CNN 2009-04-21

Good morning from the CNN Center here in Atlanta, I'm Melissa Long. It's Monday, April 20th. And here is a look at some of the stories happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

President Obama back in Washington D. C. this morning. In this morning he hosts his first meeting with his cabinet members, with nearly all the cabinet members. He's about to assign them quite a challenge, two senior administration officials say he wants the cabinet to cut 100 million dollars in government spending. Time frame, 90 days.

A hijacker¹ is in custody² in Jamaica. The armed man held six crew members from a CanJet flight hostage since last night. Jamaica’s information minister tells CNN police were able to board the plane and disarm³ the gunman. No injuries have been reported.

Iran's president was heckled at a UN anti- racism⁵ conference going on today in Geneva, Switzerland. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was speaking when some protesters shouted that he is a racist⁶. The security dragged them away. Dozens of delegates also watched out during his address. The US and some other countries are boycotting⁷ the conference all together partly because of a document for the conference that singles out Israel for criticism.

President Obama is concerned for a US journalist who is in prison in Iran. Roxana Saberi was sentenced to eight years in prison for espionage⁸. The president says he doesn't believe the charge and the North Dakota native just has an interest in her country that her family came from. Her father says she looks frail⁹. But she has not been treated harshly.

Today is the 10th anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre¹⁰. The school is closed today and there is a private service for the victims' families this evening. Two students went on a shooting spree in the school near Denver killing¹¹ 13 people. They also wounded about two dozen others before killing themselves. Yesterday people attended a candlelight vigil in memory of those who died.

You’re up-to-date, It’s Monday, April 20th. Do stay with CNN and CNN.com for more on these stories and other news develops today.

1 hijacker   

n.拦路抢劫者

参考例句：

• We needed a credibIe hijacker who knew the pIane. 也需要一个懂飞机的让人相信的劫机犯。
• I've never heard of a hijacker Ietting passengers deboard before. 以前也从没听说过有劫机犯让乘客离开。

2 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

3 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。

4 anti-   

pref.[前缀]表示反抗，排斥

参考例句：

• The car has many safety features,including anti - skid braking.这车配有许多特别安全装置，包括防滑制动器。
• The anti-aircraft units opened fire and hit two of the enemy planes.防空部队开炮，击中了两架敌机。

5 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

6 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

7 boycotting   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They're boycotting the shop because the people there are on strike. 他们抵制那家商店，因为那里的店员在罢工。
• The main opposition parties are boycotting the elections. 主要反对党都抵制此次选举。

8 espionage   

n.间谍行为，谍报活动

参考例句：

• The authorities have arrested several people suspected of espionage.官方已经逮捕了几个涉嫌从事间谍活动的人。
• Neither was there any hint of espionage in Hanley's early life.汉利的早期生活也毫无进行间谍活动的迹象。

9 frail   

adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的

参考例句：

• Mrs. Warner is already 96 and too frail to live by herself.华纳太太已经九十六岁了，身体虚弱，不便独居。
• She lay in bed looking particularly frail.她躺在床上，看上去特别虚弱。

10 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

11 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。