nation we will be, what kind of world we will live in, whether we shape the future in the image of our hopes, is ours to determine by our actions and our choices.The greatest honor history can bestow is the title of peacemaker.This honor now beckons America--the chance to help lead the world at last out of the valley of turmoil, and onto that high ground of peace that man has dreamed of since the dawn of civilization.If we succeed, generations to come will say of us now living that we mastered our moment, that we helped make the world safe for mankind.This is our summons to greatness.I believe the American people are ready to answer this call.The second third of this century has been a time of proud achievement.We have made enormous strides in science and industry and agriculture.We have shared our wealth more broadly than ever.We have learned at last to manage a modern economy to assure its continued growth.We have given freedom new reach, and we have begun to make its promise real for black as well as for white.We see the hope of tomorrow in the youth of today.I know America's youth.I believe in them.We can be proud that they are better educated, more committed, more passionately driven by conscience than any generation in our history.No people has ever been so close to the achievement of a just and abundant society, or so possessed of the will to achieve it.Because our strengths are so great, we can afford to appraise our weaknesses with candor and to approach them with hope.Standing in this same place a third of a century ago, Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressed a Nation ravaged by depression and gripped in fear.He could say in surveying the Nation's troubles: “They concern, thank God, only material things.”
Our crisis today is the reverse.We have found ourselves rich in goods, but ragged in spirit;reaching with magnificent precision for the moon, but falling into raucous discord on earth.We are caught in war, wanting peace.We are torn by division, wanting unity.We see around us empty lives, wanting fulfillment.We see tasks that need doing, waiting for hands to do them.To a crisis of the spirit, we need an answer of the spirit.To find that answer, we need only look within ourselves.When we listen to “the better angels of our nature,” we find that they celebrate the simple things, the basic things--such as goodness, decency, love, kindness.Greatness comes in simple trappings.The simple things are the ones most needed today if we are to surmount what divides us, and cement what unites us.To lower our voices would be a simple thing.In these difficult years, America has suffered from a fever of words;from inflated rhetoric that promises more than it can deliver;from angry rhetoric that fans discontents into hatreds;from bombastic rhetoric that postures instead of persuading.We cannot learn from one another until we stop shouting at one another--until we speak quietly enough so that our words can be heard as well as our voices.For its part, government will listen.We will strive to listen in new ways--to the voices of quiet anguish, the voices that speak without words, the voices of the heart--to the injured voices, the anxious voices, the voices that have despaired of being heard.Those who have been left out, we will try to bring in.Those left behind, we will help to catch up.For all of our people, we will set as our goal the decent order that makes progress possible and our lives secure.As we reach toward our hopes, our task is to build on what has gone before--not turning away from the old, but turning toward the new.In this past third of a century, government has passed more laws, spent more money, initiated more programs, than in all our previous history.In pursuing our goals of full employment, better housing, excellence in education;in rebuilding our cities and improving our rural areas;in protecting our environment and enhancing the quality of life--in all these and more, we will and must press urgently forward.We shall plan now for the day when our wealth can be transferred from the destruction of war abroad to the urgent needs of our people at home.The American dream does not come to those who fall asleep.But we are approaching the limits of what government alone can do.Our greatest need now is to reach beyond government, and to enlist the legions of the concerned and the committed.What has to be done, has to be done by government and people together or it will not be done at all.The lesson of past agony is that without the people we can do nothing;with the people we can do everything.To match the magnitude of our tasks, we need the energies of our people--enlisted not only in grand enterprises, but more importantly in those small, splendid efforts that make headlines in the neighborhood newspaper instead of the national journal.With these, we can build a great cathedral of the spirit--each of us raising it one stone at a time, as he reaches out to his neighbor, helping, caring, doing.I do not offer a life of uninspiring ease.I do not call for a life of grim sacrifice.I ask you to join in a high adventure--one as rich as humanity itself, and as exciting as the times we live in.The essence of freedom is that each of us shares in the shaping of his own destiny.Until he has been part of a cause larger than himself, no man is truly whole.The way to fulfillment is in the use of our talents;we achieve nobility in the spirit that inspires that use.As we measure what can be done, we shall promise only what we know we can produce, but as we chart our goals we shall be lifted by our dreams.No man can be fully free while his neighbor is not.To go forward at all is to go forward together.This means black and white together, as one nation, not two.The laws have caught up with our conscience.What remains is to give life to what is in the law: to ensure at last that as all are born equal in dignity before God, all are born equal in dignity before man.As we learn to go forward together at home, let us also seek to go forward together with all mankind.Let us take as our goal: where peace is unknown, make it welcome;where peace is fragile, make it strong;where peace is temporary, make it permanent.After a period of confrontation, we are entering an era of negotiation.Let all nations know that during this administration our lines of communication will be open.We seek an open world--open to ideas, open to the exchange of goods and people--a world in which no people, great or small, will live in angry isolation.We cannot expect to make everyone our friend, but we can try to make no one our enemy.Those who would be our adversaries, we invite to a peaceful competition--not in conquering territory or extending dominion, but in enriching the life of man.As we explore the reaches of space, let us go to the new worlds together--not as new worlds to be conquered, but as a new adventure to be shared.With those who are willing to join, let us cooperate to reduce the burden of arms, to strengthen the structure of peace, to lift up the poor and the hungry.But to all those who would be tempted by weakness, let us leave no doubt that we will be as strong as we need to be for as long as we need to be.Over the past twenty years, since I first came to this Capital as a freshman Congressman, I have visited most of the nations of the world.I have come to know the leaders of the world, and the great forces, the hatreds, the fears that divide the world.I know that peace does not come through wishing for it--that there is no substitute for days and even years of patient and prolonged diplomacy.I also know the people of the world.I have seen the hunger of a homeless child, the pain of a man wounded in battle, the grief of a mother who has lost her son.I know these have no ideology, no race.I know America.I know the heart of America is good.I speak from my own heart, and the heart of my country, the deep concern we have for those who suffer, and those who sorrow.I have taken an oath today in the presence of God and my countrymen to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States.To that oath I now add this sacred commitment: I shall consecrate my office, my energies, and all the wisdom I can summon, to the cause of peace among nations.Let this message be heard by strong and weak alike:
The peace we seek to win is not victory over any other people, but the peace that comes “with healing in its wings”;with compassion for those who have suffered;with understanding for those who have opposed us;with the opportunity for all the peoples of this earth to choose their own destiny.Only a few short weeks ago, we shared the glory of man's first sight of the world as God sees it, as a single sphere reflecting light in the darkness.As the Apollo astronauts flew over the moon's gray surface on Christmas Eve, they spoke to us of the beauty of earth--and in that voice so clear across the lunar distance, we heard them invoke God's blessing on its goodness.In that moment, their view from the moon moved poet Archibald MacLeish to write:
“To see the earth as it truly is, small and blue and beautiful in that eternal silence where it floats, is to see ourselves as riders on the earth together, brothers on that bright loveliness in the eternal cold--brothers who know now they are truly brothers.”
