根据最新计票结果，特朗普已获得至少270张选举人票，将成为美国第47任总统。
🤔️小作业：
1. What is the significance of Michael Jordan’s remark, “Republicans buy sneakers, too,” as mentioned in the passage?
A) It highlights the potential financial consequences of taking a stance.
B) It suggests that sports celebrities should always support candidates.
C) It emphasizes the unimportance of endorsements in modern elections.
D) It reflects Jordan's strong activist background.
无注释原文：
Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and the Billions of Ways to Influence an Election
From: The New York Times
Entrepreneurs become legends when they make big bets on technology that pay off in a huge and dramatic way. Elon Musk is now applying that all-or-nothing philosophy to a presidential election, tying his reputation and perhaps his future to a win by Donald J. Trump.
Jeff Bezos, the reigning swashbuckler of the internet age until Mr. Musk came along, was playing a cooler game, content to let Mr. Musk take the headlines and the risk. Then last week Mr. Bezos ventured — well, stumbled — into the heart of the news.
Among his many properties is The Washington Post, which he bought in 2013. The paper's editorial board was preparing to recommend the Democratic nominee for president, Kamala Harris, when Mr. Bezos canceled the endorsement at the last minute.
It wasn't supposed to be a big deal, just a ho-hum announcement of something not happening. Instead the greatest salesperson of the era, whose customer obsession had made Amazon into a colossus of modern retail, got the greatest customer rejection of a lifetime.
A quarter-million Post readers canceled their subscriptions, a figure first reported by NPR and then by The Post itself. That is about 10 percent of the total circulation. The speed and decisive force of the cancellations was a bit of a shock but also weirdly appropriate, said Danny Caine, author of “How to Resist Amazon and Why.”
“Amazon invented the whole notion of one-click culture, where you click a button and there's a bunch of toilet paper on your porch,” he said. “You can't get rid of a Tesla in your driveway with one click. But you can with the newspaper that Jeff Bezos owns.”
Those canceling said they felt Mr. Bezos was trying to curry favor with Mr. Trump, a charge he denied. The furor immediately exceeded any damage incurred by Mr. Musk since he endorsed Mr. Trump in July and became the former president's most visible fan, cheerleader and acolyte.
If customers are rejecting the electric vehicles made by Mr. Musk's car company, Tesla, for political reasons, it hasn't clearly shown up in the sales numbers. Mr. Musk implicitly dismissed the notion on X on Tuesday, reposting an admirer's note that said it wasn't happening.
Mr. Musk, Mr. Bezos and other extremely rich people are confronted with unusual opportunities and invisible perils in the tightest, most dramatic, chaotic and highest stakes battle in modern times. Everyone has a stake in this election, of course, but the very wealthy have so much at stake — or at least think they do — that they are perhaps inevitably trying to shape it, too.
Michael Jordan established the standard for many celebrities in 1990. The basketball superstar, who went to college in North Carolina, was asked about whether he would endorse Harvey Gantt, the Black candidate running to dethrone Jesse Helms.
“Republicans buy sneakers, too,” Mr. Jordan said. Mr. Helms narrowly beat Mr. Gantt.
Mr. Jordan later said it was an off-the-cuff remark, a joke even, but he did not really back away from it. “I never thought of myself as an activist,” he said. “I thought of myself as a basketball player.”
- ◆ -
注：完整题目见本文开头；中文文本为纽约时报官方译文，仅供参考
含注释全文：
Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and the Billions of Ways to Influence an Election
From: The New York Times
Entrepreneurs become legends when they make big bets on technology that pay off in a huge and dramatic way. Elon Musk is now applying that all-or-nothing philosophy to a presidential election, tying his reputation and perhaps his future to a win by Donald J. Trump.
