一个美国人对美国的反思：

信用的失丧--- 美国的故事

作者：罗杰 （Roger Snyder） 翻译： 罗玲

过去八年对美国真的不好。2001年我们被伊斯兰恐怖分子袭击。我们先发制人地发动了两场战争，现在还在进行着。其中一场（伊拉克战争）却是基于错误的情报发动的，并持续到今天。在这些持续的战争中，我们承受了四千一百年轻战士的死亡，三万伤员，三十万伊拉克人被杀（大部分为平民）以及高达八千亿美元的战争成本，而且我们还在继续在为此战争每月支付一百亿美元。我们的许多同盟国已经离开了我们，把部队撤回他们的国家。我们现在面临着自大萧条后80年以来最糟糕的金融危机。我们的失业率为七年来最高，股票市场现在比布什总统上任时要低许多。最糟糕的是，我们在全世界的信用之低恐怕史无前例。

这一切是怎么发生的？难道只是简单地责怪布什政府就行了？或是我们现在要处理的问题本来就是不可预知会发生的？那就是说，所有这些现在发生的糟糕的情形---是我们自己咎由自取？还是他们的发生是美国人的思维和行为方式导致的？

我认为所有已经发生的和将要发生的这一切都是美国的行为方式以及他的人民的行为方式决定的。我们才是这场麻烦的始作俑者。正是美国的“狂妄自大”---我行我素---才是这一切灾难的根源。我们在全世界的竞争对手们？此时他们一定在得意的看着这一景象：美国金融破产，两场看上去没有结尾的军事冲突。我们的长期盟友们（许多新的盟友们）已经从支持美国的’冒险事业”里打了退堂鼓。我们的朋友们再也不信任我们了。他们把他们国家的问题也归罪到美国头上了。

美国政府在他的公民面前也失去了信用。国会在其选民中的支持率现在只有9%，总统支持率仅仅27%。在有文明的历史以来，当人民对其领袖的支持率降低到如此数字的话，革命或政变通常为期不远了。

我们作为一个国家，将会有一场政变，这场政变会在2008年11月4日当美国人投票选出一位新的总统和国会新的代表时发生。新旧更替，除旧迎新。

为什么美国人民如此不信任他们自己的政府，他们大多人自己亲手选出来的政府？这是因为，我们，美国人民，感到被背叛了。我们可以肯定我们的领袖关于这场战争及其原因对我们说了谎。我们可以肯定我们的政府只是一味地迎合富人们—这次的华尔街救市就是很好的证明---当普通美国人民正在创纪录地失去他们的家园，失去他们的工作时。 就在上个月（2008年九月）就有十五万九千人失业。我不知道你怎么样，但是如果没有工作，你要支付房款，供养家庭，送孩子上学，给车子加油便极端困难。然而，当这些在我们自己的国家发生时，我们竟然还能够用七千亿美元帮助富有的华尔街银行和交易商摆脱困境。

美国人民已经看够了。改革一定会来到！无论好坏，历史会告诉我们。但是，正如物理学一样，自然界厌恶真空，政治也是如此。一场权利，一个新政府的焦点和政策将会发生急剧的转换。人民要求如此。

我想我们将看到一个与九十年代克林顿政府相似的新政府，一个我们作为国家与世界各国友好睦邻的政策，一个这样的国家：对解决国际问题不再采取单边主义行动或不再盛气凌人地要求我们的盟友支持我们的行动或面对一个不痛快的美国。我们过去就是反其道而行之，因而失去了我们长期盟友--欧盟的尊重。我们过去八年强迫他们在伊拉克，阿富汗直至中东乃至全世界支持我们。这些民主国家现在面临着自己人民的责难：他们自己国家的弊病，然后把这些问题的根源和矛头直指“美利坚合作国。”

过去美国人民受全世界爱戴。我们的风度，我们的文化，我们的诚实，我们的乐观主义精神在全世界备受尊敬。

现在美国人在欧洲几乎不受欢迎（特别是德国，意大利，和法国）。英国现在还是我们盟友，但与他们的紧张关系显而易见。那里的人民指责我们是他们灾难的根源。我们把他们拖入了战争，帮助他们在毁掉我们的银行系统同时也毁掉了他们的银行系统。美国欧币银行系统现在已是深陷泥沼。澳洲已经对这场看不到头的战争失去了胃口。

我们国家的金融系统是如此的崩溃以至于中国主权财富基金现在被找出来作为投资者来重塑我们破产的系统（特别是摩根斯坦利）。中国政府本身就是我们自己的国家财政债务第二大的买家（日本第一）。

为什么我们的政府在我们的公民们面前如此失去信用？要跟你的公民们解释是非常困难的。我们的金融系统如此崩溃，我们不得不拿穷人的钱给富人。但首先我们政府要从那个我们继续称之为“共产主义”的政府那里借钱。这样，我们才能把那笔钱给华尔街的富人们。 但是，既然我们是从“共产主义们”手里借钱 （既然我们自己再也没钱了），我们还是要归还的。那么，可怜的纳税人就理所当然地要把钱还给“共产主义们”了。那么华尔街的富人们呢？他们继续富裕。纳税人呢？ 继续捱穷。“共产主义们”? 当然，他们显而易见是最富有的了。

