不出意外地，鮑里斯·約翰遜接替特蕾莎·梅，出任英國首相一職。7月17日下午，梅姨也最后一次以首相身份在倫敦查塔姆研究所發(fā)表長篇演說，在英國政壇留下自己最后的印記……她回顧了50余年的從政生涯，闡述一直以來堅持的政治信念！梅姨拋出問題：是做一位有執(zhí)著信念的政治家，還是一位實用主義者？"政治，并不是非黑即白非贏即輸，有時妥協(xié)中庸才是良策"！

中英全文

This will most likely be the last time that I will speak at length as Prime Minister, and I would like today to share some personal reflections on the state of politics in our country and around the world.

這應該是，我最后一次以首相身份發(fā)表長篇演說。今天我想談談，對英國政治現狀，以及世界政治狀況的一些個人看法。

Now I've lived politics for half a century. From stuffing envelopes for my local party in my school years to serving as a local councillor, fighting a by-election,winning a seat, serving for 12 years on the opposition front bench and for 9 years in the Cabinet as Home Secretary and Prime Minister.

我從政已逾半個世紀。高中時代，我便幫助地方保守黨分裝信封、派發(fā)傳單。后來擔任地方議員參加補選，最終贏得席位。之后，任反對黨前排議員12年有余，此后加入內閣，任內政大臣和首相整整9年。

Throughout that time, in every job I have done. I've been inspired by the enormous potential that working in politics and taking part in public life holds. The potential to serve your country, to improve peoples' lives and – in however big or small a way – to make the world a better place.

縱觀我的政治生涯,我做過的每份工作,我都一直深受鼓舞。參加政治工作、參與社會公共生活擁有著極大的潛能，讓我們能夠服務于國家、改善人民生活。無論力量強大或微小，都有機會讓整個世界變得更美好。

Both domestically and internationally, in substance and in tone. I'm worried about the state of politics. That worry stems from a conviction that the values on which all of our successes have been founded cannot be taken for granted. They may look to us as old as the hills, we might think that they will always be there, but establishing the superiority of those values over the alternatives was the hard work of centuries of sacrifice. And to ensure that liberal inheritance can endure for generations to come, we today have a responsibility to be active in conserving it, If we do not, we will all pay the price: rich and poor, strong and weak, powerful and powerless.

但如今，無論英國國內、還是整個世界。無論實際行動、還是語言表達。我對當前的政治現狀感到憂心忡忡。這種擔憂，源于這樣一種信念：絕不可將為我們帶來成功的基本價值觀視作理所應當。我們或許認為，這些價值觀落伍陳舊；我們或許認為，這些價值觀自始至終一直都在。但實際上，確立這些價值觀之于其他觀念的優(yōu)勢地位，是用幾個世紀來，奉獻犧牲的艱苦工作換得的。為確保自由民主的價值遺產能夠延續(xù)傳承幾代人，我們現在必須肩負責任、積極保護這些價值觀。若不這么做，我們必將付出代價：貧富懸殊、強弱分化、尊卑兩極。

As a politician, my decisions and actions have always been guided by that conviction. It used to be asked of applicants at Conservative candidates election meetings 'are you a conviction politician or are you a pragmatist'?

作為一名政客，我的一切決定和行動，自始至終都以這一信念為指導。以前，在保守黨員的甄選會議上，候選人會被問到一個問題："你是一位有執(zhí)著信念的政治家、還是一位實用主義者？"

I've never accepted the distinction. Politics is the business of turning your convictions into reality to improve the lives of the people you serve. As a Conservative——I have never had any doubt about what I believe in: security, freedom and opportunity, decency, moderation, patriotism. Conserving what is of value but never shying away from change. Indeed, recognising that often change is the way to conserve. Believing in business but holding businesses to account if they break the rules. Backing ambition, aspiration and hard work. Protecting our Union of nations –and being prepared to act in its interest.

我從不認為這二者有別。所謂政治，就是將你的信念變成現實，以改善你所服務的人民的生活。作為保守黨人，我從未懷疑過自己的信仰、安全、自由、機遇、正派、中庸、愛國、保存有價值的事物。但絕不規(guī)避改變，實際上要認識到，很多時候，改變也是保存的一種方式。對商業(yè)有信念，但若企業(yè)違反規(guī)則，就必須承擔責任、支持雄心壯志抱負宏愿和勤勉努力，保護我們的聯合王國，并時刻準備好，以其利益行事。

Even if that means steering a difficult political course. And remaining always firmly rooted in the common ground of politics where all great political parties should be. I didn't write about those convictions in pamphlets or make many theoretical speeches about them. I have sought to put them into action.