In that moment of surpassing technological triumph, men turned their thoughts toward home and humanity--seeing in that far perspective that man's destiny on earth is not divisible;telling us that however far we reach into the cosmos, our destiny lies not in the stars but on Earth itself, in our own hands, in our own hearts.We have endured a long night of the American spirit.But as our eyes catch the dimness of the first rays of dawn, let us not curse the remaining dark.Let us gather the light.Our destiny offers, not the cup of despair, but the chalice of opportunity.So let us seize it, not in fear, but in gladness--and, “riders on the earth together,” let us go forward, firm in our faith, steadfast in our purpose, cautious of the dangers;but sustained by our confidence in the will of God and the promise of man.火炬已经传给新一代美国人
约翰-肯尼迪 就职演讲
星期五,1961年1月20日
首席法官先生、艾森豪威尔总统、尼克松副总统、杜鲁门总统、尊敬的牧师、各位公民:
今天我们庆祝的不是政党的胜利,而是自由的胜利。这象征着一个结束,也象征着一个开端,表示了一种更新,也表示了一种变革。因为我已在你们和全能的上帝面前,宣读了我们的先辈在170多年前拟定的庄严誓言。现在的世界已大不相同了,人类的巨手掌握着既能消灭人间的各种贫困,又能毁灭人间的各种生活的力量。但我们的先辈为之奋斗的那些革命信念,在世界各地仍然有着争论。这个信念就是:人的权利井非来自国家的慷慨,而是来自上帝恩赐。
今天,我们不敢忘记我们是第一次革命的继承者。让我们的朋友和敌人同样听见我此时此地的讲话:火炬已经传给新一代美国人。这一代人在本世纪诞生,在战争中受过锻炼,在艰难困苦的和平时期受过陶冶,他们为我国悠久的传统感到自豪——他们不愿目睹或听任我国一向保证的、今天仍在国内外作出保证的人权渐趋毁灭。
让每个国家都知道——不论它希望我们繁荣还是希望我们衰落——为确保自由的存在和自由的胜利,我们将付出任何代价,承受任何负担,应付任何艰难,支持任何朋友,反抗任何敌人。
这些就是我们的保证——而且还有更多的保证。
对那些和我们有着共同文化和精神渊源的老盟友,我们保证待以诚实朋友那样的忠诚。我们如果团结一致,就能在许多合作事业中无在而下胜;我们如果分歧对立,就会一事无成——因为我们不敢在争吵下休、四分五裂时迎接强大的挑战。
对那些我们欢迎其加入到自由行列中来的新国家,我们格守我们的誓言:决不让一种更为残酷的暴政来取代一种消失的殖民统治。我们并不总是指望他们会支持我们的观点。但我们始终希望看到他们坚强地维护自己的自由——而且要记住,在历史上,凡愚蠢地骑在虎背上谋求权力的人,都是以葬身虎口而告终。
对世界各地身居茅舍和乡村,为摆脱普遍贪困而斗争的人们,我们保证尽量大努力帮助他们自立,不管需要花多长时间——之所以这样做,并不是因为共产党可能正在这样做,也不是因为我们需要他们的选票,而是因为这样做是正确的,自由社会如果不能帮助众多的穷人,也就无法保全少数富人。
对我国南面的姐妹共和国,我们提出一项特殊的保证——在争取进步的新同盟中,把我们善意的话变为善意的行动,帮助自由的人们和自由的政府摆脱贫困的枷锁。但是,这种充满希望的和平革命决不可以成为敌对国家的牺牲品。我们要让所有邻国都知道,我们将和他们在一起,反对在美洲任何地区进行侵略和颠覆活动。让所有其他国家都知道,本半球的人仍然想做自己家园的主人。
联合国是主权国家的世界性议事机构,是我们在战争手段大大超过和平手段的时代里最后的、最美好的希望所在。因此,我们重申予以支持;防止它仅仅成为谩骂的场所;加强它对新生国家和弱小国家的保护;扩大它的行使法令的管束范围。
最后,对那些想与我们作时的国家,我们提出一个要求而不是一项保证:在科学释放出可怕的破坏力量,把全人类卷人到预谋的或意外的自我毁灭的深渊之前,让我们双方重新开始寻求和平。
我们不敢以怯弱来引诱他们。因为只有当我们毫无疑问地拥有足够的军备,我们才能毫无疑问地确信永远下会使用这些军备。
但是,这两个强大的国家集团都无法从目前所走的道路中得到安慰——发展现代武器所需的费用使双方负担过重,致命的原子武器的不断扩散理所当然使双方忧心忡忡,但是,双方却在争着改变那制止人类发动最后战争的不移定的恐怖均势。因此,让我们双方重新开始——双方都要牢记。礼貌并不意味着怯弱,诚意永远有侍于验证。让我们决不要由于畏惧而谈判。但我们决不能畏惧谈判。
让双方都来探讨使我们团结起来的问题,而不要操劳那些使我们分裂的问题。
让双方首次为军备检查和军备控制制订认真而又明确的提案,把毁灭他国的绝对力量置于所有国家的绝对控制之下。
让双方寻求利用科学的奇迹,而不是乞灵于科学造成的恐怖。让我们一起探索星球,征服沙漠,根除疾患,开发深梅,并鼓励艺术和商业的发展。
让双方团结起来,在全世界各个角落倾听以赛亚的训令——“解下轭上的索,使被欺压的得自由。”
如果合作的滩头阵地的逼退猜忌的丛林,那么就让双方共同作一次新的努力:不是建立一种新的均势,而是创造一个新的法治世界,在这个世界中,强者公正,弱者安全,和平将得到维护。
所有这一切下可能在第一个一百天内完成,也不可能在第一个一千天或者在本届政府任期内完成,甚至也许不可能在我们居住在这个星球上的有生之年内完成。但是,让我们开始吧。
公民们,我们方针的最终成败与其说掌握在我手中,不如说掌握在你们手中。自从合众国建立以来,每一代美国人都曾受到召唤去证明他们对国家的忠诚。响应召唤而献身的美国青年的坟墓遍及全球。
现在,号角已再次吹响——不是召唤我们拿起武器,虽然我们需要武器,不是召唤我们去作战,虽然我们严阵以待。它召唤我们为迎接黎明而肩负起漫长斗争的重任,年复一年,“从希望中得到欢乐,在苦难中保持坚韧”,去反对人类共同的敌人——专制、贫困、疾病和战争本身。
为反对这些敌人,确保人类更为丰裕的生活,我们能够组成一个包括东西南北各方的全球大联盟吗?你们愿意参加这一历史性的努力吗?
