一个美国记者对戈尔获得诺贝尔和平奖的感想

昨天，诺贝尔评奖委员会宣布，将2007年诺贝尔和平奖授予美国前副总统戈尔与联合国政府间气候变化专家小组（IPCC）。

消息公布以后，戈尔开了一个新闻发布会。《大西洋》月刊的记者James Fallows就在现场。他在自己的Blog上，写了参加这个新闻发布会的三点感想。

文章不长，我觉得值得一读，可以了解一下美国政治，就把它翻译出来了。

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Gore laureatus

戈尔获得诺贝尔奖

12 Oct 2007 07:03 pm

作者：James Fallows

原文网址：http://jamesfallows.theatlantic.com/archives/2007/10/gore_aureatus.php

Through odd circumstances, I ended up introducing Al Gore at a technology-world conference 36 hours before the Peace Prize news was announced, and then seeing him from the back of the room at his post-award appearance this morning in Palo Alto.

真是凑巧，就在诺贝尔和平奖公布之前的36小时，我刚刚完成了关于戈尔出席一个科技会议的报道。然后，今天早上我又参加了他在加州Palo Alto的新闻发布会。

Three quick points:

三点感想：

1) Whatever he must be feeling inside, Gore's statement was as non triumphalist-sounding as imaginable.

1）不管这是不是他内心的真实想法，戈尔的获奖声明同想象的不同，听起来一点没有获奖后的骄傲。

He said that the recognition was all the more significant because he had the honor of sharing it with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change; that he hoped this would help get out the message about a planetary emergency; that he would go to Oslo on behalf of the thousands of people who had been working on this issue for years; etc.

他说，能够同联合国政府间气候变化专家小组（IPCC）共享这个奖，比他单独获奖更有意义。他希望这次获奖能够有助于传递出一个信息，那就是我们这个星球正处在危急之中。他并不是一个人去奥斯陆领奖，而是代表了成千上万多年来一直致力于这项工作的人们，等等。

He allowed himself not one displayed note of "I told you so."

他丝毫没有谈到自己的作用。

Update: Yes, of course I understand the Uriah Heepish concept of "ostentatious modesty." But in real time, and in the circumstances, it was an impressive statement.

当然，有人会说这是戈尔"故作姿态"。但是相信我，我就在现场，那确实是一个令人印象深刻的声明。

2) For nearly seven years, anyone watching or thinking about Gore has to have wondered: how can he stand it?

2）快七年了，任何关注戈尔的人都会想知道：他怎么能忍受这一切？

How could he get up each day and see George W. Bush in action, or watch his former boss Bill Clinton basking in the fruits of the post-presidency, knowing what had happened to him in 2000?

每一天，他都会看到乔治·W. 布什在发号施令，看到克林顿舒服地享受前任总统的光环。在发生过2000年那些事情后，他怎么能忍受这一切？（阮注：2000年美国大选中，戈尔的总得票数高于布什，但是落选。）

From the Buchanan ballots to Ralph Nader to Katherine Harris to Bush v. Gore. Life is unfair, but that was unreasonable; Gore has to feel less Job-like now.

生活是不公平的，而且这种不公平根本不合理。现在，他应该可以感到一些安慰了。

I would love to have heard Jimmy Carter's congratulatory phone call to know how the two men signaled their shared understanding of the redemptive power of this prize.

当听到吉米·卡特打电话祝贺戈尔的消息时，我感到高兴，诺贝尔和平奖对这两个人都是一种补偿。（阮注：卡特也是诺贝尔和平奖获得者。）

3) The press:

3）关于媒体。

The Gores appeared in a very small room jam-packed with with TV cameras.

新闻发布会的现场非常小，挤满了电视摄像机。

Just before they stepped to the microphone, an aide announced that Gore would make a brief statement but take no questions.

在戈尔发言前，他的助理宣布戈尔只做一个简短的声明，不接受提问。

"Then why are we here??" a TV man next to me grumbled "One camera, one still photographer, that would do it."

"要是那样的话，我们何必来这里呢？"我身旁的一个电视记者嘟囔道："一台照相机，一个摄影记者就足够了。"

The instant Gore finished his statement and before he'd taken the few steps to the door, three questions were shouted out simultaneously: "Are you running?" "What about the Presidential race?" And one other I could quite hear, but also about his political intentions and not, of course, about the prize, the climate issue, his recommendations, etc.

当戈尔一读完声明，正要离开的时候，记者们几乎同时喊出了三个问题。"你会参加明年的总统大选吗？""请谈谈对总统选举的看法？"还有一个问题，我听得不太清楚，但是也是关于政治方面。没有一个问题，同诺贝尔奖、同气候变暖、同他的感想有关。

In a way it's reassuring when people behave completely according to stereotype. But it can be a little depressing too.

在某种程度上，这一切都很正常。它们只是让人感到有点沮丧。

（完）