Przykładowe Materiały Egzaminacyjne JĘzyk angielski poziom 3 Czytanie
Download 1.02 Mb.
|
- Navigate this page:
- Text 24
A Careful CampaignAnyone who followed the endless 2004 U.S. presidential campaign, in which no detail about the candidates was trivial enough to avoid spotlights, would find little familiarity with the campaign under way in Iraq. Three weeks from the scheduled election, most Iraqis don’t even know who to vote for, as the candidates are so scared of being murdered that they refuse to be identified.That’s the force of democracy in Iraq, as violence mounts in advance of the January 30 election. U.S. officials have not hesitated in insisting that the vote will be held on schedule. “I don’t think it’s a debate anymore,” says an official in Iraq. “The tactical and strategic consequences would be far more damaging than the problems we would face after the election.” Yet, four Iraqi provinces have been declared not safe enough for voting.Meanwhile, Iraqis are being asked to choose among candidates whose names do not appear on billboards sponsored by different factions. These are fixed to innumerable concrete barriers defining Baghdad’s traffic arteries – urging for instance that voters pick “List No. 169,” the one approved by Grand Ayatullah Ali Husainin Sustani. There is little flesh pressing and baby kissing by candidates, but there are ads on TV and radio; each party also has its own newspaper.Voters too are frightened. Iraqi elder statesman Adnnan Pachachi says many residents of big cities like Mosul and Ramadi want to participate but are too scared even to register. He suspects few in the Sunni minority will go to the polls - perhaps not even 10% - which could undermine the elections legitimacy. “Many people from Arab countries will say this is not a correct election,” says Dr. Sa’ad Abdul al-Razzak, of Pachachi’s party. U.S. officials say they will urge Sh’ite leaders after the election to bring Sunnis into the government to make sure they are represented. “We believe the process will have Sunni input,” says the U.S. official. “We believe all Iraqis understand representation is crucial.”
Text 24Terrorism Takes a Step BackThe Cairo daily “Ahram” gave the story just a paragraph. But the release of Egyptian militant Karam Zhudi last week could represent a milestone in the global war on terrorism. Once among the most dangerous of Egypt’s extremists, the 51-year-old leader of the radical Islamist group Gamma’a al-Islamiyah, who drew the attention of the media after he had played a key role in the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat 22 years ago. Sadat’s murder, during a military parade, was intended to unleash an Islamic revolution. Zuhdi was freed from Al. Aquuab Prison after he publicly renounced violence, condemned the September 11 attacks and expressed remorse for Sadat’s murder. His release – and that of roughly 1000 other Gamma’a members suggests that Egypt, in contrast to most of its neighbours, may be taming parts of its own terrorist groups. Experts say Zuhdi’s repentance reflects a major revision in Gamma’a thinking. In a recent interview, Zuhdi acknowledged that Gamma’a members had carried out the slaughter of foreign tourists in Luxor in late 1997 but claimed the attackers were dissidents. “Our understanding of the religious literature has changed, and the reality around us has also changed,” he explained. Zuhdi says he no longer believes that leaders, like Sadat, who refuse to carry out Islamic law deserve to die. Zuhdi now calls Sadat a “martyr” and expresses his disdain for al-Qaeda’s doctrine of violence: “This strategy was a religious mistake, in addition to having terrible consequences.” By releasing this important Islamic figure, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak hopes that this would stop the radical younger generation of Egyptians from turning to extreme political actions. But critics complain that Mubarak shows no sign of accepting true democratic reform. Without that, they fear, Egypt will remain fertile ground for extremists.