在漫长的世界历史中,只有少数几代人在自由处于最危急的时刻被赋予保卫自由的责任。我不会推卸这一责任,我欢迎这一责任。我不相信我们中间有人想同其他人或其他时代的人交换位置。我们为这一努力所奉献的精力、信念和忠诚,将照亮我们的国家和所有力国效劳的人,而这火焰发出的光芒定能照亮全世界。
因此,美国同胞们,不要问国家能力你们做些什么,而要问你们能为国家做些什么。
全世界的公民们,不要间美国将为你们做些什么,而要问我们共同能为人类的自中做些什么。
最后,不论你们是美国公民还是其他国家的公民,你们应该要求我们现出我们同样要求于你们地高度力量和牺牲。问心无愧是我们唯一可靠的奖赏,历史是我们行动的最终裁判,让我们走向前去,引导我们所珍爱的国家。我们祈求上帝的福佑和帮助,但我们知道,确切的说,上帝在尘世的工作必定是我们自己的工作。
Inaugural Address of John F.Kennedy
FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 1961
Vice President Johnson, Mr.Speaker, Mr.Chief Justice, President Eisenhower, Vice President Nixon, President Truman, reverend clergy, fellow citizens, we observe today not a victory of party, but a celebration of freedom--symbolizing an end, as well as a beginning--signifying renewal, as well as change.For I have sworn I before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears l prescribed nearly a century and three quarters ago.The world is very different now.For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life.And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe--the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution.Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans--born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage--and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this Nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty.This much we pledge--and more.To those old allies whose cultural and spiritual origins we share, we pledge the loyalty of faithful friends.United, there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures.Divided, there is little we can do--for we dare not meet a powerful challenge at odds and split asunder.To those new States whom we welcome to the ranks of the free, we pledge our word that one form of colonial control shall not have passed away merely to be replaced by a far more iron tyranny.We shall not always expect to find them supporting our view.But we shall always hope to find them strongly supporting their own freedom--and to remember that, in the past, those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside.To those peoples in the huts and villages across the globe struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help them help themselves, for whatever period is required--not because the Communists may be doing it, not because we seek their votes, but because it is right.If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a special pledge--to convert our good words into good deeds--in a new alliance for progress--to assist free men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty.But this peaceful revolution of hope cannot become the prey of hostile powers.Let all our neighbors know that we shall join with them to oppose aggression or subversion anywhere in the Americas.And let every other power know that this Hemisphere intends to remain the master of its own house.To that world assembly of sovereign states, the United Nations, our last best hope in an age where the instruments of war have far outpaced the instruments of peace, we renew our pledge of support--to prevent it from becoming merely a forum for invective--to strengthen its shield of the new and the weak--and to enlarge the area in which its writ may run.Finally, to those nations who would make themselves our adversary, we offer not a pledge but a request: that both sides begin anew the quest for peace, before the dark powers of destruction unleashed by science engulf all humanity in planned or accidental self-destruction.We dare not tempt them with weakness.For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond doubt that they will never be employed.But neither can two great and powerful groups of nations take comfort from our present course--both sides overburdened by the cost of modern weapons, both rightly alarmed by the steady spread of the deadly atom, yet both racing to alter that uncertain balance of terror that stays the hand of mankind's final war.So let us begin anew--remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof.Let us never negotiate out of fear.But let us never fear to negotiate.Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.Let both sides, for the first time, formulate serious and precise proposals for the inspection and control of arms--and bring the absolute power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all nations.Let both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science instead of its terrors.Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths, and encourage the arts and commerce.Let both sides unite to heed in all corners of the earth the command of Isaiah--to “undo the heavy burdens...and to let the oppressed go free.”
And if a beachhead of cooperation may push back the jungle of suspicion, let both sides join in creating a new endeavor, not a new balance of power, but a new world of law, where the strong are just and the weak secure and the peace preserved.All this will not be finished in the first 100 days.Nor will it be finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet.But let us begin.In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than in mine, will rest the final success or failure of our course.Since this country was founded, each generation of Americans has been summoned to give testimony to its national loyalty.The graves of young Americans who answered the call to service surround the globe.Now the trumpet summons us again--not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need;not as a call to battle, though embattled we are--but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, “rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation”--a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.Can we forge against these enemies a grand and global alliance, North and South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?
In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger.I do not shank from this responsibility--I welcome it.I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation.The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it--and the glow from that fire can truly light the world.And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country.My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you.With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.四项主要的行动方针
哈里-杜鲁门 就职演讲
星期四,1949年1月20日
我国历史上的各个时期都面临过特殊的挑战。我们现在面临的挑战和过去面临的任何挑战一样严重,今天不仅标志着一届新政府的起点,而且标志着一个新时期的开始。对我们来说,对整个世界来说,这个时期特是个多事之秋,也许还将是决定性的岁月。也许命运注定我们要去体验,或者在更大程度上是去促成人类漫长历史中的一个重大转折。本世纪上半叶的特点是,人权遭到史无前例的粗暴践踏,并经历了历史上最可怕的两场战争。我们这个时代最迫切的需要是学会和睦相处。
世界各国人民都怀着忐忑不安的心情面对着未来,他们既充满希望又满腹忧虑。在这疑虑的时刻,他们比以往任何时候更期待着合众国的善意、力量以及明智的领导。
因此,我们审时度势,利用这一时机向全世界宣布指导我们生活的信念的基本原则,向所有的民族宜布我们的目标。
在今后几年,我们的和平自由纲领将着重于四项主要的行动方针。
第一,我们将继续坚定不移地支持联合国及其有关机构,继续寻求各种方法来加强这些机构的权威和增加这些机构的效率。今天,不少新的国家正在成立,正在民主原则的指引下向自治方向迈进,我们相信,联合国将因这些新国家而得到加强。
第二,我们将继续执行我们制定的世界经济复兴计划。
这意味着我们必须首先全力支持欧洲复兴计划。对于世界复兴中这一重大事业的成功,我们充满了信心。我们相信,通过这项工作,我们的伙伴将再一次取得自给国家的地位。此外,我们还必须执行为减少世界贸易壁垒、增加世界贸易额而制定的计划。经济复兴与和平本身都取决于世界贸易的增加。
第三,我们要加强热爱自由的国家的力量,以抵御侵略的威胁。
我们和许多国家一起,正在为增加北大西洋地区的安全面起草一项共同协议。这种协议将根据联合国宪章的规定,采取集体防御协定的形式。
我们已经根据里约热内卢公约为西半球建立了这样一个防御同盟。
这些协议的主要目的是明确表示自由国家抵抗来自任何地方的武装进攻的共同决心。参加这些协议的每个国家必须为共同防御贡献出全部力量。
如果我们能预先充分地表明,任何影响到我们国家安全的武装进攻必将遭到强大的抵抗,那么武装进攻也许就永远不会发生。
我希望关于北大西洋安全计划的条约不久将呈送参议院。
