VOA慢速英语2010年-IN THE NEWS - Top US Military Officer_

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

Last week President Obama again called for ending a ban against people in the military who are openly homosexual. That was one of his campaign promises. This week America's top military officer expressed support for the proposal at a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Admiral Mike Mullen is chairman of the Joint¹ Chiefs of Staff.

MIKE MULLEN: "It is my personal belief that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly would be the right thing to do. No matter how I look at this issue, I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens."

Defense² Secretary Robert Gates also expressed support for ending the policy known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

President Bill Clinton proposed it seventeen years ago. The law, passed by Congress, does not prevent gays and lesbians from serving in the military. But it does require them not to tell anyone about their sexual preference. Estimates of the number of troops dismissed under the policy are as high as thirteen thousand five hundred.

A USA Today/Gallup Poll last May showed that fifty-eight percent of conservatives and Republicans supported letting gays and lesbians serve openly.

But Senator John McCain, a Navy veteran, is among Republican lawmakers against ending the policy.

JOHN MCCAIN: "Has this policy been ideal? No, it has not. But it has been effective. It has helped to balance a potentially disruptive tension between the desires of a minority and the broader interests of our all-volunteer force."

Secretary Gates said he has launched a year-long study of the possible effects of a change in the law. But he gave the Defense Department forty-five days to think of ways to enforce the existing law "in a more humane³ and fair manner."

In California, a federal judge is studying the evidence in a trial over a ban against same-sex marriage in that state. Fifty-two percent of California voters amended⁴ the state constitution in November of two thousand eight.

In the trial, two same-sex couples argue that the state ban violates equal protection rights under the United States Constitution. The judge is expected to hear closing arguments next month. The case is likely to reach the Supreme⁵ Court.

A survey last April by the Pew Forum⁶ on Religion and Public Life found that fifty-four percent of Americans opposed gay marriage. Thirty-five percent said they supported it.

Thirty of the fifty states have changed their constitutions to ban same-sex marriage. Five states permit it: Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. And same-sex marriage could soon become legal in the city of Washington.

Several countries, mostly in Europe, offer different levels of marriage rights to same-sex couples.

On Thursday, President Obama condemned⁷ an anti-homosexuality bill in Uganda that proposes death for some crimes. He spoke⁸ at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington. The yearly event is organized by a Christian⁹ group known as The Family. Activists¹⁰ say Ugandan politician David Bahati, who proposed the legislation, is a member of that group.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

1 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。

2 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

3 humane   

adj.人道的，富有同情心的

参考例句：

• Is it humane to kill animals for food?宰杀牲畜来吃合乎人道吗？
• Their aim is for a more just and humane society.他们的目标是建立一个更加公正、博爱的社会。

4 Amended   

adj. 修正的 动词amend的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He asked to see the amended version. 他要求看修订本。
• He amended his speech by making some additions and deletions. 他对讲稿作了些增删修改。

5 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

6 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

7 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

8 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

9 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

10 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》