研究生英语阅读教程(基础级2版)课文09和其翻译.doc

The Weird World of Tobacco By Anna Quidlen [1] Imagine that millions of Americans are addicted to a lethal (poisonous/ deadly) drug, yet the Food and Drug Administration had repeatedly refused to regulate (control) it. Imagine that when (while) the FDA does its duty, an appeals court decides it cannot do so, that the drug is so dangerous that if the FDA regulated it, it would have to be banned. [2] Welcome to the topsy-turvy (是非颠倒的) world of tobacco, where nothing much makes sense (be meaningful) except the vast profits, where tobacco-company executives slip-slide along the continuum (连续统一体) from aggrieved innocence to heartfelt (sincere真诚的) regret without breaking a sweat, and where the only people who seem to be able to shoot straight (hit the target命中) are the jurors (judges) who decide the ubiquitous (common) lawsuits. [3] The most recent panel (court) handed down a judgment of $ 145 billion—the largest jury award in history—on behalf of sick smokers in Florida. Lawyers for the tobacco companies thundered that the judgment would bankrupt them, yet the stock market scarcely (hardly) shuddered. Experts said the amount would likely (possible) be reduced when cooler judicial heads prevailed. [4] The jurors—who gave up two years of their lives, listened to endless witnesses and yet deliberated (gave) only a few hours—could be forgiven if they felt theyd fallen down Alices rabbit hole into Wonderland, where the Queen of Hearts cries Off with their heads (Kill them) but no one is ever executed (killed). [5] Al Gore, for instance, inspired (=encouraged) by the death of his sister from lung cancer, has insisted that he will do everything he can to keep cigarettes out of the hands of children. But he says he would never outlaw cigarettes because millions of people smoke. How many users mandate legality? What about the estimated 3.6 million chronic cocaine users, or the 2. 4 million people who admit to having shot (injected) or snorted heroin? [6] I can almost feel all the