1
the US Senate confirmed Barrett to the Supreme Court
美國參議院批准巴雷特就任最高法院大法官
Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a conservative appeals court judge and protégée① of former Justice Antonin Scalia, was confirmed② last Monday to the Supreme Court, capping a lightning-fast Senate approval that handed Trump a victory ahead of the general election and promised to tip③ the court to the right for years to come. Republicans overcame unanimous④ Democratic opposition to make Judge Barrett the 115th justice of the Supreme Court and the fifth woman. The vote was 52 to 48, with all but one Republican supporting her. It was the first time in 151 years that a justice was confirmed without the support of a single member of the minority party. The vote concluded a brazen⑤ drive by Republicans to fill the vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg just six weeks before the election. (The New York Times)
10月26日，埃米·科尼·巴雷特獲批出任美國最高法院大法官，參議院閃電般的批准程序就此落幕。對特朗普來說，這是大選前的一次勝利。未來幾年，最高法院很可能會向右傾斜。巴雷特是保守派上訴法院法官，也是前大法官安東寧·斯卡利亞的女助理。參議院投票中，民主黨全體反對，共和黨議員中僅有一人投反對票。最終，她以52票贊成、48票反對，成為最高法院第115位大法官，第五位女性大法官。這是151年來首次沒有任何少數黨參議員支持，就任命了一名大法官。大法官露絲·巴德·金斯伯格謝世後，最高法院出現空位。共和黨人在大選前僅六週的情況下公然推動補位，至此告一段落。院批准巴雷特就任最高法院大法官
【註釋】
① protégée: [ˈprɒtɪʒeɪ] n. a female who is protected or trained or whose career is furthered by a person of experience, prominence, or influence 女門生／徒／客
② confirm: [kənˈfɜːm] vt. to vote approval of (the appointment of a person to an office); to ratify the appointment of (sb.) 表決通過｛某人的任命｝；同意任命｛某人｝
③ tip: [tɪp] vt. to put (sth.) into a position that is at an angle rather than upright 使傾斜
④ unanimous: [juˈnænɪməs] adj. if a decision or an opinion is unanimous, it is agreed or shared by everyone in a group 全體一致的
⑤ brazen: [ˈbreɪzn] adj. open and without shame, usually about sth. that shocks people 肆無忌憚的，無恥的，恬不知恥的
2
Ant Group’s mega-IPO
螞蟻集團超大規模IPO
Ant Group’s initial public offering has prompted a scramble① among investors to secure a piece of the world’s biggest ever stock sale, helping to push the fundraising total to almost $37bn. The Chinese payments group’s dual IPO across Shanghai and Hong Kong has generated huge demand among institutional funds eager to participate in one of the global market’s hottest deals, as well as retail traders willing to take on huge amounts of leverage②. The Shanghai side of the book-build was completed last Thursday, with banks triggering a so-called greenshoe option to increase the offering after record retail bids③ of Rmb19.1tn exceeded the share offer by more than 870 times. The expanded deal valued the company at about $316bn. The Hong Kong institutional book-build was completed last Wednesday, a day earlier than planned due to bumper④ demand. (The Financial Times)
螞蟻集團的首次公開募股，創下全球有史以來股票銷售規模之最。投資者爭相搶購，募資總額已近370億美元。這家中國支付集團將在上海和香港同步上市，基金公司和散戶都有意認購大量股票。螞蟻上市，是全球市場中最熱門的交易之一。基金公司渴望參與其中，散戶也願意承擔鉅額槓桿。10月29日，上海完成詢價圈購工作。此前，散戶申購額達到了19.05萬億元，是螞蟻集團股票的發行量的870倍，創下歷史紀錄。隨後，銀行行使所謂“綠鞋機制”（超額配售選擇權），增加發行量。擴大交易後，螞蟻集團估值約為3160億美元。由於需求異常旺盛，螞蟻集團在港股的機構發行部分已於10月28日完成詢價，比計劃提前一天。
【註釋】
① scramble: [ˈskræmbl] n. a situation in which people push, fight or compete with each other in order to get or do something 爭奪，搶奪
