365个英语简短小故事-112. Man Holds Staff Hostage

Morgan Cohen walked into the campaign office for Hillary Clinton. He claimed to have a bomb strapped¹ onto him. He told the five workers to go about their business, but he ordered them not to try to leave. “If one of you tries to leave,” he said, “I will kill myself along with the others.” Then he walked over to a desk and asked for Hillary’s phone number. Hillary was in Iowa, talking to voters about her plan to provide national health care for everyone in America.

None of the workers had her cell phone number. Upset, Morgan dialed 911. He told the dispatcher that if they didn’t give him Hillary’s phone number immediately, he would blow up her campaign office and everyone in it. The dispatcher asked him to please hold on while he tried to get the number. Police and the FBI drove over to the office and surrounded it.

The dispatcher gave Morgan the correct phone number. He dialed it, and Hillary answered her phone. Morgan explained to her that he was not getting the medical treatment that he needed. Every time he went to visit his doctor, his doctor was out to lunch--even at 10 in the morning and 4 in the afternoon. “How can my doctor eat lunch all day long?” he asked Hillary. Hillary said she didn’t know, but that she would try to get a law passed forbidding doctors to have all-day lunches.

Morgan continued talking to Hillary until he noticed the police car lights outside the building. He hung up and walked to the front door of the building. A police captain asked Morgan to release all the hostages. Morgan said he would release them if the police brought him a cigarette and a Whopper from Burger King. A short while later, while Morgan was eating the Whopper, the police rushed in and tackled him. His “bomb” was nothing more than a few flares² taped to his waist under his jacket.

Morgan, who lived in a nearby town, was known for his strange behavior. He had been under psychiatric care for much of his life. FBI officials were outraged³ that Morgan had interrupted a busy presidential candidate. A spokesman vowed⁴ that Morgan would be thrown into jail for a long time for kidnapping, reckless endangerment, and terrorism. “Mental illness is no excuse,” he declared. “This is a nation of laws, not excuses.”

 

1 strapped   

adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带

参考例句：

• Make sure that the child is strapped tightly into the buggy. 一定要把孩子牢牢地拴在婴儿车上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The soldiers' great coats were strapped on their packs. 战士们的厚大衣扎捆在背包上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 flares   

n.喇叭裤v.（使）闪耀( flare的第三人称单数 )；（使）（船舷）外倾；（使）鼻孔张大；（使）（衣裙、酒杯等）呈喇叭形展开

参考例句：

• The side of a ship flares from the keel to the deck. 船舷从龙骨向甲板外倾。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He's got a fiery temper and flares up at the slightest provocation. 他是火爆性子，一点就着。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

4 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。