2006年VOA标准英语-US Troops Train in Mock Iraqi Villages in Calif

By Mike O'Sullivan
Ft. Irwin, California
24 July 2006
 
Deep in the California desert, the U.S. military is training soldiers in the techniques of fighting an urban insurgency¹. The National Training Center at Fort Irwin, where troops work with Iraqi-Americans in mock villages that look like the real thing.

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US soldiers train in mock Iraqi towns in the California desert
VOA Photo - M. O'Sullivan   
  
This seems to be an Iraqi town, complete with police station, mosque², school, and populations of Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims. It is one of 12 mock villages at this army base northeast of Los Angeles, on the edge of the barren region known as Death Valley.

Four to 5,000 soldiers come here each month for combat training.

Colonel Pete Bayer commands the 11th Armored Cavalry³ Regiment⁴, which instructs other troops in the skills they need for duty in Iraq or Afghanistan. "Our mission is to prepare the soldiers that are here today that will be in country in several months to survive their first contact. And that can be as simple as a young sergeant⁵ leading an infantry⁶ squad⁷ on a dismounted patrol through a town and he encounters some of the local populace who are not violent, but they're agitated," he says.

The troops must not overreact, but must be ready to respond to the unexpected. The unexpected happens often at Ft. Irwin.

Lt. Pete Kalogiros
VOA Photo - M. O'Sullivan   
  
Lieutenant⁸ Pete Kalogiros leads a group of American soldiers who portray⁹ insurgents¹⁰ in one mock Iraqi village. "We get input¹¹ from Iraq. Guys call us, our people back here from Iraq, and tell us what's going on there. We're getting constant updates on what the tactics and the techniques are that the insurgents over there in Afghanistan, Iraq and the other countries, are using. And we incorporate that into our training," he says.

Iraqi-Americans work with the troops, portraying¹² villagers. This woman says the soldiers are curious. "You know, they're just trying to learn so much more about our culture. And that's what we're here for, to teach them," she says.

Sam Kalasho
VOA Photo - M. O'Sullivan   
  
The troops are drilled in the rules of engagement, so they know when to shoot and when to hold their fire. Iraqi-American Sam Kalasho hopes they will exercise care in the stress and confusion of combat. "The main thing we try to teach them is to not kill innocent people, to respect the good people, to help the Iraqi people to stand up again and be free Iraq again," he says. "So what we do over here, we teach them everything they are going to find in Iraq. We do the same thing here. We meet with them. We give them a hard time. They give us a hard time. We want this. We ask for this. They help us. So always there is something wrong. There are mistakes. When it happens here, we can work it out. But when they go over there, we don't allow mistakes to happen."

The troops must be alert and sort out what is happening to separate those who pose a threat from innocent bystanders.

"There's a guy in the school with a gun," shouts one soldier.

There will be successes and failures, and John Wagstaff of the National Training Center says a soldier may die every day in his two weeks of training. "And the value to that is, by dying 14 days here, maybe you won't die once in Iraq, which is for real," he says.

The troops encounter the heat, apprehension¹³ and uncertainty¹⁴ that they will face in a few months in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The military hopes their time at the National Training Center will make them better prepared when they get there.

1 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

2 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。

3 cavalry   

n.骑兵；轻装甲部队

参考例句：

• We were taken in flank by a troop of cavalry. 我们翼侧受到一队骑兵的袭击。
• The enemy cavalry rode our men down. 敌人的骑兵撞倒了我们的人。

4 regiment   

n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制

参考例句：

• As he hated army life,he decide to desert his regiment.因为他嫌恶军队生活，所以他决心背弃自己所在的那个团。
• They reformed a division into a regiment.他们将一个师整编成为一个团。

5 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

6 infantry   

n.[总称]步兵(部队)

参考例句：

• The infantry were equipped with flame throwers.步兵都装备有喷火器。
• We have less infantry than the enemy.我们的步兵比敌人少。

7 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。

8 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

9 portray   

v.描写，描述；画(人物、景象等)

参考例句：

• It is difficult to portray feelings in words.感情很难用言语来描写。
• Can you portray the best and worst aspects of this job?您能描述一下这份工作最好与最坏的方面吗？

10 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

11 input   

n.输入(物)；投入；vt.把(数据等)输入计算机

参考例句：

• I will forever be grateful for his considerable input.我将永远感激他的大量投入。
• All this information had to be input onto the computer.所有这些信息都必须输入计算机。

12 portraying   

v.画像( portray的现在分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• The artist has succeeded in portraying my father to the life. 那位画家把我的父亲画得惟妙惟肖。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ding Ling was good at portraying figures through careful and refined description of human psychology. 《莎菲女士的日记》是丁玲的成名作，曾引起强烈的社会反响。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

13 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

14 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。