Jan 20, 2009
我的同胞们：
我今天站在这里，以谦卑的心情面对着在我面前的使命，对于你们赋予我的信任心存感激，也不敢遗忘开国先贤们所作的牺牲。我感谢布什总统为我们国家所作的服务、以及在政权交接过程中他所展示的大度及合作。
到现在已经有44位美国人进行了总统就职宣誓。这些言辞在繁荣兴旺时以及和平时期作出。但是，也有一些时期，这些誓言是在阴云密布和暴风雨来袭时作出。在这些时期里，美国继续向前行，不单单是身为总统者的睿智和远见，也是因为我们身为人民者仍然忠于开国先贤们的理想、以及忠实执行开国时的文件宣言。
所以，世代一直是如此的。所以我们这一代的美国人也必须如此。
我们现在非常了解我们正处于危机之中。我们的国家正在作战状态，对抗一个暴力和仇恨的广大网络。我们的经济大大受到削弱，这不仅是一些人贪婪和不负责任的后果，也是我们在做出艰难抉择，为国家进入新时代进行准备方面的共同失误所使然。房屋失去了；工作机会流失了；商业陷入凋敝的困境。我们的医疗费用过于昂贵；我们有太多的学校令人失望；每天都有更多的证据显示，我们使用能源的方式只能令我们的对手变强，同时威胁到我们的星球。
这些就是危机的信号，数据和统计结果都显示出来。数字不容易显示出来的、但是却不容忽视的是，我们全国各地有些信心正在消蚀，担心的是美国的衰落不可避免，担心我们的下一代不得不降低对未来的期许。
今天我要对你们说的是，我们面临的挑战是真实的。这些挑战不仅严峻，而且复杂。应对这些挑战绝非易事，更非一朝一夕之功。但是，美国，请明白这一点：这些挑战将会面对。
我们今天聚集在一起，因为我们选择了希望而不是恐惧，选择了众志成城而不是纷争不和。
我们今天共同来宣布，让心胸狭窄的怨言和虚妄的诺言成为过去，结束相互指责和攻击以及令人厌倦的教条，这些已经窒息压制我们的政治太过长久。
我们仍然还是一个年青的国家，不过用圣经的话来说，抛弃幼稚东西的时间已经到了。现在，我们要彰显美国的持久精神，创造新的历史，继承和发扬代代传承的珍贵才智和崇高的理想：那就是上帝赋予我们的，人人平等，人人自由，人人都有机会寻求最大幸福。
重申我们国家伟大的同时，我们深深懂得，伟大从来不是与生具来的。它必须努力赢得；我们的道路从来没有捷径，也没有妥协。我们的道路从来不是懦夫们所走的，也不是给那些喜欢轻松，或者喜欢追逐财富和名誉的人走的。而是给那些不畏风险的人、脚踏实地的实践者、那些发明创造者。带领我们走向繁荣和自由的漫长崎岖之路的前进者之中，有些有名声的人，但是更多的是工作中默默无闻的男女大众。
为了我们，他们背起简单的行囊，飘洋过海，寻求新的生活。
为了我们，他们在血汗车间和作坊中辛勤劳作，并且在美国的西部扎下根，他们忍受皮鞭的抽打，在坚硬的土地上辛勤耕作。
为了我们， 他们在康科德和盖底斯堡，在诺曼底和溪生出生入死地战斗。
为了我们能够过上好日子，我们的这些男女大众，前仆后继，英勇奋斗，不懈牺牲，直到他们的双手粗糙地磨出老茧；他们看到的美国是一个理想高于个人雄心壮志的国家，他们把美国的理想看得高于个人的生死，高于财富和派别。
这就是我们今天要继续进行的旅程。我们依然是世界上最繁荣、最强大的国家；我们劳工的创造力并没有比这场危机开始的时候低；我们的思想也没有缺乏创造性；对我们产品和服务的需求，也没有比上个星期或者上个月或者上一年减少；我们的能力依然没有减弱；但是，我们那种一成不变，保护狭隘利益，推出不受欢迎决策的时代注定已经成为过去。从今天开始， 我们将重新鼓舞，揩干净身上的灰尘，重新开始重新创造美国的任务。
放眼四周，到处是需要从事的工作，目前的经济状况需要我们迅速采取果敢的行动，我们将行动起来，不仅要创造就业机会，而且还要为今后的发展奠定基础。我们将修路架桥，架设电力网线，修建通往商务和连接民众的数据通道。我们将恢复科学应有的正确位置。利用科技奇迹提高医疗保健的质量，同时降低成本。为了能为我们的车辆和工厂提供能源，我们要进一步利用阳光，风力和土壤。我们要改造学校和大学，满足新时代的要求；我们有能力完成上述任务，我们一定能够完成上述任务。
现在，有些人对我们的雄心壮志表示怀疑，他们说，我们的体制不可能让我们实现这么多的宏伟计划。这些人的记忆实在太糟了。
因为他们忘记了这个国家过去已经取得的成就，忘记了当自由的男男女女的想象力为了共同目标而激励、而聚集在一起的时候，能够达成些什么。