② leverage: [ˈliːvərɪdʒ] n. borrowed money or its use to supplement capital or to increase the earning power of a relatively small investment 槓桿
③ bid: [bɪd] n. an amount offered to pay for sth. 出價的金額
④ bumper: [ˈbʌmpə(r)] adj. unusually large 特大的
3
France imposed a four-week national lockdown
法國全境封鎖，為期四周
France entered a new month-long national lockdown from midnight last Thursday to apply a “brutal① brake” on coronavirus infections. Macron said that if the virus continued at the current rate, all of France’s intensive care beds would be filled with COVID-19 cases by mid-November, causing the cancellation of other essential and sometimes life-saving operations. The aim of the new restrictions was to reduce new infections from the current 40-50,000 a day to a treatable② 5,000 a day. Non-essential businesses, such as restaurants and bars, have been closed, but schools and factories remain open. Meanwhile, Germany will impose an emergency lockdown that is less severe but includes the closure of restaurants, gyms and theatres. Infections are rising sharply across Europe, including the UK which announced 310 new deaths and 24,701 new officially-recorded cases last Wednesday. (The Guardian and BBC)
10月30日零時起，法國開始實施全境封鎖，為期一個月，以期“緊急遏制”新冠傳染。法國總統馬克龍表示，如果病毒繼續以目前的感染速度傳播，到11月中旬，法國所有重症監護病床將躺滿新冠患者，這將令其他必要的、甚至是救命的手術無法開展。這次封鎖的目的，是將新增病例從目前的每天四到五萬例減少到每天五千例，這樣患者才能得到有效治療。餐館和酒吧等非必要商業場所已經關閉，但學校和工廠仍然開放。同時，德國也將實施緊急封鎖。德國的封鎖措施雖不如法國嚴格，但仍將關閉餐館、健身房和劇院。歐洲各地的感染人數正在急劇上升。10月28日，英國報告的新增死亡病例為310例，官方報告的新增確診病例為24,701例。
【註釋】
① brutal: [ˈbruːtl] adj. harsh and severe 嚴酷的，苛刻的
② treatable: [ˈtriːtəbl] adj. easily handled or dealt with 易處理的
4
the FBI investigated Hunter Biden over money-laundering allegations
FBI調查亨特·拜登的洗錢指控
The FBI has reportedly been investigating Hunter Biden, the son of Joe Biden, and his business associates① over allegations of money-laundering since 2019. An official with the Department of Justice confirmed the existence of the federal investigation, which remains active. Meanwhile, Hunter Biden’s former business partner Tony Bobulinski told Sinclair Broadcasting he has provided the FBI with digital evidence that he has indicated ties former Vice President Joe Biden to his son’s overseas business dealings. Two weeks ago, Bobulinski came forward with his claims that Joe Biden has been lying about his involvement in Hunter Biden’s foreign business ventures. The issue has resurfaced② following a New York Post article about an alleged email in which an adviser from a Ukrainian energy company, Burisma, thanked Hunter, for inviting him to meet his father. (The New York Post and BBC)
據爆料，美國聯邦調查局（下簡稱“FBI”）自2019年一直在調查針對喬·拜登之子亨特及其商業夥伴的洗錢指控。美國司法部的一名官員證實確有其事，且聯邦政府的這項調查仍在繼續。與此同時，亨特·拜登的前商業夥伴託尼·博布林斯基對辛克萊廣播公司表示，他已經向FBI提供了電子版證據，表明前副總統喬·拜登與其子的海外商業往來有關。兩週前，博布林斯基主動表示，在參與亨特海外商業投資一事上，喬·拜登一直在撒謊。此前，《紐約郵報》的一篇文章提到，烏克蘭能源公司布里斯馬（Burisma）的一名顧問感謝亨特邀請他與其父親拜登見面。這篇文章讓事件再次受到關注。
【註釋】
① associate: [əˈsəʊsiət] n. a person that you work with, do business with or spend a lot of time with 同事，商業夥伴，朋友，同志
② resurface: [ˌriːˈsɜːfɪs] vi. to reappear 再次出現
5
