Archive for the ‘More English for teenagers and older people’ Category

Yes, we can says Barack Obama

Vendredi, novembre 7th, 2008
Image de prévisualisation YouTube

It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation.
Yes we can.
It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail toward freedom.
Yes we can. Yes we can.
It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores
and pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness.
Yes we can. Yes we can.
It was the call of workers who organized;
women who reached for the ballots;
a President who chose the moon as our new frontier;
and a King who took us to the mountain-top and pointed the way to the Promised Land.
Yes we can to justice and equality.
(yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can…)

Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity.
Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity.
Yes we can heal this nation.
Yes we can repair this world.
Yes we can. Si Se Puede
(yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can…)

We know the battle ahead will be long,
but always remember that no matter what obstacles stand in our way,
nothing can stand in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change.
We want change!
(We want change! We want change! We want change…)

We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics who will only grow louder and more dissonant.
We’ve been asked to pause for a reality check.
We’ve been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.
But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope. We want change!
(We want change! I want change! We want change! I want change…)

The hopes of the little girl who goes to a crumbling school in Dillon are the same as the dreams of the boy who learns on the streets of LA;
we will remember that there is something happening in America;
that we are not as divided as our politics suggests;
that we are one people;
we are one nation;
and together, we will begin the next great chapter in America’s story with three words that will ring from coast to coast;
from sea to shining sea – Yes. We. Can.
(yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can…)

 

The American election system

Mardi, novembre 4th, 2008

An Electoral College elects the Presidentof the United States of America. He is not elected directly by the people.

American people vote for the people who are going to elect the president.

Each state has two electors who are senators, plus other representatives, in proportion to the number of inhabitants in each state :

California has 55 electoral votes. Texas has 34. New York  has 31.  Both the District of Columbia and Alaska have only 3. The total number of electors is 538. The winner of the popular vote in a state gets all the Electoral College votes in that state : this is the rule in most states.

Maine and Nebraska are exceptions :  two electors’ votes are given to the candidate who got the most votes. The other votes are given in each district to the candidate who got the most votes there.

If a candidate gets 270 votes, he will become president.

 If he does not win the national popular vote, this does not mean he will lose the election. If he wins the popular vote, this does not mean he will become president ! (Al Gore won the popular vote in 2000 but George W. Bush won the majority of the votes in the Electoral College).

This means  that the electors in the College will vote for the candidate they have promised their vote for or for the candidate who gets the popular votes in their state. Yet, some of them sometimes vote for another candidate, and this is illegal in some states, and not in others.

If there is no majority, the House of Representatives will vote. Then, each state will be represented by only one vote.

The electors have been chosen by the parties before the election. People vote for the electors on voting day in the state where they are residents.

The electors will meet in state capitals on Monday, 13th December to vote for the President. The official results will be declared on January 6th, 2009. The new president will be sworn into office on January 20th, 2009 at noon.

Click here for more details.

A debate over the war in Irak

Mardi, novembre 4th, 2008

A debate over the Irak war between Phil Donahue and Bill O’Reilly, TV shows hosts.

Image de prévisualisation YouTube

Find out what Phil Donahue’s point of view is, and what Bill O’Reilly’s is.

 

Who is anti-war ?

Who wants to fight the war in Irak ?

Who supports Cindy Sheehan ? Who is she ?

Who says Irak is a terrorist state ?

Who says the war is unconstitutional ?

Who gets accused of being un-American ?

Who is charged with being close to the left-wing ?

 

Some useful vocabulary and facts  here :

Tough = courageux, fort

A bastard = un salaud

Loud = fort, bruyant

To buy = acheter, ici accepter

Halliburton = une compagnie américaine qui vend du pétrole et dont les actions ont doublé leur valeur au moment du débat.

Voice of America podcasts

Jeudi, septembre 25th, 2008

Listen to Voice of America programmes. Don’t panic because of the accent !

Here

BBC English

Jeudi, septembre 25th, 2008

Click here to listen to audio documents, watch videos, or read articles.

Many documents are on line with their script.

Watch New York Times videos

Jeudi, septembre 25th, 2008

Here

The Guardian

Jeudi, septembre 25th, 2008

Read this British paper on line here.

New York Times

Jeudi, septembre 25th, 2008

Read today’s paper online. Here