十九世纪美国内战期间担任总统的林肯。林肯在竞选连任的时候遇到了重重困难。当时他对选民说: "Don’t change horses in the middle of the stream."
Horses就是“马”的意思,in the middle of the stream是指“河流的中间”。"Don’t change horses in the middle of the stream"也就是说:不要在过河过到一半的时候换你骑的马。就美国选举来说,这个俗语的意思就是:即便你们对我不满意,但是目前美国问题很多,不是换总统的时候。林肯的这句话很有名,竞选连任的官员经常引用他这句话。我们来举一个例子吧:
例句-1: I may have made a few mistakes in the last four years. But, my friends, let me tell you this--with the economy in bad shape, this is no time to change horses in the middle of the stream.
这位竞选连任的官员说:我可能在过去四年内犯了一些错误,但是朋友们,让我告诉你们,在目前经济那么糟糕的时候换人是不行的。”
下面我们再举一个选民说的话:
例句-2: I kind of like this new man because he has some fresh ideas. But I guess I’ll vote for the old guy who has the job now. Somehow, I just don’t like to change horses in the middle of the stream.
这个选民说:我倒是很喜欢这个新的候选人,因为他有些新主意。不过,我想我还是投票给那个现任的官员。不知什么缘故,我就是不喜欢中途换人。
很早以前在收音机和电视还没有出现的时代,竞选官职的人为了吸引公众的注意往往会雇一个乐队,让他们在一辆马车上演奏。马车上贴了许多标语,鼓励人们投某某人的票。这种有乐队的马车就叫bandwagon。要是这个候选人特别受人拥护,那些无足轻重的小政客就会登上那辆马车,让人们知道他们和这位名人关系很好。这就是jump on the bandwagon。
从字面上来看,这是“跳上有乐队的马车”的意思。实际上这种马车已经不存在,但是这个俗语还是经常使用的,它的意思是:站在某候选人一边,表示支持。下面是一个一直在观望的政客说的话:
例句-3: After the latest polls I think that Green is going to win. Let’s jump on the bandwagon right now and endorse the man before we get left behind.
这位政客似乎已经看准了风向。他说:根据最近的民意调查,我想格林是会当选的。我们得马上表态支持他,否则我们就会落后于形势了。
下面是一个对选举很感兴趣的人说的话:
例句-4: Sometimes you can tell who is going to win a big office like President or Governor by watching how many other politicians come running to jump on his bandwagon and get credit for supporting him.这个人说:有时候,你只要看有多少政客急急忙忙表态站在某个候选人一边,并想以支持他得到好处,你就可以知道谁会当选像总统或州长那样的重要官职了。
Don’t change horses in the middle of the stream. 不要在过河过到一半的时候换你骑的马
例句: I may have made a few mistakes in the last four years. But, my friends, let me tell you this--with the economy in bad shape, this is no time to change horses in the middle of the stream. 我可能在过去四年内犯了一些错误,但是朋友们,让我告诉你们,在目前经济那么糟糕的时候换人是不行的。
jump on the bandwagon 站在某候选人一边,表示支持
例句: After the latest polls I think that Green is going to win. Let’s jump on the bandwagon right now and endorse the man before we get left behind. 根据最近的民意调查,我想格林是会当选的。我们得马上表态支持他,否则我们就会落后于形势了。
例句: Sometimes you can tell who is going to win a big office like President or Governor by watching how many other politicians come running to jump on his bandwagon and get credit for supporting him. 有时候,你只要看有多少政客急急忙忙表态站在某个候选人一边,并想以支持他得到好处,你就可以知道谁会当选像总统或州长那样的重要官职了。