When China locked down Wuhan, a city of 11 million people, Western commentators were quick to express concerns. After all, when a "communist government" locks down its city, what else could it be other than "draconian," "authoritarian" and "a violation of human rights"?
当中国政府对1100万人口的武汉市实施封城时，西方评论界立刻表达了担忧。毕竟，“共产党政府” 封锁城市，还能如何描述此举呢，除了“极其严苛”, “专制” 和“侵犯人权”。
Now, Italy has decided to do the same, locking down the entire country. However, apparently, the two lockdowns are not the same, at least, according to America's most-watched cable news network.
如今，意大利决定实施同样的政策，施行全国封城。显然，中意两国的封城不是一码事，至少在美国收视率最高的有线电视新闻网看来。
"Italy isn't authoritarian like China or backward like Iran. It is a modern developed Western country, in many ways, like our country," says Fox News host Tucker Carlson. "Italy is now suffering almost 100 casualties, people who died, every day, from the virus ... In a few months, if nothing stops the virus, there will be millions of cases here."
福克斯电视台主持人塔克•卡尔森在节目中指出：“意大利不像中国那样专制，也不是像伊朗那样落后。意大利是一个现代化的西方发达国家，在许多方面都与我们美国一样……意大利每日新冠肺炎病死人数接近100人……在短短几个月内，如果不采取有效的防疫措施，将使美国这里也有数百万感染病例, ”
From the right to left, a similar narrative is followed.
不论左翼还是右翼，美国媒体的话语是类似的
The Wuhan lockdown came at great cost to "people's livelihoods and personal liberties," whereas Italy's lockdown was an effort to "contain Europe's worst coronavirus outbreak," according to the New York Times.
纽约时报报道说，武汉的封城极大损害了“人们的生计和个人自由”，而意大利的封城则是“努力遏制欧洲最严重的新冠病毒爆发”
All this, while the world's top epidemiologists advised social distancing, while WHO observers on the ground said Wuhan's lockdown worked and while new cases in China have declined dramatically, with most regions outside Hubei Province reporting few if any new cases at all. Besides double standards, there's an ongoing blame game too.
尽管全球顶尖的流行病专家建议采取社交隔离, 尽管世界卫生组织的实地观察员指出武汉的封城有效, 尽管中国的新增病例数量显著下降，绝大多数湖北以外地区新增病例已经很少，或已归零, 除了双重标准外，一些人还玩起了指责的游戏.
Most recently from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who on March 9 called COVID-19 the "Chinese virus."
最近的例子是众议院少数派领袖凯文·麦卡锡在3月9日将新冠病毒称之为“中国病毒”
Right-wing media went one step further.
右翼媒体的指责更为激烈。
"An obscure virus arising from a meat market in eastern China to sicken American citizens in Oregon, in New Hampshire, in Illinois and midtown Manhattan. It sounds ridiculous," said Tucker Carlson.
塔克•卡尔森在节目中继续说到：“一种从中国东部一个肉类市场传来的不明病毒使得身在俄勒冈州、新罕布舍尔州、伊利诺伊州、曼哈顿中城的美国人病倒了，这太荒谬了。
Yes, the first cases were reported in Wuhan, China, and as Chinese, we do have a lot of introspection to do. There is no denying that. But factually, many, if not most, of the current cases in the U.S. were contracted locally, with the top four known sources being a cluster connected to a community in New Rochelle, New York; a nursing facility in Kirkland, Washington State; personal contact in the United States; and the Diamond Princess cruise ship.
是的，最早几个病例在中国武汉发现，中国人的确有许多需要自我反省的地方，这不应该否认。但就事论事地说，美国目前的大部分病例都是本地传播，最大的四个已知传播来源是：位于纽约州新罗谢尔的一个社区传播,华盛顿州柯克兰的一家养老院内的传播,美国境内的人员接触,钻石公主号邮轮上的传播。
Traveling in China ranked 15 as a source of contracting the virus.
因去中国旅行而感染在感染来源排序中列第15位
Instead of blaming China, maybe one could look at what's happening in America, where its leaders constantly downplayed the threat of the virus.
与其指责中国，一些人其实可以看看美国自身的情况，美国的领导层不断淡化病毒的威胁。
How's that helpful?
这样就可以抑制病毒传播吗？
U.S. President Donald Trump said on February 27 that the coronavirus would disappear one day like miracle. Then on his visit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on March 6, he stressed that "anybody right now and yesterday, anybody that needs a test, gets a test. "
美国总统特朗普在2月27日指出，有一天病毒会奇迹般地得到控制。在3月6日走访美国疾病控制与预防中心，他有说到：“所有那些曾经需要或依然需要测试的人现在能够被测试”
But even Trump's vice president said this was not true.
但特朗普的副手也指出这并不属实。
A day before Trump's visit to the CDC, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence stressed that the U.S. doesn't have enough tests to meet the anticipated demand going forward.
就在特朗普走访美国疾控中心的前一天，副总统迈克彭斯承认美国没有足够的测试剂测试所有人。
It's understandable that both parties, especially the incumbent, need to get the optics right in an election year. But as data shows, the initial lack of information, testing and coordinated national response, unfortunately, resulted in more infections.
I want to end on a happier note. After all, there are many out there who believe that in difficult times, our common humanity matters more than our differences.
可以理解的是，两党尤其是执政党需要在选举年展现良好的执政形象。但数据显示，由于起初的信息缺乏、测试不及时以及全国协调应对的乏力导致更多人不幸感染。
我想还是用轻松点的内容结束今天的讨论吧。毕竟，还有许多人相信，在艰难的时刻，我们人类的共性终将跨越分歧。
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