第一篇:克林顿最后的演讲
Clinton’s Farewell Speech
同胞们,今晚是我最后一次作为你们的总统,在白宫椭圆形办公室向你们做最后一次演讲。
My fellow citizens, tonight is my last opportunity to speak to you from the Oval Office as your president.这是一个激烈变革的年代,你们为迎接新的挑战已经做好了准备。This has been a time of dramatic transformation, and you have risen to 是你们让我们的社会结构更加牢固,我们的家人更加健康安全,我们的人民更加富裕
every challenge.You have made our social fabric stronger, our families healthier and safer, and our people more prosperous.同胞们,我们已经进入了全球信息化的时代,这是美国复兴的伟大时代。
You, the American people, have made our passage into the global information age an era of great American renewal.我们在一起使美国变得更加美好。美国的经济正在突破一个又一个的记录,向前发展。我们已创造了2200万个新的工作岗位,失业率是30年最低的,老百姓的住房自有率达到一个空前的高度,我们经济繁荣的持续时间是历史上最长的。
Working together, America has done well.Our economy is breaking records, with more than 22 million new jobs, the lowest unemployment in 30 years, the highest home ownership ever, the longest expansion in history.我们的家庭、我们的社会变得日益强大。3500万美国人享受联邦休假,800万人重新获得社会保障,犯罪率是25年来最低的,1000多万美国人享受更多的入学贷款,更多人接受大学教育。我们的学校也砸改善。办学水平提高、责任感增强和投资加大,使得学生取得更高的分数和更高的升学率。
Our families and communities are stronger.35 million American have used the families leave law.Eight million have moved off welfare.Crime is at a 25-year low.Over 10 million American receive more college.Our school are better-high standards, greater accountability and larger investments have brought higher test scores, and higher graduation rates.目前,已有300多万美国儿童享受医疗保险,700多万美国人已经脱离了贫困线。全国人民的收入大幅度提高。我们的空气和水资源更加洁净,食品和饮用水更加安全。我们珍贵的土地资源也得到了近百年来所未有的保护。
More than three million children have health insurance now, and more than 7 million American have been lifted out of poverty.Incomes are rising across the board.Our air and water are cleaner.Our food and drinking water are safer.And more of our precious land has been preserved, in the continental United States, than at any time in 100 years.美国已经成为积极力量,为地球上每个角落维护和平,促进繁荣。我非常高兴能在此时将领导权交给信任总统,强大的美国正面临未来的挑战。
American has been a force for peace and prosperity in every corner of the globe.I’m very grateful to be able to turn over the reins of leadership to a new president, with America in such a strong position to meet the challenges of the future.
第二篇:克林顿1993年就职演讲
January 20, 1993, Inaugural Address of William J.Clinton(克林顿1993年就职演讲)My fellow citizens :(同胞们)
Today we celebrate the mystery of American renewal.今天,我们庆祝振兴美国这件令人感到异常惊奇的事。
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.尽管这个仪式在隆冬举行,但是,我们所说的话,我们向全世界所显示的面貌,将促使春天的早日来临。春天重新降临到这个世界上最古老的民主国家,它给我们带来了重新塑造美国的构想和勇气。
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.当我们的缔造者们大胆地向全世界宣布美国的独立,向上帝宣布我们的目的时,他们知道,美国要长久地存在下去,就必须改革。我们不是为改革而改革,而是为了保持美国的理想——生活、自由和追求幸福。虽然我们伴随着时代的乐曲前进,我们的使命却是永恒的。每一代美国人都必须明确作为一个美国人意味着什么。
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.我的前任布什总统为美国服务了半个世纪,在此,我代表我们的国家向他致以崇高的敬意。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.我还要向千百万人民表示感谢,他们以坚定的信念和牺牲战胜了经济萧条、法西斯主义。今天,在冷战的阴影下成长起来的一代人在世界上已肩负起新的责任。这个世界虽然沐浴在自由的阳光下,但仍然面临着旧的仇恨和新的灾祸的威胁。
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.我们在无与伦比的繁荣中成长,继承了一个仍然是世界上最强大经济,但是,商业失败、工资停滞、不平等加剧,以及我们自己的人民四分五裂,削弱了这个经济。
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.当乔治华盛顿第一次发出我刚才宣誓信守的誓言时,消息缓慢地通过骑马传遍大陆和乘船漂洋过海。而今,这个仪式的情景和声音可以立即向全世界数十亿人广播。
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.通讯和商业是全球性的,投资是流动性的,技术几乎是神秘的,而要求改善生活的强烈愿望
是全世界人民共同的。今天,我们美国人是和全世界人民在和平竞争中谋求我们的生计。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.各种根深蒂固和强大的势力正在动摇和重新塑造我们的世界。我们时代迫切需要解决的问题是,我们能否使改革成为我们的朋友,而不是我们的敌人。