And actually getting things done rather than simply getting them said requires some qualities that have become unfashionable of late. One of them is a willingness to compromise.

即使這意味著，要走上一條艱難的政治道路，并始終牢牢扎根于共同的政治基礎。所有偉大的政黨都應如此，我倒沒有將這些信念寫在小冊子里，也沒有就這些信念發(fā)表過理論性演說。我試圖做的是，將這些信念付諸行動，要真正把事情做好，而不是簡單地空口承諾。這就要求，我們擁有一些，如今看來有點過時的品質，其中之一便是愿意妥協(xié)。

That does not mean compromising your values. It does not mean accepting the lowest common denominator or clinging to outmoded ideas out of apathy or fear. It means being driven by, and when necessary standing up for your values and convictions. But doing so in the real world – in the arena of public life where others are making their own case, pursuing their own interests. And where persuasion, teamwork and a willingness to make mutual concessions are needed to achieve an optimal outcome. That is politics at its best.

這并不意味著要違背你的價值觀，也不意味著要刻意迎合大眾口味，或是因冷漠或恐懼而抱住落后的想法不撒手。這意味著，要被你自己的價值觀和信念所驅使；并在必要時，堅決捍衛(wèi)它們。但在現實世界中，在公共生活的舞臺上，其他人都在自我展現、追名逐利。在這樣的舞臺上，只有說服勸說、團隊合作、并愿意做出相互讓步，才能實現最佳結果，這才是政治的最佳狀態(tài)。

The alternative is a politics of winners and losers of absolutes and of perpetual strife and that threatens us all. Today an inability to combine principles with pragmatism and make a compromise when required seems to have driven our whole political discourse down the wrong path. It has led to what is in effect a form of "absolutism", one which believes that if you simply assert your view loud enough and long enough, you will get your way in the end. Or that mobilising your own faction is more important than bringing others with you. This is coarsening our public debate. Some are losing the ability to disagree without demeaning the views of others.

政治的另一種選擇是：非贏即輸的極端狀態(tài)。絕對主義和永久的沖突，這將威脅到我們所有人。當前，政客們缺乏將原則和實用主義結合起來的能力，也不愿在必要時做出妥協(xié)，這似乎將我們的整個政治語言推向了錯誤方向。這導致了某種形式的"絕對主義"。對這些絕對主義者來說，只要你一直強調自己的觀點，聲音夠大，堅持得夠久。最終，你就會如愿以償、達成目的。拉攏小團體，動員派系斗爭比團結他人凝聚力量更為重要。這使我們的公共辯論，變得粗鄙不堪。對有些人來說，用貶低他人觀點的方式表達反對意見，已成為習慣。

Online technology allows people to express their anger and anxiety without filter or accountability. Aggressive assertions are made without regard to the facts or the complexities of an issue in an environment where the most extreme views tend to be the most noticed. This descent of our debate into rancour and tribal bitterness, and in some cases even vile abuse at a criminal level is corrosive for the democratic values which we should all be seeking to uphold. It risks closing down the space for reasoned debate and subverting the principle of freedom of speech. And this does not just create an unpleasant environment. Words have consequences and ill words that go unchallenged are the first step on a continuum towards ill deeds, towards a much darker place where hatred and prejudice drive not only what people say, but also what they do.

如今的網絡技術讓人們得以肆意泄憤和表達焦慮。語言不經篩選，也不會被問責。做出咄咄逼人的激進斷言，卻從不考慮事實或問題的復雜性，而且通常是在越極端的觀點越能吸引眼球的地方。發(fā)表此類言論，這導致我們的辯論陷入怨怒敵意和族群仇恨。在某些情況下甚至是犯罪層面的卑鄙虐待。這對我們都應力求維護的民主價值觀具有強烈的腐蝕性。不但給理性辯論空間造成了威脅，也違反了言論自由的原則。這不僅僅創(chuàng)造了一種不愉快的環(huán)境，言語會帶來后果。不受質疑的惡言是邁向惡行的第一步，掉入更黑暗的深淵。在那個深淵里，仇恨和偏見不僅掌控著人們的語言，也掌控著人們的行為。

We are living through a period of profound change and insecurity. The forces of globalisation and the pursuit of free markets have brought unprecedented levels of wealth and opportunity for the country and for the world at large. But not everyone is reaping the benefits. The march of technology is expanding the possibilities for humanity in ways that once could never have been conceived. But it is changing the nature of the workplace and the types of jobs that people will do. More and more working people are feeling anxious over whether they and their children and grandchildren will have the skills and the opportunities to get on. And although the problems were building before the financial crisis that event brought years of hardship from which we are only now emerging.

