万花筒 2008-11-02&11-03 美国枪支销量大增

Gun sales are on the rise right now at Albuquerque Pawn¹ Shop in downtown.

 You know, just the way the state of the economy is, you know, desperate people do desperate measures. Therefore, you know people want to protect themselves.

 Owner Jay Johnston says the sour economy is fueling fears of crime and civil disorder². So people are arming themselves.

 Johnston says it's not just his shop, but gun dealers³ across the country are getting backed up.

 I could order them, you know, six months ago, and they would just say, "How many",you know, "We will ship them out tomorrow. " And now I've got a bunch of guns on backorder.

 Albuquerque Police say the number of armed robberies are up right now, partly because of troubling economic times, throe in the holiday shopping season and things just get worse.

 Finance is being tight. It affects that criminal element as well, and they wanna go out and get a fast buck⁴.

 And for those turning to guns to protect themselves during these tough times, police want you to ask yourself two things: Are you ready to pull the trigger⁵? And are you ready to take the risk?

 Understand that your gun is available to that criminal should they overpower you.

 

1 pawn   

n.典当，抵押，小人物，走卒；v.典当，抵押

参考例句：

• He is contemplating pawning his watch.他正在考虑抵押他的手表。
• It looks as though he is being used as a political pawn by the President.看起来他似乎被总统当作了政治卒子。

2 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

3 dealers   

n.商人( dealer的名词复数 )；贩毒者；毒品贩子；发牌者

参考例句：

• There was fast bidding between private collectors and dealers. 私人收藏家和交易商急速竞相喊价。
• The police were corrupt and were operating in collusion with the drug dealers. 警察腐败，与那伙毒品贩子内外勾结。

4 buck   

n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃

参考例句：

• The boy bent curiously to the skeleton of the buck.这个男孩好奇地弯下身去看鹿的骸骨。
• The female deer attracts the buck with high-pitched sounds.雌鹿以尖声吸引雄鹿。

5 trigger   

n.触发器，板机，制滑机；v.触发（事件）

参考例句：

• His index finger tightened on the trigger but then relaxed again.他的食指扣住扳机，然后又松开了。
• He pulled the trigger but the gun didn't go off.他打了一枪，没有发火。