在对技术进行重大押注并获得巨大且戏剧性的回报后， 企业家会成为传奇人物。埃隆·马斯克现在将这种孤注一掷的哲学应用于总统选举，将自己的声誉——或许还有未来与特朗普的胜利绑定在一起。
entrepreneur
entrepreneur /ˌɒn.trə.prəˈnɜːr/ 表示“企业家，创业者”，英文解释为“someone who starts their own business, especially when this involves seeing a new opportunity”举个🌰：He was one of the entrepreneurs of the 80s who made their money in property. 他是80年代靠做房地产生意赚钱起家的企业家之一。
legend
legend /ˈledʒ.ənd/ 1）表示“传说；传奇故事”，英文解释为“a story from ancient times about people and events, that may or may not be true; this type of story”
2）表示“（尤指某领域中的）传奇人物”，英文解释为“a very famous person, especially in a particular field, who is admired by other people”，如：a jazz/tennis legend 爵士乐/网球的传奇人物。
3）表示“（对图画、地图、硬币等的）说明，图例”，英文解释为“the words written on or next to a picture, map, coin, etc. that explain what it is about or what the symbols on it mean”
bet
bet /bet/ 表示“赌注”，英文解释为“an amount of money that you risk on the result of an event or a competition, such as a horse race”举个🌰：She had a bet on the race. 她参与了比赛投注。
bet big on sth/sb 1）表示“下大赌注于某事或某人”，英文解释为“to invest or risk a lot of money in the belief that something will happen”举个🌰：Global currency markets bet big on the pound remaining weak. 全球货币市场押注于英镑的持续疲软。
2）表示“孤注一掷”，英文解释为“to give a lot of support to something or someone, in a way that risks losing money or something else if they are not successful”举个🌰：Sponsors have found that betting big on one athlete is risky. 赞助商发现，只在一名运动员身上孤注一掷是有风险的。
all-or-nothing
表示“走极端”，英文解释为“relates to doing something either completely or not at all”举个🌰：She either loves you or hates you - it's all or nothing with her. 她要么爱你，要么恨你——就这么极端。
philosophy
philosophy /fɪˈlɒs.ə.fi/ 表示“哲学；哲学思想；哲学体系”，英文解释为“the use of reason in understanding such things as the nature of the real world and existence, the use and limits of knowledge, and the principles of moral judgment”
Jeff Bezos, the reigning swashbuckler of the internet age until Mr. Musk came along, was playing a cooler game, content to let Mr. Musk take the headlines and the risk. Then last week Mr. Bezos ventured — well, stumbled — into the heart of the news.
杰夫·贝佐斯玩的是一种更为冷静的游戏，在马斯克出现之前，他是互联网时代的叱咤风云人物。他乐见马斯克成为热点，让他去做那些有风险的事。但上周，贝佐斯自己却意外地闯入了新闻的暴风眼。
reigning
reigning /ˈreɪnɪŋ/ 表示“（冠军）本届的；现任的”，英文解释为“The reigning champion is the most recent winner of a contest or competition at the time you are talking about.”如：the reigning champion 卫冕冠军，举个🌰：She's the reigning champion at Wimbledon. 她是本届温布尔登网球赛冠军。
swashbuckler
swashbuckler /ˈswɒʃˌbʌk.lər/ 表示“（尤指过去）舞刀弄剑者”，英文解释为“someone who enjoys and looks for dangerous and exciting experiences, especially someone in the past such as a pirate or other person who fights with a sword”举个🌰：In Pirates of the Caribbean, Depp swaggered around as an unwashed swashbuckler. 在《加勒比海盗》中，德普的角色是一个大摇大摆、没教养、爱舞刀弄剑的人。
content
content /kənˈtent/ 作形容词，表示“满意的；满足的；知足的”，英文解释为“pleased with your situation and not hoping for change or improvement”举个🌰：He seems fairly content with (his) life. 他好像对生活相当满足。
作动词，表示“使满意，使满足”，英文解释为“to make someone feel happy and satisfied”举个🌰：My explanation seemed to content him. 我的解释似乎让他很满意。
venture