此外,我们还将向在维护和平与安全时同我们进行合作的自由国家,提供军事顾问和军事装备。
第四,我们必须着手拟定一项大胆的新计划,使不发达地区的进步与发展能受益于我们的先进的科学和发达的工业。
全世界半数以上的人口正濒临悲惨的境地,他们食不果腹、疾患加身。他们的经济生活原始落后,滞缀不振。无论对于他们自己还是对于比较繁荣的地区来说,他们的贫困既是一种阻碍又是一种威胁。
人类有史以来第一次掌握了能解除这些人苦难的知识和技术。
合众国在工业和科学技术发展方面居各国之首。尽管我们用来援助其他国家人民的物质资源是有限的,但我们在技术知识方面的资源却是无法估量的,是不断增长和用之不竭的。
我认为,为了帮助各爱好和平民族实现他们对美好生活的愿望,我们应该使他们受惠于我们丰富的技术知识。同时,我们还应该和其他国家合作,支持对急待开发的地区进行投资。
我们的目标应该是帮助世界上各个自由民族通过他们自己的努力,生产更多的食物,更多的衣物,更多的建筑材料,以及更多的机器来减轻他们的负担。
我们吁请其他国象汇集他们的技术力量以进行这项工作。我们热烈欢迎他们作出贡献。这应该是一种合作事业,所有国家通过联合国及其专门机构在任何可行的方面为此共同工作。这必须是在世界范围内为实现和平、繁荣和自由而作出的努力。
在我国企业、私人资本、农业和劳工等方面的协作下,这一计划能够极大促进其他国家的工业活动,从实质上提高他们的生活水平。
这种新的经济发展必须加以规划和控制,从而使被开发地区的人民有所得益。在保证投资者利益的同时,必须兼顾人民的利益,因为在这些经济发展中倾注着人民的才智和劳动。
在我们的计划中,剥削他国利润的老牌帝国主义没有立足之地。我们拟定的是一个以民主的公平交易的概念为基础的发展规划。
所有国家,包括我国在内,将极大地受益于为更合理地使用世界上的人力资源和自然资源而制定的一项建设性计划。经验证明,我们同其他国家的贸易将随着这些国家在工业和经济上的发展而扩大。
提高生产是繁荣与和平的关键,而提高生产的关键是更广泛、更积极地运用现代科学技术知识。
人类大家庭只有通过帮助最不幸的成员自助,才能享受体面的、令人满意的生活,而所有人郁有权过上这样的生活。
只有民主政治才能产生生机勃勃的力量,以激励世界人民不仅为反抗人类的压迫者,而且压力反抗人类古老的敌人——饥饿、贫困、失望——而斗争。
根据这四项主要的行动方针,我们希望有助于创造各种条件,最终实现个人自由和全人类的幸福。Inaugural Address of Harry S.Truman
THURSDAY, JANUARY 20, 1949
Mr.Vice President, Mr.Chief Justice, and fellow citizens, I accept with humility the honor which the American people have conferred upon me.I accept it with a deep resolve to do all that I can for the welfare of this Nation and for the peace of the world.In performing the duties of my office, I need the help and prayers of every one of you.I ask for your encouragement and your support.The tasks we face are difficult, and we can accomplish them only if we work together.Each period of our national history has had its special challenges.Those that confront us now are as momentous as any in the past.Today marks the beginning not only of a new administration, but of a period that will be eventful, perhaps decisive, for us and for the world.It may be our lot to experience, and in large measure to bring about, a major turning point in the long history of the human race.The first half of this century has been marked by unprecedented and brutal attacks on the rights of man, and by the two most frightful wars in history.The supreme need of our time is for men to learn to live together in peace and harmony.The peoples of the earth face the future with grave uncertainty, composed almost equally of great hopes and great fears.In this time of doubt, they look to the United States as never before for good will, strength, and wise leadership.It is fitting, therefore, that we take this occasion to proclaim to the world the essential principles of the faith by which we live, and to declare our aims to all peoples.The American people stand firm in the faith which has inspired this Nation from the beginning.We believe that all men have a right to equal justice under law and equal opportunity to share in the common good.We believe that all men have the right to freedom of thought and expression.We believe that all men are created equal because they are created in the image of God.From this faith we will not be moved.The American people desire, and are determined to work for, a world in which all nations and all peoples are free to govern themselves as they see fit, and to achieve a decent and satisfying life.Above all else, our people desire, and are determined to work for, peace on earth--a just and lasting peace--based on genuine agreement freely arrived at by equals.In the pursuit of these aims, the United States and other like-minded nations find themselves directly opposed by a regime with contrary aims and a totally different concept of life.That regime adheres to a false philosophy which purports to offer freedom, security, and greater opportunity to mankind.Misled by this philosophy, many peoples have sacrificed their liberties only to learn to their sorrow that deceit and mockery, poverty and tyranny, are their reward.That false philosophy is communism.Communism is based on the belief that man is so weak and inadequate that he is unable to govern himself, and therefore requires the rule of strong masters.Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with reason and justice.Communism subjects the individual to arrest without lawful cause, punishment without trial, and forced labor as the chattel of the state.It decrees what information he shall receive, what art he shall produce, what leaders he shall follow, and what thoughts he shall think.Democracy maintains that government is established for the benefit of the individual, and is charged with the responsibility of protecting the rights of the individual and his freedom in the exercise of his abilities.Communism maintains that social wrongs can be corrected only by violence.Democracy has proved that social justice can be achieved through peaceful change.Communism holds that the world is so deeply divided into opposing classes that war is inevitable.Democracy holds that free nations can settle differences justly and maintain lasting peace.These differences between communism and democracy do not concern the United States alone.People everywhere are coming to realize that what is involved is material well-being, human dignity, and the right to believe in and worship God.I state these differences, not to draw issues of belief as such, but because the actions resulting from the Communist philosophy are a threat to the efforts of free nations to bring about world recovery and lasting peace.Since the end of hostilities, the United States has invested its substance and its energy in a great constructive effort to restore peace, stability, and freedom to the world.We have sought no territory and we have imposed our will on none.We have asked for no privileges we would not extend to others.We have constantly and vigorously supported the United Nations and related agencies as a means of applying democratic principles to international relations.We have consistently advocated and relied upon peaceful settlement of disputes among nations.We have made every effort to secure agreement on effective international control of our most powerful weapon, and we have worked steadily for the limitation and control of all armaments.We have encouraged, by precept and example, the expansion of world trade on a sound and fair basis.Almost a year ago, in company with 16 free nations of Europe, we launched the greatest cooperative economic program in history.The purpose of that unprecedented effort is to invigorate and strengthen democracy in Europe, so that the free people of that continent can resume their rightful place in the forefront of civilization and can contribute once more to the security and welfare of the world.Our efforts have brought new hope to all mankind.We have beaten back despair and defeatism.We have saved a number of countries from losing their liberty.Hundreds of millions of people all over the world now agree with us, that we need not have war--that we can have peace.The initiative is ours.We are moving on with other nations to build an even stronger structure of international order and justice.We shall have as our partners countries which, no longer solely concerned with the problem of national survival, are now working to improve the standards of living of all their people.We are ready to undertake new