導游

最近，美國球星、洛杉磯湖人隊的勒布朗詹姆斯對休斯頓火箭隊總經理莫雷發(fā)表的涉港不當言論提出了指責，這是不明智的行為。

中國日報美籍記者Ian Goodrum（伊谷然）就此撰文，揭露西方勢力打著“言論自由”旗號，煽動反華情緒的雙標行為。

下面，讓我們一起讀讀伊谷然的文章。

LeBron James of the National Basketball Association's Los Angeles Lakers demonstrated tact and thoughtfulness when he broke his silence on Houston Rockets manager Daryl Morey's tweet in support of the Hong Kong protests, lodging no opinion on the protests themselves and calling the move by Morey ill-advised.?"I believe he wasn't education on the situation, and he spoke," James said.

NBA洛杉磯湖人隊球星勒布朗·詹姆斯在休斯頓火箭隊總經理莫雷發(fā)推特表達對香港抗議支持一事上打破沉默，展現(xiàn)了什么叫老練和周到。他沒有就抗議本身提出什么觀點，只說莫雷的行為是欠考慮的。“我認為，他對這個局勢并不了解，但卻說三道四，”詹姆斯如是說。

Here, the 4-time MVP was probably right; pro-Hong Kong posts on Western social media are something of a bandwagon, and plenty of celebrities have vocalized their approval of the protests without fully comprehending the situation.?

此話不無道理，一些西方社會的名人沒有充分了解香港局勢就在社交媒體上表態(tài)支持抗議活動，而這種帖子往往引發(fā)廣泛關注。

James was, in essence, saying"no investigation, no right to speak."?

從根本上說，詹姆斯傳遞的意思是，沒有調查就沒有發(fā)言權。

Considering the consequences of Morey's hip-fired tweet — an enormous public backlash in China — that seems like pretty sage advice.

考慮到莫雷那條推文的惡劣影響，比如說遭到中國公眾強烈抗議，詹姆斯給出的建議看上去還是很明智的。

Unfortunately this was not how some in the US felt about it. Opinion elites were quick to condemn James for, irony of ironies, insufficient condemnation.?They wanted James to come out strong against China, to mirror their perspective on a country they've designated as an enemy.

可惜，有些美國人看不到這一點。諷刺的是，一些輿論引導者反而譴責詹姆斯的觀點。這些人想要讓詹姆斯反華，以傳遞出他們的對華態(tài)度。

But James wasn't playing their game, which naturally meant he had to be attacked. Social media played fast and loose with the facts, and claims about James grew more and more ridiculous. I haven't checked in a little while but it wouldn't surprise me if they've moved to calling him a treasonous fifth columnist.

詹姆斯沒有與他們沆瀣一氣，也就意味著他必然會遭到攻擊。社交媒體上有關詹姆斯的傳言越來越荒謬。就算有人稱他為內奸，我也不會感到奇怪。

A revolting hypocrisy is at work here.?The same people who told James and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick to "shut up and play" when they took a stand against the killing of Black men by US police are now demanding athletes speak out — but only if their opinions are the correct ones, of course.

這其中有種令人惡心的偽善——在詹姆斯和前舊金山49人隊科林·卡佩尼克發(fā)聲反對美國警方槍殺黑人時，有一股勢力站出來要求他們“閉嘴，好好打球”。如今要求他發(fā)聲的，還是這股勢力。只不過，只有傳遞他們的觀點才是正確的。

There's no doubt if James or the Houston Rockets' James Harden were more favorable toward the protests the Western press would be applauding their "bravery", as if agreeing with every politician and media outlet in the US requires courage. But because both players have advised caution and a better understanding of the situation, they're being raked over the coals.

毫無疑問，如果詹姆斯或者休斯敦火箭隊的哈登支持香港的抗議活動，西方媒體會稱頌他們的“勇敢”。但是，這兩位球星建議謹慎行事，更多地了解局勢。于是，他們就遭到了責難。

Let's not mince words.?No matter what anyone says, this isn't about freedom of speech.?That's just a fig leaf, a cover for policing discourse and narrowing the window of acceptable opinion so the only stances that fit are the ones in line with the US government.?

