212 Suing the city council
212 控告市议会
“Thanks to suburbanization, sufficient attention has not been paid to our cities. What little attention there has been has not been substantive. That’s why I’m suing the city government.” Grant Franks seemed suited for the task. The son of 60’s radicals, he’s now a lawyer, railing against big business and a city government that willfully plays along. “Am I subversive?” He asks. “No, it’s the government that’s been subverting the people. Three successive city councils have acted in subterranean fashion, so subtle and cunning. They’ve suffused the suburbs with big businesses while they’ve failed to provide substantial aid to meet the basic subsistence needs of city dwellers. The citizens have silently succumbed to this sort of chicanery. I’m sorry, but that doesn’t suit me at all. I just don’t find that situation suitable.”
“由于郊区化，没有给予我们的城市足够的重视。这种重视实在太少。这就是我控告市议会的原因。”格兰特·福朗科斯似乎胜任这项任务。他是六十年代激进党派的后代，现在是律师，对大企业和市政府大加指责，市政府假惺惺地表示赞同。“我反叛吗？”他问道。“不，是政府在反叛人民。连续三届市议会都是暗中行事，如此诡秘狡诈。他们把大企业遍布于郊区，却没有提供足够的帮助来满足城市居民基本的生活需求。市民默默地受到这种欺骗。很抱歉，这样做根本不适合我。我只是觉得这种情况不合适。”
He claims his suit is not against suburbanites perse, but rather it is against those who seek to eradicate city life altogether by substituting one version of life for another. “We need a balance. Let’s take elementary subtraction as an example. To be succinct, if you have six on one side and give away three to another, balance remains. If you take two more, the original side is left with only one. You have to add two back to the original side to retain balance. But the city council only sees the subtractive element when it comes to cities. Take away from the city and give to the suburbs. When so much has been taken away, how can city folks subsist anymore?”
他说他的控告并非针对郊区居民本身，而是针对那些试图通过用一种生活模式替代另外一种生活模式去完全根除城市生活的人。“我们需要一种平衡。让我们举简单的减法为例。简要地说，如果一边是六，拿走三给另外一边便能保持平衡。如果多拿走两个，最初的一边只剩下了一个。必须拿回两个才能保持平衡。当涉及到城市时，市议会只看到减法原理：拿走城市的去贴补郊区。当这么多都被拿走之后，城市居民还怎么生活下去呢？”
Critics of Mr. Franks point out that he fails to substantiate many of his claims and exaggerates when he speaks of the city council. For example, on one occasion, Mr. Franks spoke of the council as “dictators.” But citizens are quick to point out that due to suffrage, no dictatorship exists. The case is set to begin in court next Tuesday.
福朗科斯先生的批评者指出，当谈到市议会的时候，他不能证实自己的说法，而且言过其实。比如，有一次，福朗科斯先生把市议会称为“独裁者”。但市民们很快指出，由于市氏拥有选举权，所以不存在独裁。该案定于下周二开庭。
Words:
subsist vi.活下去,生存
subsistence n.生存,生计,存活
substantial adj.相当的,可观的,坚固的
substantiate vt.证实,加强
substantive adj.真正的,实际的,有实质的
substitute vt.代替n.代替者,代替品
subterranean adj.地下的,地表下的
subtle adj.微妙的,细微的
subtraction n.减少,减法
subtractive adj.减去的,负的
suburb n.郊区
suburbanite n.郊区居民
suburbanization n.近郊化,郊区建造
subversive adj.颠覆性的,破坏性的
subvert vt.颠覆,推翻
successive adj.连续的,相继的
succinct adj.简明的,简洁的
succumb vi.屈服,屈从
sue v.向…请求,请愿,提出诉讼,控告
sufficient adj.足够的,充足的
suffrage n.选举权,投票权
suffuse v.(色彩等)弥漫,充满
suit vt.适合,适应
suitable adj.适当的,相配的
suited adj.适合的,匹配的