字神帝國英語天地

今日主題：France’s government and business-- Angry pigeons / 法國政府和商業--憤怒的鴿子

康康精選GRE&GMAT會考的主題，堅持每天精讀一定會進步的哦!!
MP3音檔 (按右鍵可下載聽)：喜歡的同學，幫忙推或按讚哦~~
http://xia2.kekenet.com/Sou…/2016/…/eco160801_4528750NPh.mp3

只有音檔怎夠，聽不懂地方，不用怕，康康幫你準備好中英文稿了：

中英文稿：
France’s government and business-- Angry pigeons
法國政府和商業--憤怒的鴿子

An online revolt forces the government into an embarrassing tax climbdown
在線的抗議活動迫使政府陷入稅收讓步的窘境

Usually it takes millions of demonstrators on the streets to force a French government to back down. This time it took just 65,000 supporters of a social media campaign. Calling themselves les pigeons, or “suckers”, French entrepreneurs mounted an online revolt last week against the government’s plan to double capital - gains tax to some 60%. In an embarrassing climb down just days later, Pierre Moscovici, the finance minister, announced he would think again.
在通常情況下，幾百萬的群眾在大街上進行抗議遊行才會迫使政府為此做出讓步。但是這次只有65000名在社交網站上自稱“鴿子”，意為“傻瓜”支持者就完成了此項壯舉。那是由法國企業家所發起的一次網上抗議活動，用來反抗上週對資本利得稅翻倍至升至60%的政府法案。幾天后政府窘迫的做出了一個讓步，社會黨人——財政部長Pierre Moscovici,宣布，他將會就此作出討論。

These indignés of the start-up generation, protesting not at capitalism but at the Socialist government’s plans to limit their ability to make lots of money, were inspired by a newspaper article by Jean - David Chamboredon, a venture capitalist, denouncing new rules in the 2013 budget. In line with a campaign promise by Francois Hollande, the Socialist president, to tax “work and capital” equally, the budget taxes all financial income — whether from interest, dividends or capital gains — at top marginal rates for higher - band earners.
對於憤怒的創業一代來說，這一系列的抗議行為反抗的並不是資本主義本身，而是對社會黨政府的計劃經濟限制了他們賺取更多的財富感到不滿。而這一切都是受到了一位風險資本家—— Jean - David Chamboredon刊登在報紙上的一篇文章鼓動，他公開強烈譴責了2013年的政府預算報告中的新規定。社會黨Francois Hollande競選時承諾對勞資雙方平等徵稅，與此承諾相符的是，預算對利息、股息或資本利得等各項金融所得進行徵稅，而徵稅範圍越廣泛，邊際稅率越高。

The article touched a raw nerve. A Facebook page was created, as was the Twitter hashtag # geonpi, French slang for pigeon, and the revolt went viral. “I've never seen people so depressed. They ' ve had enough, they are leaving,” warned Marc Simoncini, an internet entrepreneur. The “pigeons” begged the government to understand that when an entrepreneur invests his money and hard work in a start - up and then sells it, that investment is not quite the same as the “sleeping capital” in shares that the government wants to tax so heavily.
這篇文章觸發了人們的脆弱神經。人們甚至在Facebook和Twitter上建立了相關頁面（在後者的標籤為“# geonpi”，意為法語俚語中的鴿子），反對之聲鋪天蓋地。跨國企業家Marc Simoncini說警告說：“我從未見過人們如此沮喪，他們似乎受夠了，正準備離開”。那群“鴿子們”希望政府們能理解企業家們篳路藍縷後出售家業。而這些投資並不像那些“沉睡資本”，但是政府卻想對這一部分徵稅。

Mr Moscovici now says that he will lighten the burden on capital gains for entrepreneurs, though he has ruled out altering his plans to tax capital and work equally. “What we want to tax isn ' t risk, but rent,” he insisted. The plan, still under debate, is to revert to the previous tax rate, but only if an entrepreneur holds on to his business for, say, five years.
但是Moscovici稱他將資本利得上的的負擔，儘管他要拒絕修改稅收徵管計劃，他堅稱：“我們的徵稅對象並非風險，而是租金”。而現在，這項備受爭議的計劃將要回到過去的稅率水平，但其前提是企業家們持續經營達到約五年時間。

Had the fiscal revolt been led by established employers ' groups, it might have been dismissed as special pleading. The government was not much impressed by bosses who argued that the new 75% top income - tax rate was a disaster. But the pigeon movement captured the imagination thanks to its spontaneity, its grass - roots nature and its youth. The biggest single age - group backing the movement on Facebook was 25- to 34- year - olds.
而這次抗議活動如果是由那些商業巨頭們領導的，可能會被當做一場特殊的請願而被駁回。而目前，當企業家們認為最高達75%的所得稅率對於他們來說是場災難的時候，政府卻對此不以為然。但是這場“鴿子運動”卻因其自發性,草根性以及年輕化引起了政府的注意。多為25~34歲的個人在Facebook支持此項運動。

The French, who gave the English language the word “entrepreneur”, are deeply ambivalent about business. In popularity polls, they seldom cite any businessmen. School textbooks rarely portray companies favourably. The angry pigeons may help win entrepreneurs more sympathy in France. If not, if will not be just the pigeons who are stuffed.
法國，這個在英語中賦予了“企業家”一詞的國家，卻對商業有如此復雜的情緒。在一項民意調查中，他們很少用“商人”去稱呼別人。而學校的教科書上幾乎沒有對公司有任何的讚美之詞。“憤怒的鴿子”的運動可能會使得企業家在法國獲得更多的同情。不然的話，被剝削的可就不僅僅只是這些'鴿子'了。