venture /ˈven.tʃər/ 1）作名词，表示“（尤指有风险的）企业，商业，投机活动，经营项目”，英文解释为“a business project or activity, especially one that involves taking risks”举个🌰：A disastrous business venture lost him thousands of dollars. 一个彻底失败的经营项目使他损失严重。
2）作动词，表示“敢于去；冒险去（或做）；冒昧地说”，英文解释为“to risk going somewhere or doing something that might be dangerous or unpleasant, or to risk saying something that might be criticized”举个🌰：As we set off into the forest, we felt as though we were venturing (forth) into the unknown. 当我们动身进入那片森林时，感觉自己似乎正在冒险进入一个未知的世界。
📺美剧《复仇》（Revenge）中的台词提到：This is brave new territory we're venturing into here. 这是我们华丽冒险的新地域。
📺美剧《宋飞正传》（Seinfeld）中的台词提到：You realize you're venturing into uncharted waters? 你意识到你在冒险进入未知水域吗？
stumble
1）作名词，表示“犯错；失足”，英文解释为“a false step, trip, or blunder / the act of stumbling”
2）更多情况用作动词表示“踉跄；绊脚”，英文解释为“If you stumble, you put your foot down awkwardly while you are walking or running and nearly fall over.”举个🌰：He stumbled and almost fell. 他绊了一下，差点儿摔倒。
3）表示“跌跌撞撞地走，蹒跚而行”，英文解释为“to walk in a way that does not seem controlled”举个🌰：We could hear her stumbling about/around the bedroom in the dark. 我们可以听到她摸黑在卧室里跌跌撞撞地走动。
4）固定搭配：stumble on / across / upon sth，表示“偶然发现（碰见）”，英文解释为“to find or discover something by chance and unexpectedly”举个🌰：Researchers have stumbled across a drug that may help patients with Parkinson's disease. 研究人员偶然发现了一种药物，也许可以治疗帕金森病。
stumble into sth表示“偶然开始做（某事）”，英文解释为“to start doing something by chance, without having intended to do it”举个🌰：He had stumbled into teaching English after he finished college. 大学毕业后，因为一个偶然的机会他开始教英语。
Among his many properties is The Washington Post, which he bought in 2013. The paper's editorial board was preparing to recommend the Democratic nominee for president, Kamala Harris, when Mr. Bezos canceled the endorsement at the last minute.
他的众多资产中包括《华盛顿邮报》，他在2013年收购了这家报纸。该报的编委会正要为民主党总统候选人贺锦丽背书时，贝佐斯在最后一刻取消了这一决定。
property
property /ˈprɒp.ə.ti/ 1）表示“属性，性能，特性”，英文解释为“a quality in a substance or material, especially one that means that it can be used in a particular way”举个🌰：One of the properties of copper is that it conducts heat and electricity very well. 铜的特性之一是导热导电能力强。
2）表示“房产，地产，房地产”，英文解释为“a building or area of land, or both together”举个🌰：He owns a number of properties on the south coast. 他在南部海滨拥有几处房产。
3）表示“所有物；财产；资产”，英文解释为“an object or objects that belong to someone”举个🌰：The club does not accept responsibility for loss of or damage to club members' personal property. 该俱乐部不承担会员个人财产丢失或损坏的责任。
nominee
nominee /ˌnɒmɪˈniː/ 表示“候选人；被提名人”，英文解释为“A nominee is someone who is nominated for a job, position, or award.”如：an Oscar nominee 获得奥斯卡提名的人。
补充：
📍nomination /ˌnɒm.ɪˈneɪ.ʃən/ 表示“提名，推荐”，英文解释为“the act of officially suggesting someone or something for a job, position, or prize”，举个🌰：There have been two nominations for the new job. 这项新工作有两位提名人选。
📍nominate 作动词，表示“提名；推荐”，英文解释为“to formally suggest that sb should be chosen for an important role, prize, position, etc.”举个🌰：He was nominated (as) best actor. 他获得了最佳男演员的提名。
endorsement
endorsement 名词，endorse /ɪnˈdɔːs/ 动词，1）表示“（公开）赞同，支持，认可”，英文解释为“to say publicly that you support a person, statement or course of action”举个🌰：I wholeheartedly endorse his remarks. 我真诚地赞同他的话。
