2019年经济学人 伊朗伊斯兰革命四十年(1)

 

The Iranian revolution at 40 

伊朗革命40周年

How to deal with the mullahs 

如何对付毛拉

The Islamic revolution has failed, but Donald Trump¹’s sanctions could prolong it

伊斯兰革命已失败，但唐纳德·特朗普的制裁可能将其延长

The cry of “Death to America!” has rung out in Tehran every Friday since the Islamic revolution of 1979. But the ritual is hollow. The mullahs know they have failed their people. Iranians are much poorer than they should be; promises of justice have been drowned in the blood of enemies and supposed sinners; and theocracy² has made Iranians less pious³. Protests occur often, even among the poor who make up the regime’s base.

“美国去死吧!”自1979年伊斯兰革命以来，每周五都有这样的声音在德黑兰响起。但这种仪式虚有其表。毛拉们明白自己已失人心。伊朗人民本不应如此贫穷；公平的承诺已淹没在敌人和所谓罪人的鲜血中。神权政治让伊朗人少了些许虔诚。即使是构成政权基础的穷人也经常发起抗议活动。

Yet the mullahs remain in charge, despite war, sanctions and decades of enmity with America—or perhaps because of them. To the alarm of Israel and many Arab states, Iran has spread its influence, helping⁴ save the odious⁵ regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, and ensuring that the Saudis remain bogged⁶ down in Yemen. Its Lebanese client, Hizbullah, poses a grave threat to Israel. In Europe Iranian spooks are accused of plotting to kill dissidents.

但尽管经历了战争、制裁以及与美国数十年的敌对状态（或许正是这些原因），毛拉们仍然掌权。伊朗扩大了自己的影响力，帮助拯救了叙利亚可憎的巴沙尔阿萨德政权，并确保沙特仍深陷也门泥潭，这让以色列和诸多阿拉伯国家感到震惊。其黎巴嫩客户真主党对以色列构成了严重威胁。在欧洲，伊朗间谍被指控密谋杀害持不同政见者。

For President Donald Trump, Iran is a unique menace. He has abandoned Barack Obama’s nuclear deal in favour of tight sanctions. His officials will try to forge an anti-Iran alliance at a conference in Poland on February 13th-14th. In seeking “maximum pressure”, America may hope to stir another uprising to reverse the one of 1979. But it will probably make things worse.

对于美国总统唐纳德?特朗普来说，伊朗是一个独特的威胁。特朗普放弃了巴拉克?奥巴马的核协议，转而支持实施严厉制裁。其官员将在2月13日至14日在波兰举行的会议上试图建立一个反伊朗联盟。在寻求“最大压力”的过程中，美国可能希望激起另一场起义来推翻1979年的起义。但这可能雪上加霜。

The mullahs have a woeful record. Their theocracy helped turn Islam into a tool of radical⁷, and often violent, politics. But Iran’s was not the Middle East’s only convulsion in 1979. The siege of the grand mosque⁸ in Mecca stung Saudi Arabia into promoting its rival Sunni brand of ultra-puritanism at home and abroad. Together with America, the Saudis helped weaponise Sunnism by supporting mujahideen fighters against the Soviet⁹ invasion of Afghanistan. Arabs who volunteered to fight with them became the godfathers of jihadism. America, pledging to protect Gulf¹⁰ oil against outsiders, was drawn¹¹ deep into the region’s conflicts.

毛拉们有此悲惨经历。其神权政治帮助伊斯兰教成为激进的、通常是暴力的政治工具。但伊朗不是1979年中东唯一动荡的地方。麦加大清真寺被围困，促使沙特阿拉伯在国内外宣扬其竞争对手逊尼派的极端清教主义。沙特和美国一起，通过支持圣战者抵抗苏联入侵阿富汗，帮助逊尼派武装起来。阿拉伯人和逊尼派共同战斗，成为圣战主义的教父。美国承诺保护海湾地区的石油不受外来者的影响，因此深度卷入了该地区的冲突之中。

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 theocracy   

n.神权政治；僧侣政治

参考例句：

• Shangzhou was an important period for the formation and development of theocracy.商周时期是神权政治形成与发展的重要阶段。
• The Muslim brothers look as if they will opt for civil society rather than theocracy.穆斯林兄弟看起来好像更适合文明的社会，而非神权统治。

3 pious   

adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的

参考例句：

• Alexander is a pious follower of the faith.亚历山大是个虔诚的信徒。
• Her mother was a pious Christian.她母亲是一个虔诚的基督教徒。

4 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

5 odious   

adj.可憎的，讨厌的

参考例句：

• The judge described the crime as odious.法官称这一罪行令人发指。
• His character could best be described as odious.他的人格用可憎来形容最贴切。

6 bogged   

adj.陷于泥沼的v.（使）陷入泥沼， （使）陷入困境( bog的过去式和过去分词 )；妨碍，阻碍

参考例句：

• The professor bogged down in the middle of his speech. 教授的演讲只说了一半便讲不下去了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The tractor is bogged down in the mud. 拖拉机陷入了泥沼。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

8 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。

9 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

10 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

11 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。