Obama urges quick passage of stimulus plan

http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2009/02/09/obamaroad.html
這篇文章看起來好像硬梆梆，但是，還是有趣的地方。

1。 pork barrel politics ---usually refers to spending that is intended to benefit constituents of a politician in return for their political support

例子：During the news conference, Obama defended his program against Republican criticism that the stimulus package is loaded with pork-barrel spending and will not create jobs.(意思就是只是討好特定選民，而不是創造就業機會)

2。in dire straits----be in an extremely difficult or serious situation

例子：Again and again, Obama stressed the U.S. economy is in dire straits.
(非常慘的情況)

3。 run-of-the-mill ----ordinary
例子："This is not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill recession,"
(不是一個普通的經濟衰退)

4。Hope for the best and prepare for the worst ----我不會翻，大概類似我們"做最好的準備和最壞的打算"(這句是諺語)

例子："We can't afford to wait. We can't wait to see and hope for the best," Obama said. (我們不能什麼都不做，只期待會發生最好的結果)

5。soup kitchen---- a place where food is offered to the poor and homeless for free or at a reasonably low price.

例子：Wish yo a good luck in the lineup soon...... in the soup kitchen
(在回文中有一些人胡亂批評，因此有人祝他們到食物救濟中心去排隊)

我很喜歡看回文，因為不但可以得知不同人的想法，還可以學到很多口語，比字典還棒。