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.尽管这个新的世界已经使千百万能够在其中竞争并取胜的美国人富裕起来了,但是,在大多数人更加拼命地工作而收入却在减少的时候,在还有人根本找不到工作的时候,在卫生保健费用使许多人倾家荡产、使大大小小的企业行将倒闭的时候,在恐惧犯罪而使奉公守法的公民丧失自由的时候,在千百万贫困儿童甚至难以想象我们正召唤他们去过的那种生活的时候,我们却还没有使改革成为我们的朋友。
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.我们知道,我们必须正视严酷的现实并且采取有力的措施,但是,我们没有这样做。相反,我们所奉行的是放任自流的政策,这种政策已经削弱了我们的力量,破坏了我们的经济,动摇了我们的信心。
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.虽然我们的挑战是可畏的,但我们的力量也是可畏的。美国人民从来就是一个不甘寂寞、勇于探索和充满希望的人民。我们必须使我们今天的任务体现我们前人的远见和意志。
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.从美国革命到南北战争,到大萧条,到民权运动,我们的人民总是下定决心,从这些危机中摆脱出来去建立我们历史的支柱。
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.托马斯杰斐逊认为,要保持我们国家的基础,我们就需要不时地进行改革。同胞们,这是我们的时代,让我们去拥抱它。
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.我们的民主制度不仅要为全世界所仰慕,还必须成为我们自我振兴的发动机。美国完全有能力自己解救自己。
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.因此,今天我们决心结束这个僵持停顿和放任自流的时代。一个振兴美国的新时代已经到来。要振兴美国,我们必须有足够的勇气和胆量。我们必须对自己的人民——对他们的工作和对他们的未来——增加投资,同时削减我们的巨额债务。在一个我们必须靠竞争才能获得每个机会的世界上,我们一定要这样做。虽然,这不是一件轻而易举的事,它需要作出牺牲。但是,我们能够做到,而且能够做得很好。我们不是为了牺牲而牺牲,而是为我们自己的利益而牺牲。我们必须像一个家庭抚育它的孩子那样抚育我们的国家。
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.我们的缔造者们是从子孙后代的角度来审视他们自己的行为。我们也必须这样做。任何曾经注意过孩子的双眼朦胧进入梦乡的人,都知道后代是什么。后代是未来的世界。为了他们,我们满怀理想。从他们那里,我们借用了这块地球,对他们,我们负有神圣的责任。我们必须尽美国之所能:向所有人提供更多的机会,要求所有人承担更多的责任。
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.现在,已经到了该破除那种只望政府或别人给予,而自己不愿付出的坏习惯的时候了。让我们大家都担负起更多的责任,不光是为我们自己和我们的家庭,而且是我们的社会和我们的国家。为振兴美国,我们必须给我们的民主制度带来新的活力。
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.这个美丽的首都,就像文明出现以来的所有首都一样,往往是一个搞阴谋诡计和勾心斗角的地方。达官贵族们玩弄权术、争名夺利,随时都在担心谁进谁出、谁升谁降,忘记了那些用辛勤和汗水把我们送到这里,并为我们承担费用的人。
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.美国人应当生活得更好。今天,在这座城市里,人们希望把事情办得更好。所以,我要向在场的诸位说,让我们下定决心改革我们的政治,使人民的呼声不再被权力和特权所压倒。让我们抛开个人利益,这样,我们便能感受到美国的痛苦,也看到美国的希望。让我们下定决心,使我们的政府成为一个富兰克林罗斯福所说的,进行“大胆而持久的实验”的地方,即是说,成为一个着眼于未来,而不是留恋过去的政府。让我们把这个首都还给她所属的人民。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.为了振兴美国,我们必须迎接来自国内、国外的种种挑战。在什么是国外和什么是国内之间已不再有明确的界线。全球经济、全球环境、全球艾滋病危机和全球军备竞赛,这一切影响着所有的人。
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.今天,随着旧秩序被打破,新的世界更加自由,但又更加不稳定。共产主义的崩溃激起了旧的仇恨和新的危险。显然,美国必须继续领导这个我们曾经付出巨大努力而创造的世界。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.当我们致力于重建美国的时候,我们不会在这个新世界的挑战面前退缩,也不会坐失良机。我们将同我们的朋友和盟国一道,努力确定改革和发展方向,以免被改革所吞没。
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.当我们的国家利益受到挑战,或者国际社会的意志及公德遭到蔑视的时候,我们将尽可能地通过和平外交手段去解决。必要时也可以诉诸武力。今天,在波斯湾,在索马里,在其他地方,那些为国效力的美国勇士们都证明了我们的决心。
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.然而,我们最大的实力是我们的思想力量。在许多国家,美国的思想还是一种新生力量。看到这些思想为世界各国所接受,我们感到由衷的高兴。我们的希望、我们的心,我们的手,同五大洲正在建设民主和自由的人民是联在一起的。他们的事业就是美国的事业。
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.美国人民呼唤我们今天庆祝的变革。你们异口同声地提高了自己的呼声。你们以前所未有的人数参加了投票。你们改变了国会、总统以及政治进程本身的面貌。同胞们,是的,你们已经促使春天提前到来了。现在,我们必须致力于这个时期所赋予我们的任务。
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.为了这个任务,我将充分行使我的职权。我请求国会同我合作。但是,任何一位总统,任何一个国会,任何一届政府,都无法独自承担这一使命。同胞们,你们也必须在国家的振兴中
发挥作用。我要求新一代美国青年按照你们的理想行动起来,帮助困难儿童,同患难者休戚与共,把我们这个四分五裂的社会重新凝为一体,为祖国贡献你们的力量。要做的事情太多——确实足以使千百万精神上依然年轻的其他人也投身其中。
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.在振兴祖国的事业中,我们认识到一个简单而强有力的真理。我们不仅彼此需要,还必须相互关心。今天,我们不只是在庆祝美国,而且是在重新献身于美国的思想。
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.这种思想是一种在革命中诞生、经过两个世纪的挑战而获得新生的思想。一种经受过这种认识锤炼的思想,即我们这些幸运者和不幸者,若非因为命运的安排,可能已经变换位置。一种因为这种信念而变得崇高的思想,即相信我们的国家能够从无数的分歧中求得最大程度的团结一致。一种充满信心的思想,即相信美国漫长而英勇的旅程定会永远向上。
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.”