2）表示“（在广告中）宣传，代言（某一产品）”，英文解释为“to say in an advertisement that you use and like a particular product so that other people will want to buy it”
3）表示“（在支票背面）签名，背书”，英文解释为“to write your name on the back of a cheque so that it can be paid into a bank account”
🎬电影《侏罗纪公园》（Jurassic Park）中的台词提到：After careful consideration, I've decided not to endorse your park. 仔细考虑以后 我决定不为你的公园背书。
⚠️这里补充一下，看到上面的「背书」你可能疑惑了，除了在金融上的含义，现在往往被用于政治领域。
📍例如，新华网2020年4月份一则新闻标题就为「奥巴马“背书”拜登」讲的就是奥巴马发声力挺拜登。
It wasn't supposed to be a big deal, just a ho-hum announcement of something not happening. Instead the greatest salesperson of the era, whose customer obsession had made Amazon into a colossus of modern retail, got the greatest customer rejection of a lifetime.
这本来不该是什么大事，不过是一个无聊的声明而已，宣布某事不会发生了。然而，这个时代最伟大的推销员、凭借对客户至上的理念将亚马逊打造成现代零售的巨头，却遭遇了一生中来自客户的最大拒绝。
ho-hum
ho-hum /ˌhəʊˈhʌm/ 表示“烦人的；平淡无奇的”，英文解释为“boring or ordinary”
obsession
obsession /əbˈseʃ.ən/ 表示“迷恋，痴迷，着魔；困扰；无法摆脱的念头；念念不忘的事（或人）”，英文解释为“an extreme unhealthy interest in something or worry about something, which stops you from thinking about anything else”如：an unhealthy obsession with being thin 对瘦的病态追求。
colossus
colossus /kəˈlɒs.əs/ 表示“巨大的人（或物）；极具影响力（或能力）的人物；巨人”，英文解释为“a person or thing of great size, influence, or ability”举个🌰：She has been described as the creative colossus of the literary world. 她被誉为文坛创作巨匠。
A quarter-million Post readers canceled their subscriptions, a figure first reported by NPR and then by The Post itself. That is about 10 percent of the total circulation. The speed and decisive force of the cancellations was a bit of a shock but also weirdly appropriate, said Danny Caine, author of “How to Resist Amazon and Why.”
25万《华盛顿邮报》读者取消了订阅，这一数字最先由NPR报道，然后邮报自己也做了报道。这大约占到总发行量的10%。《如何抵制亚马逊及其原因》一书的作者丹尼·凯恩说，取消订阅的速度和决心令人震惊，但也有着诡异的合理性。
subscription
subscription /səbˈskrɪp.ʃən/ 表示“（报刊等的）订阅费，订购款，订阅，订购”，英文解释为“an amount of money you pay, usually once a year, to receive regular copies of a newspaper or magazine, etc.; the act of paying this money”如：an annual subscription 一年期订阅。
circulation
circulation /ˌsɜː.kjəˈleɪ.ʃən/ 1）表示“（血液的）循环”，英文解释为“the movement of blood around the body”举个🌰：Exercise helps to improve circulation. 运动有助于促进血液循环。
2）表示“（信息）流传，传播；（货币或商品）流通”，英文解释为“the process in which something such as information, money, or goods passes from one person to another”
3）表示“（报纸杂志的）发行量，销售量”，英文解释为“the number of people that a newspaper or magazine is regularly sold to”举个🌰：The paper has a circulation of 100,000. 这份报纸发行量有10万份。
resist
resist /rɪˈzɪst/ 1）表示“抵制；阻挡；抗拒”，英文解释为“to refuse to accept or be changed by something”举个🌰：She resisted demands for her resignation. 她拒不答应她辞职的要求。
2）表示“按捺；忍住；拒受…的影响”，英文解释为“to stop yourself from doing something that you want to do”举个🌰：I can never resist temptation/chocolate/the urge to laugh. 我向来无法抗拒诱惑/我永远不可能抵挡巧克力的诱惑/我要是想笑，怎么也忍不住。
“Amazon invented the whole notion of one-click culture, where you click a button and there's a bunch of toilet paper on your porch,” he said. “You can't get rid of a Tesla in your driveway with one click. But you can with the newspaper that Jeff Bezos owns.”
