今日の英語ニュース☆2023.08.04☆時事英語・ニュース英語を極める
このnoteの目的は、アメリカのニュース番組が理解出来るようになる方法を伝えることです。その方法とは、英語字幕を読みながら英語ニュースを毎日見続けること。 こんな感じです（サンプルのスクリーンショット）。
使う教材は、上のリンクの動画です。
アメリカの公共放送PBSのニュース番組で、質の高い報道に定評がありますが、残念なことに、字幕に誤りがかなり含まれていることがあります。番組がアメリカで放送されてから約２時間で最終版の字幕がアップロードされますので、時間的制約を考えれば誤りは仕方がないことかもしれません。
しかし、英語学習者の場合、字幕に誤りがあると、変だと思っても、それが本当に間違いなのか分からないことがあると思います。あるいは、間違いに気付かないこともあるかもしれません。ですから、正確な字幕が必要です。
そこで、約１時間の番組ですが、英語音声をすべて聞いて、字幕の明らかな誤りを訂正したものをダウンロードできるようにしています（少し下にあります）。この字幕ファイルと動画をダウンロードして再生ソフトで使ってください（上のスクリーンショット動画のように再生できます。英語が速すぎる場合は、あまりおすすめしませんが、再生速度の調節もできます）。
また、このnoteや字幕ファイルでは、辞書を調べても分からないような英語表現を説明しています（辞書を引けば分かる言葉は、自分で調べてください）。辞書に載ってないような表現、辞書にあっても意味がたくさんありすぎてどれなのか分からない言葉、文脈の中で特殊な使われ方をしている言葉、背景の知識がないと分からない部分、ニュース英語や時事英語の独特な表現、知っていると訳に立ちそうな表現などを説明しています（書き加えた説明は[* ……] ）。
それでは、今日も一緒に英語のニュースを見ていきましょう！
■ 英語字幕ファイルのダウンロード
[PBS NewsHour Aug. 3, 2023] の字幕ファイルのダウンロード
（この字幕ファイルはテキストエディタ（windowsの「メモ帳」など）で開くことも出来ますが、下の「字幕ファイルの使い方」のように再生ソフト（無料）で使うことをおすすめします。こんな感じに表示されます。）ブラウザーによってダウンロードがブロックされる場合ば、下のテキストファイルをダウンロードして拡張子.txtを .lrcに変更して使ってください(例えば、Chromeは、.lrcのようなあまり使われない拡張子のファイルを危険と判断することがあるようです)。
■ 動画サイトへのリンク
・直接動画サイトを見る場合のリンクです(リンク先字幕の誤りは元のまま)
・分からない言葉はこの２つの辞書でたいてい見つかると思います
・上の字幕ファイルには、約１時間の番組の全字幕と語句説明があります
・以下はサンプル程度です
[00:00] Introduction
[02:21]★今日のおすすめ★ What happened in the courtroom during Trump's third arraignment this year
For the third time this year, former President Trump was arraigned on criminal charges. He was in federal court Thursday in Washington just a few blocks from the Capitol where a mob of his supporters rioted on Jan. 6. Trump pleaded not guilty to four felonies relating to efforts to overturn the 2020 election and cling to power. Geoff Bennett discussed the developments with Carrie Johnson of NPR.
[トランプ起訴、トランプ出廷、トランプ罪状認否、選挙結果転覆、法廷傍聴、次回出廷は８月２８日]
[04:07] And when the magistrate judge [** = In United States federal courts, magistrate judges are judges appointed to assist U.S. district court judges in the performance of their duties. Magistrate judges generally oversee first appearances of criminal defendants, set bail, and conduct other administrative duties. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_magistrate_judge ] took the bench, Trump paid close attention to her.
[08:25] News Wrap
In our news wrap Thursday, a federal judge formally imposed the death penalty on the gunman [* = Robert Bowers] who killed 11 people at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, the U.S. military is said to be mulling a major new move to stop Iran from seizing commercial ships in the Persian Gulf and researchers in California report waves are getting bigger as the world warms.
[12:25]★今日のおすすめ★ Bill Barr: Trump committed a 'grave wrongdoing' in Jan. 6 case
Former President Trump returned to Washington Thursday to face a federal judge on charges related to his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Geoff Bennett spoke with former Attorney General Bill Barr about the historic legal case his former boss is now facing and his book, "One Damn Thing After Another."
[ビル・バー、ウィリアム・バー、回顧録]
[13:10] WILLIAM BARR: Well, this case is a more serious -- first, I don't think Alvin Bragg's case is a legitimate case. I think it -- that is a political hit [** = political hitjob 以前の番組に出てきました ] .
[15:58] There was very grave wrongdoing here, and I think it's reasonable to say that it falls within the obstruction of a proceeding. That's not weaponization. That's enforcement of the law. And are there some -- some hair [** = (slang, uncountable) Complexity; difficulty; the quality of being hairy (wiktionary) ] on -- on the case? Is it going to be maybe hard to prove? Are there areas where they may not be able to make the case? Perhaps.
[19:38] And I also think that's sort of a bastardized [** to bastardize = to reduce from a higher to a lower state, such as by removing refined elements or introducing debased elements (wiktionary) ] version of what the real issue is. The real issue is whether it's possible to impose liability in this case without chilling other kinds of legitimate speech. I don't think the stuff that was involved here that is in the crosshairs of the prosecutor is stuff that he's entitled to do under the First Amendment.
[23:43] I'm opposed to cameras in court. I mean, our politics and our life is becoming more and more like a reality TV program, and everyone's posturing, and political conversation is all talking points [** = 政府や政党がまとめた訴えるべき論点で、それを閣僚や所属議員などがメディアで繰り返す ] and so forth. And I'd hate to see that start happening more and more in our courts, where it's performance, rather than substance.