为此,同胞们,在即将跨入21世纪的时候,让我们重新开始,鼓起勇气、满怀希望、坚定信念、遵守纪律,把我们的事业进行到底。《圣经》说:“我们行善,不可丧志,只要坚持,终有收获。”
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.在这个欢庆的高山之巅,我们听到山谷里传来为国效力的召唤。我们听到了号声。我们已经换岗。现在,我们每个人都必须以自己的方式在上帝的帮助下响应这一号召。
Thank you, and God bless you all.谢谢你们。愿上帝保佑大家。
第三篇:克林顿1998年北大演讲全文
克林顿1998年北大演讲全文对北京大学师生的讲话 北京大学 中国,北京 1998年6月29日
克林顿总统:谢谢。陈校长、任书记、迟副校长、韦副部长,谢谢你们。今天,我很高兴率领一个庞大的美国代表团来到这里,代表团中包括第一夫人和我们的女儿,她是斯坦福大学的学生,该校是和北大具有交流关系的学校之一。
此外,我们的代表团中还包括六位美国国会议员、国务卿、商务部长、农业部长、经济顾问理事会理事长、我国驻华大使参议员尚慕杰、国家安全顾问和我的办公厅主任等。我提到这些人是为了说明美国极为重视对华关系。在北大百年校庆之际,我首先要向你们全体师生员工、管理人员祝贺。恭喜了,北大!(掌声。)各位知道,这个校园曾经一度是由美国传教士建立的燕京大学。学校许多美丽的建筑物由美国建筑师设计。成千上万的美国学生和教授来到北大求学和教课。我们对你们有一种特殊的亲近感。我很庆幸,今天和79年前的一个重要的日子大不相同。1919年6月,就在这里,燕京大学首任校长司徒雷登(JohnLeighton Stuart)准备发表第一个毕业典礼致辞。他准时出场,但学生一个未到。学生们为了振兴中国的政治文化,全部走上街头领导“五四”运动去了。我读到这个故事后,希望今天当我走进这个礼堂时,会有人坐在这里。非常感谢大家前来听我演讲。(掌声。)一百年以来,北大已经发展到两万多学生。贵校的毕业生遍及中国和全世界。贵校建成了亚洲最大的大学图书馆。去年贵校有20%的毕业生去国外深造,其中包括一半的数理专业学生。在这个百年校庆之年,中国、亚洲和全世界有100多万人上机访问贵校的网址。在新世纪黎明之际,北大正在率领中国奔向未来。
你们是中国下一代的领导者。我今天要跟你们讲的是,建立中美两国牢固的伙伴关系,对于你们的未来至关重要。
在几千年的历史长河中,中国为人类文化、宗教、哲学、艺术和科技作出了贡献,美国人民深深钦佩你们。我们铭记着第二次世界大战期间两国的牢固伙伴关系。现在我们看到,中国处于历史性时刻:能和你们光辉灿烂的过去相提并论的,只有贵国目前气势磅礴的改革和更加美好的未来。
仅仅在30年前,中国还与世界隔绝。现在,中国参加了从航空旅行到农业开发等领域的1000多个国际组织。贵国为大规模贸易和投资敞开了大门。今天有40,000多年轻的中国学生在美国留学,还有数十万中国学生在亚洲、非洲、欧洲和拉美国家留学。
贵国在社会和经济领域的变革更为显着,从一个封闭的指令性经济体制向一个日显生机、日趋注重市场性的经济转变,产生了连续20年史无前例的增长,赋予人民更大的自由,到国内外旅游、进行村委会选举、拥有住房、选择职业以及上更好学校。因此,贵国帮助成千上百万的人们摆脱了贫困。在过去的10年中人均收入翻了一番以上。大多数中国人民过上了20年前还难以想象的美好生活。
当然,这些变化也打乱了固有的生活和工作格局,给贵国的环境造成了巨大压力。以前,每个城市居民到国有企业就业都有保障。现在,你们必须到就业市场上去竞争。以前,每个中国工人只要满足北京中央计划人员的要求,现在,全球性经济意味着人人必须跟上世界其他地区的质量和创造力。对于缺乏适当训练、技能和支持的人们来说,这个新世界的确令人生畏。
在短期内,一些诚实勤快的人会失业。正如你们所见,过去20年的开发模式和能源使用模式,造成了空气污染、滥伐森林、酸雨和缺水,在环境、经济和医疗保健方面带来了巨大代价。
面对这些挑战,必须制定出培训和社会保障的新体系,推出保护环境的新政策和新技术,以便在促进经济增长的同时改进环境。我对中国人民智慧、独创性和开发精神的所见所闻,过去几天我和江主席和朱总理及其他人会谈中的所见所闻,给了我信心,相信你们定能成功。
在你们建设新中国的同时,美国希望同你们建立新关系。我们要看到一个成就非凡、安全开放的中国,和我们携手为一个和平繁荣的世界而努力。我知道,无论在中国还是在美国,都有人怀疑两国之间的紧密关系是否是好事。但是,世界在变化,我们面临着种种挑战,我们了解的这一切告诉我们,我们两国携手合作比分道扬镳要有利得多。
已故的邓小平告诫我们要实事求是。新世纪来临之际,事实显而易见。我们两国间的距离在缩短,实际上是所有国家间的距离在缩短。以前,美国的快速帆船开到中国要花几个月。今天,高科技使我们天涯若比邻。从笔记本电脑到激光技术、从微芯片到兆字节储存器,信息革命正在照亮人类知识领域,将我们更紧密地联结起来。人们只要敲一下电脑的键盘,观念、信息和资金就能跨越全球,为人们创造财富、预防和征服疾病、加深具有不同历史和文化背景人民之间的了解,带来了极大的机会。
但我们也知道,更大的开放和更快的变革也意味着,别国产生的问题会很快蔓延到本国境内,如大规模毁灭性武器的扩散、有组织的犯罪和贩卖毒品的威胁、环境的恶化和严重的经济混乱等问题。没有哪个国家能避免这些问题,没有那个国家能独自解决这些问题。我们,特别是中美两国的年轻一代必须以迎接这些共同的挑战为共同的事业,共创一个光辉灿烂的新世纪。