projects to strengthen the free world.In the coming years, our program for peace and freedom will emphasize four major courses of action.First, we will continue to give unfaltering support to the United Nations and related agencies, and we will continue to search for ways to strengthen their authority and increase their effectiveness.We believe that the United Nations will be strengthened by the new nations which are being formed in lands now advancing toward self-government under democratic principles.Second, we will continue our programs for world economic recovery.This means, first of all, that we must keep our full weight behind the European recovery program.We are confident of the success of this major venture in world recovery.We believe that our partners in this effort will achieve the status of self-supporting nations once again.In addition, we must carry out our plans for reducing the barriers to world trade and increasing its volume.Economic recovery and peace itself depend on increased world trade.Third, we will strengthen freedom-loving nations against the dangers of aggression.We are now working out with a number of countries a joint agreement designed to strengthen the security of the North Atlantic area.Such an agreement would take the form of a collective defense arrangement within the terms of the United Nations Charter.We have already established such a defense pact for the Western Hemisphere by the treaty of Rio de Janeiro.The primary purpose of these agreements is to provide unmistakable proof of the joint determination of the free countries to resist armed attack from any quarter.Each country participating in these arrangements must contribute all it can to the common defense.If we can make it sufficiently clear, in advance, that any armed attack affecting our national security would be met with overwhelming force, the armed attack might never occur.I hope soon to send to the Senate a treaty respecting the North Atlantic security plan.In addition, we will provide military advice and equipment to free nations which will cooperate with us in the maintenance of peace and security.Fourth, we must embark on a bold new program for making the benefits of our scientific advances and industrial progress available for the improvement and growth of underdeveloped areas.More than half the people of the world are living in conditions approaching misery.Their food is inadequate.They are victims of disease.Their economic life is primitive and stagnant.Their poverty is a handicap and a threat both to them and to more prosperous areas.For the first time in history, humanity possesses the knowledge and the skill to relieve the suffering of these people.The United States is pre-eminent among nations in the development of industrial and scientific techniques.The material resources which we can afford to use for the assistance of other peoples are limited.But our imponderable resources in technical knowledge are constantly growing and are inexhaustible.I believe that we should make available to peace-loving peoples the benefits of our store of technical knowledge in order to help them realize their aspirations for a better life.And, in cooperation with other nations, we should foster capital investment in areas needing development.Our aim should be to help the free peoples of the world, through their own efforts, to produce more food, more clothing, more materials for housing, and more mechanical power to lighten their burdens.We invite other countries to pool their technological resources in this undertaking.Their contributions will be warmly welcomed.This should be a cooperative enterprise in which all nations work together through the United Nations and its specialized agencies wherever practicable.It must be a worldwide effort for the achievement of peace, plenty, and freedom.With the cooperation of business, private capital, agriculture, and labor in this country, this program can greatly increase the industrial activity in other nations and can raise substantially their standards of living.Such new economic developments must be devised and controlled to benefit the peoples of the areas in which they are established.Guarantees to the investor must be balanced by guarantees in the interest of the people whose resources and whose labor go into these developments.The old imperialism--exploitation for foreign profit--has no place in our plans.What we envisage is a program of development based on the concepts of democratic fair-dealing.All countries, including our own, will greatly benefit from a constructive program for the better use of the world's human and natural resources.Experience shows that our commerce with other countries expands as they progress industrially and economically.Greater production is the key to prosperity and peace.And the key to greater production is a wider and more vigorous application of modern scientific and technical knowledge.Only by helping the least fortunate of its members to help themselves can the human family achieve the decent, satisfying life that is the right of all people.Democracy alone can supply the vitalizing force to stir the peoples of the world into triumphant action, not only against their human oppressors, but also against their ancient enemies--hunger, misery, and despair.On the basis of these four major courses of action we hope to help create the conditions that will lead eventually to personal freedom and happiness for all mankind.If we are to be successful in carrying out these policies, it is clear that we must have continued prosperity in this country and we must keep ourselves strong.Slowly but surely we are weaving a world fabric of international security and growing prosperity.We are aided by all who wish to live in freedom from fear--even by those who live today in fear under their own governments.We are aided by all who want relief from the lies of propaganda--who desire truth and sincerity.We are aided by all who desire self-government and a voice in deciding their own affairs.We are aided by all who long for economic security--for the security and abundance that men in free societies can enjoy.We are aided by all who desire freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and freedom to live their own lives for useful ends.Our allies are the millions who hunger and thirst after righteousness.In due time, as our stability becomes manifest, as more and more nations come to know the benefits of democracy and to participate in growing abundance, I believe that those countries which now oppose us will abandon their delusions and join with the free nations of the world in a just settlement of international differences.Events have brought our American democracy to new influence and new responsibilities.They will test our courage, our devotion to duty, and our concept of liberty.But I say to all men, what we have achieved in liberty, we will surpass in greater liberty.Steadfast in our faith in the Almighty, we will advance toward a world where man's freedom is secure.To that end we will devote our strength, our resources, and our firmness of resolve.With God's help, the future of mankind will be assured in a world of justice, harmony, and peace.我们唯一不得不害怕的就是害怕本身