不管那些人說得多動聽，這件事本質上都不是言論自由的問題。言論自由只是他們的一塊遮羞布，掩蓋了其進行言論管控、縮小可接受觀點范圍的事實。如此一來，唯一被接受的立場就是與美國政府一致的立場。

"Free speech" has never really been about the untrammeled right to say or do whatever one wants — the US created broad definitions of dissent to prosecute its critics throughout its history.?

事實上，美國所謂的“言論自由”，從來就不是指一個人可以想說什么就什么、要做什么就做什么。從古至今，美國當局都在為自己創(chuàng)造條件以控告其批評者。

Insinuating James only answered the way he did because he was thinking of money implies James wasn't voicing his own opinion.?

含沙射影地稱詹姆斯出于金錢利益考慮才那么說，實際就是暗示他沒有發(fā)表真正的觀點。

If one of the most talented and popular athletes in the world has his statements dismissed when they don't conform to Western consensus, what does that mean for the rest of us?

詹姆斯作為世界上最有才能、最受歡迎的運動員之一，尚且會因為與西方社會觀點不一而遭到否定，那么我們這些普通人在這種情況下又會遭遇什么呢？

There's a widespread assumption any public figure who doesn't toe the anti-China line has been bought or coached, and this toxic belief has metastasized from the most hawkish wings of the "China expert" community to infect the general public.?

西方有些所謂的“中國問題專家”認為，不贊成反華的人，要么是被收買了，要么是被“洗腦”了。

It's a dangerous tendency. It denies agency to those who might have positive or even neutral impressions of the country, and delegitimizes any dissenting voices without any engagement with those impressions on their merits.?

這是種危險的趨勢，它否認了對中國持有正面或中立態(tài)度的那股力量，并且讓不同的聲音不能有效發(fā)出。

We got a preview of this trend late last year, when economist Jeffrey Sachs published a piece critical of the US position on Chinese tech firm Huawei. Sachs was, up to that point, a darling of the media class. Journalists, academics and others took turns leveling wilder and wilder accusations at Sachs. Sachs left social media shortly thereafter, never to return.?

去年發(fā)生在知名經濟學家杰弗里·薩克斯身上的事，正是證明了這一點。薩克斯一度是媒體的寵兒，然而就因為發(fā)表了一篇批評美國政府針對中國科技公司華為的文章，那些西方記者、學者轉而指責他。薩克斯隨后退出了社交媒體。

Cynicism runs rampant in the US government and its media hangers-on. To them, it would be impossible to think or say anything positive about a place they've determined in their vast wisdom is a nightmarish dystopia.?It's this same attitude that treats the Chinese government's policies to maximize employment and eradicate poverty as tools to ensure regime loyalty — as if steady employment and a higher quality of life aren't unambiguous good things a government pursues for their own sake.

犬儒主義在美國政府及其媒體中大行其道。對于他們不認同的，別人不能表示肯定。他們也是用這種態(tài)度把中國促就業(yè)、消除貧困視作其鞏固政權的工具，說得好像穩(wěn)定的就業(yè)和更高的生活水平不是政府理所應當追求的事情似的。

James shouldn't buckle to pressure from a jaded media class who've already shown their willingness to stab those they perceive as heretics in the back.?

詹姆斯不應該屈服于這些媒體的壓力。事實表明，它們不惜整死那些被自己視為異端的人。

They cheer for him when he wins championships, but want him to keep his mouth shut off the court.?But that's not his style. Whether denouncing police brutality or encouraging a more nuanced view of a heated political situation, James has never been afraid to challenge conventional wisdom.?

當詹姆斯奪得桂冠時，他們?yōu)樗麣g呼，卻又要他閉口不言。但是，那不是他的風格。無論是譴責美國警方的野蠻行徑還是鼓勵人們審慎看待政治局勢，都表明詹姆斯從不懼于挑戰(zhàn)傳統(tǒng)觀念。

來源：中國日報雙語新聞（ID：Chinadaily_Mobile）

作者：中國日報美籍記者伊谷然

編譯：嚴玉潔

編輯：唐曉敏

運營實習生：孫若馨