“亚马逊发明了一键式文化的整个概念，你点击一个按钮，你的门廊上就会有一堆卫生纸，”他说。“你不能一键就让车道上的特斯拉消失。但你可以让杰夫·贝佐斯拥有的报纸消失。”
notion
notion /ˈnəʊ.ʃən/ 表示“观念；看法；理解；概念”，英文解释为“a belief or idea”举个🌰：The show's director rejects the notion that seeing violence on television has a harmful effect on children. 节目制片人们并不认为看到电视上的暴力场景会对孩子们造成不良影响。
porch
porch /pɔːtʃ/ 表示“门廊，走廊”，英文解释为“a covered structure in front of the entrance to a building”
Those canceling said they felt Mr. Bezos was trying to curry favor with Mr. Trump, a charge he denied. The furor immediately exceeded any damage incurred by Mr. Musk since he endorsed Mr. Trump in July and became the former president's most visible fan, cheerleader and acolyte.
取消订阅的人表示，他们觉得贝佐斯试图讨好特朗普，他否认了这一指控。相比之下，马斯克自去年7月宣布支持特朗普，成为这位前总统最引人注目的粉丝、拉拉队长和党羽所导致的损失立刻就显得没那么严重了。
curry favor
curry favor 表示“（尤指对当权者）讨好，奉承，拍马屁”，英文解释为“to praise someone, especially someone in authority, in a way that is not sincere, in order to get some advantage for yourself”举个🌰：He's always trying to curry favor with the boss. 他总是想方设法拍老板马屁。
furor
furore /ˈfjʊərɔː, -ə/ 的美式拼写，表示“狂怒，狂热；公愤，群情激愤”，英文解释为“a sudden expression of anger among a large group of people about something that has happened”举个🌰：The security leaks have caused a widespread furore. 安全漏洞激起了广泛的公愤。
exceed
exceed /ɪkˈsiːd/ 表示“超过，超出（数量）；超越（规定的范围）”，英文解释为“to be greater than a number or amount, or to go past an allowed limit”举个🌰：The final cost should not exceed ￥100. 最终的花费不应超出100元。
📍词根“-ceed”表示"走，去"，前缀“ex-”表示"出，超出"。近义词：surpass（超过），同根词：proceed（进行），succeed（成功）
incur
1）表示“招致；遭受，引起”，英文解释为“to experience something, usually something unpleasant, as a result of actions you have taken”如：to incur debts/fines/bills 招致债务/遭到罚款/要付账。
2）表示“引致，带来（成本、花费等）”，英文解释为“if you incur costs, you have to pay them”举个🌰：You risk incurring bank charges if you exceed your overdraft limit. 如果超出了透支限额，就有被银行加收费用的风险。
acolyte
acolyte /ˈæk.əl.aɪt/ 表示“追随者；侍者，助手；侍僧，教士助手”，英文解释为“anyone who follows or helps another person, or someone who helps a priest in some religious ceremonies”
If customers are rejecting the electric vehicles made by Mr. Musk's car company, Tesla, for political reasons, it hasn't clearly shown up in the sales numbers. Mr. Musk implicitly dismissed the notion on X on Tuesday, reposting an admirer's note that said it wasn't happening.