二十一世纪是你们的世纪。中美两国将面临亚洲安全的挑战。我们两国曾在朝鲜半岛为敌,现在我们携手合作,为一个永久和平和无核武器的未来而努力。世界各国正在摆脱核威胁,而在印度次大陆,印度和巴基斯坦却甘冒挑起新一轮军备竞赛的风险。我们正在谋求一个共同的策略,以使印巴两国停止进一步的核试验,并为解决分歧进行对话。
在二十一世纪,你们年轻一代必须承担制止更加致命的核武器、化学武器和生物武器扩散的重任。如果这种武器落入坏人之手或流入不适当的场所,无论大小国家,其安全都会受到威胁。中美两国日益认识到制止这类武器扩散的重要性,因此我们已开始齐心协力,控制世界上最危险的武器。
在二十一世纪,你们年轻一代一定要扭转犯罪和毒品的国际逆流。全世界有组织的犯罪分子每年从人民手中抢走的财产达数十亿美元,破坏了人们对政府的信任。美国人民深知毒品给学校师生和社区居民造成的破坏和绝望。中国的边境和十几个国家相邻,已成了各种走私分子的通道。
去年,我和江主席请求中美双方的高级执法官员加强合作,打击这些犯罪分子,防止洗钱,防止在残酷条件下偷运外国人,防止伪币破坏货币的信用。就在本月,我们的缉毒署在北京开设了办事处。不久,中国的缉毒专家也将在华盛顿开展工作。
在二十一世纪,你们年轻一代的使命是必须保证今天的进步发展不以明天为代价。中国过去20年来的快速增长以遭受毒害为代价,即贵国人民的饮用水和呼吸的空气都已遭受污染。这种代价不仅仅体现在环境方面,对人民的健康也造成了严重的危害,而且还会阻碍经济的发展。
环境问题正在变得日趋全球化和全国化。例如,在不久的将来,如果目前的能源使用模式不改变,中国将超过美国成为世界最大的温室气体的排放国。温室气体是全球性升温的主要原因。如果世界各国不减少排放造成全球性升温的气体,下世纪的某个时候就会出现气候急剧变化的严重威胁,这将改变我们的生活和工作方式,某些岛国就会被大水淹没,某些国家的经济社会结构就会遭到破坏。
我们必须大力合作。经验告诉我们美国人,可以在促使经济成长的同时保护环境。为了我们自己也为了世界,我们必须做到这一点。
我国副总统戈尔已同中国政府合作开展了不少工作。在此基础上,我和江主席正在一起探讨方法,在中国推出美国的清洁能源技术,在促进中国经济发展的同时提高中国的大气质量。
但我还要重申─这话不在我的讲稿上─在这一点上你们这一代还要有更多的作为。这对你们、对美国人民和世界的未来都是一个巨大的挑战。这个问题必须在大学里提出,因为如果政治领导人认为采取环保措施会导致大规模的失业或严重的贫困,他们就不愿意这样做。事实证明环保不会造成失业和贫困。如果我们的方法得当,人们将取得更快的经济增长,拥有薪水更高的工作,促进教育和科技向更高水平发展。但是,你们大学生和你们的大学,中美两国以及全世界的人民都必须带这个头。(掌声。)在二十一世纪,你们必须承担不分国界的国际金融系统的重任。当香港和雅加达的股票市场下跌时,其影响再也不是局部性,而是全球性的。因此,贵国充满生机的经济成长同整个亚太地区恢复稳定和经济发展紧密相连。
在最近一次的金融危机中,中国坚定不移地承担了对本地区和全世界的责任,帮助避免了又一个危险的货币贬值周期。我们必须继续携手合作,对付全球金融系统面临的威胁以及对整个亚太地区本应有的发展和繁荣的威胁。
在二十一世纪,你们这一代将有极大的机会,将我们科学家、医生、工程师的各种才能结合起来,用于追求共同的发展。我们早就在一些合作领域中取得了突破,包括从医治脊柱对裂到预报恶劣天气和地震等。这些突破证明,只要我们合作,就能改变中美乃至全世界数以百万计的人的生活。扩大我们在科技领域的合作是我们给未来奉献的厚礼之一。
在我以上列举的每一个关键领域,显然,只要我们相互合作而不是互不往来,我们就能取得更大的成就。因此,我们应该努力,确保双方之间目前的建设性关系在下个世纪结出圆满的协作果实。
要做到这一点,我们就必须更好地相互了解,了解各自的共同利益、共有的期望和真诚的分歧。我相信大家在电视上都看到了,我和江主席星期六在联合记者招待会上公开直接的交流,有助于澄清和缩小我们的分歧。更为重要的是,允许人们理解、辩论和探讨这些问题,能使他们对我们建设美好的未来更加充满信心。
从我居住的华盛顿特区白宫的窗口向外眺望,我们第一任总统乔治.华盛顿的纪念碑俯视全城。那是一座高耸的方形尖塔。在这个庞大的纪念碑旁,有一块很小的石碑,上面刻着的碑文是:美国决不设置贵族和皇室头衔,也不建立世袭制度。国家事务由舆论公决。
美国就是这样建立了一个从古至今史无前例的崭新政治体系。这是最奇妙的事物。这些话不是美国人写的,而出自福建省巡抚徐继玉(Xu Jiyu)之手,并于1853年由中国政府刻成碑文,作为礼物送给美国。
我很感激中国送的这份礼物。它道出了我们全体美国人民的心声,即人人有生命和自由的权利、追求幸福的权利,有不受国家的干涉,辩论和持不同政见的自由、结社的自由和宗教信仰的自由。这些就是220年前美国立国的核心理想。这些理想指引我们跨越美洲大陆,走向世界舞台。这些仍然是美国人民今天珍视的理想。
正如我在和江主席举行的记者招待会上所说,我们美国人民正在不断寻求实现这些理想。美国宪法的制定者了解,我们不可能做到尽善尽美。他们说,美国的使命始终是要“建设一个更为完美的联邦”。换言之,我们永远不可能尽善尽美,但我们必须不断改进。每当我们放弃不断改进的努力,每当我们由于种族或宗教原因、由于是新移民,或者由于有人持不受欢迎的意见,而剥夺我们人民的自由,我们的历史就出现最黑暗的时刻。每当我们保护持不受欢迎的意见者的自由,或者将大多数人享受的权利给予以前被剥夺权利的人们,从而实践《独立宣言》和《宪法》的诺言,而不是使其成为一纸空文,我们的历史就出现最光明的时刻。
