新視野大學(xué)英語讀寫教程第一冊unit9-b Borderline Ridiculousness

Section B

Borderline Ridiculousness

The hardest thing about getting into Britain is walking the excessive distances around Heathrow Airport. No one has ever searched my baggage, or asked anything more than where I planned to stay and for how long. Likewise in other European countries I've visited but not so in America. When I go there not only must I make a declaration of all purchases and gifts acquired abroad, I am obliged to list every country I visited. What business is that of the Finance Department? The information probably goes into some computer, never to be removed; and while I have nothing to hide, the thought is unsettling.
This is the preferential treatment I enjoy as an American citizen. Foreign nationals have another, longer form to complete before being granted a U.S. entrance visa. The questions include: "Have you ever been a controlled substance (drug) salesman, or a sex slave or pimp?" "Do you seek to enter the United States to engage in export control violations, destructive or terrorist activities or any illegal purpose?" "Are you a member or representative of a terrorist organization?" "Have you ever ordered, caused, assisted, or otherwise participated in the torture of any person because of race, religion, national origin, or political opinion under the control, direct or indirect, of the Nazi Government of Germany, or of the government of any area occupied by, or allied with the Nazi Government of Germany, or have you ever participated in genocide?"
An untruthful answer gives authorities another arrow for their attorney's quiver. If they can't get you for pushing drugs, maybe they can deport you for denying you pushed them before. But what self-respecting terrorist would agree he belongs to a "terrorist organization"? The vagueness of the language suggests its purpose is as much rhetorical as legal. It tells the rest of the world that troublesome visitors are unwelcome.
The rhetorical intent is clearest in the question about Nazis. It sounds legal and precise, but examine it and it turns out to be ridiculously broad. Consider that Franco's Spain was an ally of Hitler's Germany. Many, if not most, of its government employees can be said somehow to have "participated in the torture" of persons on account of "political opinion". How, then, should a former Spanish official, reply to the question? And why such a particular fuss about Nazis, now that most of them are dead?
My mother is a U.S. immigrant, and my father is the son of one. So it is with personal disappointment that I observe the current tendency to keep out new arrivals. I am myself a stranger in a strange land — Italy. Because I am married to an Italian citizen, establishing residency was easy. I dropped in at our local police station and in less than two hours received my "resident permit", good for two years. If my wife and I choose to live in the U.S., however, she must apply for a visa ahead of time. This is supposed to take two months, but an attorney assures me it can easily take six. As it happens, we don't plan to live in America. It was challenging enough going there on vacation.
Shortly after our wedding, we decided to spend a couple of months in the States. Luckily I mentioned this to an embassy official first. "The immigration officer might not let her in without a green card," he warned.
"Couldn't she just enter on the 90-day tourist document, like any other citizen of the European Union?" I inquired.
"If someone's married to a U.S. citizen, the assumption is they intend to reside there," he explained.
I said my wife had no intention of moving to the U.S. She had a teaching job in Italy to return to at the end of the summer. The immigration officer might believe her or he might not, I was told. Too many foreigners slip in as tourists and then try to remain on grounds of marriage. The procedure for determining that such unions are not tricks to obtain the treasured green card takes time (sometimes separating couples for more than a year, I later learned). But surely there aren't many cases of marriage fraud involving Italians, I suggested. There would be little reason to doubt my wife's word. The official gave me a look of pity for my simplicity. "I think you can understand why we can't have one policy for white Europeans and another for Filipinos and Mexicans," he said.
So when my darling wife arrived at the airport in Washington, she wasn't wearing her wedding band, lest it provoke inconvenient questions. To be safe, she hadn't even packed it in her luggage. Nor had she flown on the same plane as myself — doing so would have meant answering "yes" when asked whether she was traveling with any member of her family. Thus, she passed unhindered through the gates. When I met her on the other side we laughed with wicked pleasure, as we'd gotten away with a crime.
Words: 834

