spanish english club: Weekly Bilingual News

Dear Friends:

Hello! Welcome to the Weekly Bilingual News, online communication of the Spanish-English Club! Today again we are sharing with you some comments we posted in important online publications during the last few days. All are interesting subjects for your debate and bilingual conversation. The Vocabulary included will help you.

LIBYAN TURMOIL - WSJ story: "Obama Says Gadhafi Must Leave" (Feb. 27, 2011) The article comments President Obama talked with the German Chancellor and both agreed Gadhafi has to leave Libya.

WSJ Journal Comment: "President Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have the right to say Gadhafi must leave, but the Libya's dictator always was hard and heartless with his people and enemies. Nothing new we are seeing from his side. Additionally, he knows how to evade international demands against him. Nobody will defeat him only with words."

2011 US FEDERAL BUDGET - WSJ Journal Community: "Will Congress pass a budget plan for 2011 in time to avert a shutdown of the federal government?" (Feb. 25, 2011) March 4 is the deadline to approve the 2011 budget of the federal government. During the last week some political analysts showed fears about a shutdown of the government if the members of the Congress don't agree about the 2011 budget.

Journal Community Answer (Feb 27, 2011): "After the political analysts expressed their fears, the last reports say that members of Congress are working to pass the budget plan for 2011 before the deadline. If Republicans and Democrats agree on this critical issue, it will be an important achievement after a lot of disagreements."

US SPATIAL FUTURE – PBS report: "Discovery's Launch Marks Beginning of End for NASA Shuttle Program" (Feb. 24, 2011) The report comments details of the mission for Space Shuttle Discovery lifted off Thursday from Cape Canaveral, Florida. It also says NASA will end the shuttle program shortly after this mission. This was the final mission of "Discovery".
Member Comment: "This moment with big economic problems and political disagreements about what are the first investment priorities, it is very difficult for NASA, but we have to make the best efforts to keep the space programs on the radar."

MOBILE COMPUTING WORLD - WSJ article: "Apple Updates MacBooks with Intel Technology" (Feb. 24, 2011) Apple updated its MacBook Pro family of mobile computers with the next generation of Intel processors and graphics that are twice as fast as the previous generation. The new dual-core and quad-core Core processors are based on the high-speed Thunderbolt I/O technology of the semiconductor maker that delivers 10 gigabits per second and can support all the important I/O standards.
WSJ Journal Community Comment: "Apple working with the next generation of Intel processors will be in the first line of updating mobile computers."

ETHICS OF LAWMAKERS – WSJ Journal Community Question: "Is it ethical for lawmakers to leave the state or avoid the statehouse in order to avoid a vote on legislation they oppose?" (Feb. 23, 2011) The question is about lawmakers of different states who are blocking the voting of laws they oppose.
Journal Community Answer: "It is not ethical for lawmakers to avoid a vote on legislation they oppose. Democracy requires the participation of all the lawmakers independently of their own ideas or opinions. They have responsibilities like every other public employee with their states and communities."

The main indexes of Wall Street closed the week in the negative territory. Dow Jones Industrial Average went down 260.80 points or 2.10% to 12130.45. It was the biggest weekly percentage drop since November 12, 2010. Nasdaq Composite fell 52.90 points, or 1.87% in the same period, to close at 2781.05. About these results we wrote the following comment at Data Points: U.S. Markets (WSJ, Feb. 25): "In this occasion, the fall of the major indexes of Wall Street has a clear explanation. The key factor was the chaos of Libya - important world provider of oil – that deepened the crisis inthe Arab world."

In summary, during the last few days, the turmoil in Libya was the main headline across the press of the world. In particular, Italy, France and Germany followed the news from the North African country very nervously because they are important buyers of the Libyan oil and they have investments in its petrol industry.

On Saturday February 26, the United Nations agreed on sanctions against the Gadhafi regime. On Sunday, February 27, press sources announced rebel groups advanced to Tripoli, the capital of the country. By the way, about the Libyan chaos we wrote the following comment in the Washington Post blog several days ago: "It is hard to recognize it, but the freedom route of Libya will be very bloody." (Washington Post: "Clashes spread closer to Tripoli; U.S. consults allies on Libya options", By Leila Fadel, Liz Sly and Howard Schneider Feb. 25).

In the United States, other important issues were: 1) the possible shutdown of the federal government, 2) the unions and collective-bargaining rights of the Wisconsin state workers, 3) the future of gay marriage, 4) the oil barrel price over $100.

In other news, PBS (Feb. 24) reported a Saudi Arabian citizen, a college student in US, was charged for a possible bomb plot against the house where former President Bush is living in Dallas, Texas. This case is a new sample of the terrorism threat due to extremist people who are living in the west countries.

Best regards,

Domingo

Domingo A. Trassens
Spanish-English Club
Electronic mail: domingo.trassens@gmail.com
URL: http://spaengclub.blogspot.com/

Questions - Preguntas:

1) From your point of view, what was the worst news for the week?
1) Desde vuestro punto de vista, ¿cuál fue la peor noticia de la semana?

2) And what was the best news from the week?
2) ¿Y cuál fue la mejor noticia de la semana?

Vocabulary - Vocabulario:

- against = contra
- ally, allies = aliado, aliados
- Arab = árabe
- avert = prevenir
- avoid = evitar, eludir
- barrel = barril - bloody = sangriento, sangrienta
- budget = presupuesto
- chaos = caos
- clash, clashes = choque, choques - closer = muy cerca
- collective-bargaining = contrato colectivo de trabajo, convenio colectivo de trabajo
- computer = computador, computadora
- dictator = dictador
- ethics = ética
- evade = evadir, eludir
- Gadhafi = Gadafi (others write Gaddafi).
- heartless = cruel
- I/O = entrada/salida
- lawmaker = legislador
- launch, launching = lanzamiento
- Libya = Libia
- Libyan, Libyans = libio, libia, libios, libias
- mobile computing = computación móvil
- processor = procesador
- program = programa
- petrol = gasolina
- oil = petróleo
- sanction, sanctions = sanción, sanciones
- Saudi Arabian = saudí, saudita
- shuttle = transbordador
- spatial = espacial
- statehouse = legislatura
- shutdown = cese o suspensión de actividades
- topple = derribar, volcar
- turmoil = desorden, alboroto
- union = unión, sindicato - update = actualiza

MEMBERS AND LIBRARY CORNER

Thanks to Bev, Bob, Erika, Freed, Joseph, Maria Waleska, Peter, Suzanne for your messages about the previous Weekly Bilingual News.
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