Why British MPs should vote for assisted dying
A long-awaited liberal reform is in jeopardy
in jeopardy：在危险中
jeopardy：美 [ˈdʒepərdi] 危险；危机；风险；
原文：
THIS NEWSPAPER believes in the liberal principle that people
should have the right to choose the manner of their own death. So
do two-thirds of Britons, who for decades have been in favour of
assisted dying for those enduring unbearable suffering. And so do
the citizens of many other democracies—18 jurisdictions have
passed laws in the past decade.
本报信奉自由主义原则，即人们有权选择自己的死亡方式。三分之二的英国人也是如此，他们几十年来一直支持对那些忍受难以忍受的痛苦的人实施安乐死。许多其他民主国家的公民也是如此——在过去十年中，有18个司法管辖区通过了法律。
学习：
assisted dying：安乐死
enduring unbearable suffering：忍受难以忍受的痛苦
jurisdictions: 具有法律管辖权的地区或区域
“Jurisdictions” 在这里指的是具有法律管辖权的地区或区域，例如一个国家、州、省或城市。这些地方的法律和法规是由它们自己制定和执行的。
例句：
- English: “Different jurisdictions have varying laws on assisted dying, reflecting local cultural and ethical values.”
中文: “不同的司法管辖区对协助安乐死的法律各不相同，这反映了当地的文化和伦理价值观。”- English: “In the United States, some jurisdictions, such as Oregon and Washington, allow physician-assisted dying.”
中文: “在美国，一些司法管辖区，例如俄勒冈州和华盛顿州，允许医生协助安乐死。”- English: “The company operates in multiple jurisdictions, each with its own tax and labor laws.”
中文: “这家公司在多个司法管辖区运营，每个地方都有自己的税收和劳动法。”
原文：
Despite this, Westminster MPs look as if they could vote down a
bill on November 29th that would introduce assisted dying into
England and Wales. They would be squandering a rare chance to
enrich people’s fundamental liberties.
尽管如此，威斯敏斯特的议员们看起来似乎可以在11月29日投票否决一项将安乐死引入英格兰和威尔士的法案。他们将浪费一个难得的机会来丰富人们的基本自由。
学习：
MP：议员
vote down：投票否决；否决
squander：浪费
rare chance：难得的机会
原文：
The proposal—put forward as a private member’s bill by Kim
Leadbeater, a Labour backbencher—seeks to set out the safeguards
that would govern assisted dying for the terminally ill. This will be
a free vote, in which MPs follow their conscience rather than a
party line and Ms Leadbeater has received no help from the
government, even though the prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has
said he is in favour. A few weeks ago, it looked as if her bill would
pass. Now opposition is growing and Sir Keir has taken up a
position on the fence.
该提案是由工党后座议员金·里德比特以私人议员法案的形式提出的，旨在制定管理临终病人安乐死的保障措施。这将是一次自由投票，议员们遵循自己的良心而非党派路线，Leadbeater女士没有得到政府的任何帮助，尽管总理凯尔·斯塔莫爵士已经表示他支持。几周前，她的法案似乎会通过。现在反对的声音越来越大，基尔爵士采取了中立立场。
学习：
private member：普通议员；非内阁成员议员；
backbencher：后座议员，普通议员
“Backbencher” 是指议会中并未担任政府或反对党高级职位（例如部长、影子部长或党鞭）的普通议员。这些议员通常坐在议会大厅后排，因此得名“backbencher”。他们的角色主要是代表选区利益，参与辩论并投票，而不是直接参与政策制定或领导决策。
例句：
- English: “As a backbencher, she focused on raising issues important to her local constituents.”
中文: “作为一名普通议员，她专注于提出对其地方选民重要的问题。”- English: “Many backbenchers supported the proposal, despite opposition from party leaders.”
中文: “尽管党领袖反对，许多普通议员还是支持了该提案。”- English: “After losing his cabinet position, he returned to being a backbencher in the House of Commons.”
