最熟悉的演讲

I stand here todayhumbledby the task before us,grateful感激的for the trust you havebestowed,授予mindfulof thesacrifices牺牲borne byour ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as thegenerosity慷慨的and cooperation he has shown throughout thistransition过度.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidentialoath誓言. The words have been spoken during risingtidesof prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet,every so often经常是这样, the oath is taken amidstgathering clouds and raging storms暴风骤雨. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill orvision of those in high office先见之明, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of ourforebearers克制, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been.过去是这样So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against afar-reaching深远的network of violence andhatred.憎恨Our economy is badly weakened, aconsequence结果of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost;jobs shed;散落businesses shuttered萧条. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthenour adversaries and threaten我们的对手威胁到了整个星球our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics.Less measurable but no less profound虽然无法衡量但是深远的是is a sapping of confidence across our land -- anaggingfear that America's decline isinevitable, and that the next generation mustlower its sights.降低他们的期待


Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a shortspan跨度of time. But know this,America: They will bemet.解决困难

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose overconflict and discord .冲突

On this day,we come toproclaim宣告an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come toset asidechildish things. The time has come toreaffirm重申our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation:the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirmingthe greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one ofshortcuts捷径or settling for less. It has not been the path for thefainthearted懦弱的胆小的-- for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches andfame.名誉Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things -- some celebrated, but more often men and women obscure in their labor -- who have carried us up the long, rugged path toward prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldlypossessionsand traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, theytoiledin sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places likeConcordandGettysburg;Normandyand Khe Sahn.

Time and again, these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They sawAmericaas bigger than the sum of ourindividual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the mostprosperous繁荣的, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protectingnarrow狭窄interests and putting off unpleasant decisions -- that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remakingAmerica.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action,bold勇敢的and swift, and we will act -- not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality andlower its cost.We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform. our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions -- who suggest that our system cannottolerate容忍too many big plans.Their memories are short健忘. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shiftedbeneath them在….之下-- that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works -- whether it helps families find jobs at adecentwage大方的工资, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account -- to spend wisely,reform改革bad habits, and do our business in the light of day -- because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whetherthe market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without awatchful戒备的眼睛eye, the market canspin旋转out ofcontrol -- and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only theprosperous繁荣的兴旺的. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart -- not out ofcharity救济金, but because it is the surest route to ourcommon good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced withperilswe can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, acharterexpanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: Know thatAmericais a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recallthat earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdyalliancesand enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility andrestraint.

We are thekeepers of this legacy.Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those newthreatsthat demand even greater effort -- even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leaveIraqto its people, and forge a hard-earned peace inAfghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life,nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror andslaughtering innocents,we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannotoutlastus, and we will defeat you.

For we know that ourpatchwork多元化   heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers. We areshaped形成by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, andemerged from显露出that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the oldhatreds憎恨shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soondissolve溶解; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and thatAmericamust play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based onmutualinterest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek tosow conflict,orblametheir society's ills on the West: Know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power throughcorruptionand deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing tounclench揭开your fist.

To the people of poor nations, wepledge保证誓言to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourishstarvedbodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie inArlingtonwhisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they areguardiansof our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment -- a moment that will define a generation -- it ispreciselythis spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it isultimatelythe faith and determination of the American people upon which this nationrelies依靠. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent'swillingnessto nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. Theinstruments仪器with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends -- hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity,loyalty and patriotism爱国主义-- these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history.What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world; duties that we do not grudgingly accept butrather seize gladly愉快的,firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence -- the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed -- why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a mostsacred oath.神圣的誓言

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year ofAmerica's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of anicyriver. The capital wasabandoned.无约束的The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was mostin doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

"Let it be told to the future world ... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue美德could survive... that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it]."

America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember thesetimeless words不朽的！. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested, we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back, nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God'sgrace优美upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.