如今，我們身處一個社會劇變和缺乏保障的時代。全球化的力量和對自由市場的追求，給我們國家和整個世界都帶來了前所未有的財富和機遇。但并非每個人都得以從中受益。技術的進步，正在以前所未有的方式擴大人類的可能性。它正在改變我們工作場所的性質以及人們未來從事的工作類型。如今，越來越多的普通勞動者都在深感焦慮。他們?yōu)樽约?、也為自己的子孫后代而憂心忡忡。不知未來能否擁有，維持生計的技能和機遇。盡管這些問題早在金融危機前便已存在形成。而金融危機帶來的長達多年的經濟困境，如今才剛開始顯現。

Populist movements have seized the opportunity to capitalise on that vacuum. They have embraced the politics of division; identifying the enemies to blame for our problems and offering apparently easy answers. In doing so, they promote a polarised politics which views the world through the prism of "us"and "them", a prism of winners and losers which views compromise and cooperation through international institutions as signs of weakness not strength.

民粹主義運動抓住機會，利用這一真空，他們宣揚政治分裂，鼓吹我們的問題所在都是由于敵方的存在。對于復雜的問題，給出簡單輕率的答案。在這過程中，他們推動了一種兩極分化的政治。將敵我對立，通過"我們"和"他們"分化的棱鏡看待世界，一種非贏即輸的棱鏡。在他們看來與國際機構合作與妥協(xié)便是軟弱無能，而非力量的象征。

We are here today at St James' Square, the location from which Dwight Eisenhower led the planning for D-Day. It was standing on the beaches of Normandy with otherworld leaders last month, remembering together all that was given in defence of our liberty and our values that most inspired me to come here today to give this speech. Eisenhower once wrote:

"People talk about the middle of the road as though it were unacceptable"

"Things are not all black and white"

"There have to be compromises"

"The middle of the road is all of the usable surface"

"The extremes, right and left, are in the gutters"

我們今天在這里，在圣詹姆斯廣場。德懷特·艾森豪威爾領導諾曼底登陸計劃，就是在這里完成的。上個月，我與世界各國領導人一起站在諾曼底海灘，共同銘記為捍衛(wèi)自由和價值觀，我們所付出的一切，這也是激勵著我今天選擇這里發(fā)表演說的原因所在。艾森豪威爾曾寫道："人們在談論中間路線時，似乎都將其視為不可接受的" "但這世界并不是，非黑即白" "我們必須有所妥協(xié)" "其實道路中央才是可供行走的路面" "而左右極端，才會被困于路邊的溝壑中"

I believe that seeking the common ground and being prepared to make compromises in order to make progress does not entail a rejection of our values and convictions by one iota rather it is precisely the way to defend them. Not by making promises you cannot keep or by just telling people what you think they want to hear. But by addressing the concerns people genuinely hold

and showing that co-operation not absolutism is the only way to deliver for everyone.

我認為尋求共同點、并為取得進展而準備做出妥協(xié)，這絲毫不意味著要拒絕我們的價值觀和信念。相反，這恰恰是捍衛(wèi)價值觀和信念的方式，不是做出你無法兌現的承諾，也不是告訴人們你認為他們想聽到的事情。而是真正解決人們所憂慮的問題，并向他們展現：只有通力合作，而非絕對主義，才是服務于每個人的唯一方式。

For the future, if we can recapture the spirit of common purpose – as I believe we must, then we can be optimistic about what together we can achieve. We can find the common ground that will enable us to forge new, innovative global agreements on the most crucial challenges of our time from protecting our planet to harnessing the power of technology for good. We can renew popular support for liberal democratic values and international co-operation. And in so doing, we can secure our freedom, our prosperity and our ability to live together peacefully now and for generations to come. Thank you!

對于未來，如果我們能重拾共同目標的精神，我堅信我們必須這樣做。那么我們便可以樂觀期待未來能夠共同取得的成就。我們必須求同，從而才能達成全新的創(chuàng)新的全球協(xié)議，并迎接這個時代最關鍵的挑戰(zhàn)。從保護我們的地球到持續(xù)利用技術的力量，我們才能重新贏得民眾對于自由民主價值觀和國際合作的支持。由此以來，我們便可確保我們的自由、我們的繁榮以及我們現在和未來幾代人和平共處的穩(wěn)定生活。謝謝！

（來源：樂活英倫微信公眾號   編輯：yaning）