中文: “在失去内阁职位后，他回到了下议院担任普通议员。”
safeguards：保护措施；（safeguard的复数）
terminally ill：绝症末期；病入膏肓；临终
conscience：良心；凭良心；道德感；
party line：政党路线；党派立场
on the fence：篱笆上；保持中立；持观望态度
原文：
You might think the debate over assisted dying· would be about
principles. But appealing to God or the sanctity of life would no
longer succeed in today’s Britain. Such arguments, however
sincere, operate in a space that is governed by individual
conscience, not the state.
你可能认为关于安乐死的争论是关于原则的。但是在今天的英国，求助于上帝或生命的神圣不再会成功。这种观点，无论多么真诚，都是在一个由个人良知而非国家控制的空间中进行的。
学习：
sanctity：美 [ˈsæŋ(k)tədi] 神圣；圣洁；不可侵犯性；
appealing to：诉诸于
原文：
What is more, the principle of assisted dying has already been
established. The courts have ruled that doctors can withdraw life
support from patients in a vegetative state. And Britons are free to
travel to Switzerland for an assisted death. Between 2016 and
2022, about 400 people did so.
此外，安乐死的原则已经确立。法院裁定医生可以撤销植物人病人的生命维持系统。英国人可以自由前往瑞士进行安乐死。2016年至2022年间，约有400人这样做了。
学习：
rule：裁决
life support：生命维持；生命维持系统；
vegetative：美 [ˈvɛdʒəˌteɪdɪv] 植物的；植物性的；植物人状态的
原文：
Ms Leadbeater’s bill extends this logic. Going to Switzerland to die
costs about £15,000 ($19,000); companions risk prosecution. The
bill would make assisted dying open to anyone who qualifies, rich
or poor, including those who need their family to be with them.
里德比特女士的法案扩展了这一逻辑。去瑞士死一次大概要15000英镑(19000美元)；同伴有被起诉的风险。该法案将使安乐死对任何有资格的人开放，无论贫富，包括那些需要家人陪伴的人。
学习：
prosecution：起诉
companion：同伴
原文：
Those who can no longer defeat the bill on principle have therefore
joined those who worry about the details. But these arguments do
not withstand scrutiny either.
那些无法在原则上击败该法案的人因此加入了那些担心细节的人的行列。但这些论点也经不起推敲。
学习：
withstand：经受住；经得起；
原文：
Much of the running is being made by Wes Streeting, who as health
secretary has argued that access to palliative care is too hit-and-miss
to give terminally ill patients a genuine choice. That is a red
herring. The closest analogue to Ms Leadbeater’s proposed system·
is in the Australian state of Victoria, which passed its law in 2017.
It gathers data on palliative care and has found that assisted dying
does not happen more often in places where access is patchier.
Wes Streeting，作为卫生大臣，在推动这项议题时起到了主导作用，他认为临终关怀的获取渠道过于时好时坏，不足以为晚期病患提供真正的选择。这种说法实际上是个烟雾弹。与 Leadbeater 女士提议最接近的系统是在澳大利亚的维多利亚州，该州在 2017 年通过了相关法律。该系统收集临终关怀的数据，并发现即使在获取临终关怀不均匀的地方，协助死亡的发生率也没有更高。
学习：
running: 主导或推动进展的工作
这里的 “running” 意思是主导或推动进展的工作，特别是指在某个议题或活动中起带头作用。相当于说 Wes Streeting 在引领辩论或推动讨论。
- 例句
- English: “The running on climate change policy is being made by younger politicians.”
中文: “气候变化政策的推动主要由年轻政治家主导。”- English: “Much of the running in the debate over healthcare reform is being done by grassroots activists.”
中文: “医疗改革辩论的推动大部分由基层活动家完成。”
palliative：美 [ˈpæliˌeɪdɪv] 缓解性的；减轻症状的；起安慰作用的；治标不治本的；
palliative care：姑息疗法；姑息护理；临终关怀
hit-and-miss: 时好时坏、不稳定、靠运气
“Hit-and-miss” 表示时好时坏、不稳定、靠运气，即结果无法保证一致。
- 例句
- English: “The quality of service at the restaurant is hit-and-miss; sometimes it’s great, but other times it’s terrible.”
