The most expensive White House race ever is throwing up a rich catalogue of gaffes and unwisely uttered truths.
Republican candidate John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama have seen their campaigns rocked recently by supporters who planted their feet squarely in their mouths.
Former senator Phil Gramm, a top McCain advisor, undercut his boss’s fervent efforts to show voters he gets their economic plight when he declared America a “nation of whiners” mired in a recession of the mind.
PHOTO: AFP
Civil rights icon Jesse Jackson insists he is a passionate Obama supporter but seemed to betray his real views in a whispered aside on an open microphone.
“I want to cut his nuts off,” Jackson said, accusing the Illinois senator of talking down to black people.
These are classic examples of people blurting out things they believe, but would be wise to keep to themselves — or as columnist Michael Kinsley once famously put it: a gaffe is when a politician tells the truth.
Obama foreign policy advisor Samantha Power took a trip to Britain during the primary campaign and appeared to leave her discretion back home.
Power branded Obama’s Democratic rival Hillary Clinton a “monster.” It’s a sentiment perhaps shared by some inside Obama’s campaign, but it jars with the high-minded tone he has adopted for his White House bid.
She resigned not long after that gaffe.
It’s not just surrogates who can get foot-in-mouth disease. McCain’s sense of humor sometimes causes him problems.
Last week, as tensions with Tehran flared, McCain was told by a journalist that US cigarette exports to Iran had soared. “Maybe that’s a way of killing them,” he quipped, before hurriedly adding: “I meant that as a joke.”
Perhaps the underlying message of all these missteps is that in a campaign as long as this candidates and their backers are bound to make mistakes. (AFP)
這場有史以來最花錢的白宮大位爭奪戰，頻頻傳出發言不當或輕率吐露真言的狀況。
共和黨候選人約翰．麥肯和民主黨的巴拉克．歐巴馬兩人最近都因幕僚失言而震撼選情。
麥肯的重要顧問前參議員費爾．葛蘭姆表示，心智衰弱的人民讓美國淪為一個「抱怨國」。麥肯積極想證明他了解選民的經濟困境，但費爾等於捅了他一刀。
黑人民權領袖傑西．傑克遜強調他是歐巴馬的狂熱支持者，但他卻在一支沒關的麥克風旁低聲說出「違心之論」。
傑克遜說：「我想把他給閹了。」他指責這位伊利諾州參議員貶低黑人。
這些都是人們脫口說出不該說的真話的典型例子；就像專欄作家麥可．金思利轟動一時的名言所說：政治人物說出事實就是失言。
歐巴馬的外交政策顧問莎曼珊．包爾在黨內初選期間出訪英國，結果她顯然把判斷力留在美國了。
包爾批評歐巴馬同黨的競選對手希拉蕊．柯林頓是個「怪物」。這可能是歐巴馬陣營內部部分人士對希拉蕊的看法，但卻有違他力倡的高格調競選。
她在那次失言後不久便主動請辭。
不只是代理人會說錯話，麥肯的幽默感有時候也讓他惹上麻煩。
德黑蘭上週試射飛彈造成國際情勢緊張，有記者告訴麥肯美國出口至伊朗的香菸數量大增，他就嘲諷說：「也許這是殲滅伊朗人之道，」隨後又趕緊補充說：「我說笑的啦。」
也許這種種失言背後的原因就是，在這種長期抗戰的選戰中，候選人和他們的支援團隊不可能不犯錯吧。
（法新社�翻譯：袁星塵）
A: Wow, singer Bruno Mars will be visiting Kaohsiung for the first time. B: Really? Where will he be performing? A: He’s going to hold a concert at the National Stadium on Sunday. B: Why do the Taiwanese like to call him the “Martian” in Chinese? A: Because his last name “Mars” is the same word as the planet Mars. A: 哇！火星人布魯諾將首度唱進高雄。 B: 真的嗎？在哪裡？ A: 他將於本週日，在國家體育場開唱唷。 B: 但是為什麼台灣人喜歡叫他火星人呢？ A: 因為他的姓氏「Mars」這個字剛好是「火星」的意思啊。 （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張聖恩）
A: Bruno Mars is definitely one of today’s most popular singers. B: He has even won 14 Grammy Awards. A: I love all his megahits, like “Just the Way You Are.” B: And his new song with Lady Gaga “Die with a Smile” has a caused worldwide sensation. A: I wonder if we’ll hear the new song at his Kaohsiung concert? A: 火星人布魯諾是近年來最受歡迎的流行歌手。 B: 對啊他還曾榮獲14座葛萊美獎。 A: 他所有的金曲我都愛，像《Just the Way You Are》。 B: 最近他和女神卡卡合唱《Die with a Smile》更造成大轟動！ A: 不知道在高雄有沒有機會聽他演唱這首新歌呢？ (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張聖恩）
You can’t help but notice the woman’s blonde hair, blue eyes, and bizarre outfit. She’s in a white dress that reaches below the knee and a Prussian blue jacket highlighted by a brooch on a ribbon at the collar. Together with her leather boots and the brown suitcase in hand, her overall look gives her an air of mystery. This distinctive appearance isn’t merely for style; it’s her way of embracing cosplay. Combining the words “costume” and “play,” cosplay is an art form in which participants dress up as specific characters, usually at anime conventions. It not only involves
Foxes are known for being cunning and resourceful, but a study suggests another surprising talent. Research from the Czech Republic indicates these creatures may use the Earth’s magnetic field when hunting. The study, led by Jaroslav ?erveny, tracked wild red foxes for over two years, recording nearly 600 hunting leaps by 84 foxes. Researchers found the animals predominantly jumped in a northeasterly direction, regardless of the time of day, season, or weather conditions. This preferred leaping direction resulted in a much higher kill rate, with foxes finding success on 73 percent of their northeasterly pounces on their prey. The results prompted
RSS