这些冷嘲热讽的人不可能理解的是，他们脚下的这片土地已经发生了变化，长期以来耗尽我们精力的无聊的政治辩论已经不复存在。我们今天要问的，不是我们的政府是否太大或者太小，而是我们的政府是否起到作用，是否帮助美国家庭找到一份像样收入的工作，能够支付起医疗保险，一个有尊严的退休生活。如果回答是肯定的，我们就应该继续执行。如果回答是否定的，那么计划将会停止，那些负责管理公共资金的人应该负起责任。我们的支出必须睿智，必须改变坏习气，运作必须光明正大。只有这样，才能恢复美国人民和政府之间至关重要的信任。
市场到底是好的还是坏的力量，这也不是我们面临的问题。市场给人们带来的财富和扩大自由的力量是无可比拟的。但是目前的金融危机提醒我们，如果缺乏监督，市场可能会失去控制。如果一个国家只追求繁荣，繁荣是不可能长久的。美国经济之所以成功并不总是因为我们国内生产总值的规模，而是因为经济繁荣已经渗透到各个领域和层次，是因为我们有能力向一切愿意接受帮助的人提供机会。我们帮助其他国家不是出于慈善，而是因为这是达到我们共同利益最可靠的途径。
至于我们的共同防御，我们认为在我们的安全和理想之间做出选择是错误的。我们的建国先贤们在面对难以想象的危险的时候，他们起草了一份确保法制和人权的宪章，一份后来用几代人的鲜血发展的宪章。他们的理念如今依然照亮着全世界，我们不应该为了权宜之计而放弃。今天，观看这场就职典礼的世界各地的所有人民和政府，无论是在大都市，还是我父亲出生的小村庄，都知道，美国是所有追求和平与尊严的国家和人民的朋友，美国已做好准备，将再次成为世界领导人。
回想前辈们通过牢固的盟友和坚定的信念，而不仅是导弹和坦克，来克服法西斯主义和共产主义。他们明白，仅靠我们单独的力量是不能保卫我们自己的，而且我们也无权随心所欲要做我们想做的事情。他们知道只有通过明智的使用力量，力量才会增强，只有通过我们正义的信念、自身的榜样，以及具有人道主义和自我克制的温和素质，才会有国家的安全。
我们是这些美国传统的保持人，在这些原则再一次的指引下，通过各国之间更好的合作、理解和更多的努力，我们能够面对那些新的威胁。我们将开始负责任地撤离伊拉克，把伊拉克交给她的人民，并且巩固得来不易的阿富汗和平。我们将跟老朋友和从前的对手在一起，不辞辛劳地来减少核威胁，减少全球温室效应。我们不会为我们的生活方式而道歉，也不会放弃保卫这种生活方式。那些通过恐怖主义和屠杀无辜的方式来达到目的的人，我们现在要对你们说，我们的信念比以前更加强壮，是坚不可摧的，你们不会比我们更长久，我们一定会打败你们。
因为我们知道，多元化的传统是我们强点，而不是弱点。我们是一个由基督教和穆斯林、犹太教和印度教以及无信仰者组成的国家，我们是由来自地球每个角落的各种语言和文化组成的；因为我们承受过内战和种族隔离的痛苦洗礼，走出黑暗的历程，我们更加坚强，更加团结。我们不得不相信，以前的仇恨总有一天会过去，派别分歧迟早会消失。随着世界在变小，我们共有的人道主义精神一定会展示出来，美国一定要率先走进新的和平纪元。
针对穆斯林世界，我们要在相互有利和相互尊重的基础上，寻找新的推动方式；针对那些企图制造冲突，或者把自己的社会问题推卸给西方的各国领导人，要知道，你们的人民会用你的建设成就，而不是摧毁能力来评判你；针对那些通过腐败、欺骗和镇压异议人士来维持权力的人，要知道你们是在错误的历史一边；不过只要你们愿意放开拳头，我们愿意向你们伸出手。
针对那些贫穷国家，我们保证和你们一起工作，让你们的土地肥沃，让清水长流；我们会滋养饥饿的身躯，灌输饥渴的头脑。针对那些和我们一样相对富足的国家，我们要说，对我们境外的痛苦，我们再不能无动于衷了，在消耗世界资源的同时，我们不能不考虑后果。因为世界已经改变了，我们也一定要随之改变。
当我们思考未来的道路，我们要带着谦卑的感恩之心，牢牢记住那些勇敢的美国人，他们现在正在遥远的沙漠和山脉执行巡逻任务。他们今天有话要告诉我们，就像安葬在阿灵顿那些逝去的英雄一直对我们低语一样。我们向他们致敬，不只是因为他们捍卫我们的自由，他们更落实了服务的精神，他们愿意寻找比自己意义更重大的事情。在这个时刻，这个将定义整个时代的时刻，正是这样的精神，必须长存在我们心中。
不论政府能够或者需要做什么，这个国家最终仰赖的还是美国人民的信仰和决心。在堤坝决堤的时候，接纳一个陌生人所展现的仁慈；因为不愿意看到朋友失业，而宁愿减少自己的工时所展现的无私，这些美德帮助我们度过最黑暗的时间。消防队员冲进满是浓烟的楼梯间所展现的勇气；父母教养孩子展现的自发性，这些最终决定了我们的命运。