今天,我们没有谋求将自己的见解强加于人,但我们深信,某种权利具有普遍性,它们不是美国的权利或者欧洲的权利或者是发达国家的权利,而是所有的人们与生俱来的权利。这些权利现在载于《联合国人权宣言》。这些就是待人以尊严、各抒己见、选举领袖、自由结社、自由选择信教或不信教的权利。
《独立宣言》的作者、我国第三任总统托马斯.杰克逊在他一生的最后一封信中写道:“人们正在睁开眼睛关注人权。”在杰克逊写了这句话172年之后,我相信,人们现在终于睁开眼睛关注着世界各地男男女女应享受的人权。
过去20年以来,一个高涨的自由浪潮解放了成千上百万的生灵,扫除了前苏联和中欧那种失败的独裁统治,结束了拉美国家军事政变和内战的恶性循环,使更多的非洲人民有机会享受来之不易的独立。从菲律宾到南朝鲜,从泰国到蒙古,自由之浪已冲到亚洲的海岸,给发展和生产力注入了动力。
经济保障也应该是自由的要素。这在《联合国经济社会文化权益公约》中获得承认。在中国,你们为培育这种自由已迈出了大步,保证不遭受匮乏,并成为贵国人民的力量源泉。中国人的收入提高了,贫困现象减轻了;人们有了更多的选择就业的机会和外出旅游的机会,有了创造更好生活的机会。但真正的自由不仅仅是经济的自由。我们美国人民认为这是一个不可分割的概念。
在过去的四天中,我在中国看到了自由的许多表现形式。我在贵国内地的一个村庄看到民主的萌芽正在迸发。我访问了一个自由选举村委领导的村庄。我也看到了大哥大电话、录像机和带来全世界观念、信息和图象的传真机。我听到人们抒发自己的想法,我还同当地的人们一起为我选择的宗教信仰祈祷。在所有这些方面,我感觉到自由的微风在吹拂。
但人们不禁要问,我们的发展方向是什么?我们怎样相互合作走上历史的正确一面?贵校伟大的政治思想家之
一、胡适教授在50多年前说过:“有些人对我说,为了国家的自由你必须牺牲自己的个人自由。但我回答,为了个人自由而奋斗就是为了国家的自由而奋斗。为了个性而奋斗就是为了国民性而奋斗。”
我们美国人认为胡适是对的。我们相信,并且我们的经验表明,自由加强稳定,自由有助于国家的变革。
我国的一位开国先贤本杰明.富兰克林曾经说过:“我们的批评者是我们的朋友,因为他们指出我们的缺点。”如果这话正确,在美国很多时候,总统的朋友比其他任何人都多。(笑声)但确实如此。
在我们生活的世界,全球性的信息时代、不断的改进和变革是增加经济机会和国力的必要条件。因此,让信息、观念和看法最自由地流通,更多地尊重不同的政治和宗教信仰,实际上将增加实力,推动稳定。
因此,为了贵国和世界的根本利益,中国的年轻人必须享有心灵上的自由,以便最充份地开发自己的潜力。这是我们时代的信息,也是新的世纪和新的千年的要求。
我希望中国能更充份地赞同这个要求。尽管贵国历史上有过辉煌的功绩,我认为,贵国最伟大的时光仍在前头。中国不仅顶着20世纪的种种艰难险阻生存了下来,而且正在迅速向前迈进。
其它的古老文化消亡了,因为他们没有进行变革。中国始终显示出变革和成长的能力。你们必须重新想象新世纪的中国,你们这一代必然处于中国复兴的中心。
我们即将进入新世纪。我们所有的目光瞄向未来。即使贵国以千年计算历史,即使美国以百年计算历史,贵国的历史也更加悠久。然而,今天的中国和任何一个国家一样年轻。新世纪将是新的中国的黎明,贵国为其在历史上的伟大而自豪,为你们进行的事业而自豪,为明天的到来更加自豪。在新世纪中,世界可能再次转向中国寻求她文化的活力、思想的新颖、人类尊严的升华,这在中国的成就中已显而易见。在新世纪中,最古老的国家有可能帮助建设一个新世界。
美国希望与贵国合作,使那个时刻成为现实。“北大学生挑战克林顿”
当美国总统克林顿到北京演讲时,北京大学的学生给予克林顿欢迎掌声的同时,也给他一连串尖锐的问题。克林顿虽然久经公众演讲的“沙场”,但是,在接受北大校长陈佳洱介绍他时,坐在台上的克林顿不时看着手中的稿子,口中念念有词,显然不敢掉以轻心。在前30分钟的演讲里,克林顿挂着笑容,念着由专业撰稿人以优美词句铺陈的演讲词,还显得轻松。
不过,在后30分钟的学生提问时间里,克林顿可就脸色严肃许多了。由他当场挑选的7名学生,所提的问题足以让他深深体会:中国的年轻人,并不对美国总统的演讲照单全收。
第一个提问的学生就一针见血指出,中国人民自从改革开放以来,对美国的文化、历史、文学有了更好的了解,甚至欣赏美国的著名电影如《铁达尼克》,但美国人民对中国的认识却少的可怜。他问克林顿:“你打算怎样加强两国人民真正的了解与相互的尊重呢?” 克林顿不得不说:“你提出了一个好观点。”他承认:“你的问题没有轻松的答案。”克林顿说,他带了一大群新闻记者访华,就是希望此行能够向美国国内完整与客观地反映新中国的景象。克林顿也欣慰于有美国学生在北大念发律,并说两国人民越多交往越好。
但是,另一个尖锐问题马上跟着来了。第二位学生指责美国一直在对台湾出售先进武器,又与日本修订美日防卫条约,把中国的台湾省也包含在军事行动范围内。这位学生指出:“如果中国也把导弹指向夏威夷,以及与其他国家签订安全条约,针对着美国的部分领土,美国政府和人民会同意吗?”
听众响起了热烈的掌声。克林顿首次露出严肃的表情。他澄清:“美国的政策不是要阴碍中国与台湾的重归统一。”他费了一番口舌,解释美国20年来一直奉行“一个中国”政策,要求两岸和平解决问题。他还呼吁,绝对不要认为美国是在破坏自己的中国政策。克林顿告诉在座听众,他们将会看到两国在区域安全问题方面有更多的合作。克林顿说:“我们不可以用过去的冲突做镜子看今天的协议。”
克林顿或许以为他说明白了,但是紧接的一个问题却更使他感到尴尬。第三位学生说,中国人民期望的是两国在平等的基础上建立友谊。他问克林顿:你带着微笑来到中国,说要“交往”,但你的微笑后面是否另有所图呢?
