[時事英文] It’s not an air purifier.
這不是空氣清淨機…
今天的時事新聞比較輕鬆一點 🙂
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《Taiwan News》
On Nov. 21, a Taiwanese Facebook user who lists himself as Jin Wu, wrote that he had purchased a PS5 from a reseller the previous day. He said that after agreeing to pick up the device in person, he called the reseller's number, and a woman answered the phone.
1. list (v.) 列於表上
2. purchase…from… 從…購賣...
3. reseller 轉售者
4. device 裝置,器械
5. in person 親自做某事
11月21日,一位自稱吳建均的臺灣臉書用戶發文表示,前一天他由轉售者處購買了一台PS5。他表示,在同意面交取貨後,他撥打了該賣家的電話,是一名女性接聽了電話。
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Wu said that when he spoke to the woman about the console, she sounded like someone who does not frequently play video games. He also marveled at the remarkably low price tag for the new device, cheaper than any others he had seen.
6. game console 遊戲機
7. marvel at 驚嘆於
8. the remarkably low price tag 超低價格*
吳先生表示,當他和這位女性談論那台遊戲機,她聽起來像是不常玩電子遊戲的人。他還驚歎於這台新的遊戲裝置如此低價,比他看到的都要便宜。
*price tag (n.):(掛在商品上的)價格標籤;價格
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Despite the price, the woman seemed quite eager to sell it. When he met the owner of the console in person, he was surprised to see a middle-aged man, whom he judged to be an avid gamer.
9. eager to v. 渴望做某事
10. judge (v.) 判斷
11. an avid gamer 狂熱玩家
儘管價格如此低廉,女子似乎相當急於出售。而當他見到遊戲機的主人時,驚訝地發現原來是一名中年男子,根據判斷應該是名狂熱的遊戲玩家。
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When he began chatting with the man, Wu asked him where he had originally purchased it. The man responded that he had bought it on the e-commerce website PChome.
12. an e-commerce website 電商網站
當吳先生和該男子聊天時,問起他原來從何處購買遊戲機。對方表示是在電商網站PChome上買的。
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Wu then complimented the man on his ability to find good bargains online and asked, "Did you buy two? Otherwise, why are you selling it?" The man was silent a moment before saying, "My wife wants to sell it."
13. compliment (v.) 讚賞、恭維*
14. find good bargains online 網購到物美價廉的好東西**
吳先生便誇讚對方能在網購到物美價廉的好東西,並問道:「那你很會訂欸,你是訂到兩台嗎?不然為啥要賣?」男子沉默了一下,才說:「那是我老婆要賣的......」
15. compliment someone on something: https://bit.ly/3o9YEC9
16. remain silent 保持沉默
17. bargain (n.): 便宜貨,廉價品 ; 協議,交易*
bargain (n./v.): https://bit.ly/3lu8hK9
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He wore a bitter expression on his face, and Wu was at a loss for words. It turns out that his wife can tell the difference between a PS5 and an air filter.
18. wear a bitter expression 面露苦澀
19. at a loss for words 無言以對
20. turn out 結果是(尤指出乎意料的結果)
21. tell the difference between… 可以分辨…之間的差異
22. PS5 PlayStation 5(官方縮寫:PS5)是索尼互動娛樂於2020年11月12日上市的家用電子遊樂器。
23. an air purifier 空氣清淨機*
該男子面露苦澀,而吳先生則無言以對。果然他的老婆是可以分辨出PS5和空氣清淨機的區別。
*Air purifiers and air cleaners? Both these terms are commonly used to refer to the same type of appliance (家電). An “air filter” (空氣過濾器) can be either a screen inside an air cleaner/purifier, or a standalone device.
完整報導:
https://bityl.co/4euM (英文報導)
https://fbook.cc/3J4x (中文原文)
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時事英文講義:https://bit.ly/2XmRYXc
時事英文音檔: https://bit.ly/3emRtTt
「expression ability中文」的推薦目錄:
expression ability中文 在 黃之鋒 Joshua Wong Facebook 的最讚貼文
【Joshua Wong speaking to the Italian Senate】#意大利國會研討會演說 —— 呼籲世界在大學保衛戰一週年後與香港人站在同一陣線
中文、意大利文演說全文:https://www.patreon.com/posts/44167118
感謝開創未來基金會(Fondazione Farefuturo)邀請,讓我透過視像方式在意大利國會裡舉辦的研討會發言,呼籲世界繼續關注香港,與香港人站在同一陣線。
意大利作為絕無僅有參與一帶一路發展的國家,理應對中共打壓有更全面的理解,如今正值大學保衛戰一週年,以致大搜捕的時刻,當打壓更為嚴峻,香港更需要世界與我們同行。
為了讓各地朋友也能更了解香港狀況,我已在Patreon發佈當天演說的中文、英文和意大利文發言稿,盼望在如此困難的時勢裡,繼續讓世界知道我們未曾心息的反抗意志。
【The Value of Freedom: Burning Questions for Hong Kongers】
Good morning. I have the privilege today to share some of my thoughts and reflections about freedom, after taking part in social activism for eight years in Hong Kong. A movement calling for the withdrawal of the extradition law starting from last year had escalated into a demand for democracy and freedom. This city used to be prestigious for being the world’s most liberal economy, but now the infamous authoritarian government took away our freedom to election, freedom of assembly, freedom of expression and ideas.
Sometimes, we cannot avoid questioning the cause we are fighting for, the value of freedom. Despite a rather bleak prospect, why do we have to continue in this struggle? Why do we have to cherish freedom? What can we do to safeguard freedom at home and stay alert to attacks on freedom? In answering these questions, I hope to walk through three episodes in the previous year.