UK Labour suspends① ex-leader Corbyn
英國工黨暫停前黨魁科爾賓的職務
Britain’s Labour opposition suspended its former leader Jeremy Corbyn last Thursday after he downplayed② a report that detailed serious failings in the party’s handling of persistent anti-Semitism③ complaints during his 2015–2019 leadership. The Equality and Human Rights Commission said it had found evidence of failure to adequately train people investigating alleged anti-Semitism, political interference in the processing of complaints, and harassment of individuals. Corbyn reacted to the EHRC report by saying the scale of Labour’s anti-Semitism problem had been overstated by the media and his political opponents, and his attempts to deal with the issue had been blocked by “obstructive party bureaucracy”. Corbyn’s successor, Keir Starmer, said he accepted the findings in full. Corbyn’s suspension is likely to complicate Starmer’s job as leader by reigniting factionalism④ in the party. (Reuters)
10月29日，英國反對黨工黨前黨魁傑里米·科爾賓被暫停職務。此前，有報告指出，在2015年至2019年科爾賓任黨魁期間，針對工黨反猶主義的投訴始終存在，而工黨對投訴的處理十分不力。英國平等與人權委員會（下簡稱“EHRC”）表示，有證據顯示，在處理有關黨內反猶主義投訴的問題上，工黨未能充分培訓有關人員展開調查，並且對投訴人存在政治干預和騷擾。針對EHRC的報告，科爾賓回應稱，工黨反猶主義的嚴重程度被媒體和政治對手誇大了，他曾試圖解決問題，但受到“黨內官僚之風”的阻撓。科爾賓的繼任者基爾·斯塔默表示，他完全接受調查結果。科爾賓遭停職，黨內的派系主義重燃，斯塔默的黨魁工作很可能因此更加複雜。
【註釋】
① suspend: [səˈspend] vt. to officially prevent (sb.) from doing their job, going to school, etc. for a time, as a punishment or while a complaint against them is investigated 暫令｛某人｝停止參加活動
② downplay: [ˌdaʊnˈpleɪ] vt. to try to make sth. seem less important than it really is 對…輕描淡寫，貶低，低估
③ anti-Semitism: [ˌænti ˈsemətɪzəm] n. hate that is felt towards Jewish people; unfair treatment of Jews 反猶主義
④ factionalism: [ˈfækʃənəlɪzəm] n. the fact of tending to split into factions 派系分裂
6
Sean Connery, who embodied① James Bond, died at 90
曾扮演詹姆斯·邦德的肖恩·康納利逝世，享年90歲
Sean Connery, the irascible② Scot from the slums of Edinburgh who found international fame as Hollywood’s original③ James Bond, dismayed④ his fans by walking away from the Bond franchise⑤ and went on to have a long and fruitful career as a respected actor and an always bankable⑥ star, died last Saturday. He was 90. His many awards included an Oscar, two Bafta awards and three Golden Globes. He was knighted⑦ by the Queen at Holyrood Palace in 2000. (The New York Times and BBC)
10月31日，演員肖恩·康納利與世長辭，享年90歲。康納利是蘇格蘭人，出生在愛丁堡的貧民窟，性情暴躁。他是好萊塢首位飾演詹姆斯·邦德的男演員，也因此在全世界聲名鵲起。後來，他辭演邦德系列，令粉絲大為失望。在漫長的演藝生涯中，康納利又出演了很多作品。他是一名受人尊敬的演員，商業上也一直非常成功。他曾獲許多獎項，包括一次奧斯卡、兩次貝夫塔和三次金球獎。2000年，康納利在荷里路德宮被女王封為爵士。
【註釋】
① embody: [ɪmˈbɒdi] vt. to give a concrete form to (what is abstract or ideal) 使具體化，扮演
② irascible: [ɪˈræsəbl] adj. becoming angry very easily 易暴怒的
③ original: [əˈrɪdʒənl] adj. existing at the beginning of a particular period, process or activity 原先的，最早的
④ dismay: [dɪsˈmeɪ] vt. to make (sb.) feel shocked and disappointed 使驚愕
⑤ franchise: [ˈfræntʃaɪz] n. a set of films in which the same characters appear in related stories 系列電影
⑥ bankable: [ˈbæŋkəbl] adj. likely to make money for sb.（尤指娛樂業中）有利可圖的
⑦ knight: [naɪt] vt. to give (sb.) the rank and title of a knight 封｛某人｝為騎士
（復旦大學江默柔編譯，復旦大學章逍然、重光會王暖流審訂）
