双语时事：苏格兰独立公投开始逐步展露阴暗面

2014-07-08 16:23:56来源：可可英语

　　It was scarcely an accident that Alex Salmond’s Scottish Nationalist party set the 700th anniversary of the battle of Bannockburn as the year for Scotland’s vote on independence. Commemoration of Robert the Bruce’s famous victory over the English would surely rekindle the embers of patriotism ahead of September’s vote on separation.

　　亚历克斯•萨尔蒙德(Alex Salmond)领导的苏格兰民族党(SNP)，选在“班诺克本之战”(battle of Bannockburn)七百周年举行苏格兰独立公投，这不会是个巧合。在9月的独立公投前夕纪念1314年罗伯特一世(Robert the Bruce)对英格兰那场著名的胜利，肯定会使爱国主义的余烬复燃。

　　So the first minister will have been disappointed by this week’s news from sponsors of the planned two-day celebration of the defeat of Edward II’s English army on June 24 1314. So slow has been the take-up that the organisers have had to cut ticket prices. Perhaps it is an omen. The momentum of the nationalist campaign seems to have stalled.

　　6月24日是苏格兰战胜爱德华二世(Edward II)的英格兰军队七百周年纪念日，届时将举行为期两天的纪念活动。而不久前从活动主办者那里传来的消息，肯定会让苏格兰首席大臣萨尔蒙德感到失望：因为门票卖得极慢，主办者不得不降低了门票价格。这或许是个兆头。苏格兰民族主义运动似乎失去了动力。

　　Mr Salmond could still win on September 18, but there are signs – some of them ugly – that SNP confidence is waning.

　　萨尔蒙德仍有可能在9月18日的公投中取胜，但有迹象(其中一些还相当刺眼)显示，苏格兰民族党正在丧失信心。

　　The Better Together camp, which has sounded negative and defensive in making the case for the 307-year union at the heart of the UK, has a spring in its step. By the calculation of its leaders the balance of opinion has settled at about 60 per cent for the union versus 40 per cent or so for separation. Nationalist nerves are fraying. Edinburgh’s salons hum with gossip about a falling-out between the formidable Mr Salmond and his equally formidable deputy, Nicola Sturgeon. Voters meanwhile are catching more than a glimpse of the dark side of nationalism.

　　“在一起更好”阵营的声势则日渐壮大。该阵营反对苏格兰独立，主张维护已有307年历史的英格兰与苏格兰联盟。据该阵营的领袖估计，现在支持和反对独立的人数已稳定为4比6左右。民族主义者的神经在经受折磨。在爱丁堡，流言盛嚣尘上，称萨尔蒙德跟他的副手尼古拉•斯特金(Nicola Sturgeon)闹翻了。萨尔蒙德向来强势，斯特金也同样不好惹。与此同时，民族主义的阴暗面也越来越多地暴露在选民面前。

　　Mr Salmond has built his argument for independence around a cuddly, inclusive pitch that eschews the angry politics of anti-English grievance. Scotland would break free but it would remain best of friends with its southern neighbour. Separation could even draw the two nations closer together. An independent Scotland would make its own way in the world but it would surely keep the Queen as head of state and the pound as its currency.

　　萨尔蒙德倡导独立的论调一直是温情的、包容的，回避了愤怒的反英格兰式“悲情政治”(politics of grievance，指煽动和利用民众的委屈感为自己争取票数——译者注)。苏格兰会独立，但仍将做英格兰最好的朋友。独立甚至会让两个民族更加亲近。独立的苏格兰将以自己的方式存在于世，但肯定仍将以英国女王为国家元首，以英镑为法定货币。

　　The tensions in this we-can-have-it-all-ways approach have always been apparent. So, too, has been the absence of substantive answers to the many hard questions about the economic future of an independent Scotland. But as long as SNP support was rising, Mr Salmond’s smiling reassurance seemed enough to carry the day. Best-friends nationalism has emotional pull. The unionist concentration on the costs of separation has sounded demeaning of Scotland and patronising of its people – the more so when it comes from English Conservatives.

　　这种“鱼和熊掌可以兼得”式论调，一直存在明显的矛盾之处。同样明显的是，关于英格兰独立后经济前景的许多尖锐问题还没有真正得到解答。但只要苏格兰民族党的支持率在上升，萨尔蒙德的微笑和保证似乎就足以让他稳操胜券。“好朋友”民族主义具有情感吸引力。反对独立者强调独立的代价，在苏格兰人看来有一种轻蔑、以恩主自居的意味，从英格兰保守党人口中说出来时尤其如此。

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