從麥凱恩的高峰亮節探融入主流社會

奧巴馬贏了。此時看奧巴馬沒啥意思，這個時候應該看麥凱恩，看他是怎樣麵對失敗的，看他是怎樣用英語表達他對失敗的看法的，學他的用詞、學他的風度、學他怎樣表揚人、學他怎樣讚許人、學他怎樣不平鋪直敘、學他怎樣把話說得婉轉而又生動。

MCCAIN: Thank you. Thank you, my friends. Thank you for coming here on this beautiful Arizona evening.

My friends, we have, we have come to the end of a long journey. The American people have spoken, and they have spoken clearly. (婉轉，承認大比分輸掉選舉)

A little while ago, I had the honor of calling Senator Barack Obama to congratulate him.

(BOOING)

Please. 請別這樣 (顯示大駕風度)

To congratulate him on being elected the next president of the country that we both love.

In a contest as long and difficult as this campaign has been, his success alone commands my respect for his ability and perseverance (堅韌). But that he managed to do so by inspiring the hopes of so many millions of Americans who had once wrongly believed that they had little at stake or little influence in the election of an American president is something I deeply admire and commend him for achieving.
他激勵起千百萬人們的希望 --  那些一度認為自己卑微到對美國選情幾無影響力的人們(暗指黑人)，這種成就是我深深敬佩和無上推崇的。

This is an historic election, and I recognize the special significance it has for African-Americans and for the special pride that must be theirs tonight. (非洲裔美國人此次投票創記錄，言外之意輸在他們身上)

I've always believed that America offers opportunities to all who have the industry and will to seize it. Senator Obama believes that, too. (轉而positive，美國給每個人機會)

But we both recognize that, though we have come a long way from the old injustices that once stained our nation's reputation and denied some Americans the full blessings of American citizenship, the memory of them still had the power to wound.

A century ago, President Theodore Roosevelt's invitation of Booker T. Washington to dine at the White House was taken as an outrage in many quarters.

America today is a world away from the cruel and frightful bigotry of that time. There is no better evidence of this than the election of an African-American to the presidency of the United States.

Let there be no reason now ... Let there be no reason now for any American to fail to cherish their citizenship in this, the greatest nation on Earth.

Senator Obama has achieved a great thing for himself and for his country. I applaud him for it, and offer him my sincere sympathy that his beloved grandmother did not live to see this day. Though our faith assures us she is at rest in the presence of her creator and so very proud of the good man she helped raise.

Senator Obama and I have had and argued our differences, and he has prevailed. No doubt many of those differences remain.

These are difficult times for our country. And I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face.

I urge all Americans ... I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited.

Whatever our differences, we are fellow Americans. And please believe me when I say no association has ever meant more to me than that.

It is natural. It's natural, tonight, to feel some disappointment. But tomorrow, we must move beyond it and work together to get our country moving again. (非常positive，換句話說，向前看)

We fought, we fought as hard as we could. And though we feel short, the failure is mine, not yours. (高風亮節之處，放低自己，贏得尊重)

AUDIENCE: No!

MCCAIN: I am so...

AUDIENCE: (CHANTING)

MCCAIN: I am so deeply grateful to all of you for the great honor of your support and for all you have done for me. I wish the outcome had been different, my friends.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: We do, too (OFF-MIKE)

MCCAIN: The road was a difficult one from the outset, but your support and friendship never wavered. I cannot adequately express how deeply indebted I am to you.

I'm especially grateful to my wife, Cindy, my children, my dear mother ... my dear mother and all my family, and to the many old and dear friends who have stood by my side through the many ups and downs of this long campaign.

I have always been a fortunate man, and never more so for the love and encouragement you have given me.

You know, campaigns are often harder on a candidate's family than on the candidate, and that's been true in this campaign.

All I can offer in compensation is my love and gratitude and the promise of more peaceful years ahead.

I am also, I am also, of course, very thankful to Governor Sarah Palin, one of the best campaigners I've ever seen ... one of the best campaigners I have ever seen, and an impressive new voice in our party for reform and the principles that have always been our greatest strength ... her husband Todd and their five beautiful children ... for their tireless dedication to our cause, and the courage and grace they showed in the rough and tumble of a presidential campaign.

We can all look forward with great interest to her future service to Alaska, the Republican Party and our country.

To all my campaign comrades, from Rick Davis and Steve Schmidt and Mark Salter, to every last volunteer who fought so hard and valiantly, month after month, in what at times seemed to be the most challenged campaign in modern times, thank you so much. A lost election will never mean more to me than the privilege of your faith and friendship.(說得多好，“一個輸掉的選舉對我的全部意義是你們的衷心和友誼之恩惠” ━  看看人家是怎樣形容失敗的，這就叫positive。有一失、必有一得，而所得勝於所失，這是人的世界觀了。)

I don't know, I don't know what more we could have done to try to win this election. I'll leave that to others to determine. Every candidate makes mistakes, and I'm sure I made my share of them. But I won't spend a moment
of the future regretting what might have been. (每個人都會犯錯誤，他沒有說 "I made a mistake, too"，而是用 "I made my share of them"，精采的英語，我們如果能說出這樣的英語，人家就高看我們了)

This campaign was and will remain the great honor of my life, and my heart is filled with nothing but gratitude for the experience and to the American people for giving me a fair hearing before deciding that Senator Obama and my old friend Senator Joe Biden should have the honor of leading us for the next four years.

(BOOING)

Please. Please.

I would not, I would not be an American worthy of the name should I regret a fate that has allowed me the extraordinary privilege of serving this country for a half a century.

Today, I was a candidate for the highest office in the country I love so much. And tonight, I remain her servant. That is blessing enough for anyone, and I thank the people of Arizona for it.

AUDIENCE: USA. USA. USA. USA.

MCCAIN: Tonight, tonight, more than any night, I hold in my heart nothing but love for this country and for all its citizens, whether they supported me or Senator Obama, whether they supported me or Senator Obama.

I wish Godspeed to the man who was my former opponent and will be my president. And I call on all Americans, as I have often in this campaign, to not despair of our present difficulties, but to believe, always, in the promise and
greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here.

Americans never quit. We never surrender.

We never hide from history. We make history.

Thank you, and God bless you, and God bless America. Thank you all very much.

看完這篇講演，我覺得與其說美國有種族歧視，不如說他們有“文化歧視”，更確切地說是“意識形態歧視”。怎麽講？我們是移民，我們的文化背景與他們不同，說話、辦事、思維方式，乃至開玩笑的方式都不一樣。一個說不到一塊兒去的人，人家怎能把你當圈兒內人呢？

那位說了，英語我這輩子是學不好了，那怎麽辦？辦法隻有一個 ━ 接受現實，移民的路是我們自己選的，接受它。君不見我們的下一代將在此地生根發芽、茁壯成長，難道這不是我們的初衷嗎？