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The end of Sri Lanka’s war
斯里兰卡战争结束

Tainted triumph
变质的胜利

May 21st 2009
From The Economist print edition

A bloody victory won, Sri Lanka’s government urgently needs to make peace with the Tamil minority
这场胜利是血腥的，斯里兰卡政府迫切需要与泰米尔民族维持和平。


FOR Sri Lanka’s government and many of its citizens, reactions in the West to the final phase of its 26-year war with the Tamil Tigers have reeked of sanctimonious hypocrisy. The world knows the Tigers to be vicious terrorists. To stave off defeat, they held tens of thousands of civilians as human shields in their shrinking corner of northern Sri Lanka. This was typical of their callous disregard even for those whose rights they claimed to champion. Their crushing and the death of their vile chieftain, Velupillai Prabhakaran (see article), are cause for celebration. And in welcoming the end, surely it is unfair to wring hands at the inevitably bloody means. After all, the West is cheering on Pakistan’s army as it takes on the Taliban, uprooting people in their hundreds of thousands.

斯里兰卡政府与泰米尔猛虎组织持续26年的战争终于到了最后阶段。而对于斯里兰卡政府及其许多市民来说，西方世界假装圣洁的的反应散发出浓烈的伪善气息。世人皆知泰米尔是凶残的恐怖分子。为避免战败，他们在斯里兰卡北部日益缩小的地盘里，将数万名贫民作为人体盾牌。这是他们典型冷酷无情的漠视，甚至对于他们声称会捍卫的人的权利也是如此。他们可耻的最高决策人韦卢皮莱•普拉巴卡兰（Velupillai Prabhakaran）的死亡，是人们庆祝的原因。在迎接战争结束时，在审视不可避免的血腥方式面前缩手缩脚当然是不公平的。毕竟，西方正欢呼于巴基斯坦军队处理塔利班问题的方式——彻底根除数十万的追随者。

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Europe’s economies
欧洲各经济体

A new pecking order
崭新的权势等级

May 7th 2009
From The Economist print edition

There has been a change in Europe’s balance of economic power; but don’t expect it to last for long
欧洲的经济力量均势发生了改变；但不要期望它能持久

AFP

FOR years leaders in continental Europe have been told by the Americans, the British and even this newspaper that their economies are sclerotic, overregulated and too state-dominated, and that to prosper in true Anglo-Saxon style they need a dose of free-market reform. But the global economic meltdown has given them the satisfying triple whammy of exposing the risks in deregulation, giving the state a more important role and (best of all) laying low les Anglo-Saxons.

多年来美国人、英国人、甚至本刊都一直告诫欧洲大陆国家的领导人们说他们国家的经济僵化、监管过度、过于由政府主导，如果想要真正地以盎格鲁-撒克逊经济模式繁荣的话就需要一系列的自由市场改革。然而，全球经济衰退给了他们让人飘飘然的三重魔咒——揭露国家减少干预经济的风险、让政府发挥更大的作用、以及（最棒的）贬低盎格鲁-撒克逊经济模式支持者。

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[2009.4.23] A glimmer of hope? 一丝希望？

 

The world economy
世界经济

A glimmer of hope?
一丝希望？

Apr 23rd 2009
From The Economist print edition

The worst thing for the world economy would be to assume the worst is over
对世界经济来说，再也没有比想当然地认为最糟糕的时候已经过去更糟糕的事情了。

Illustration by Jon Berkeley

THE rays are diffuse, but the specks of light are unmistakable. Share prices are up sharply. Even after slipping early this week, two-thirds of the 42 stockmarkets that The Economist tracks have risen in the past six weeks by more than 20%. Different economic indicators from different parts of the world have brightened. China’s economy is picking up. The slump in global manufacturing seems to be easing. Property markets in America and Britain are showing signs of life, as mortgage rates fall and homes become more affordable. Confidence is growing. A widely tracked index of investor sentiment in Germany has turned positive for the first time in almost two years.

虽然光线是漫射开来的，那一点点光亮的存在却是确凿无误的。股票价格正大幅上涨。尽管在这周前几天走低，本刊跟踪的42个股市中的三分之二还是在过去六周中上涨了超过五分之一。全球各地的各种经济指标均有所起色。中国经济正在复苏。全球制造业的衰退似乎也正在减缓。随着抵押贷款利率下调以及房价愈加处于可承受范围内，英美的房地产市场正表现出恢复生气的迹象。信心正在增长。德国一项受到广泛跟踪的投资者情绪指数已经由负转正，这还是近两年来的第一次。
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[2009.2.12] The middle class in emerging markets

The middle class in emerging markets
新兴市场中的中产阶级
Two billion more bourgeois
20亿新生资产阶级

Feb 12th 2009
From The Economist print edition
原载：《经济学家》印刷版，2009年2月12日

The rise of a new middle class has changed the world. What if they sink back into poverty?
新一代中产阶级的兴起改变了世界。如果他们家道中落，又会如何？


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