富兰克林-罗斯福 第一次就职演讲
星期六,1933年3月4日
我肯定,同胞们都期待我在就任总统时,会像我国目前形势所要求的那样,坦率而果断地向他们讲话。现在正是但白、勇敢地说出实话,说出全部实话的最好时刻,我们不必畏首畏尾,不着老实实面对我国今天的情况,这个伟大的国家会一如既住地坚持下去,它会复兴和繁荣起来。因此,让我首先表明我的坚定信念:我们唯一下得不害怕的就是害怕本身——一种莫明其妙的、丧失理智的、毫无根据的恐惧,它会把转退为进所需的种种努力化为泡影。凡在我国生活阴云密布的时刻,坦率而有活力的领导都得到过人民的理解和支持,从而为胜利准备了必不可少的条件。我相信,在目前危急时刻,大家会再次给予同样的支持。我和你们都要以这种槽神,来面对我们共同的困难。感谢上帝,这些困难只是物质方面的。价值难以想象地贬缩了;课税增加了,我们的支付能力下降了;各级政府面临着严重的收入短缺;交换手段在贸易过程中遭到了冻结;工业企业枯萎的落叶到处可见;农场主的产品找不到销路;千家万户多年的积蓄付之东流。
更重要的是,大批失业公民正面临严峻的生育问题,还有大批公民正以艰辛的劳动换取微薄的报酬。只有愚蠢的乐天派会否认当前这些阴暗的现实。但是,我们的苦恼决不是因为缺乏物资。我们没有遭到什么蝗虫灾害。我们的先辈曾以信念和无畏一次次转危为安,比起他们经历过的险阻,我们仍大可感到欣慰。大自然仍在给予我们恩惠,人类的努力已使之倍增。富足的憎景近在咫尺,但就在我们见到这种情景的时候,宽裕的生活却悄然离去。这主要是因为主宰人类物资交换的统治者们失败了,他们固执己见而又无能为力,因而已经认定失败,并撒手不管了,贪得无厌的货币兑换商的种种行径,将受到舆论法庭的起诉,将受到人类心灵和理智的唾弃。
幸福并不在于单纯地占有主钱;幸福还在于取得成就后的喜悦,在于创造性努力时的激情。务必不能再忘记劳动带来的喜悦和激励,而去疯狂地追逐那转瞬即逝的利润。如果这些暗淡的时日能使我们认识到,我们真正的夭命不是要别人侍奉,而是为自己和同胞们服务,那么,我们付出的代价就完全是值得的。认识到把物质财富当作成功的标准是错误的,我们就会抛弃以地位尊严和个人收益为唯一标准。来衡量公职和高级政治地位的错误信念,我们必须制止银行界和企业界的一种行为,它常常使神圣的委托混同于无情和自私的不正当行为,难怪信心在减弱,因为增强信心只有靠诚实、荣誉感、神圣的责任感,忠实地加以维护和无私地履行职责,而没有这些,就不可能有信心。
但是,复兴不仅仅要求改变伦理观念。这个国家要求行动起来,现在就行动起来。
根据宪法赋予我的职责、我准备提出一些措施,而一个受灾世界上的受灾国家也许需要这些措施。对于这些措施,以及国会根据本身的经验和智慧可能制订的其他类似措施,我将在宪法赋予我的权限内,设法迅速地予以采纳。
但是,如果国会拒不采纳这两条路线中的一条,如果国家紧急情况依然如故,我将下回避我所面临的明确的尽责方向。我将要求国会准许我使用唯一剩下的手殷来应付危机——向非常情况开战的广泛的行政权,就像我们真的遭到外敌人侵时授予我那样的广泛权力。
对大家寄予我的信任,我一定报以时代所要求的勇气和献身精神,我会竭尽全力。
让我们正视面前的严峻岁月,怀着举国一致给我们带来的热情和勇气,怀着寻求传统的、珍贵的道德观念的明确意识,怀着老老少少都能通过克尽职守而得到的问心无愧的满足。我们的国标是要保证国民生活的圆满和长治久安。
我们并不怀疑基本民主制度的未来。合众国人民并没有失败。他们在困难中表达了自己的委托,即要求采取直接而有力的行动。他们要求有领导的纪律和方向。他们现在选择了我作为实现他们的愿望的工具。我接受这份厚赠。
在此举国奉献之际,我们谦卑地请求上帝赐福。愿上帝保佑我们大家和每一个人,愿上帝在未来的日子里指引我。
First Inaugural Address of Franklin D.Roosevelt
SATURDAY, MARCH 4, 1933
I am certain that my fellow Americans expect that on my induction into the Presidency I will address them with a candor and a decision which the present situation of our Nation impels.This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly.Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions in our country today.This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper.So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself--nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory.I am convinced that you will again give that support to leadership in these critical days.In such a spirit on my part and on yours we face our common difficulties.They concern, thank God, only material things.Values have shrunken to fantastic levels;taxes have risen;our ability to pay has fallen;government of all kinds is faced by serious curtailment of income;the means of exchange are frozen in the currents of trade;the withered leaves of industrial enterprise lie on every side;farmers find no markets for their produce;the savings of many years in thousands of families are gone.More important, a host of unemployed citizens face the grim problem of existence, and an equally great number toil with little return.Only a foolish optimist can deny the dark realities of the moment.Yet our distress comes from no failure of substance.We are stricken by no plague of locusts.Compared with the perils which our forefathers conquered because they believed and were not afraid, we have still much to be thankful for.Nature still offers her bounty and human efforts have multiplied it.Plenty is at our doorstep, but a generous use of it languishes in the very sight of the supply.Primarily this is because the rulers of the exchange of mankind's goods have failed, through their own stubbornness and their own incompetence, have admitted their failure, and abdicated.Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men.True they have tried, but their efforts have been cast in the pattern of an outworn tradition.Faced by failure of credit they have proposed only the lending of more money.Stripped of the lure of profit by which to induce our people to follow their false leadership, they have resorted to exhortations, pleading tearfully for restored confidence.They know only the rules of a generation of self-seekers.They have no vision, and when there is no vision the people perish.The money changers have fled from their high seats in the temple of our civilization.We may now restore that temple to the ancient truths.The measure of the restoration lies in the extent to which we apply social values more noble than mere monetary profit.Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money;it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits.These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to our fellow men.Recognition of the falsity of material wealth as the standard of success goes hand in hand with the abandonment of the false belief that public office and high political position are to be valued only by the standards of pride of place and personal profit;and there must be an end to a conduct in banking and in business which too often has given to a sacred trust the likeness of callous and selfish wrongdoing.Small wonder that confidence languishes, for it thrives only on honesty, on honor, on the sacredness of obligations, on faithful protection, on unselfish performance;without them it cannot live.Restoration calls, however, not for changes in ethics alone.This Nation asks for action, and action now.Our greatest primary task is to put people to work.This is no unsolvable problem if we face it wisely and courageously.It can be accomplished in part by direct recruiting by the Government itself, treating the task as we would treat the emergency of a war, but at the same time, through this employment, accomplishing greatly needed projects to stimulate and reorganize the use of our natural resources.Hand in hand with this we must frankly recognize the overbalance of population in our industrial centers and, by engaging on a national scale in a redistribution, endeavor to provide a better use of the land for those best fitted for the land.The task can be helped by definite efforts to raise the values of agricultural products and with this the power to purchase the output of our cities.It can be helped by preventing realistically the tragedy of the growing loss through foreclosure of our small homes and our farms.It can be helped by insistence that the Federal, State, and local governments act forthwith on the demand that their cost be drastically reduced.It can be helped by the unifying of relief activities which today are often scattered, uneconomical, and unequal.It can be helped by national planning for and supervision of all forms of transportation and of communications and other utilities which have a definitely public character.There are many ways in which it can be helped, but it can never be helped merely by talking about it.We must act and act quickly.Finally, in our progress toward a resumption of work we require two safeguards against a return of the evils of the old order;there must be a strict supervision of all banking and credits and investments;there must be an end to speculation with other people's money, and there must be provision for an adequate but sound currency.There are the lines of attack.I shall presently urge upon a new Congress in special session detailed measures for their fulfillment, and I shall seek the immediate assistance of the several States.Through this program of action we address ourselves