关于英国大选的五件事

关于英国大选的五件事

Five things to know about the British election

Very occasionally in politics things turn out to be as they seem. This may prove true of Britain’s election campaign. The players are waiting anxiously for something to happen — for the tide to break right for David Cameron’s Conservatives or left for Ed Miliband’s Labour. The voters are looking ever more stubborn in a determination not to confer governing authority on either of the UK’s two big parties. 在政治领域，事情的结局很少有跟像表面上看一样的。英国议会大选的竞选或许也会如此。参选者焦急地等待着某些事情的发生：潮流是会向右，使戴维•卡梅伦(David Cameron)的保守党(Conservatives)得势？还是会向左，令埃德•米利班德(Ed Miliband)的工党(Labour)占优？英国选民似乎比以往更加固执，决心不给予英国两大政党中任何一方以绝对的统治权威。

There is still time enough for what Donald Rumsfeld famously called unknown unknowns to disturb the ground, but the cement is hardening. The ballot paper for May 7 does not include a box marked “hung parliament” or “coalition” but the polls, resolu tely flat for months, suggest stalemate is the settled choice of the nation. I cannot recall when voters last showed such studied indifference to the clamour and clatter of an election campaign. 唐纳德•拉姆斯菲尔德(Donald Rumsfeld)口中“未知的未知数”仍有足够时间去搅乱局面，但局面正在固化。5月7日投出的选票上，并不包含“悬浮议会”(hung parliament，即没有一个政党获得议会多数席位——译者注)或“联合政府”的选项，但是民调结果（顽固地持续了数月未发生变化）显示，势均力敌注定成为这个国家面临的局面。上一回选民对吵吵闹闹的竞选故意表现得漠不关心至这等地步，我已经记不起发生在何时了。

Yet there have been some things to learn from the past few weeks. The goal of modern political campaigning is to shut out real people while conveying precisely the opposite impression on the television news. Everything is controlled and choreographed, with loyal activists dressed down as “floating voters”. And yet, for all this process of sterilisation, something of the character of the players finds a way through. Remember Hillary Clinton versus Barack Obama in the 2008 US presidential primaries? 不过，过去几周还是可以看出些许端倪的。现代政治竞选的目标是把人们真实的一面隐藏起来，并在电视新闻中传达出正好与之相反的形象。一切都是受到操纵、精心设计的，而忠实的积极分子们则假扮成“游离选民”（即并无坚决拥护的党派的投票者——译者注）。可是，在所有这种杀菌净化的过程中，参选者的某种人格总会自己暴露出来。还记得2008年美国总统初选时希拉里•克林顿(Hillary Clinton)与巴拉克•奥巴马(Barack Obama)的对决吗？

The adage has it that politicians campaign in poetry and govern in prose. Well, the first thing to say is that Mr Cameron has been having some trouble with his iambic pentameters. Stepping out of 10 Downing Street, he looks every inch the prime minister. The absence of an organising purpose is camouflaged by abundant self-confidence and the hustle and bustle of the prime ministerial schedule. On the campaign trail, though, the lack of conviction shines through. Mr Cameron exudes detachment — almost irritation that he should be made to go through all this just to renew his lease on No 10. 有句名言说得好：政客竞选凭诗歌，治理靠散文。好吧，首先要说的是卡梅伦对抑扬格五音步(iambic pentameter)的运用一直不太好。走出唐宁街10号(10 Downing Street)时，他看起来就是个十足的首相。缺乏有条理性的打算，被充足的自信心以及繁忙的首相日程安排掩盖起来。不过，在竞选过程中，缺乏坚定信念的一面显露出来。对于为续订唐宁街10号的租约而被迫经历这一切，卡梅伦流露出冷漠——