从目前的销售数据还看不出消费者在出于政治原因抵制马斯克的特斯拉电动车。周二，马斯克在X上隐晦地驳斥了这种说法，他转发了一位支持者的留言，称这种情况并不存在。
dismiss
dismiss /dɪˈsmɪs/ 1）表示“对…不予理会，摒弃，（从头脑中）去除”，英文解释为“to decide that something or someone is not important and not worth considering”举个🌰：I think he'd dismissed me as an idiot within five minutes of meeting me. 我认为他和我见面5分钟后就把我归入了傻瓜之列。
2）表示“解雇；免职；开除”，英文解释为“to officially remove sb from their job”举个🌰：She claims she was unfairly dismissed from her post. 她声称自己被无理免职。
Mr. Musk, Mr. Bezos and other extremely rich people are confronted with unusual opportunities and invisible perils in the tightest, most dramatic, chaotic and highest stakes battle in modern times. Everyone has a stake in this election, of course, but the very wealthy have so much at stake — or at least think they do — that they are perhaps inevitably trying to shape it, too.
在这场现代历史上最紧张、最富戏剧性、最混乱、风险最大的斗争中，马斯克、贝佐斯和其他超级富豪面临着非同寻常的机遇和无形的危险。这场选举当然与每个人都休戚相关，但对非常富有的人影响会格外大——或者至少他们自认为如此——以至于他们可能不可避免地也在试图影响这次选举。
peril
peril /ˈperəl/表示“巨大的危险；险情，险境”，英文解释为“great danger, or something that is very dangerous”
Michael Jordan established the standard for many celebrities in 1990. The basketball superstar, who went to college in North Carolina, was asked about whether he would endorse Harvey Gantt, the Black candidate running to dethrone Jesse Helms.
迈克尔·乔丹在1990年为许多名人树立了标准。当时这位在北卡罗来纳州上大学的篮球巨星被问及是否会支持哈维·甘特——一名黑人候选人，试图打败杰西·赫尔姆斯。
dethrone
dethrone /diˈθrəʊn/ 1）表示“（尤指在体育比赛中）打败，击败（顶尖好手）”，英文解释为“to beat someone who is the best at something, especially a sport, and become the best yourself”举个🌰：The world champion was dethroned by a young Swedish challenger. 那位世界冠军被一名年轻的瑞典挑战者击败。
2）dethrone /diˈθrəʊn/ 表示“废黜，推翻（国王或女王）”，英文解释为“to remove a king or queen from their position of power”
“Republicans buy sneakers, too,” Mr. Jordan said. Mr. Helms narrowly beat Mr. Gantt.
“共和党人也买球鞋，”乔丹说。赫尔姆斯以微弱优势击败了甘特。
sneakers
sneaker /ˈsniːkə/ 表示“运动鞋”，英文解释为“a type of light, comfortable shoe that is suitable for playing sports”，美式sneaker，英式为trainer，举个🌰：He wore old jeans and a pair of sneakers. 他穿一条旧牛仔裤，脚蹬运动鞋。
Mr. Jordan later said it was an off-the-cuff remark, a joke even, but he did not really back away from it. “I never thought of myself as an activist,” he said. “I thought of myself as a basketball player.”
乔丹后来说，那是即兴的评论，甚至就是开个玩笑，不过他并不想趟浑水。“我从来没当自己是一名活动人士，”他说。“我认为自己就是一名篮球运动员。”
off-the-cuff
表示“未经准备；未加思索；即兴地”，英文解释为“If you speak off the cuff, you say something without having prepared or thought about your words first.”举个🌰：I hadn't prepared a speech so I just said a few words off the cuff. 我没准备发言，所以就随便说了几句。
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