总而言之，也许对于我们所有的这些困难最好的答案就是成为“共产主义们“。归根结底，他们好像是唯一有钱的家伙们。他们的国家也是唯一一个过去五十年没有卷入过战争的主要超级大国。

（译者注： 作者为译者的美国先生。作者为国会议员蓝普森经济问题顾问，译者为国会议员亚裔代表和亚裔顾问）

(English Version):

A LOSS OF CREDIBILITY:

AN AMERICAN STORY

Roger Snyder ( October 5, 2008)

The past 8 years have not been kind to the United States. We were attacked in 2001 by Islamic terrorists. We have preemptively started 2 wars, both of which are still going on and one of which ( the Iraq war ) was started, and continues to this day, based on false information. In those continuing wars we have absorbed over 4100 of our young soldiers deaths, over 30,000 have been wounded, over 300,000 Iraqi’s have been killed ( most of them civilians ) and the cost of the war is approaching $800 billion and we continue to spend $10billion per month on the war effort. Many of our allies have left us and pulled their troops back home. We are facing the worst financial crisis in nearly 80 years since our Great Depression. Our unemployment is at a 7 year high, the stock market is now lower than when President Bush took office. Worst of all our credibility around the world is perhaps at an all time low.

How did this all happen? Is it so simple to just blame the Bush administration? Or were the current events we now must deal with simply inevitable to happen? That is to say, all the bad things going on now – were they going to happen anyway because of who we are? Were they going to happen anyway because of the way Americans think and behave?

I believe all the bad things that have happened, and continue to happen, is because of the behavior of the United States and the behavior of its people. It’s who we are that has put us in this mess. It’s the “swagger” of the American – that we can do anything we want – that is the root cause of all of these calamaties. And our competitors around the world? They must surely be enjoying the spectacle of a financially broken United States that is mired in 2 military conflicts that appear to have no ending. Our longstanding allies ( and many new ones ) have backed away from supporting further U.S. “adventures”. Our friends don’t even trust us anymore. They are now blaming their countries problems on the U.S. !

The U.S. Government has lost such credibility with its’ own citizens that our Congress has only a 9% approval amongst its voters. The Presidents approval rating is a mere 27%. In the history of the civilized world when people have disapproved of their leadership in such numbers as those a revolution or coup usually was the answer.

We, as a nation, will have a coup and that coup will take place on the first Tuesday of November 2008 when Americans will vote for a new President and new representatives in Congress. Out with the old in with the new.

Why do Americans so distrust their own government? The very government that they themselves voted in in a majority? It’s because we the people of these United States feel betrayed. We are certain our leaders have lied to us about the war and its cause. We are certain our government caters only to the wealthy as proved by the bailout of Wall Street – while ordinary Americans are losing their homes and their jobs in record numbers. Just last month ( September 2008 ) over 159,000 Americans lost their jobs. I don’t know about you but it’s very hard to make your house payments, feed your family, send your children to college and put gas in your car when you don’t have a job. However, with all that happening within our own country – we still can bailout the rich Wall Street Banks and traders with over $700 billion !

The American public has seen enough. Change will come. For good or bad, history will tell us. But, just as in physics, nature abhors a vacuum and so does politics. There will be a radical shift of power, focus and policy with a new administration. The people demand it.

I think we will see more of an administration that mirrors the Clinton Presidency of the 1990’s. A policy that we as a nation get along better with our neighbors around the world. A nation that no longer acts and behaves unilaterally towards problems around the world or bullies its allies to support our position or face an upset U.S. That’s why we have lost the respect of our longtime European allies. We have forced them these past 8 years to support us in Iraq, in Afghanistan, throughout the Middle East, and indeed around the world. These democratic governments are now facing the wrath of their own people who are blaming them for own ills which they then point to the root cause of all these problems – THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA !

In the past Americans were loved around the world. Our manners, our culture, our honesty, our whole sense of optimism were revered around the world.

Now Americans are hardly even welcome in Europe ( Germany, Italy and France in particular ).  The British are still our close allies but the tension with them is evident. The people there blame us for their woes. We have dragged them into wars and helped ruin their banking systems along with ours. The American – Euro banking system is in serious trouble. The Australians have lost their appetite for a war action that doesn’t appear to have an end.

Our countries finances are so broken that Chinese Sovereign Wealth Funds are now searched out as investors to shore up our broken system ( Morgan Stanley specifically ) and the Chinese Government itself is the second largest buyer ( Japan is first ) of our national debt from our own Treasury !

Why has our Government lost such credibility with its own citizens? Well, it’s hard to explain to your citizens that the financial system is so broken that we need to take money from the poor to give to the rich but first we have to borrow that money from a Government that our Government continues to call “communists”- so then we can give that money to the rich on Wall Street. But, since we “borrowed” it ( since we don’t have any money of our own any more ) from the “communists” we have to pay it back – so, the poor tax payer gets the privilege of paying back the “communists” and the rich Wall Street guys? Well, they’re still rich. The tax payer? He’s still poor. The “communists”? Well, they’re obviously the richest of all.

In summary, perhaps the best answer to all of our problems is to become “communists”. After all, they seem to be the only guys with any money, and their country is also the only major Super Power who hasn’t been involved in a war in the past 50 years.