Turning to 2020, protests are not seen as frequently as they used to be on the media lens, partly because of the pandemic, but more importantly for the authoritarian rule. While the world is busy fighting the pandemic, our government took advantage of the virus to exert a tighter grip over our freedom. Putting the emergency laws in place, public assemblies in Hong Kong were banned. Most recently, a rally to support press freedom organized by journalists was also forbidden. While many people may ask if it is the end of street activism, ahead of us in the fight for freedom is another battleground: the court and the prison.
Freedom Fighters in Courtrooms and in Jail
Part of the huge cost incurred in the fight for freedom and democracy in Hong Kong is the increasing judicial casualties. As of today, more than 10 thousand people have been arrested since the movement broke out, more than a hundred of them are already locked up in prison. Among the 2,300 protestors who are prosecuted, 700 of them may be sentenced up to ten years for rioting charges.
Putting these figures into context, I wish to tell you what life is like, as a youngster in today’s Hong Kong. I was humbled by a lot of younger protestors and students whose exceptional maturity are demonstrated in courtrooms and in prison. What is thought to be normal university life is completely out of the question because very likely the neighbour next door or the roommate who cooked you lunch today will be thrown to jail on the next.
I do prison visits a few times a month to talk to activists who are facing criminal charges or serving sentences for their involvement in the movement. It is not just a routine of my political work, but it becomes my life as an activist. Since the movement, prison visits has also become the daily lives of many families.
But it is always an unpleasant experience passing through the iron gates one after one to enter the visitors’ room, speaking to someone who is deprived of liberty, for a selflessly noble cause. As an activist serving three brief jail terms, I understand that the banality of the four walls is not the most difficult to endure in jail. What is more unbearable is the control of thought and ideas in every single part of our daily routine enforced by the prison system. It will diminish your ability to think critically and the worst of it will persuade you to give up on what you are fighting for, if you have not prepared it well. Three years ago when I wrote on the first page of prison letters, which later turned into a publication called the ‘Unfree Speech’, I was alarmed at the environment of the prison cell. Those letters were written in a state in which freedom was deprived of and in which censorship was obvious. It brings us to question ourselves: other than physical constraints like prison bars, what makes us continue in the fight for freedom and democracy?
Mutual Support to activists behind-the-scene
The support for this movement is undiminished over these 17 months. There are many beautiful parts in the movement that continue to revitalise the ways we contribute to this city, instead of making money on our own in the so-called global financial centre. In particular, it is the fraternity, the mutual assistance among protestors that I cherished the most.
As more protestors are arrested, people offer help and assistance wholeheartedly -- we sit in court hearings even if we don’t know each other, and do frequent prison visits and write letters to protesters in detention. In major festivals and holidays, people gathered outside the prison to chant slogans so that they won’t feel alone and disconnected. This is the most touching part to me for I also experienced life in jail.
The cohesion, the connection and bonding among protestors are the cornerstone to the movement. At the same time, these virtues gave so much empowerment to the mass public who might not be able to fight bravely in the escalating protests. These scenes are not able to be captured by cameras, but I’m sure it is some of the most important parts of Hong Kong’s movement that I hope the world will remember.
I believe this mutual support transcends nationality or territory because the value of freedom does not alter in different places. More recently, Twelve Hongkong activists, all involved in the movement last year, were kidnapped by China’s coastal guard when fleeing to Taiwan for political refugee in late-August. All of them are now detained secretly in China, with the youngest aged only 16. We suspect they are under torture during detention and we call for help on the international level, putting up #SAVE12 campaign on twitter. In fact, how surprising it is to see people all over the world standing with the dozen detained protestors for the same cause. I’m moved by activists in Italy, who barely knew these Hong Kong activists, even took part in a hunger strike last month calling for immediate release of them. This form of interconnectivity keeps us in spirit and to continue our struggle to freedom and democracy.
Understanding Value of freedom in the university battle
A year ago on this day, Hong Kong was embroiled in burning clashes as the police besieged the Polytechnic University. It was a day we will not forget and this wound is still bleeding in the hearts of many Hong Kongers. A journalist stationed in the university at that time once told me that being at the scene could only remind him of the Tiananmen Square Massacre 31 years ago in Beijing. There was basically no exit except going for the dangerous sewage drains.
That day, thousands of people, old or young, flocked to districts close to the university before dawn, trying to rescue protestors trapped inside the campus. The reinforcements faced grave danger too, for police raided every corner of the small streets and alleys, arresting a lot of them. Among the 800+ arrested on a single day, 213 people were charged with rioting. For sure these people know there will be repercussions. It is the conscience driving them to take to the streets regardless of the danger, the conscience that we should stand up to brutality and authoritarianism, and ultimately to fight for freedoms that are guaranteed in our constitution. As my dear friend, Brian Leung once said, ‘’Hong Kong Belongs to Everyone Who Shares Its Pain’’. I believe the value of freedom is exemplified through our compassion to whom we love, so much that we are willing to sacrifice the freedom of our own.
Defending freedom behind the bars
No doubt there is a terrible price to pay in standing up to the Beijing and Hong Kong government. But after serving a few brief jail sentences and facing the continuing threat of harassment, I learnt to cherish the freedom I have for now, and I shall devote every bit what I have to strive for the freedom of those who have been ruthlessly denied.
The three episodes I shared with you today -- the courtroom, visiting prisoners and the battle of university continue to remind me of the fact that the fight for freedom has not ended yet. In the coming months, I will be facing a maximum of 5 years in jail for unauthorized assembly and up to one ridiculous year for wearing a mask in protest. But prison bars would never stop me from activism and thinking critically.
I only wish that during my absence, you can continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong, by following closely to the development, no matter the ill-fated election, the large-scale arrest under National Security Law or the twelve activists in China. To defy the greatest human rights abusers is the essential way to restore democracy of our generation, and the generation following us.
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