CNN 2011-02-18

Hey, I'm Carl Azuz, this is CNN Student News! Today's show is dedicated¹ to Mrs. Klapperich's students in Cannon² Falls, Minnesota. Thank you for your "likes" at Facebook.com/CNNStudentNews. Let's get today's show started!

Tunisia, Egypt, Iran, Algeria, Yemen, Bahrain. If you've been watching the news the past several weeks, you know what these countries have in common: political unrest. People speaking out against their governments, calling for changes. What's happening in that part of the world could certainly have an impact on other countries around the globe. During a speech yesterday, President Obama talked about the role that the U.S. might play.

What happens in each of these countries will be determined³ by the citizens of those countries. We do want to make sure that transitions do not degenerate⁴ into chaos⁵ and violence. That's not just good for us, that's good for those countries.

We're seeing some of these same themes with these protests. They're often organized with social media. The focus is on government leaders or policies that have been in place for a long time. But the situations are unique. And Jill Dougherty is going to show us how the U.S. has been involved so far.

Is this what the Obama administration hopes could be the next people's revolution? Iranian police clash with demonstrators on the streets of Tehran, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton connects the dots with Egypt's revolution.

We wish the opposition⁶ and the brave people in the streets across cities in Iran, you know, the same opportunity that they saw their Egyptian counterparts seize in the last week.

As Iranian police round up activists⁷, the State Department begins tweeting encouraging messages in the Farsi language, telling Iranians we want to join in your conversation. Just days after a revolution toppled Egypt's longtime ruler, Hosni Mubarak, unrest is rippling⁸ through the region, and the U.S. is trying to figure out how to handle it. In Algeria, protesters clash with security forces and the State Department proclaims their support for the universal rights of the Algerian people, adding, these rights apply on the internet.

The government of Syria puts a blogger on trial for espionage⁹; the State Department calls for her freedom. In Jordan, the Chairman of the U.S. Joint¹⁰ Chiefs of Staff and a top State Department official meet with King Abdullah II to show support for the new government he swore in following anti-government protests. Yet nothing is settled in Egypt. Trying to muster¹¹ international support, President Obama has been speed-dialing fellow leaders in Great Britain, Jordan and Turkey to help keep pressure on the Egyptian military to turn a revolution into a real democracy. Secretary Clinton called the Egyptian foreign minister and her counterparts in eight other countries. The tide of democracy opens opportunities, officials say, but a former CIA director says this is not a stack of dominoes.

The challenge is how does one manage that during the transition period so that you don't see some of the more radical¹² and, unfortunately, those are generally the best organized groups, seizing control, capturing the revolution and taking it into a direction that's very dark.

The Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian¹³ honor that's given out by the U.S. government. In a ceremony yesterday at the White House, President Obama gave out 15 of them, describing this year's recipients¹⁴ as "the best of who we are and who we aspire¹⁵ to be." That includes former President George H.W. Bush, America's 41st president, whose career of public service spanned 70 years. Georgia congressman¹⁶ and civil rights leader John Lewis, as well as German Chancellor¹⁷ Angela Merkel were also given Medals of Freedom. But it wasn't just politicians. Artists, like the famous poet Maya Angelou, whom the president's sister is named after, along with cellist¹⁸ Yo-Yo Ma and artist Jasper Johns were honored at the ceremony. Sports legends Bill Russell and Stan Musial were also among the Medal of Freedom honorees.

1 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

2 cannon   

n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮

参考例句：

• The soldiers fired the cannon.士兵们开炮。
• The cannon thundered in the hills.大炮在山间轰鸣。

3 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

4 degenerate   

v.退步，堕落；adj.退步的，堕落的；n.堕落者

参考例句：

• He didn't let riches and luxury make him degenerate.他不因财富和奢华而自甘堕落。
• Will too much freedom make them degenerate?太多的自由会令他们堕落吗？

5 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

6 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。

7 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 rippling   

起涟漪的，潺潺流水般声音的

参考例句：

• I could see the dawn breeze rippling the shining water. 我能看见黎明的微风在波光粼粼的水面上吹出道道涟漪。
• The pool rippling was caused by the waving of the reeds. 池塘里的潺潺声是芦苇摇动时引起的。

9 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。

10 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

11 muster   

v.集合，收集，鼓起，激起；n.集合，检阅，集合人员，点名册

参考例句：

• Go and muster all the men you can find.去集合所有你能找到的人。
• I had to muster my courage up to ask him that question.我必须鼓起勇气向他问那个问题。

12 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。

13 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

14 recipients   

adj.接受的；受领的；容纳的；愿意接受的n.收件人；接受者；受领者；接受器

参考例句：

• The recipients of the prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者的姓名登在报上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The recipients of prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者名单登在报上。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

15 aspire   

vi.(to，after)渴望，追求，有志于

参考例句：

• Living together with you is what I aspire toward in my life.和你一起生活是我一生最大的愿望。
• I aspire to be an innovator not a follower.我迫切希望能变成个开创者而不是跟随者。

16 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

17 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

18 cellist   

n.大提琴手

参考例句：

• The cellist's bowing was very sensitive . 那位大提琴手的弓法十分细腻。 来自辞典例句
• World-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma founded The Silk Road Project in 1998. 世界闻名的大提琴家马友友于1998年创建了丝路工程。 来自互联网