NEW WORDS

border
n. 1. [C] (land near the) line dividing two countries or areas 邊界，邊境
2. [C] a strip that goes around or along the edges of sth. 邊，邊緣，界線

borderline
n. [C] (usu. sing.) a line that marks a border between two physical things or between ideas, conditions, feelings, etc. 國境線，邊界線；界線

ridiculous
a. worthy of laughter; silly or not reasonable 可笑的，荒謬的

ridiculousness
n. craziness 可笑, 荒謬

baggage
n. [U] all the bags that one takes when traveling 行李

likewise
ad. 1. in the same way or manner 同樣地
2. also 也，亦

declaration
n. 1. [C] a statement giving official information申報（單）
2. [C] declaring; formally announcing 宣布，宣告，聲明

oblige
v. 1. force or require (sb.) by law, agreement or moral pressure to do sth. （以法律、協(xié)議或道義上的壓力）強制或要求，責(zé)成；迫使（某人）做某事
2. please or help sb. esp. by doing sth. one has asked to do 幫……的忙

substance
n. 1. [C] illegal drugs 毒品
2. [C, U] material with particular physical characteristics 物質(zhì)
3. [U] importance or relationship to real facts 實質(zhì)，本質(zhì)，要旨

salesman
n. [C] a person whose job is selling things in a shop or directly to customers 售貨員，營業(yè)員，推銷員

■pimp
n. [C] 拉皮條者

export
n. [C, U] action of sending (goods) to another country for sale 出口
v. send (goods) to another country for sale 出口

violate
vt. 1. break or be contrary to (a rule, principle, etc.) 違反（規(guī)定、原則、條約）
2. disturb (personal freedom, etc.) 侵擾，侵害，侵犯

violation
n. [C, U] (an example of) violating or being violated 違反（行為），違背（行為），侵犯（行為）

terror
n. 1. [U] intense fear 恐懼，驚駭
2. [C] a person or thing causing terror 引起恐怖的人或物

terrorist
n. [C] a person who supports or participates in terror activities 恐怖主義者，恐怖分子

illegal
a. (esp. of an activity or action) against the law; not allowed by law 不合法的，非法的

torture
n. [C, U] (the act of causing) great physical pain in order to persuade sb. to do sth. or to give information, or simply to be cruel to a person or animal 拷問，拷打，虐待
vt. cause great physical pain or mental suffering on (sb.) 拷問，折磨

origin
n. 1. parents and conditions of early life 血統(tǒng)，出身；來歷
2. [C] the beginning or cause of sth. 起源，起因

indirect
a. 1. happening in addition to an intended result, often in a way that is not obvious or that is hard to understand because of its many connections 間接的
2. not following a straight line; not directly connected (to or with) 迂回的，曲折的

ally
v. (with/to) join or unite, e.g. by political agreement 與……聯(lián)盟
n. [C] a country that has agreed officially to give help and support to another one, esp. during a war; a person who helps and supports sb. else 盟國；盟友

■genocide
n. [U] the murder of a whole group of people, esp. a whole nation, race, religious group, etc. 種族滅絕

arrow
n. 1. [C] 箭
2. [C] a sign or mark like an arrow 箭頭符號

attorney
n. 1. [C] a lawyer 律師
2. [C] a person appointed to act for another in business or legal matters 代理人

▲quiver
n. 1. [C] a thing used for carrying arrows 箭囊，箭筒
2. a shaking sound or movement 震顫聲; 顫動
vi. shake slightly, often because of strong emotion （因強烈感情而）顫抖，發(fā)抖

▲deport
vt. force (a person) to leave a country, esp. because he has no legal right to be there or because he has broken the law 驅(qū)逐（某人）出境（尤指因無合法居留權(quán)或違反法律）

vague
a. 1. not clearly expressed, known, described or decided 含糊的，不明確的，不清楚的，模糊的
2. not clearly seen; not clear in shape （輪廓等）模糊的

vagueness
n. [U] being vague 不清楚，含糊

◆rhetoric
n. 1. [U] clever and persuasive language which is not genuine or has no real meaning 虛夸的言辭，華麗詞藻
2. [U] (art of) using language impressively or persuasively 修辭（學(xué)）；修辭藝術(shù)

rhetorical
a. 1. full of rhetoric in order to be seen as important or persuasive 浮夸的，詞藻華麗的
2. 修辭的

legal
a. 1. connected with the law 法律的
2. allowed by the law 合法的

fuss
n. [U] show of worry or excitement, often one which is greater than usual 忙亂，大驚小怪，過分激動
vi. give too much attention to small and unimportant matters, usu. in a way which shows that one is anxious and not relaxed （為小事）煩惱，瞎操心，過于憂慮