听众当场笑了,还报以热烈掌声。对这们“直率”的问题,克林顿脸上闪过一丝惊讶。为了强调美国人民对中国人民有感情,克林顿提到历史上美国人民经常认为应该与中国人民亲近。他而且重申,在二十一世纪,美国与中国建立平等、互相尊敬的伙伴关系远比花大把时间和金钱来试图围堵中国好。“你问我,我是不是其实想要围堵中国?答案是否定的。”克林顿郑重声明:“对美国人民用利的是:与你们建立良好关系。”在接连遭到三个尖锐问题猛攻之后,克林顿才稍微有机会喘口气,回答了一个温和的提问,谈他对两国年轻人的期望。
但是,第五位学生马上又挑战克林顿。这是一位女学生。她问:“你认为美国就没有民主、自由、人权的问题吗?”掌声再一次响起。
克林顿承认,美国曾长期存在奴隶制度。他也不得不承认美国在住房、就业等领域仍有种族歧视的问题。“我们仍不完美。”他提到他1992年竞选总统时在纽约遇到希腊移民向他投诉社区里枪械、歹徒泛滥,儿童没有安全步行上学的“自由”。
不过,北大学生对他的挑战并没有放缓。一名秀丽的女学生站起来告诉克林顿,真正的自由,是人民自由地选择自己喜欢的生活方式和发展道路,“只有那些真正尊重别人的自由权的人,才可以自称了解自由的意义”。
热烈的掌声再一次响起。克林顿怎么呢?他不得不对这位女学生的说发表示赞同,还不失幽默地举了“自由止于别人鼻尖”的美国名言说明自由的局限性。“人们有选择的自由,你必须尊重别人的自由,他们有权作出与你不一人的自由,他们有权作出与你不一样的决定。”他显然后撤一步,“我们(两国)绝对不会在制度、文化选择上出现完全一致的时候,但这正是人生有趣一点。”
可是第7位学生仍不放松,问克林顿:“如果现在北京大学也有一群学生向你示威抗议,你会有什么感受?”学生显然在指去年江泽民主席访美时,在哈佛大学演讲时遇到示威的事。尽管克林顿很幽默地说,“我当时告诉江主席我不孤单了,因为我在美国常遭人示威”,他或许已体会到,在宣扬美国价值观时,其实需要时不时停下来将心比心。克林顿最后表示,他感觉到,北大学生的问题含有很多批评的成分。“(你们的)问题对我帮助很大。”克林顿说:“它们帮助我了解别人——不仅是在中国,而且是在全世界——怎么看待我说的话。”
第四篇:克林顿就职演讲双语
【美国总统就职演说系列】克林顿连任
作者:news 日期:2010年05月21日(2周前)
The Second Inaugural Address by Bill Clinton
January 20, 1997
My fellow citizens :
At this last presidential inauguration of the 20th century, let us lift our eyes toward the challenges that await us in the next century.It is our great good fortune that time and chance have put us not only at the edge of a new century, in a new millennium, but on the edge of a bright new prospect in human affairs, a moment that will define our course, and our character, for decades to come.We must keep our old democracy forever young.Guided by the ancient vision of a promised land, let us set our sights upon a land of new promise.The promise of America was born in the 18th century out of the bold conviction that we are all created equal.It was extended and preserved in the 19th century, when our nation spread across the continent, saved the union, and abolished the awful scourge of slavery.Then, in turmoil and triumph, that promise exploded onto the world stage to make this the American Century.And what a century it has been.America became the world's mightiest industrial power;saved the world from tyranny in two world wars and a long cold war;and time and again, reached out across the globe to millions who, like us, longed for the blessings of liberty.Along the way, Americans produced a great middle class and security in old age;built unrivaled centers of learning and opened public schools to all;split the atom and explored the heavens;invented the computer and the microchip;and deepened the wellspring of justice by making a revolution in civil rights for African Americans and all minorities, and extending the circle of citizenship, opportunity and dignity to women.Now, for the third time, a new century is upon us, and another time to choose.We began the 19th century with a choice, to spread our nation from coast to coast.We began the 20th century with a choice, to harness the Industrial Revolution to our values of free enterprise, conservation, and human decency.Those choices made all the difference.At the dawn of the 21st century a free people must now choose to shape the forces of the Information Age and the global society, to unleash the limitless potential of all our people, and, yes, to form a more perfect union.When last we gathered, our march to this new future seemed less certain than it does today.We vowed then to set a clear course to renew our nation.In these four years, we have been touched by tragedy, exhilarated by challenge, strengthened by achievement.America stands alone as the world's indispensable nation.Once again, our economy is the strongest on Earth.Once again, we are building stronger families, thriving communities, better educational opportunities, a cleaner environment.Problems that once seemed destined to deepen now bend to our
efforts: our streets are safer and record numbers of our fellow citizens have moved from welfare to work.And once again, we have resolved for our time a great debate over the role of government.Today we can declare: Government is not the problem, and government is not the solution.We,-the American people, we are the solution.Our founders understood that well and gave us a democracy strong enough to endure for centuries, flexible enough to face our common challenges and advance our common dreams in each new day.As times change, so government must change.We need a new government for a new century-humble enough not to try to solve all our problems for us, but strong enough to give us the tools to solve our problems for ourselves;a government that is smaller, lives within its means, and does more with less.Yet where it can stand up for our values and interests in the world, and where it can give Americans the power to make a real difference in their everyday lives, government should do more, not less.The preeminent mission of our new government is to give all Americans an opportunity,-not a guarantee, but a real opportunity to build better lives.Beyond that, my fellow citizens, the future is up to us.Our founders taught us that the preservation of our liberty and our union depends upon responsible citizenship.And we need a new sense of responsibility for a new century.There is work to do, work that government alone cannot do: teaching children to read;hiring people off welfare rolls;coming out from behind locked doors and shuttered windows to help reclaim our streets from drugs and gangs and crime;taking time out of our own lives to serve others.Each and every one of us, in our own way, must assume personal responsibility, not only for ourselves and our families, but for our neighbors and our nation.Our greatest responsibility is to embrace a new spirit of community for a new century.For any one of us to succeed, we must succeed as one America.The challenge of our past remains the challenge of our future, will we be one nation, one people, with one common destiny, or not? Will we all come together, or come apart? The divide of race has been America's constant curse.And each new wave of immigrants gives new targets to old prejudices.Prejudice and contempt, cloaked in the pretense of religious or political conviction are no different.These forces have nearly destroyed our nation in the past.They plague us still.They fuel the fanaticism of terror.And they torment the lives of millions in fractured nations all around the world.These obsessions cripple both those who hate and, of course, those who are hated, robbing both of what they might become.We cannot, we will not, succumb to the dark impulses that lurk in the far regions of the soul everywhere.We shall overcome them.And we shall replace them with the generous spirit of a people who feel at home with one another.Our rich texture of racial, religious and political diversity will be a Godsend in the 21st century.Great rewards will come to those who can live together, learn together, work together, forge new ties that bind together.As this new era approaches we can already see its broad outlines.Ten years ago,the Internet was the mystical province of physicists;today, it is a commonplace encyclopedia for millions of schoolchildren.Scientists now are decoding the blueprint of human life.Cures for our most feared illnesses seem close at hand.The world is no longer divided into two hostile camps.Instead, now we are building bonds with nations that once were our adversaries.Growing connections of commerce and culture give us a chance to lift the fortunes and spirits of people the world over.And for the very first time in all of history, more people on this planet live under democracy than dictatorship.My fellow Americans, as we look back at this remarkable century, we may ask, can we hope not just to follow, but even to surpass the achievements of the 20th century in America and to avoid the awful bloodshed that stained its legacy? To that question, every American here and every American in our land today must answer a resounding “Yes.”
