在過(guò)去半個(gè)月的時(shí)間，美國(guó)政客、政府以及他們?cè)诰W(wǎng)絡(luò)世界和新聞媒體中的幫手，一直在炒作所謂“中國(guó)間諜氣球進(jìn)入美國(guó)領(lǐng)空”事件?？ㄋ柎髮W(xué)副教授法爾·穆賈希德·沙克認(rèn)為，美國(guó)對(duì)中國(guó)民用無(wú)人飛艇誤入美國(guó)領(lǐng)空一事大張旗鼓歪曲事實(shí)，是出于政客的政治需求。一個(gè)氣象氣球真的有那么重要嗎？顯然是的，因?yàn)樵趦r(jià)值約40萬(wàn)美元的響尾蛇導(dǎo)彈戲劇性地?fù)袈渲袊?guó)氣球后，美國(guó)總統(tǒng)拜登的支持率略有上升。

The whole fanfare of the United States' twists over a Chinese civilian airship is just what the political doctor ordered.
美國(guó)大張旗鼓地對(duì)中國(guó)民用無(wú)人飛艇誤入美國(guó)領(lǐng)空一事歪曲事實(shí)，正是美政客所需。

After all, US President Joe Biden's Republican detractors were ridiculing him for quite some time. His predecessor and rival in the 2020 presidential election, former president Donald Trump, as well as others are exploiting his incoherent ramblings, which have provided all the ammunition that conservatives needed to have a field day.
畢竟，美國(guó)總統(tǒng)拜登的共和黨批評(píng)者已經(jīng)抨擊他很久了。前任美國(guó)總統(tǒng)、2020 年總統(tǒng)大選拜登的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手唐納德·特朗普以及其他人正在利用拜登的胡言亂語(yǔ)，作為共和黨攻擊他的武器。

But, truth be told, this is what Republicans and Democrats have always done: grossly caricatured each other by name-calling and stigmatization. According to the Pew Research Center, many Republicans and Democrats associate negative characteristics with members of the other party — and positive traits with their own.
但是，這就是共和黨人和民主黨人一直在做的事情：通過(guò)辱罵和污名化來(lái)粗暴地諷刺對(duì)方。皮尤研究中心調(diào)查顯示，許多共和黨人和民主黨人將消極特征與對(duì)方成員聯(lián)系在一起，而將積極特征與自己聯(lián)系起來(lái)。

But the specific criticisms that Democrats and Republicans have of each other vary. The Democrats have the unfortunate stigma of being "doves" — a synonym for being "weak "and "soft on terror". On the other hand, Republicans are derided as "hawks" and warmongers who want fewer taxes and condemn the poor.

但民主黨人和共和黨人對(duì)對(duì)方的具體批評(píng)不同。民主黨人被指責(zé)是“鴿派”，表現(xiàn)"軟弱"和"面對(duì)威脅不夠強(qiáng)硬"。另一方面，共和黨人被嘲為"鷹派"和戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)販子，他們希望減少稅收并譴責(zé)窮人。

Facts mean little in this raw, unadulterated and juvenile contest to smear, since Democrats and Republicans alike justify US exceptionalism on their own terms. Still, perceptions matter. Or, should I say, the carefully constructed management of perceptions that serve vested interests matter.
在這場(chǎng)原始的、不加掩飾的、幼稚的抹黑競(jìng)賽中，事實(shí)毫無(wú)意義。因?yàn)槊裰鼽h人和共和黨人都以自己的方式為美國(guó)例外論辯護(hù)。不過(guò)，觀念還是很重要的?；蛘?，應(yīng)該說(shuō)，為既得利益者服務(wù)的精心構(gòu)建的執(zhí)政觀念很重要。

The balloon, the White House argued, was part of a larger Chinese surveillance balloon program, and this violated US sovereignty. The Chinese countered that the US was sensationalizing nothing more than a weather balloon.
白宮稱(chēng)，這個(gè)氣球是中國(guó)偵查氣球計(jì)劃的一部分，侵犯了美國(guó)的主權(quán)。中國(guó)反駁稱(chēng)，美國(guó)只是在借氣象氣球炒作。

The truth is not important to Washington politics, for a wonderful opportunity arose for the US to reclaim its global leadership — by shooting first, and asking questions later. They had to take the shot.
真相對(duì)美國(guó)政客來(lái)說(shuō)并不重要。因?yàn)閷?duì)美國(guó)來(lái)說(shuō)，出現(xiàn)了一個(gè)奪回其全球領(lǐng)導(dǎo)地位的絕好機(jī)會(huì)——“先斬后奏”。他們必須抓住這個(gè)機(jī)會(huì)。

It is in this context, of US culture wars, economic woes, societal fracturing and Biden's dismal approval ratings, that the mysterious balloon was a godsend. There's nothing like cold-hearted destruction to reaffirm caricatures of masculinity.
美國(guó)正在處于文化沖突、經(jīng)濟(jì)困境、社會(huì)撕裂和拜登支持率萎靡的背景下，這個(gè)神秘的氣球成了美國(guó)的一個(gè)天賜良機(jī)。沒(méi)有什么比冷酷無(wú)情的“摧毀”更能彰顯男子氣概了。