中文: “这家餐馆的服务质量时好时坏，有时很棒，但有时很糟糕。”- English: “His approach to problem-solving is hit-and-miss, often depending on luck.”
中文: “他解决问题的方法时好时坏，往往靠运气。”
herring：鲱；鲱鱼；鲱鱼肉
red herring：转移注意力的次要事物；转移注意力的次要事实；转移注意力的话题；
patchy: 不均匀、不完整或有缺陷
“Patchy” 指不均匀、不完整或有缺陷的分布，可以形容资源分布、服务质量等。
- 例句
- English: “The internet connection in rural areas is patchy at best.”
中文: “农村地区的网络连接质量顶多算得上不均匀。”- English: “The evidence supporting the theory is patchy and inconsistent.”
中文: “支持该理论的证据不完整且不一致。”
原文：
In any case Mr Streeting could afford to improve access to
palliative care. Those in the hospice sector in England believe that
an extra £350m-400m of annual statutory funding, around 0.2% of
the NHS budget, would allow them to meet demand fully. Even
then, the need for assisted dying would remain. One reason is that
in around 1% of cases, the best palliative care does not ease
physical pain; another is that most people choose assisted dying
because they want autonomy
无论如何，Streeting先生有能力改善临终关怀的可及性。英格兰临终关怀部门的那些人认为，每年额外的3 . 5亿到4亿英镑的法定资金，大约是国民保健服务预算的0.2%,将允许他们完全满足需求。即使那样，对安乐死的需求仍然存在。一个原因是，在大约1%的病例中，最好的临终关怀并不能缓解身体疼痛；另一个原因是大多数人选择安乐死是因为他们想要自主权
学习：
hospice：美 [ˈhɑːspɪs] 临终关怀机构
statutory：法定的；依照法令的；
meet demand fully：完全满足需求
ease physical pain： 缓解身体疼痛
autonomy：自主权；自决权
原文：
In a bold piece of ministerial judo, Mr Streeting also argues that the
health service, which he runs, is too broken to take on the burden of
assisted dying. Yet doctors already routinely make decisions over
life and death. Through the principle of “double effect”, doctors
can administer painkillers to terminal patients knowing that they
will cause death. One salutary consequence of Ms Leadbeater’s bill
would be to bring these obscure judgments into the light, and to
involve patients in them.
在一次大胆的部长级柔道策略中，Streeting 先生还声称，由他负责的医疗服务系统已经破碎不堪，无法承担协助死亡的负担。然而，医生实际上已经常规性地在生死问题上做出决定。根据“双重效应”原则，医生可以为临终患者使用止痛药，即使他们知道这些药物会导致死亡。Leadbeater 女士法案的一个有益结果将是将这些隐晦的决策公开化，并让患者参与其中。
学习：
ministerial：美 [ˌmɪnəˈstɪriəl] 部长级的；政府部门的；内阁成员的；
judo：柔道
这里的 “judo” 是柔道的意思，但在文章中属于比喻用法，表示一种巧妙转化形势或利用对手力量的策略。文章中提到的 “ministerial judo” 意味着 Wes Streeting 巧妙地将 NHS（英国国家医疗服务系统）的问题转化为反对协助死亡法案的理由。
- 例句
- English: “In a political judo move, she used her opponent’s criticism as evidence to strengthen her argument.”
中文: “通过一次政治上的巧妙反转，她利用对手的批评作为证据来强化自己的论点。”- English: “The company performed a piece of corporate judo, turning a PR disaster into a marketing triumph.”
中文: “公司进行了一次企业柔道，将公关灾难转化为营销胜利。”
bold piece: 大胆或果断的行为或举措
“Bold piece” 是指大胆或果断的行为或举措，在此处强调 Wes Streeting 的策略是非常大胆或有魄力的。
- 例句
- English: “Her resignation was a bold piece of defiance against the oppressive regime.”
