Britain's second so-called “great debate” last Thursday between the men who seek to lead the country was heralded as historic. In fact, it was a disingenuous display of the ability of practised politicians to pretend that they know the solution for the UK's major economic and political problems and that the country has reason to be hopeful about the future if it chooses wisely in May. In seeking to show themselves presidential, neither Gordon Brown, nor his principal adversary, the Conservative leader David Cameron, showed wit or wisdom. Both struggled to prove that they were reliable, the all-important quality. Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, the new boy on the block, proved himself an attractive, articulate debater. Not one of the three showed a command of foreign or domestic policy and, although all promised change, their proposals for domestic and foreign affairs reform were banal and mostly rhetorical.
上周四,幾位尋求成為英國(guó)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人的競(jìng)選者進(jìn)行了第二場(chǎng)所謂的“大辯論”,這場(chǎng)辯論被稱為是歷史性的。實(shí)際上,它是老練政客虛偽的表演秀——他們假裝知道如何解決英國(guó)主要的經(jīng)濟(jì)問(wèn)題和政治問(wèn)題,并佯稱如果英國(guó)在5月份做出明智選擇的話,就有理由對(duì)未來(lái)充滿希望。在試圖展示自己的總統(tǒng)素質(zhì)方面,戈登?布朗(Gordon Brown)和其主要競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手保守黨領(lǐng)袖大衛(wèi)?卡梅倫(David Cameron)都沒(méi)有表現(xiàn)出風(fēng)趣或智慧,都難以證明自己是值得信賴的——這是至關(guān)重要的一項(xiàng)素質(zhì)。作為一位參選的新人,自由民主黨領(lǐng)袖尼克?克萊格(Nick Clegg)證明了自己是一位富有魅力,能言善辯的辯手。這三人都沒(méi)有表現(xiàn)出自己精通外交政策和國(guó)內(nèi)政策,盡管他們都承諾變革,但他們對(duì)國(guó)內(nèi)事務(wù)和外交事務(wù)改革的提議缺乏新意,而且大多數(shù)華而不實(shí)。