shortly
ad. in a short time; not long; soon 立刻，馬上

embassy
n. [C] the group of people who represent their country in a foreign country, or the building they work in 大使館全體人員；大使館

document
n. [C] a paper, form, book, etc. giving information about sth. 證件；文件；公文

inquire (enquire)
v. ask for information 打聽，詢問

assumption
n. 1. [C] a thing accepted as true or as sure to happen, but not proved 假設(shè)，假定
2. [U] the act of taking on (a position, etc.) 擔(dān)任，奪取

procedure
n. [C] a set of actions which is the accepted way of doing sth. 過程，步驟，常規(guī)

▲fraud
n. 1. [C, U] (an act of) cheating sb. illegally in order to make money or get goods 欺騙（行為）
2. [C] a person that cheats others 騙子

simplicity
n. 1. the negative quality of simple-mindedness 頭腦簡單
2. the positive quality of being simple 簡樸；簡便；簡單

darling
a. loved deeply 心愛的，可愛的
n. a person who is greatly loved or liked 心愛的人，親愛的人

band
n. 1. [C] a thin flat strip used to bind things together 帶，箍
2. [C] a group of people who share the same interests or beliefs, or who have joined together for a special purpose 一伙（人），一幫（人）
3. [C] a group of musicians who play modern music together 樂隊

lest
conj. in order to prevent any possibility that (sth. will happen) 以免

provoke
vt. 1. cause (sth.) to happen 致使，引起
2. (try to) make (a person or an animal) angry 挑釁，激怒

PHRASES AND EXPRESSIONS

get into
be allowed to enter （使）被允許進入

seek to do sth.
try to do sth.; attempt to do sth. 試圖做，企圖做

engage in sth.
take part in sth. 從事……

participate in
take part in or become involved in (an activity) 參與，參加

push drugs
sell illegal drugs 販賣毒品

on account of
because of 因為

keep out
(cause to) stay or not enter （使）不進入；（使）遠離

drop in
pay an unplanned visit (to a person or place) without notice or warning before going 順便拜訪

ahead of time
earlier than expected or before an arranged time（比原定時間）提早

on vacation
away from work or school for fun or rest 度假

a couple of
a small number of 幾個

let in
allow to come in 讓……進來，使……入內(nèi)

have no intention of doing sth.
have absolutely no plan or desire to do sth. 沒有意圖做（某事）