That is how the international mainstream media twisted Biden's balloon moment with gladiator-like heroism. Channel after channel ran the balloon escapade at the top of every hour. CNN, BBC, Sky News and even Deutsche Welle all scrambled to get the latest on the balloon incident. Others, not so amused, privately giggled at the buffoonery of making a mountain out of a molehill.
國(guó)際主流媒體就是這樣把拜登對(duì)氣球事件的回應(yīng)歪曲成角斗士般的英雄主義。各大新聞?lì)l道在每小時(shí)的頭條中報(bào)道氣球事件。美國(guó)有線電視新聞網(wǎng)、英國(guó)廣播公司、天空新聞，甚至德國(guó)之聲都爭(zhēng)相報(bào)道氣球事件的最新情況。另一些人則不以為然，私下里嘲笑這種小題大做的小丑行為。

To be clear, some in Washington argued that it wasn't enough to shoot it down. China needs to be taught a lesson, they said, and the US must not back down. Biden was dutifully playing that role of the unapologetic, no-nonsense tough guy who was guarding fortress America and would call out China's misdeeds.
需要說(shuō)明的是，美國(guó)一些政客認(rèn)為僅僅擊落中國(guó)的氣球是不夠的。他們說(shuō)，中國(guó)需要得到教訓(xùn)，美國(guó)絕不能退縮。拜登盡職盡責(zé)地扮演著守衛(wèi)美國(guó)堡壘并“揭露”中國(guó)“不當(dāng)行為”的專(zhuān)橫、干脆的硬漢形象。

The media coverage of the so-called Chinese "spy balloon "dwarfed that of the toxic spill from a train derailment in the US state of Ohio, the bombing of Gaza Strip, and even the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. It was unbelievable.
媒體對(duì)美國(guó)俄亥俄州火車(chē)脫軌造成的有毒物質(zhì)泄漏、對(duì)加沙地帶的轟炸，甚至是正在進(jìn)行的俄烏沖突的關(guān)注遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不如對(duì)所謂的中國(guó)"間諜氣球"的關(guān)注，這真是令人難以置信。

Was it really that important? Apparently so, since Biden's approval ratings ticked slightly upward after the dramatic downing of the Chinese balloon by a Sidewinder missile costing around $400,000.
這個(gè)氣球真的有那么重要嗎？顯然是的，因?yàn)樵诤馁Y約40萬(wàn)美元的響尾蛇導(dǎo)彈戲劇性地?fù)袈渲袊?guó)氣球后，拜登的支持率略有上升。

Following that, there was a massive US campaign and outrage over the Chinese balloons, with over 40 nations being briefed on US safety measures against such supposedly dangerous balloons. Another balloon soon appeared, but over Canadian airspace, and then two more. Again, without hesitation, they were all blasted out of the sky.
此后，美國(guó)發(fā)起了一場(chǎng)針對(duì)中國(guó)氣球的大規(guī)模運(yùn)動(dòng)以示憤怒，向40多個(gè)國(guó)家通報(bào)了美國(guó)針對(duì)此類(lèi)危險(xiǎn)的氣球采取的安全措施。另一個(gè)氣球很快出現(xiàn)在加拿大領(lǐng)空，隨后又出現(xiàn)了兩個(gè)。同樣，它們都被毫不猶豫地?fù)袈洹?/p>

However, the mainstream media is fickle. There was no sensationalist outcry, no dramatic footage of the downing of the balloons and no mass outrage. This balloon story lost steam. Here's some advice to the American people: Your welfare is not threatened by a balloon. It is threatened by mass shootings and by a ruling class that denies access to healthcare and affordable housing.
然而，主流媒體善變。沒(méi)有嘩眾取寵的抗議，沒(méi)有氣球墜落的戲劇性鏡頭，也沒(méi)有大規(guī)模的憤怒。這個(gè)氣球故事失去了價(jià)值。以下是對(duì)美國(guó)人民的一些建議：你們的社會(huì)福利不會(huì)受到氣球的威脅，卻會(huì)被大規(guī)模槍擊事件以及拒絕提供醫(yī)療保險(xiǎn)和負(fù)擔(dān)得起的住房的統(tǒng)治階級(jí)所威脅。

You are also threatened by the transportation crisis across the country, unlivable wages, disenfranchisement of voting rights impacting people of color, and astronomical levels of violence against women and girls. Know your enemy.
你們還面臨著全國(guó)交通危機(jī)、無(wú)法維持生計(jì)的低工資、有色人種的投票權(quán)被剝奪以及成千上萬(wàn)的婦女和女童被施暴的威脅。你們需要清楚真正的敵人是誰(shuí)。

來(lái)源：中國(guó)日?qǐng)?bào)

作者：法爾·穆賈希德·沙克（Farhan?Mujahid?Chak）卡塔爾大學(xué)政治學(xué)和國(guó)際事務(wù)副教授

編輯：董靜，李蕙帆（實(shí)習(xí)）

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