又中又英｜Short-term gain for long-term pain

Last summer was a scorcher. This summer is likely to be another scorcher. A scorcher is a day or period of very hot weather. The US space agency NASA said 2023 was the hottest since records began. Summer has just started in the northern hemisphere, but scientists say record-breaking heatwaves in many countries during June have already affected over five billion people or 60 percent of the global population, killing hundreds. When we are sick, we develop symptoms such as a fever, cough, or pain. It is our body\'s way of telling us to get medical help.

Last year\'s record-breaking heat and this June\'s heatwave are Nature\'s way of telling us Earth is sick because of climate change, which humans are causing by using unclean fuel. But political leaders in many countries are tone-deaf to this warning. If you are tone-deaf, it means you cannot recognize different musical notes. But tone-deaf can also mean not understanding how people feel about something or what is needed in a particular situation. Some political leaders, such as former US President Donald Trump, are climate change deniers, which means they don\'t believe in climate change.

Many world leaders know climate change is real but don\'t want to hurt the economy of their country by switching to cleaner but more expensive fuel. These world leaders should remember the old saying “short-term pain for long-term gain”. This means making sacrifices in the short-term, such as higher fuel prices, in return for future gains, such as a better environment by reversing climate change. But many political leaders are choosing short-term gain for long-term pain.

上一个夏季是个大热天（scorcher），看来这一个夏季也可能是另一个大热天（scorcher）。A scorcher是指非常灼热的一天或一段日子。美国航空机构太空总署说，二零二三年是有纪录以来最热的一年。北半球的夏季才刚刚开始，但科学家说许多国家在六月期间破纪录的热浪，已经影响超过五十亿人，即全球人口的六成，并导致数以百计的人死亡。当我们生病的时候，我们会出现一些徵状，例如发烧、咳嗽或疼痛，这是身体告诉我们需要求医的方式。

上年破纪录的炎热，以至今年六月的热浪，都是大自然告诉我们，地球因为气候变化而生病了的方式，气候变化则是人类使用不乾净的燃料所造成。然而，许多国家的政治领袖们对此一警告却是 tone-deaf——若你是 tone-deaf，意思是你是个音盲，不能辨别音调的；但 tone-deaf也可以解作不明白人们的感受，或在一个特定的处境里人所需要的。一些政治领袖，例如前美国总统唐纳德‧特朗普，就是 climate change deniers，意即他们否定气候变化的存在。

许多世界领袖都知道气候变化是真实的，却又不想损害自己国家的经济，转用更乾净但更昂贵的燃料。这些世界领袖好应记住这一句老话：“short-term pain for long-term gain”，它的意思是在短期内作出一些牺牲，例如付出更高的燃料价格，来换取将来的得益，例如逆转气候变化，创造更美好的环境。然而，许多政治领袖都选择了 short-term gain for long-term pain，以一时的得益，换来长远的痛苦。

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Michael Chugani褚简宁
中译：七刻