2016考研英語經濟學人熱點：警察與緊縮 下降趨勢

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2016考研英語經濟學人熱點:警察與緊縮 下降趨勢

The police and austerity

警察與緊縮

Down beat

下降趨勢

Budget cuts may not affect crime—but they willchange politics

削減預算可能不會影響犯罪—但能改變政治

Good old-fashioned policing

傳統治安維持方式

POLICING in England and Wales is in crisis and things are about to get nasty. That, at least, iswhat the coppers would have you believe. Ahead of the annual conference this week of thePolice Federation, the policemen's union, Steve White, its leader, cautioned that budget cutscould mean a move towards more“paramilitary” policing, with officers using water cannons,rubber bullets and tear gas. Theresa May, the home secretary, accused him ofscaremongering. Mr White's logic is certainly fuzzy. But his warnings highlight thedeteriorating relations between the police and their traditional allies, the Conservatives.

英格蘭和威爾士的警務正處于危機之中，并且情況還會越來越糟。至少警察會讓你相信這一點。在本周警察聯合會(警察聯盟)的年度會議之前，聯合會領導人Steve White警告說預算削減意味著更多警察會朝著用高壓水槍、橡皮子彈和催淚瓦斯行動這類更加“準軍事”的警務發展。內政大臣特里薩·梅指責他是危言聳聽。White的邏輯確實有失偏頗。但是他的警告卻表明了警察與其傳統的盟友保守派關系的惡化。

Police today are warier of heavy tactics than they once were. Chris Donaldson, a retired policeofficer, was on the streets of Tottenham in 1985, when riots broke out around the BroadwaterFarm estate. He was back there in 2011 when disturbances erupted after police shot and killedMark Duggan, a suspected gang member. Three decades ago, police were far more willing—sometimes overly so—to use force, says Mr Donaldson. In the 1980s, at the height of battleswith striking miners, the police “would definitely be instructed to charge at times,” says PeterNeyroud, a former chief constable now at Cambridge University.

如今的警察相較以前在使用戰術上更為精妙。1985年當布羅德沃特農場莊園發生暴動時，ChrisDonaldson(現在已經退休)就在附近的托特納姆的街道上。他于2011年又回到那里，當時警察開槍打死一名疑似幫派成員Mark Duggan而引發騷亂。Donaldson說，30年前，警察更愿意——甚至有時過度—使用武力。在20世紀80年代這個礦工罷工的高潮時期，警察“肯定會時常奉命控告”，Peter Neyroud說道，他是前任警察局長，現在在劍橋大學工作。

Today they are more reluctant to use such strategies. Officers try to to contain publicdisorder with tactics such as kettling, whereby demonstrators are confined to a small area.Rather than leading to paramilitary-style policing, declining ranks of officers could makenegotiation between police and protesters more common. Short on numbers, cops policingprotests will have to behave even more carefully to avoid precipitating trouble. And toughertactics are “largely anathema to the British police”, says Tim Newburn, a criminologist at theLondon School of Economics, with senior officers unconvinced such tactics are effective andcertain they are unpopular.

而現在警察都不太愿意使用這樣的方式。警察試圖用灌壺(把示威者限制在小范圍的戰術)等策略來制止公共秩序混亂。低級別的警官促成警察和反抗者之間的談判更為常見，而不是采用準軍事風格來維持治安。由于警察數量減少，警察在處理抗議活動時不得不更加小心，以免引起麻煩。英國倫敦經濟學院一位犯罪學家TimNewburn說嚴格的戰術“很大程度上是英國警方的詛咒”，因為高級警官不相信這種策略是行之有效的，也不認為它們是受歡迎的。

Even after the coalition government's cuts of 20% to police budgets, and an 11% fall in officernumbers since 2010, by historical standards there are still a lot of police about. Bobbies aremore numerous today than in the mid-1990s, when law-breaking was at its peak.

即使自2010年來，聯合政府削減20%的警方預算以及減少11%的警力，按歷史標準還有許多政策和預算和警察有關。相比違法的高峰期—20世紀90年代，如今警察的數量還是要多得多。

The police have long resisted reductions to their budgets. But few would have thought thefiercest cuts, harshest criticism and clearest diminution in their political clout would come underthe Tories, so long the party of law and order. With David Cameron, the prime minister,determined to save money and reform what he once called the “last great unreformed publicservice”, the once-close relationship between the Tories and Britain's law-enforcers has soured.

警察總是抵制削減他們的預算。但是沒人想到，最大幅度的削減、最殘酷的批評以及警察明顯下降的政治影響力會發生在一向重視法律和秩序的保守黨執政時期。首相卡梅倫下定決心要節省開支，并且決心改革他曾經稱作 “最后一個大型的未被改革的公共服務”，這讓保守黨與英國警察一度親密的關系遭到破壞。

【重點講解】

1.accuse of 指責，控告

例句:I hate it when people accuse us of that.

我討厭別人就那件事指責我們。

2.between and 之間

例句:The difference between who you are and whoyou want to be is what you do.

你是什么樣的人和你想成為什么樣的之間的差距就是，你做了什么。

3.break out 爆發;突然發生

例句:He may break out in a rash when he eats these nuts.

他吃了這些堅果可能會長皮疹。

4.reluctant to 不愿意;不情愿

例句:We were reluctant to start the long trudge home.

我們很不愿意踏上如此漫長艱辛的回家之路。