Text 25 Keep the C-5 Flying Without fanfare, the U.S. Air Force quietly retired a C-5A Galaxy transport in November. The first Galaxy to go to the boneyard, airplane No.70-0458, was an old friend. I flew aboard the plane as a passenger en route to Operation Just Cause, the U.S. intervention in Panama, in January 1990. Number 70-0458 had a reputation as a “hangar queen,” prone to more reliability problems than an average C-5. Officials don’t like the term “boneyard” for the Arizona storage and regeneration facility. But when the aircraft is a Galaxy, the term is apt. Two other recent C-5 Galaxy developments are, I hope, a better guide to the future. First, early in January, the Air Force awarded contracts worth $48.7 million for avionics modernization of some C-5s. Considering the value of the Galaxy to the taxpayer, that’s chump change. Second, on Jan. 8, a Galaxy outbound from Baghdad International Airport with 11 crew members and 52 military personnel landed safely after its No. 4 engine was hit by a surface-to-air missile. Skillful airmanship undoubtedly contributed to the survival of this C-5, but the incident also is testimony to the resilience of the Galaxy, which can sustain damage and continue flying. A more ambitious improvement program, under which General Electric CF6-8OC2LIF turbofan engines would replace the Galaxy’s TFJ9 engines, has not received the go-ahead, even though details were worked out more than a year ago. The TFJ9 engines are difficult to support and costly to operate. A re-engining effort seems like a no-brainer – an obvious way to assure continued good service by a Galaxy fleet that has plenty of structural life left. There’s a threat to the C-5, but it’s not from an enemy missile. Behind the scenes, some on Capitol Hill and in industry argue that the Air Force should retire its C-5s, sooner rather than later, and that the strategic-airlift mission should become the responsibility of only the C-17 – designed and developed by Douglas Aircraft Co.
Text 26 U.K. Wants Global Hawk Demonstration Britain has joined the queue of nations interested in Northrop Grumman’s Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and its ability to provide reconnaissance. Discussions are taking place between London and Washington on whether the high-altitude, long-endurance UAV could be flown into the United Kingdom for a joint exercise just prior to the Royal International Air Tattoo, a large air show at the Royal Air Force (RAF) base at Fairford, England, that begins on July 16. “If the timing is right and the necessary approvals gained, the U.S. Air Force would also like to fly Global Hawk into RAF Fairford during the show and continue to use the base to fly the vehicle during the Farnborough air show starting on July 19”, said the source. “Although there is no chance of it operating from Farnborough, they are looking at a live data link between the show and the vehicle operating somewhere in the U.K. space. A Global Hawk-type vehicle is likely to be one of the contenders to replace the RAF’s Canberra PR9 photo-reconnaissance aircraft. The Canberra is still in great demand by the coalition forces in Iraq and Afghanistan to provide medium/high-level, long-range oblique imagery. But the airframe is now more than 40 years old and is likely to come out of service around 2006, unless the aircraft undergoes a life-extension program. The British move is the latest signal of rapidly growing interest here in the role of UAVs. The MoD recently used an Urgent Operational Requirement to purchase two types of U.S.-built mini-UAV systems destined for British forces in Iraq.
Text 27 Sea, Air, Landlocked It was the worst setback in the 43-year history of the U.S. Navy SEAL program. At least 10 of the elite commandos died when a reconnaissance team came under fire in the mountains of Afghanistan, and a SEAL rescue helicopter crashed trying to save them. For many SEALs (an acronym for “sea, air, land”), the Afghan debacle was just a bitter new chapter in the frustrating war on terror. Many SEALs have come to feel like second-class citizens in the exclusive world of special forces. Why? “The main reason has been severe restrictions on the types of missions they are allowed to undertake,” says a U.S. defense analyst under Pentagon contract who works closely with special-forces units (he declined to be identified because his work is classified). The reason for this may be that the Army has taken over most of the senior command. While the Army’s Delta Force and the Green Berets get the best “direct action” and unconventional-warfare missions, SEALs – say they are often relegated to being VIP escorts in Iraq or to rescue missions, the defense analyst says. The result is that hundreds of SEALs have not re-enlisted, while others have resigned their commissions, helping to reduce the SEAL population from about 3,000 to about 2,500, says the defense analyst, citing official Pentagon numbers. Asked to respond, SEALs spokesman Cmdr. Jeff Bender said: “We can’t go into the nature of our missions. But I am unaware of low morale, and I would have to look further into whether re-enlistments are down.” Many SEALs have left for higher-paying jobs – and sometimes better action – with private security firms with a heavy presence in Iraq. The Navy has offered a $150,000 bonus for senior officers who re-enlist for six years. But John Arquilla, who teaches at the Naval postgraduate program at Monterrey, California, says, “These men don’t become SEALs for the money, and they don’t stay SEALs for the money. They do what they do for the prospect of action.” And these days, they’re clearly not getting enough.
Directory: plik -> file -> Do pobrania - Mat. Egzaminacyjne -> Angielski Angielski -> Two texts. For questions 1 to 6 plik -> March 4th-8th 2000; ustroń, poland Download 1.02 Mb. Share with your friends:
|