on grounds of
by reason of 出于……的原因

get away with sth.
not be punished for sth. 不因某事受懲罰

PROPER NAMES

Britain
大不列顛（大不列顛及北愛爾蘭聯(lián)合王國的簡稱，即英國）

Heathrow
（英國倫敦的）希思羅機場

Nazi
（德國）國社黨黨員，納粹分子

Franco's Spain
佛朗哥（1892-1975）統(tǒng)治下的西班牙

Hitler
希特勒（1889-1945，納粹德國元首、頭號戰(zhàn)犯，發(fā)動了第二次世界大戰(zhàn)，戰(zhàn)敗后自殺）

Spanish
西班牙的

Italy
意大利（南歐國家）

Italian
意大利的

Filipino
菲律賓人

Mexican
墨西哥人

Washington
華盛頓（美國首都）

    發(fā)生在邊境線上的荒唐事                                                                                                                   
    進入英國最難的事要數(shù)在希思羅機場用兩條腿去走那段實在是太長的路了。 沒有任何人來查我的行李，除了有人來問我打算住在哪里、住多久之外，就再沒有人來問我什么了。 我訪問過的其他歐洲國家也是如此，但美國卻不是這樣。 我到了那里，不但要申報所有我在國外購買的東西和收到的禮物， 還得把每一個我去過的國家的名字列出來。 這和財政部的職責(zé)有什么相干？ 這些信息很可能會存入某臺電腦，永遠也不會刪除。雖然我沒有什么東西可以隱瞞的，但一想到這些總讓我感到不安。
    這還是我作為美國公民所享受到的優(yōu)待呢。 外國人在獲得入境簽證之前所填的表格更長。 其問題包括：你做過受管制藥物（毒品）的推銷員嗎？ 做過性奴隸或皮條客嗎？你到美國會從事違反出口管制的活動、破壞性或恐怖性活動、或任何其他非法活動嗎？ 你是恐怖主義組織的成員或代表嗎？ 你是否在德國納粹政府、或任何被納粹德國政府占領(lǐng)、或與之結(jié)盟地區(qū)的政府的直接或間接控制下，因為種族、宗教、國籍或政治觀點的原因，而下令、致使、幫助或以其他方式參與了對任何人的拷打嗎？你曾經(jīng)參與過滅絕種族的大屠殺嗎？
    一個不真實的回答會給當局者的律師提供又一個整人的口實。 如果他們不能因為非法銷售毒品而抓住你，他們也許會因為你否認自己以前非法銷售過毒品而把你驅(qū)逐出境。 但是哪一個有自尊的恐怖分子會承認他屬于一個"恐怖主義組織"呢？ 這種意義含糊的語言表明表格的目的不但是修辭性的而且是法律性的。 它要向世界上其他地方表明的是：想搗亂的訪問者是不受歡迎的。
    其修辭意圖在有關(guān)納粹分子的問題上表現(xiàn)得最為清楚。 它聽上去很符合法律，也很明確，但仔細查看一下，這問題就寬泛得荒唐可笑。 仔細想一下: 佛朗哥治下的西班牙是希特勒德國的一個盟國， 它的許多政府雇員，雖然不是大多數(shù)，似乎都可以被假定為曾因 "政治觀點的原因"參與了"對人的折磨"。 那么一個前西班牙官員又該怎樣來回答這個問題呢？ 鑒于大多數(shù)納粹分子都已死去，為什么還要對他們表示特別的緊張不安呢！
    我母親是美國的一個移民，而我父親則是移民的兒子。 所以我是帶著我個人的失望心情來看待目前當局阻止移民美國的傾向的。 我本人也是個身在異鄉(xiāng)--意大利--的一個異客。 因為我跟一位意大利公民結(jié)了婚，因此申請定居意大利很容易。 我只是順道去了一下我們當?shù)氐木?，不?小時就拿到了有效期為2年的"居住證"。 但是如果我和妻子決定居住在美國的話，她必須提前申請簽證。 一般認為這需要2個月，但是一位律師很肯定地對我說這很可能需要6個月。 我們幸好不打算住在美國, 但要到那里去度假也是夠惱人的。
    婚后不久我們決定去美國住一、二個月。 幸好我事先向一位大使館官員提起了這件事。 他警告我說："沒有綠卡，移民官員可能是不會讓她入境的。"
    "難道她不可以像歐盟國家之間的公民那樣憑90天的旅游證件進入美國嗎？" 我詢問道。
    "如果誰與美國公民結(jié)了婚，那就被認為他們是打算在那里定居，"他解釋道。
    我說我的妻子無意移居美國。 在夏天結(jié)束時，她還要回意大利去從事教學(xué)工作。 我被告知大使館移民官員興許會相信她、興許不會。 以旅游者身份進入美國、然后以結(jié)婚為理由留下來的外國人太多了。 要確認這種婚姻并不是為了取得寶貴的綠卡而耍的花招,需要費很長時間 (我后來知道，它有時會使夫妻分居1年多)。 但牽涉到意大利人的結(jié)婚騙局案肯定不會多, 我這樣對他說。 幾乎沒有理由來懷疑我妻子的話。 這個移民官員覺得我太天真而同情地看了看我。 他說："我認為你能理解我們不能為歐洲的白人制訂一項政策，然后再為菲律賓人和墨西哥人制訂另一項政策。"
    所以當我的愛妻到達華盛頓的機場時，她沒有戴她的結(jié)婚戒指，惟恐它會引起令人難堪的問題。 為了安全起見，她甚至沒有把它放進行李。 她也沒有和我乘同一架飛機--如乘同一架飛機將意味著當人們問她是否和任何家庭成員一起乘機時，她必須回答"是"。 就這樣, 她毫無阻礙地通過了機場的大門。 當我在機場門外和她碰頭時，我們帶著一種惡作劇的快樂大笑起來，因為我們犯了禁，卻逍遙法外。