中英文本

Green Card, a Perfect Solution?
绿卡，完美的解决方案？
Seven years ago, when I was visting Germany, I met with an official who explained to me that the country had a perfect solution to its economic problems. Watching the U.S. economy soar during the '90s, the Germans had decided that they, too, needed to go the high-technology route. But how? In the late '90s, the answer seemed obvious: Indians.
七年前我到德国访问。在那里我遇到了一个官员，他说这个国家已经找到了能够完美解决经济问题的方法。回首美国在20世纪90年代的经济腾飞，德国也走上了构建高新科技为核心的经济发展道路。但事实如何呢？在90年代后期，效果显而易见：印度。
After all, Indian entrepreneurs accounted for one of every three Silicon Valley start-ups. So the German government decided that it would lure Indians to Germany just as America does: by offering green cards. Officials created something called the German Green Card and announced that they would issue 20,000 in the first year.
印度人创建了硅谷三分之一的企业。所以德国政府决定走美国的老路，直接给印度人发绿卡让他们成为经济发展计划的主体。政府官员创造了一个叫做“德国绿卡”的东西，并宣布第一年会发放20000张。

Naturally, the Germans expected that tens of thousands more Indians would soon be begging to come, and perhaps the quotas would have to be increased. But the program was a failure. A year later barely half of the 20,000 cards had been issued. After a few extensions, the program was abolished.
自然而然，德国人盼望着数以万计的印度人涌入德国，或许绿卡的配额也要提高。可是计划失败了。一年后不到一半的份额发放了出去。再过了一段时间，这个计划被彻底废除。
I told the German official at the time that I was sure the initiative woudl fail. It's not that I had any particular expertise in immigration policy, so I understood something about green cards, because I had one (the American version).
我告诉那个德国官员当时我就觉得这个计划会失败。这并不是我在移民政策方面是个地道的专家，但我了解绿卡，因为我就有一张美国绿卡。
The German Green Card was misnamed, I argued, because it never, under any circumstances, translated into German citizenship. The U.S. green card, by contrast, is an almost automatic path to becoming American (after five years and a clean record). The official dismissed my objection, saying that there was no way Germany was going to offer these people citizenship. "We need young tech workers," he said. "That's what this program is all about."
我说，德国绿卡是不合理的，因为就形式来说，它根本无法转换德国公民身份。而美国绿卡在其内涵上来说就像是一个让你成为美国人的道标（5年守法的留美经历）。这个德国官员反对了我所提出的异议，表示为大多数移民提供德国公民身份是个门都没有的事情。“我们需要的是年轻的技术人员”他说“这才是这个项目的目的所在”。
So Germany was asking bright young professionals to leavve their country, culture and families, move thousands of miles away, learn a new languaged and work in a strange land - but without any prospect of ever being part of their new home. Germany was sending a signal, one that was clearly received in India and other countries, and also by Germany's own immigrant community.
因此，德国让那些既年轻又精明的专家离开他们的国家、文化和家庭，跋涉数万英里，学一门全新的语言然后在陌生的国度上工作，但却永远无法在这块土地上获得能够让他建一个新家的空间。德国的这个信号正在清晰并不断地向印度和其他国家，以及那些属于德国的殖民地区传递。

重点讲解

1.Green Card 绿卡

例句：A Green Card, is evidence of your status as a lawful permanent resident with a right to live and work permanently in the United States.
在美国，绿卡是成为永久居民的法律证据，这样你就有权利永久地在这里工作和居住。

2.meet with 遇见；碰到

例句：They will surely meet with due punishment.
他们一定会受到应得的惩罚。
3.economy soar 经济腾飞

例句：In recent years, China's economy continues to soar, China entered into the era of credit economy and credit crisis appears to it accordingly.
近年来，随着中国经济的持续发展，中国进入信用经济时代，信用危机也跟随着出现。

4.account for 导致；占据；解释

例句：It says suicide deaths account for more than half of all violent deaths in the world - more than all deaths from wars and homicides combined.
世界卫生组织说，在世界上所有暴力造成的死亡中，自杀占了一半以上，比所有战争和凶杀造成的死亡总人数还要多。