中文: “她的辞职是对压迫政权的大胆反抗之举。”- English: “Launching the new product in a struggling market was a bold piece of strategy.”
中文: “在一个疲软的市场推出新产品是一项大胆的战略举措。”
administer：施用（药物等）
painkillers：止痛药；（painkiller的复数）
terminal patients：晚期病人
salutary：美 [ˈsæljəteri] 有益健康的；有益的；有用的；
原文：
Critics also raise concerns about the risk of coercion. But that is not
credible in this case. In Ms Leadbeater’s bill a person with around
six months to live must make sustained requests approved by two
doctors and a judge. The idea that an evil relative might go to great
lengths to kill someone who will shortly be dead makes no sense.
批评者还提出了对强制风险的担忧。但在这种情况下，这是不可信的。在Leadbeater女士的法案中，一个大约还有6个月生命的人必须提出持续的请求，并得到两名医生和一名法官的批准。一个邪恶的亲戚可能会竭尽全力去杀死一个即将死去的人，这种想法毫无意义。
学习：
coercion: 强迫；威压；强制；美 [koʊˈɜːrʒn]
relative：亲戚
go to great lengths：竭尽全力
原文：
Someone may choose an assisted death for fear of being a burden,
which is cited as a reason in four out of ten cases in Oregon, which
has had an assisted-dying law for longest. It would be better if
people didn’t feel burdensome, obviously, but that does not stop
them from making rational choices. Indeed, the option to die may
be all the comfort people seek: a fifth of those handed the
medication in Victoria never take it.
有些人可能因为害怕成为负担而选择协助死亡，这一原因在俄勒冈州（该州的协助死亡法实施时间最久）的案例中占了四成。显然，如果人们不觉得自己是个负担会更好，但这并不能阻止他们做出理性的选择。实际上，死亡的选择权本身可能是他们寻求的全部安慰：在维多利亚州，被批准服用药物的人中有五分之一从未服用它。
学习：
for fear of：以免；免得；唯恐；担心
burdensome：累赘的；繁重的；恼人的；
comfort: 心理安慰或情感上的宽慰
这里的 “comfort” 指的是心理安慰或情感上的宽慰，而不是物理上的舒适。在上下文中，选择协助死亡的选项本身能为患者带来一种安心，即便最终可能并不采取实际行动。
- 例句
- English: “Knowing that help was available if needed brought her great comfort during her illness.”
中文: “知道在需要时能得到帮助，这给了她在病中极大的安慰。”- English: “The idea of having control over his final moments provided him with comfort.”
中文: “对掌控自己最后时刻的想法让他感到宽慰。”
medication：药品；处方药；
A fifth of those handed the medication in Victoria never take it
这里的意思是在维多利亚州，被批准获取协助死亡药物的人中，有五分之一的人从未服用这些药物。这说明选择协助死亡可能只是患者寻求心理安慰的方式，而非他们一定会采取这一行动。
- 例句
- English: “A quarter of the tickets sold for the concert went unused, suggesting some buyers simply wanted to support the artist.”
中文: “四分之一的演唱会门票未被使用，这表明一些买家只是想支持这位艺术家。”- English: “Half of those prescribed the treatment never completed it, showing that the option was enough for some.”