[27:16] So, for example, the Democrats were constantly beating up the administration for not prosecuting people who lie when they get their guns, called lie and try. [** 次の文章がネット上にありました：Trump's Justice Department, as well as several states that do their own background checks, almost never prosecute what are called "lie and try" felonies. This is when someone legally barred from owning a gun — often a convicted felon, a violent spouse abuser or someone with a serious mental illness — lies on a federal background check to make a purchase. https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/09/19/gun-buyers-lie-and-try-only-12-prosecuted-editorials-debates/1288699002/ ] And they said, you're weak on guns. You're not prosecuting people who do that.
[28:20] Is his [* = Trump's] nomination inevitable, do you think?
WILLIAM BARR: No, I don't think so. I think the media and Trump and many others are way ahead of themselves. [** < to get ahead of oneself = to do or say something sooner than it ought to be done. 先走る]
[28:34] I think there's about 20 percent in the Republican Party who tend to support him, but they are very much attuned to [** = sensitive to; aware of and attentive to] his problems and are willing to shift.
[32:29] I found in the -- in his first term that the only way to really talk sense into him was to say, this is going to hurt you, and it's going to hurt your reelection chances, and so forth. He would then pay attention. So I am concerned that, in the second term, he will be off the hook [** off the hook = 文脈を考えると、「危機を脱する」ではなく、unhinged, crazyくらいの意味か] . There will be no way of controlling him, and he will also surround himself with yes-men.
[33:55] El Paso mass shooting survivors reflect on gun violence and grief 4 years later
Four years ago, a gunman entered a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, killing 23 people and wounding 22 others. The shooter targeted Hispanic shoppers in one of the deadliest attacks on Latinos in U.S. history and was sentenced in federal court to 90 consecutive life sentences. We hear reflections from two people intimately connected to the tragedy of that day.
[エルパソ、エル・パソ、銃乱射、ウォルマート]
[40:10] Rising COVID hospitalizations point to another summer surge in infections
Signs point to a COVID-19 summer surge for the fourth consecutive year. Overall, infections remain much lower compared to the past, but cases began increasing last month and between 300 and 400 Americans are dying each week. John Yang discussed the growing concerns with epidemiologist Dr. Katelyn Jetelina.
[コロナ、新型コロナ、サージ、感染拡大、Your Local Epidemiologist]
[46:13] Mojave Desert wildfire threatens California's iconic Joshua trees
Firefighters are working to control a massive blaze that swept through the California desert and into Nevada. A wildfire of this scale is not common in the Mojave Desert landscape, known for its unique vegetation and animal species. Stephanie Sy explores what has already been lost and why experts say it's unlikely for it to grow back.
[ジョシュアツリー、ジョシュア・ツリー、ユッカ、砂漠]
[50:03]★今日のおすすめ★ Why a small New England town celebrates its heritage by honoring frogs
It started with an obscure bit of colonial history, dating back to an unseasonably warm summer night in the mid-18th century. That episode led to a New England town continuing to celebrate frogs in sculpture, poetry and song. David Wright of Rhode Island PBS Weekly takes this leap of whimsy as part of our arts and culture series, CANVAS.
[カエル、蛙、bullfrog、植民地時代、1754年]
[52:25] SUSAN HERRICK: It's reported that it was -- there was a drought here at that time in 1754. Between late June and early July, apparently, it was pretty dry. And I think the pond had shrunk a little too much. And they gave up trying to hold territories [* = 縄張り] and did what we call mate acquisition strategy [** = 交尾相手を獲得する戦略] , switching. So instead of defending territories, they did what's called a lek [** lek = (biology) An aggregation of male animals for the purposes of courtship and display (wiktionary) ] , which is where all the males just sort of gathered together and display themselves, sort of like a singles bar, if you will.
[53:51] Nevertheless, when word got around that this little town had panicked, taking up arms against a bunch of bullfrogs... The story had legs. [** to have legs = if something has legs, people will continue to be interested in it, or it will be popular for a long time ]
[54:01] DAVID WRIGHT: The great Windham frog fight became an American Batrachomyomachia [** = The Batrachomyomachia... or Battle of the Frogs and Mice is a comic epic, or a parody of the Iliad, commonly attributed to Homer, although other authors have been proposed... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batrachomyomachia Wikipediaの右上のlanguagesに日本語のページへのリンクもあります ] , the stuff of epic comic poems, at least three of them. Before the U.S. had a national currency, banknotes issued by the Windham Bank featured a frog standing on top of another frog. In 1905, the local opera house even mounted an operetta, a musical, "The Frogs of Windham," which has enjoyed several local revivals. And, to this day, the local brewery has an annual Hop Fest.
[54:52] SUSAN HERRICK: Apparently, it was pretty embarrassing for the colonists back then. But, nowadays, we look back and we laugh, and we think, oh, that must have been the equivalent of nowadays online ribbing [* ribbing = the act or an instance of joking or teasing (thefreedictionary)] . You know, these ribbing...
(CROSSTALK)
DAVID WRIGHT: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
SUSAN HERRICK: Ribbiting.
DAVID WRIGHT: So, forever, these frogs will troll [** = to move around in (an area) or go to (different places) searching for something; to stroll about in order to find a sexual partner // to sing loudly, freely or in a carefree way // to post or make inflammatory or insincere statements so as to attempt to lure others into combative argument for purposes of personal entertainment or to manipulate others' perception, especially in an online community or discussion ] the town of Windham.