to putting our own national house in order and making income balance outgo.Our international trade relations, though vastly important, are in point of time and necessity secondary to the establishment of a sound national economy.I favor as a practical policy the putting of first things first.I shall spare no effort to restore world trade by international economic readjustment, but the emergency at home cannot wait on that accomplishment.The basic thought that guides these specific means of national recovery is not narrowly nationalistic.It is the insistence, as a first consideration, upon the interdependence of the various elements in all parts of the United States--a recognition of the old and permanently important manifestation of the American spirit of the pioneer.It is the way to recovery.It is the immediate way.It is the strongest assurance that the recovery will endure.In the field of world policy I would dedicate this Nation to the policy of the good neighbor--the neighbor who resolutely respects himself and, because he does so, respects the rights of others--the neighbor who respects his obligations and respects the sanctity of his agreements in and with a world of neighbors.If I read the temper of our people correctly, we now realize as we have never realized before our interdependence on each other;that we can not merely take but we must give as well;that if we are to go forward, we must move as a trained and loyal army willing to sacrifice for the good of a common discipline, because without such discipline no progress is made, no leadership becomes effective.We are, I know, ready and willing to submit our lives and property to such discipline, because it makes possible a leadership which aims at a larger good.This I propose to offer, pledging that the larger purposes will bind upon us all as a sacred obligation with a unity of duty hitherto evoked only in time of armed strife.With this pledge taken, I assume unhesitatingly the leadership of this great army of our people dedicated to a disciplined attack upon our common problems.Action in this image and to this end is feasible under the form of government which we have inherited from our ancestors.Our Constitution is so simple and practical that it is possible always to meet extraordinary needs by changes in emphasis and arrangement without loss of essential form.That is why our constitutional system has proved itself the most superbly enduring political mechanism the modern world has produced.It has met every stress of vast expansion of territory, of foreign wars, of bitter internal strife, of world relations.It is to be hoped that the normal balance of executive and legislative authority may be wholly adequate to meet the unprecedented task before us.But it may be that an unprecedented demand and need for undelayed action may call for temporary departure from that normal balance of public procedure.I am prepared under my constitutional duty to recommend the measures that a stricken nation in the midst of a stricken world may require.These measures, or such other measures as the Congress may build out of its experience and wisdom, I shall seek, within my constitutional authority, to bring to speedy adoption.But in the event that the Congress shall fail to take one of these two courses, and in the event that the national emergency is still critical, I shall not evade the clear course of duty that will then confront me.I shall ask the Congress for the one remaining instrument to meet the crisis--broad Executive power to wage a war against the emergency, as great as the power that would be given to me if we were in fact invaded by a foreign foe.For the trust reposed in me I will return the courage and the devotion that befit the time.I can do no less.We face the arduous days that lie before us in the warm courage of the national unity;with the clear consciousness of seeking old and precious moral values;with the clean satisfaction that comes from the stem performance of duty by old and young alike.We aim at the assurance of a rounded and permanent national life.We do not distrust the future of essential democracy.The people of the United States have not failed.In their need they have registered a mandate that they want direct, vigorous action.They have asked for discipline and direction under leadership.They have made me the present instrument of their wishes.In the spirit of the gift I take it.In this dedication of a Nation we humbly ask the blessing of God.May He protect each and every one of us.May He guide me in the days to come.永久联邦与总统权力
亚伯拉罕-林肯
第一次就职演讲
星期一,1861年3月4日
我今天正式宣誓时,并没有保留意见,也无意以任何苛刻的标准来解释宪法和法律,尽管我不想具体指明国会通过的哪些法案是适合施行的•但我确实要建议,所有的人,不论处于官方还是私人的地位,都得遵守那些未被废止的法令,这比泰然自若地认为其中某个法案是违背宪法的而去触犯它,要稳当得多。
自从第一任总统根据我国宪法就职以来已经72年了。在此期间,有15位十分杰出的公民相继主持了政府的行政部门。他们在许多艰难险阻中履行职责,大致说来都很成功。然而,虽有这样的先例,我现在开始担任这个按宪法规定任期只有短暂4年的同一职务时,却处在巨大而特殊的困难之下。联邦的分裂,在此以前只是一种威胁,现在却已成为可怕的行动。
从一般法律和宪法角度来考虑,我认为由各州组成的联邦是永久性的。在合国政府的根本法中,永久性即使没有明确规定,也是不盲而喻的。我们有把握说,从来没有哪个正规政府在自己的组织法中列入一项要结束自己执政的条款。继续执行我国宪法明文规定的条款,联邦就将永远存在,毁灭联邦是办不到的,除非采取宪法本身未予规定的某种行动。再者:假如合众国不是名副其实的政府,而只是具有契约性质的各州的联盟,那么,作为一种契约,这个联盟能够毫无争议地由纬约各方中的少数加以取消吗?缔约的一方可以违约——也可以说毁约——但是,合法地废止契约难道不需要缔约各方全都同意吗?从这些一般原则在下推,我们认为,从法律上来说,联邦是永久性的这一主张已经为联邦本身的历史所证实。联邦的历史比宪法长久得多。事实上,它在1774年就根据《联合条款》组成了。1776年,《独立宣言》使它臻子成熟并持续下来。1778年《邦联条款》使联邦愈趋成熟,当时的13个州都信誓旦旦地明确保证联邦应该永存,最后,1787年制定宪法时所宣市的日标之一就是“建设更完善的联邦”。
但是,如果联邦竟能由一个州或几个州按照法律加以取消的话,那么联邦就不如制宪前完善了,因为它丧失了永久性这个重要因素。
根据这些观点,任何一个州都不能只凭自己的动仪就能合法地脱离联邦;凡为此目的而作出的决议和法令在法律上都是无效的,任何一个州或几个州反对合众国当局的暴力行动都应根据憎况视为叛乱或革命。因此,我认为,根据宪法和法律,联邦是不容分裂的;我将按宪法本身明确授予我的权限,就自己能力所及,使联邦法律得以在各州忠实执行。我认为这仅仅是我份内的职责,我将以可行的方法去完成,除非我的合法主人——美国人民,不给予我必要的手段,或以权威的方式作出相反的指示,我相信大家下会把这看作是一种威胁,而只看作是联邦已宣布过的目标:它将按照宪法保卫和维护它自身。
以自然条件而言,我们是不能分开的,我们无法把各个地区彼此挪开,也无法在彼此之间筑起一堵无法逾越的墙垣。夫妻可以离婚,不再见面,互不接触,但是我们国家的各个地区就不可能那样做。它们仍得面对面地相处,它们之间还得有或者友好或者敌对的交往。那么,分开之后的交往是否可能比分开之前更有好处,更令人满意呢?外人之间订立条约难道还比朋友之间制定法律容易吗?外人之间执行条约难道还比朋友之间执行法律忠实吗?假定你们进行战争•你们不可能永远打下去;在双方损失惨重,任何一方都得不到好处之后,你们就会停止战斗,那时你们还会遇到诸如交往条件之类的老问题。
总统的一切权力来自人民,但人民没有授权给他为各州的分离规定条件。如果人民有此意愿,那他们可以这样做,而作为总统来说,则不可能这样做。他的责任是管理交给他的这一届政府,井将它完整地移交给他的继任者。
为什么我们不能对人民所具有的最高的公正抱有坚韧的信念呢?世界上还有比这更好或一样好的希望吗?在我何日前的分歧中,难道双方都缺乏相信自己正确的信心吗?如果万国全能的主宰以其永恒的真理和正义支持你北方这一边,或者支持你南方这一边,那么,那种真理和那种正义必将通过美国人民这个伟大法庭的裁决而取得胜利。
就是这些美国人民,通过我们现有的政府结构,明智地只给他们的公仆很小的权力,使他们不能力害作恶,并且同样明智地每隔很短的时间就把那小小的权力收回到自己手中。只要人民保持其力量和警惕,无论怎样作恶和愚蠢的执政人员都不能在短短4年的任期内十分严重地损害政府。我的同胞们,大家平静而认真地思考整个这一问题吧。任何宝贵的东西都下会因为从容对待而丧失,假使有一个目标火急地催促你们中随便哪一位采取一个措施,而你决不能不慌不忙,那么那个目标会因从容对待而落空;但是,任何好的目标是不会因为从容对待而落空的,你们现在感到不满意的人仍然有着原来的、完好元损的宪法,而且,在敏感问题上,你们有着自己根据这部宪法制定的各项法律;而新的一届政府即使想改变这两种情况,也没有直接的权力那样做。那些不满意的人在这场争论中即使被承认是站在正确的一边,也没有一点正当理由采取鲁莽的行动。理智、爱国精神、基行教义以及对从不抛弃这片幸福土地的上帝的信仰,这些仍然能以最好的方式来解决我们目前的一切困难。不满意的同胞们,内战这个重大问题的关键掌握在你们手中,而不掌握在我手中,政府不会对你们发动攻击。你们不当挑衅者,就下会面临冲突。你们没有对天发誓要毁灭政府,而我却要立下最庄严的誓言:“坚守、维护和捍卫合众国宪法。”我不愿意就此结束演说。我们不是敌人,而是朋友。我们一定不要成为敌人。尽管情绪紧张,也决不应割断我们之间的感情纽带。记忆的神秘琴弦,从每一个战场和爱国志上的坟墓伸向这片广阔土地上的每一颗跳动的心和家庭,必将再度被我们善良的夭性所拨响,那时就会高奏起联邦大团结的乐章。
First Inaugural Address of Abraham Lincoln
MONDAY, MARCH 4, 1861
Fellow-Citizens of the United States:
In compliance with a custom as old as the Government itself, I appear before you to address you briefly and to take in your presence the oath prescribed by the Constitution of the United States to be taken by the President before he enters on the execution of this office."
