她还活着，在巴格达
几分钟前，看到Riverbend更新了她的Blog。
她说，2006年绝对是伊拉克人最糟的一年。伊拉克老百姓的日常生活只剩下认尸，躲避汽车炸弹，或是留心哪位家人又被拘捕，被流放，被绑架。
她也写到萨达姆的死刑：
Why make things worse by insisting on Saddam’s execution now? Who gains if they hang Saddam? Iran, naturally, but who else? There is a real fear that this execution will be the final blow that will shatter Iraq. Some Sunni and Shia tribes have threatened to arm their members against the Americans if Saddam is executed. Iraqis in general are watching closely to see what happens next, and quietly preparing for the worst. 为何要坚持立即处决萨达姆，以使事情变得更糟呢？谁会从吊死萨达姆一事上受益？伊朗，当然，可还有谁？一种真切的恐惧是，处决会成为吹倒伊拉克的最后一口气。已有逊尼和什叶派部族发出威胁，如果萨达姆被处决，便要武装其成员以抗击美国人。伊拉克百姓正密切关注事态发展，安静地为最坏的状况做着准备。
她的英文写得不完美，但不妨碍我们理解她的意思。她说，萨达姆已经什么都不是了，但美国的战争宣传机器及伊拉克傀儡非要把他说成是逊尼派阿拉伯人的代表和反抗的象征。对他的审判、裁决和行刑“百分之百是美国式的”，弄些伊拉克人做演员足矣，但这片子从导演到蒙太奇都是纯粹好莱坞式的（尽管成本很低）。
她说，美国人想撤出伊拉克，但很乐于在身后留下全面内战，因为如果他们走后形势得以好转，岂不是很不好看！
我想就此打住，但又想译出下面这两段话（我会随后写封邮件请求她的允准）。
Here we come to the end of 2006 and I am sad. Not simply sad for the state of the country, but for the state of our humanity, as Iraqis. We’ve all lost some of the compassion and civility that I felt made us special four years ago. I take myself as an example. Nearly four years ago, I cringed every time I heard about the death of an American soldier. They were occupiers, but they were humans also and the knowledge that they were being killed in my country gave me sleepless nights. Never mind they crossed oceans to attack the country, I actually felt for them. 2006年临近终点，我很悲伤。不单纯是为了国家的状况而悲伤，而是为了我们伊拉克人的人性状况。我们全都或多或少地失去了怜悯和斯文，四年前，我认为正是这些令我们与众不同。以我自己为例，四年前每次听闻美国兵的死讯，我都会感到惶恐。他们是占领者，但也是人，意识到他们在我的国家被杀死，夜里我就无法入睡。我意识不到他们跨洋来攻打我的国家，我真心为他们牵挂。
Had I not chronicled those feelings of agitation in this very blog, I wouldn’t believe them now. Today, they simply represent numbers. 3000 Americans dead over nearly four years? Really? That’s the number of dead Iraqis in less than a month. The Americans had families? Too bad. So do we. So do the corpses in the streets and the ones waiting for identification in the morgue. 如果不是把这些焦虑依序记录在这一blog里，此时我真难以相信曾做此感想。今天，他们仅仅代表着数字。过去四年里有3000个美国人死了吗？真的吗？这只是不到一个月里伊拉克人的死亡数字。那些美国人有家人吗？太糟了。我们也是。还有那些街上的尸体，那些在太平间等着认领的陈尸。
Whatever happens, HAPPY NEW YEAR, Riverbend. 无论如何，祝你新年快乐。
我不知道这位Riverbend,最让人沮丧的总是人性的沦落,也许因为那是我们一直关心的.
类似的沦落正发生在我们身边,与经济的迅猛增长并行.
情况会在增长到某个拐点之后发生向善的变化吗?
我无法乐观.
Comment by 赵健雄 — December 31, 2006 @ 9:00 am