2014年经济学人 加拿大国内的恐怖主义

Terror inCanada

Losing your immunity¹

Attacks on soldiers in a mainly tranquil² land stir talk of global action against terror

IT WAS a sombre Stephen Harper who addressed Canadians on October 22nd. A lone³ gunman had fatally shot a young soldier standing⁴ guard at the National War Memorial in the capital,Ottawa, and then entered Canada's parliament building where he was killed. The prime minister linked the shooting to the murder earlier in the week of another Canadian soldier. Both, he said, were a grim reminder⁵ that Canadais not immune to the type of terrorist attacks seen around the world.

His government would redouble its efforts to work with its allies in fighting terrorist organisations abroad, the Conservative prime minister vowed⁶. It would also “take all the necessary steps” to identify and counter threats at home.

In fact, this was not the first time Canada's parliament had been a target, nor was it the biggest terrorist attack in the country's history. An inept⁷ bomber⁸ intent on killing⁹ as many MPs as possible blew himself up in the same building in 1966, and an armed man hijacked¹⁰ a bus and fired shots outside parliament in 1989. The 1985 bombing of an Air India flight to London from Toronto, in which 329 people died, remains¹¹ the largest terror attack originating inCanada.

But two things gave this week's strike added impact. It badly frightened MPs, most of whom had gathered for weekly caucus¹² meetings in rooms on either side of the corridor where the gunman exchanged fire with security officers. They used furniture to construct makeshift barricades¹³ and had to remain shut away for hours. Second, it took place amid a heated debate over the Conservative government's decision to increase anti-terrorist powers at home and to join the military campaign led by the United States against Islamic State in Iraq.

Mr Harper chose to interpret the shooting as part of a broader bid by terrorist groups to bring “their savagery¹⁴ to our shores”. Missives from his office after the attack underlined this message. He had telephone conversations with President Barack Obama, and with Binyamin Netanyahu and Tony Abbott, the prime ministers of Israel and Australia. John Baird, the foreign minister, took up the theme of global solidarity¹⁵ against terror: he said in a tweet that he had told John Kerry,America's secretary of state, “This is why we're with you. This only makes our resolve stronger.”

It was unclear as The Economist¹⁶ went to press whether the gunman, a Canadian named Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, had links to any terrorist group, but he was described by a person who met him at a mosque¹⁷ in British Columbia as having a “disturbing” side, suggesting mental-health problems. Nor was there any sign of a link to Martin Couture-Rouleau, shot dead by police on October 20th after he struck two soldiers with his car, killing one, near a military academy in Quebec. Mr Couture-Rouleau was under sporadic¹⁸ surveillance and his passport had been seized because he was one of an estimated 130 Canadians whom the security services suspected of terrorist leanings. Mr Zehaf-Bibeau had also been barred from travelling.

The two main opposition¹⁹ leaders, Thomas Mulcair of the New Democrats²⁰ and Justin Trudeau of the Liberals, avoided making any political hay out of the incident, and neither posited²¹ any theory about a terrorist plot. “We woke up this morning in a country blessed by love, diversity and peace, and tomorrow we will do the same,” said Mr Mulcair, leader of the official opposition. Mr Trudeau referred to the gunman as a criminal and said that Canada was a nation of fairness, justice and the rule of law, and should not be intimidated²² into changing that.

Yet intimidation²³ seemed contagious²⁴. Legislatures across the country boosted security, as did some large cities like Toronto. An ice-hockey game scheduled for October 22nd in Ottawa between two National Hockey League teams was cancelled. In the province of Quebec, soldiers were warned they could be targets and should avoid wearing their uniforms when off duty.

Such an atmosphere will make it easier for the government to pass counterterrorism legislation which would give the Canadian Security Intelligence Service a freer hand to pursue investigations²⁵ and work with foreign counterparts. Yet that will not deal with one immediate²⁶ problem revealed by the gunman—security in the parliamentary precinct. In the days ahead, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the national force responsible for guarding Parliament Hill, will have to explain how it was possible for an armed man to walk across the lawn in broad daylight and gain access unhindered into Canada's seat of government. It should surely be possible to prevent that without a draconian²⁷ regime.

1 immunity   

n.优惠；免除；豁免，豁免权

参考例句：

• The law gives public schools immunity from taxation.法律免除公立学校的纳税义务。
• He claims diplomatic immunity to avoid being arrested.他要求外交豁免以便避免被捕。

2 tranquil   

adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的

参考例句：

• The boy disturbed the tranquil surface of the pond with a stick. 那男孩用棍子打破了平静的池面。
• The tranquil beauty of the village scenery is unique. 这乡村景色的宁静是绝无仅有的。

3 lone   

adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的

参考例句：

• A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
• She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

4 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

5 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

6 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

7 inept   

adj.不恰当的，荒谬的，拙劣的

参考例句：

• Whan an inept remark to make on such a formal occasion.在如此正式的场合，怎么说这样不恰当的话。
• He's quite inept at tennis.他打网球太笨。

8 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

9 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

10 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

11 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

12 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

13 barricades   

路障，障碍物( barricade的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The police stormed the barricades the demonstrators had put up. 警察冲破了示威者筑起的街垒。
• Others died young, in prison or on the barricades. 另一些人年轻时就死在监牢里或街垒旁。

14 savagery   

n.野性

参考例句：

• The police were shocked by the savagery of the attacks.警察对这些惨无人道的袭击感到震惊。
• They threw away their advantage by their savagery to the black population.他们因为野蛮对待黑人居民而丧失了自己的有利地位。

15 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

16 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

17 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

18 sporadic   

adj.偶尔发生的 [反]regular；分散的

参考例句：

• The sound of sporadic shooting could still be heard.仍能听见零星的枪声。
• You know this better than I.I received only sporadic news about it.你们比我更清楚，而我听到的只是零星消息。

19 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

20 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 posited   

v.假定，设想，假设( posit的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Several writers have posited the idea of a universal consciousness. 有几个作者都假设存在普遍意识。 来自辞典例句
• All cash receipts should be recorded and de-posited daily. 所有的现金收据应该被每日记录和存放。 来自互联网

22 intimidated   

v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的

参考例句：

• We try to make sure children don't feel intimidated on their first day at school. 我们努力确保孩子们在上学的第一天不胆怯。
• The thief intimidated the boy into not telling the police. 这个贼恫吓那男孩使他不敢向警察报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 intimidation   

n.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• The Opposition alleged voter intimidation by the army.反对党声称投票者受到军方的恐吓。
• The gang silenced witnesses by intimidation.恶帮用恐吓的手段使得证人不敢说话。

24 contagious   

adj.传染性的，有感染力的

参考例句：

• It's a highly contagious infection.这种病极易传染。
• He's got a contagious laugh.他的笑富有感染力。

25 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

26 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

27 draconian   

adj.严苛的；苛刻的；严酷的；龙一样的

参考例句：

• You can't expect the people to obey such draconian regulations.你不能指望人民服从如此严苛的规定。
• The city needs a draconian way of dealing with robbers.这个城市需要一个严苛的办法来对付强盗。