| While the G8 summit was underway, and once the news of Wednesday's London bombings became known, the American president George Bush was widely quoted on the subject of international terrorism. 当八国峰会期间伦敦大爆炸的消息传出来以后，很多人都在讨论美国总统布什关于国际恐怖主义的态度问题。 He spoke of his resolve to bring the perpetrators to justice, and to "spread an ideology of hope and compassion that will overwhelm" what he called "their ideology of hate". 布什谈到了如何将恐怖分子绳之以法，他要在广大人民中“形成一种压倒性的希望和激情”，也就是他所谈到的“仇恨意识”。 But as the G8 meeting drew to a close, the US President had rather less to say about the Plan of Action, announced by the world leaders, to tackle what they deemed the "serious and long-term challenge" of climate change. 但是随着八国首脑会议的临近，各国首脑们纷纷表示，美国总统布什很少谈论到行动计划，来解决其他各国都很重视的气候变暖问题。 Stephen Evans, who's on a driving tour of the western United States, says many Americans remain unconvinced that this is an issue they need to take seriously: 斯蒂芬·埃文斯目前正开着汽车在美国西部旅行。他说，大部分的美国人并不认为气候变暖是一个值得他们重视的问题。 I've just driven down from Salt Lake City, through the desert of Utah and Nevada. It is a magnificent sublime wilderness where horizons are wide when they're not broken by the craggy splendour of an ancient volcanic landscape. As the sun sinks here, the rocks glow red and it's hard to imagine a threat to the environment where space seems limitless. 我刚刚开车从盐湖城穿过尤他沙漠来到了内华达。那是一幅广阔的野外的景象，那里有宽阔的地平线。还有一派火山一样的崎岖的壮观的景象，这并没有影响到地平线的壮观。当太阳在这里落山的时候，岩石发出火红的光芒。很难想象出，这样的景象会给某些地区的环境造成威胁。 And yet, many of these escarpments hide sites where humans dispose of all sorts of waste. Just beyond the beauty is a land being violated. This is where America throws its trash over the back wall. 然而，很多这样的悬崖峭壁实际上是人类倾倒各种各样的垃圾的地方。在这样一派美丽景色的背后，是人类对环境的破坏。这里就是美国倾倒垃圾的地方。 I've just been to Yucca Mountain in Nevada where tunnels are being dug deep inside to bury spent nuclear fuel -- engineers told me for ten thousand years. Around here there are dumps for every toxic waste. Dumps that feature on maps but not in the public consciousness. The city of Salt Lake has a big rubbish dump in Skull Valley. 我刚刚去过内华达的丝兰山。在那里，人们正在挖掘一个巨大的地洞来掩埋核废料。工程师告诉我，将要埋藏10000年。这附近还有很多倾倒各种有毒物质的垃圾堆。这些垃圾堆大到可以在地图上显现出来，但是人们却没有意识到问题的严重性。盐湖城在司库尔河谷地区就有一个巨大的垃圾堆。 But none of this is evident. Where people on other continents feel the pressure of the crowd, Americans still breathe in what seems deceptively like limitless, virgin territory. 但是这些现象对于美国人来说还不够重视。当其他大洲的国家正在感受着人口稠密给他们带来的不便时，美国还在这片广阔的处女地上自由地呼吸。 It's also a country, a continent, of extreme climates. This land freezes in winter and is scorching now -- even with snow on the peaks around -- and that too affects the American perception of climate change. 这是一个有着极端的气候的国家和大洲。冬天土地都冻结了，而夏天却出奇的炎热——同时山顶附近却有积雪——这一切都无不影响着美国人对于气候变暖的看法。 In Europe, insurance premiums rise as homes get built on flood plains in a search for every inch of exploitable space. In America, there is not this connection between wallets and weather. Extremes of climate seem natural. 在欧洲，如果你在大的平原上面建造房屋，以期开阔更多的空间的话，那你要上缴更多的税款。但是在美国，气候变暖和金钱还没有联系起来。极端的气候对于美国人来说是很正常的。 Only on the crowded coasts is the environment an issue. California and New York have tough regulations. In between, they often can't see what the fuss is about. It's a big country they feel. The taxi-driver in Texas who told me that global warming was hokum is not a lone voice, some of the big oil companies that lobby Mr. Bush are also loathe to concede a link between their product and climate change. 只有在那些拥挤的沿海城市里，气候变化才是一个问题。加利福尼亚和纽约都有严格的规定。但是在其他地方，人们根本不知道为什么要谈论什么气候变暖。美国是一个地域广阔的国家。德克萨斯州的一个出租车司机对我说，气候变化这类话都是废话。而这位司机的观点是具有代表性的，代表了很多人的心声。有些游说总统的大石油公司也讨厌将他们的产品与气候变化扯上关系。 |