This is the heart of our task.With a new vision of government, a new sense of responsibility, a new spirit of community, we will sustain America's journey.The promise we sought in a new land we will find again in a land of new promise.In this new land, education will be every citizen's most prized possession.Our schools will have the highest standards in the world, igniting the spark of
possibility in the eyes of every girl and every boy.And the doors of higher education will be open to all.The knowledge and power of the Information Age will be within reach not just of the few, but of every classroom, every library, every child.Parents and children will have time not only to work, but to read and play together.And the plans they make at their kitchen table will be those of a better home, a better job, the certain chance to go to college.Our streets will echo again with the laughter of our children, because no one will try to shoot them or sell them drugs anymore.Everyone who can work, will work, with today's permanent under class part of tomorrow's growing middle class.New miracles of medicine at last will reach not only those who can claim care now, but the children and hardworking families too long denied.We will stand mighty for peace and freedom, and maintain a strong defense against terror and destruction.Our children will sleep free from the threat of nuclear, chemical or biological weapons.Ports and airports, farms and factories will thrive with trade and innovation and ideas.And the world's greatest democracy will lead a whole world of democracies.Our land of new promise will be a nation that meets its obligations, a nation that balances its budget, but never loses the balance of its values.A nation where our grandparents have secure retirement and health care, and their grandchildren know we have made the reforms necessary to sustain those benefits for their time.A nation that fortifies the world's most productive economy even as it protects the great natural bounty of our water, air, and majestic land.And in this land of new promise, we will have reformed our politics so that the voice of the people will always speak louder than the din of narrow interests, regaining the participation and deserving the trust of all Americans.Fellow citizens, let us build that America, a nation ever moving forward toward
realizing the full potential of all its citizens.Prosperity and power, yes, they are important, and we must maintain them.But let us never forget: The greatest progress we have made, and the greatest progress we have yet to make, is in the human heart.In the end, all the world's wealth and a thousand armies are no match for the strength and decency of the human spirit.Thirty-four years ago, the man whose life we celebrate today spoke to us down there, at the other end of this Mall, in words that moved the conscience of a nation.Like a prophet of old, he told of his dream that one day America would rise up and treat all its citizens as equals before the law and in the heart.Martin Luther King's dream was the American Dream.His quest is our quest: the ceaseless striving to live out our true creed.Our history has been built on such dreams and labors.And by our dreams and labors we will redeem the promise of America in the 21st century.To that effort I pledge all my strength and every power of my office.I ask the members of Congress here to join in that pledge.The American people returned to office a President of one party and a Congress of another.Surely, they did not do this to advance the politics of petty bickering and extreme partisanship they plainly deplore.No, they call on us instead to be repairers of the breach, and to move on with America's mission.America demands and deserves big things from us,-and nothing big ever came from being small.Let us remember the timeless wisdom of Cardinal Bernardin, when facing the end of his own life.He said, “It is wrong to waste the precious gift of time, on acrimony and division.”
Fellow citizens, we must not waste the precious gift of this time.For all of us are on that same journey of our lives, and our journey, too, will come to an end.But the journey of our America must go on.And so, my fellow Americans, we must be strong, for there is much to dare.The demands of our time are great and they are different.Let us meet them with faith and courage, with patience and a grateful and happy heart.Let us shape the hope of this day into the noblest chapter in our history.Yes, let us build our bridge.A bridge wide enough and strong enough for every American to cross over to a blessed land of new promise.May those generations whose faces we cannot yet see, whose names we may never know, say of us here that we led our beloved land into a new century with the American Dream alive for all her children;with the American promise of a more perfect union a reality for all her people;with America's bright flame of freedom spreading throughout all the world.From the height of this place and the summit of this century, let us go forth.May God strengthen our hands for the good work ahead, and always, always bless our America.【中文译文】:
克林顿第二次就职演说
同胞们:
藉此二十世纪最后一届总统就职演说之际,让我们睁开眼睛迎接下一世纪我们将面临的挑战。所幸的是,时间和机遇不仅将我们置身于一个新世纪的边缘,一个新的千周年,而且将我们置身于人类事业一个崭新新的、光辉的边缘——一个决定我们未来数十年方向和地位的时刻。我们必须使我们古老的民主永葆青春。在“希望之乡”这一古老憧憬的指引下,让我们着眼于新的“希望之乡”。
美国的希望源于十八世纪一种无畏的信念:人生来皆平等。在十九世纪,我们的国家横跨大陆,拯救了联邦,废除了恐怖的奴隶制的蹂躏。
这一信念得以流传和扩展。然后,在辛劳和胜利之中,这种希望奔上了世界的舞台,使本世纪成为美国的世纪。
这是怎样的一个世纪啊。美国成为世界上最强大的工业大国,它把世界从两次世界大战和旷日持久的冷战的暴虐中拯救出来,并且一再向全球上百万像我们一样渴望自由赐福的人们伸出援助之手。
在这一进程中,美国产生 了庞大的中产阶级和老年人保险制度,建立了无与伦比的学习中心,并对全民开放公立学校,分裂了原子且探索了太空,发明了计算机和微芯片,通过发起一场非裔美国人和少数民族的民权革命,及扩大妇女的公民权利,就业机会和人身尊严,而深掘了正义之泉。
现在,也是第三次,一个新世纪来到我们面前,这又是一个选择的时候,我们进入十九世纪时有一个选择,使得我们国家从一个海岸扩展到另一个海岸,我们进入二十世纪时又有一个选择,使得工业革命能符合我们的价值观,即自由经营,水土保持,和恪守人类正义,这些选择使得一切迥然不同。
在二十一世纪曙光来临之际,一个自由的民族必须做出选择,去打造信息时代和全球一体化的力量。去释放全民无尽的潜能,并且,去成就一个更完美的联邦国家。
上次我们在此相聚时,我们向这个新未来的进军似乎没有今天这么明确,我们那时曾宣誓 确立新的道路,复兴我们的国家。
在这四年中,我们感到悲剧带来的触动,挑战带来的兴奋,成就带来的增强,美国作为世界不可缺少的国家巍然挺立,再一次,我们的经济是世界上最强大的经济,再一次,我们建设着更牢固的家庭,繁荣的社区,更好的教育机会,更清洁的环境,曾经似乎注定要恶化的问题现在也屈服于我们 的努力,我们的街道更安全,我们的同胞有创记录的人数已从福利走向工作。