我们的挑战或许是全新的。我们解决的方式也可能是全新的。但是我们的成功所仰赖的价值观却是恒古不变的，这些价值观是辛勤工作、诚实、勇气、公平、宽容和好奇。这些是真实的。在历史上，这些是推动我们前进的宁静力量。现在需要的是回归这些真理。我们现在需要的一个新的责任世纪。每一个美国人都要认清，我们对我们自己、我们的国家、世界都有义务。我们不是勉强的接受这些义务，而是欢欣的接纳。我们坚定的知道，没有什么比为艰难的任务全力付出更能满足我们的精神，更能定义我们的特质。
这是公民权的代价和承诺。
这是我们自信的泉源。我们知道神召唤我们为了要塑造这个充满变动的未来。
这是我们的自由和信仰的意义，这说明了为什么不同种族和信仰的男女和幼童相聚在这个宏伟的广场上；这说明了为什么一个当他的父亲在不到60年前或许还不能在餐厅里接受服务的人，今天能够在你们面前，许下这个最神圣的誓言。
让我们以这样的态度纪念这一天：我们记得自己是谁，我们前进了多远。在美国诞生的年代，在最寒冷的月份，一小群爱国者在冰冻的河岸上，蜷缩在将熄的营火旁。那时，首都被遗弃了。敌人正在向前推进。白雪上沾染了鲜血。当时，我们革命的结果遭受最大的怀疑，但我们的建国之父命令要对人民宣读这些文字：
"让未来的世界知道，在寒冷的冬天，这个只有希望和美德能够生存的时候，受到一个共同危机挑战的城市和国家，曾经勇敢的面对他。"
美国。面对我们共同的危机，在这个艰苦的严冬，让我们记得这些永恒的字句。带着希望和美德，我们再次勇敢的面对冰冷的激流，承受未来可能降临的风暴。让我们的下一代传颂，当我们受到考验的时候，我们拒绝结束这场旅程。我们没有回头，也没有步履蹒跚。我们的眼光定在地平线上，神的恩典顾及我们，我们带着一份伟大的礼物，也就是自由，向前进，然后将这份礼物安全的交给未来的世世代代。
谢谢大家!上帝保佑你们!上帝保佑美国!
REMARKS OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMAInaugural Address
My fellow citizens:
I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.
Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.
Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.
We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.
For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.
Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account - to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day - because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control - and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.
We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.
For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.
As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility - a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence - the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.
This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
"Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it]."
America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.
Thank you. God bless you, and God bless the United State of America.
http://www.voanews.com/chinese/w2009-01-20-voa74.cfm
