又中又英 | Flu season | 褚简宁

　　Most people who catch the flu feel like death warmed over. I always feel like death warmed over when I have the flu. I sometimes have a frog in my throat. If you feel like death warmed over, it means you feel extremely ill. If you have a frog in your throat, it means you find it difficult to speak or have lost your voice because of an illness such as flu. It often takes people with the flu about two weeks to return to tip-top shape. If you are in tip-top shape, it means you are in excellent condition. Athletes must be in tip-top shape to compete. 

　　We are now entering the flu season. After catching the flu several times during my younger years, I now get a flu shot every year. I believe in vaccines because I feel they can help prevent infections such as Covid and influenza. There is no guarantee that everyone who gets vaccinated will be totally safe. A small number of vaccinated people could still get Covid, flu, or other viruses but their symptoms will be mild, unlike unvaccinated people. US President Donald Trump has appointed Robert F. Kennedy Jr, son of the assassinated 1968 Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, the Health Secretary.

　　Kennedy is a vaccine skeptic, which means he doesn't believe in vaccines. He is skeptical about the effectiveness of the Covid vaccine and has fired many experts at his department who believe vaccines are effective. Kennedy has made it harder for Americans to get vaccinated and wants to change decades-old rules that require newborns and young children to get vaccinated against various diseases, such as measles. Experts have accused him of endangering the health of the country.

　　许多人患感冒的时候都感觉像death warmed over。当我感冒时就常常感觉像death warmed over，有时也有「青蛙卡在喉咙间」（a frog in your throat）。若你感觉像death warmed over，意即你病得很重。若你有a frog in your throat，意即你因为患病例如感冒，而难以发声又或失声。患上感冒通常需要差不多两星期才能恢复至tip-top shape—若你是in tip-top shape，意即你是在最佳状态。运动员出赛必须保持最佳状态（tip-top shape）。

　　我们已经进入了流感季节。我年轻时几度感染流感后，我每年都会打流感疫苗。我相信疫苗，因为我觉得它们能帮助我避免患上新冠肺炎与流感这些传染病。没有人能保证所有接受疫苗的人是完全安全的。一小部分打了针的人还是会感染新冠肺炎、流感或其他病毒，只是他们的病征会较轻微，不像没有打针的人群。美国总统唐纳德．特朗普就任命了小罗拔．甘迺迪为美国衞生部部长，他是1968年遇刺身亡的民主党总统候选人罗拔．甘迺迪的儿子。 

　　甘迺迪是个vaccine skeptic，意即他并不相信疫苗。他对于新冠肺炎疫苗的成效抱怀疑态度，并已将他部门内相信疫苗有效的许多专家炒掉了。甘迺迪令美国人更难打疫苗针，亦意图改变存在了数十年的固有规定，就是要求新生婴儿及幼童接种疫苗，防范像麻疹的各种疾病。专家们指责他危害整个国家的衞生健康。

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Michael Chugani褚简宁
中译：七刻