再一次,我们解决了当前关于政府角色问题的巨大争论。今天我们可以宣告:政府不是问题的产生者,政府也不是问题的解决者,我们-美国人民-我们才是问题的解决者,我们的缔造者深深地了解这一点,他们给予我们的民主强壮的足以持续几个世纪。柔韧地足以在每一新的日子里迎接我们共同的挑战并推进我们共同的梦想。
同胞们,让我们建设这样的美国,一个永远前进,以充分发挥全民潜力的国家。是的,我们必须保持繁荣强大。但是,我们不能忘记:我们已取得的伟大成就,我们将取得的伟大的成就,就在人民心中。到最后,整个世界的财富和千支军队都无法与人类精神力量和精神文明相匹敌。
三十四年前,有一个人,他的一生为我们今天所歌颂,他就在那边,在广场的另一端对我们演讲,他的话打动了国民的良知。像是一个古时的预言家,他诉说着他的梦想:有一天美国终会站起来,在法律面前和人们心中所有公民都将得到平等对待。马丁·路德·金的梦是美国之梦。他的要求就是我们的要求,即不断努力实现我们生活信条。我们的历史就建立在这样的梦想和努力上。通过我们的梦想和努力,我们重赎二十一世纪美国的希望。
同胞们,我们不能浪费当前宝贵的时机。因为我们大家都在生命的同一旅途上,我们的旅途会有终点。但我们的美国之路必须走下去。
我们还看不到我们的后代的面孔,也永远不会知道他们的名字,但是当他们谈论到我们的时候,希望他们会说我们把祖国领进了新的世纪,把有活力的美国梦留给了所有的子孙
让我们从此地之峰,从世纪之巅前进。愿上帝给我们强有力的双手,做好未来的工作——并且,永远,永远保佑我们美国。
PS:如上做标记的部分,我实在是找不到中文版本了,要么大家主动参与一次,自我翻译一下吧,我也尝试着将我的翻译附上,谢谢大家的共享与参与。
第五篇:克林顿第二次就职演讲
My fellow citizens:
At this last presidential inauguration of the 20th century, let us lift our eyes toward the challenges that await us in the next century.It is our great good fortune that time and chance have put us not only at the edge of a new century, in a new millennium, but on the edge of a bright new prospect in human affairs--a moment that will define our course, and our character, for decades to come.We must keep our old democracy forever young.Guided by the ancient vision of a promised land, let us set our sights upon a land of new promise.The promise of America was born in the 18th century out of the bold conviction that we are all created equal.It was extended and preserved in the 19th century, when our nation spread across the continent, saved the union, and abolished the awful scourge of slavery.Then, in turmoil and triumph, that promise exploded onto the world stage to make this the American Century.And what a century it has been.America became the world s mightiest industrial power;saved the world from tyranny in two world wars and a long cold war;and time and again, reached out across the globe to millions who, like us, longed for the blessings of liberty.Along the way, Americans produced a great middle class and security in old age;built unrivaled centers of learning and opened public schools to all;split the atom and explored the heavens;invented the computer and the microchip;and deepened the wellspring of justice by making a revolution in civil rights for African Americans and all minorities, and extending the circle of citizenship, opportunity and dignity to women.Now, for the third time, a new century is upon us, and another time to choose.We began the 19th century with a choice, to spread our nation from coast to coast.We began the 20th century with a choice, to harness the Industrial Revolution to our values of free enterprise, conservation, and human decency.Those choices made all the difference.At the dawn of the 21st century a free people must now choose to shape the forces of the Information Age and the global society, to unleash the limitless potential of all our people, and, yes, to form a more perfect union.When last we gathered, our march to this new future seemed less certain than it does today.We vowed then to set a clear course to renew our nation.In these four years, we have been touched by tragedy, exhilarated by challenge, strengthened by achievement.America
stands alone as the world s in
“克林顿总统第二次就职演说”版权归作者所有;转载请注明出处!
dispensable nation.Once again, our economy is the strongest on Earth.Once again, we are building stronger families, thriving communities, better educational opportunities, a cleaner environment.Problems that once seemed destined to deepen now bend to our efforts: our streets are safer and record numbers of our fellow citizens have moved from welfare to work.And once again, we have resolved for our time a great debate over the role of government.Today we can declare: Government is not the problem, and government is not the solution.We--the American people--we are the solution.(Applause.)Our founders understood that well and gave us a democracy strong enough to endure for centuries, flexible enough to face our common challenges and advance our common dreams in each new day.As times change, so government must change.We need a new government for a new century--humble enough not to try to solve all our problems for us, but strong enough to give us the tools to solve our problems for ourselves;a government that is smaller, lives within its means, and does more with less.Yet where it can stand up for our values and interests in the world, and where it can give Americans the power to make a real difference in their everyday lives, government should do more, not less.The preeminent mission of our new government is to give all Americans an opportunity--not a guarantee, but a real opportunity--to build better lives.(Applause.)
Beyond that, my fellow citizens, the future is up to us.Our founders taught us that the preservation of our liberty and our union depends upon responsible citizenship.And we need a new sense of responsibility for a new century.There is work to do, work that government alone cannot do: teaching children to read;hiring people off welfare rolls;coming out from behind locked doors and shuttered windows to help reclaim our streets from drugs and gangs and crime;taking time out of our own lives to serve others.Each and every one of us, in our own way, must assume personal
responsibility--not only for ourselves and our families, but for our neighbors and our nation.(Applause.)Our greatest responsibility is to embrace a new spirit of community for a new century.For any one of us to succeed, we must succeed as one
America.The challenge of our past remains the challenge of our future--will we be one nation, one people, with one common destiny, or not? Will we all come together, or come apart?
The divide of race has been America s constant curse.And each new wave of immigrants gives new targets to old prejudices.Prejudice and contempt, cloaked in the pretense of religious or political conviction are no different.(Applause.)These forces have nearly destro