中文: “接受这种治疗方案的患者中有一半从未完成，这表明对某些人来说，仅有选择的权利就足够了。”
原文：
Even if opponents of the bill are reassured by these arguments,
some cannot shake the fear that Ms Leadbeater’s law would be a
slippery slope. If they mean that the criteria would sneakily be
broadened to include the mentally ill or disabled without further
legislation, then the facts are against them. In no case has an
assisted-dying law restricted to the terminally ill expanded in this
way. In Canada the scope widened, but that was because the courts
enforced broad eligibility criteria derived from the country’s
existing Charter of Rights and Freedoms
即使该法案的反对者被这些论点所安抚，一些人也无法摆脱对Leadbeater女士的法律将会是一个滑坡的恐惧。如果他们的意思是在没有进一步立法的情况下，标准会悄悄地扩大到包括精神病患者或残疾人，那么事实对他们不利。在任何情况下，一部仅限于晚期病人的安乐死法律都不会以这种方式扩展。在加拿大，范围扩大了，但这是因为法院执行了源自该国现行《权利和自由宪章》的广泛的资格标准
学习：
reassured：使消除疑虑的；使放心的；被安抚
slippery slope：滑坡；危险的境地
原文：
If they mean that future legislation could extend the right to
assisted dying after due debate and consideration, then that is not
an argument against, but a recommendation. In the view of The
Economist, Ms Leadbeater’s bill is drawn too tightly. Oregon and
Victoria have shown that a doctor does not need to be present for
the medication to be safe. A High Court judge is unnecessary when
two doctors have already given their opinions. A prognosis of six
months or less to live is arbitrary and imprecise. A 21-day cooling-
off period is too long for people with only a very limited time to
live; in 2021 California reduced this period from 15 days to two.
None of that is an argument for voting down the current bill—
indeed it can improve as it passes through Parliament.
如果他们的意思是，未来的立法可以在经过充分辩论和考虑后扩展协助死亡的权利，那么这不是反对的理由，而是一个建议。在《经济学人》看来，莉德比特女士的法案设计得过于严格。俄勒冈州和维多利亚州的经验表明，没有医生在场，药物仍然是安全的。当两名医生已经给出意见时，高等法院法官的介入是没有必要的。预测剩余寿命为六个月或更短的限制是武断且不精确的。对寿命仅剩有限时间的人来说，21天的冷静期过长；在2021年，加利福尼亚州将这一期限从15天缩短至两天。但这些都不是否决当前法案的理由——事实上，它可以在议会审议过程中得到改进。
学习：
due： 适当的、充分的或正当的
这里的 “due” 意思是适当的、充分的或正当的，强调某个行为或过程是经过应有的审慎考虑和讨论的。在上下文中，“due debate and consideration” 表示经过充分的辩论和考虑。
- 例句
- English: “The proposal was approved after due consideration of its potential impact on the community.”
中文: “这项提案在充分考虑其对社区可能影响后获得了批准。”- English: “Due diligence is required before making such a significant investment.”
中文: “在进行如此重大投资之前需要进行适当的尽职调查。”
prognosis：美 [prɑːɡˈnoʊsɪs] 预后诊断；（医学上对疾病恢复可能性的）判断
cooling-off period：冷静期；冷却期；缓冲期；
argument：理由
这里的 “argument” 指的是理由、论据或主张，通常用于支持或反对某一观点。在上下文中，“argument against” 表示反对某事的理由，而"argument for" 则表示支持某事的理由。
- 例句
- English: “His argument for adopting renewable energy focused on its long-term cost benefits.”
中文: “他支持采用可再生能源的理由集中在其长期的成本效益上。”- English: “The argument against the policy was based on concerns over privacy.”
中文: “反对这项政策的理由基于对隐私问题的担忧。”
原文：
Ms Leadbeater’s bill would have been better if the government had
helped her prepare it, or if Sir Keir had set up a citizens’ assembly
that weighed up the evidence and presented MPs with an agenda.
The fact that he did not is one more example of his passive style of
government. But that is not a reason to reject it, either. We would
sooner that more Britons benefit from greater freedom, choice and
dignity than none does. MPs should reassure themselves about the
details of the bill, and then they should vote for it. ■
如果政府帮助她准备，或者如果基尔爵士成立了一个公民大会来衡量证据并向议员们提交议程，Leadbeater女士的法案会更好。他没有这样做的事实是他消极政府风格的又一例证。但这也不是拒绝它的理由。我们希望更多的英国人从更大的自由、选择和尊严中受益，而不是什么都没有。议员们应该对该法案的细节感到放心，然后投票支持该法案。■
学习：
would sooner： 宁愿；宁可
后记
2024年11月23日20点05分于上海。