I do not consider it necessary at present for me to discuss those matters of administration about which there is no special anxiety or excitement.Apprehension seems to exist among the people of the Southern States that by the accession of a Republican Administration their property and their peace and personal security are to be endangered.There has never been any reasonable cause for such apprehension.Indeed, the most ample evidence to the contrary has all the while existed and been open to their inspection.It is found in nearly all the published speeches of him who now addresses you.I do but quote from one of those speeches when I declare that--
I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists.I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so.Those who nominated and elected me did so with full knowledge that I had made this and many similar declarations and had never recanted them;and more than this, they placed in the platform for my acceptance, and as a law to themselves and to me, the clear and emphatic resolution which I now read:
Resolved, That the maintenance inviolate of the rights of the States, and especially the right of each State to order and control its own domestic institutions according to its own judgment exclusively, is essential to that balance of power on which the perfection and endurance of our political fabric depend;and we denounce the lawless invasion by armed force of the soil of any State or Territory, no matter what pretext, as among the gravest of crimes.I now reiterate these sentiments, and in doing so I only press upon the public attention the most conclusive evidence of which the case is susceptible that the property, peace, and security of no section are to be in any wise endangered by the now incoming Administration.I add, too, that all the protection which, consistently with the Constitution and the laws, can be given will be cheerfully given to all the States when lawfully demanded, for whatever cause--as cheerfully to one section as to another.There is much controversy about the delivering up of fugitives from service or labor.The clause I now read is as plainly written in the Constitution as any other of its provisions:
第四篇:美国总统就职演讲presentation
美国总统的就职演说presentation
美国总统的就职演说可以说是总统的执政纲领和执政理念的宣扬。演说除了要阐明自己的政见和立场,最重要的是鼓舞民心、提高士气。
今天我要讲一些关于美国总统就职演讲的要点:
1.date日期----220 years ago, the first American President Washington inaugurated举行就职典礼 on April 30 in New York City.However, from 1937 when President Roosevelt first re-election, the inauguration date was changed to January 20, the date has been used since then.220多年前,美国首任总统华盛顿于4月30日在纽约市就职。然而,从1937年罗斯福总统首次连任时起,就职日期改为1月20日,此后一直沿用。
2.Bible圣经---It was a tradition in American culture to swear oaths誓言 on a Bible.George Washington was the first president to place his hand on a Christian Bible when taking the oath of office.Bibles have been used since then.3.名言So help me God请上帝助我一臂之力------It is know to all that The words of the oath are in the Constitution--all except “so help me God.”That was added by tradition.Who began the tradition? It was said that Washington added it himself, and the next Presidents used it until today.在宪法规定的誓词之外,一些当选总统还各有创意。据说华盛顿自行加上了这句经典的请上帝助我一臂之力,并为接下来总统沿用至今。
4.Re-elected----So far,there are 37 President gave totally 54 inauguration addresses in American history。Some of them got re-elected for more than one times.For example, George Washington and George Bush they all got 2 re-elections.And Roosevelt got 4 re-elections because of the WWII.迄今,共有37位美国总统发表了54篇就职演说.其中有些人连任了多次。乔治华盛顿和乔治布什都连任了两次,而罗斯福由于二战的原因则连任了四次,长达十二年。
5.The shortest and the longest inaugural address
史上最长的和最短的就职演讲
George Washington gave the shortest inauguration addresses in American history--just one 135 words--during his second inauguration in1793.The longest inaugural address on record was given by William Henry Harrison哈里森 in1841.He spoke for almost two hours on a cold and rainy day, without a hat or overcoat.He caught a cold, which became pneumonia.He died a month later.美国总统的演讲有长有短,最短的是华盛顿连任演说,仅135字。而最长的出自哈里森总统,历时一小时四十五分钟。不过他也为这个纪录付出极为高昂的代价。当日哈里森在暴风雪中滔滔不绝,不幸染上肺炎,上任仅一个月便与世长辞。此后,美国总统的就职演说开始避
免长篇大论,较重视词句是否精警动人。最后一部分是关于美国总统就职演讲中的金句。就是经典名言。经典名言----Some of the best-remembered words of presidents came from their inaugural addresses.美国总统演讲中产生了不少传世名言。公认的总统就职演说佳作,不出杰弗逊、林肯,威尔逊,罗斯福和肯尼迪(1961)的几篇讲稿。
因为最难忘的演说,往往来自一些最不寻常的历史时刻。
Abraham Lincoln was always considered as one of the best inaugural speeches of all.林肯的就职演说一直被认为是最经典的。
林肯在南北战争尾声时被暗杀,不过他在死前一个月发表就职演说堪称永垂不朽。其中一句是:
林肯: It is true that you may fool all the people some of the time;
You can even fool some of the people all the time;but you can't fool all of the people all the time.林肯:你可以一时骗过所有的人,也可以在所有时间里骗过一些人,但不能在所有时间里骗过所有的人。
还有一句更经典的是;
I am a slow walker, but I never walk backwards.(America)
我走得很慢,但是我从来不会后退。(亚伯拉罕.林肯美国)
罗斯福在经济大萧条社会大动荡时期上台。他的第一次就职演说最为后世难忘的一点,是他道出了美国国民当时的心理危机:
He said: ”Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing to fear is fear itself." 让我们牢牢记住,“我们唯一要害怕的东西就是害怕本身。” 不过美国总统就职演说公认的第一金句,应该是肯尼迪在1961年与苏联冷战之际所说的那句:
JOHN KENNEDY: “my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.“不要问国家可以为你们做什么,问问自己可以为国家做什么”。肯尼迪的这句惊世之言,堪称经典,因为当时是冷战时代,美国的民族信心处于低潮,许多史学家们都认为这是美国总统就职演说第一金句.他的另一句经典名言应该更符合当下人们的心理
------Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind.人类不结束战争,战争就会结束人类。
罗纳德?里根:各国不相互怀疑是因为它们拥有武装,而它们拥有武装是因为它们相互怀疑。
Nations do not mistrust each other because they are armed;they are armed because they mistrust each other.吉米?卡特:美国没有发明人权,其实,人权造就了美国。
America did not invent human rights.In a very real sense...human rights invented America.伍德罗?威尔逊:我宁愿在终将成功的事业中遭受失败,也不愿在必定失败的事业里享受成功!
I would rather lose in a cause that will some day win, than win in a cause
that will some day lose!
第五篇:美国总统就职演讲金句
The most memorable speeches in America are all come from the mose unforgettable historic moment.It is not an accident.the civil war
Abraham Lincoln has been murdered at the end of the civil war,but his second inaugural address before his dead would be never forgot.With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the might, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds;to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations
我们不对任何人怀有丝毫恶意,我们对任何人都抱着好感,上帝令我们看到哪一边是对的,就坚定地信仰对的一边,让我们继续奋斗完成我们正在进行的工作──去治疗国家的创伤,去照顾英勇作战的志士和他的遗属,去从事一切的努力以达成并维护在我们自己之间和我国与各国之间的一个公平而持久的和平.The depression
Franklin D.Roosevelt's first inaugural address outlined in broad terms how he hoped to govern and reminded American that
The only thing we have to fear is fear itself!
But the first golden verse should be
John Kennedy' inaugural address in 1961when national confidence was low.Ask not what your country can do for you;Ask what you can do for your country.