PART 1 Expressions
1. Bolo was friends with this white kid and fellow pirate named Andrew, who traded in bootleg CDs.
bootleg: （a.）bootleg alcohol, software, or recordings are made and sold illegally;
(n.) an illegal recording of a music performance;
(v.) to illegally make or sell alcohol, or to illegally make or sell copies of software
bootleg本意是“私酿酒”，在美国行禁酒令的年代，私酿的威士忌经常藏才鞋靴里避人耳目。
2. I had my network set up. All I had to do was tap into it.
tap into sth/ tap sth: to use or take what is needed from something such as an energy supply or an amount of money
People are tapping into the power supply illegally.
We hope that additional sources of funding can be tapped.
3. To put that in perspective, there are maids in South Africa who still earn less than that today.
put/ get/ keep sth in perspective: to judge the importance of sth correctly, perspective 在这里指a sensible way of judging and comparing situations so that you do not imagine that sth is more serious than it really is
The figures have to be put into perspective.
4. People say, “Oh, that’s a handout.” No. I still have to work to profit by it. But I don’t stand a chance without it.
handout: 救济品；施舍物 money or goods that are given to sb, for example because they are poor
people who have to live on handouts from the state
handout还有另外一个含义： （讲座等发放的）印刷品 a piece of paper with information which is given to people who are attending a lecture, meeting etc
Please read the handout.
5. He saw a way to corner the market.
corner the market: to gain control of the whole supply of a particular kind of goods
They've been trying to corner the market by buying up all the wheat in sight.
6. When Bongani and I put together a routine for our dance crew, there was no question who was going to be the star attraction.
star attraction: best and most popular person or thing
Shamu, the killer whale, is the show's star attraction.
star player/ performer/ salesman etc: the best or most successful person in a group of players, workers, students etc
7. The colonial powers carved up Africa, put the black man to work, and did not properly educate him.
carve sth up: 瓜分 to divide land, a company etc into smaller parts and share it between people, used especially to show disapproval
The Ottoman Empire was carved up by Britain and France after World War 1.
The two companies are attempting to carve up a large slice of America's publishing industry between them.
8. The teachers, the chaperones, the parents, the hundreds of Jewish kids in their yarmulkes—they froze and stared aghast at us up on the stage.
be aghast at st: [əˈgæst] feeling or looking shocked by something you have seen or just found out
Everyone was aghast at the verdict.
Hank looked at her aghast.
9. I was oblivious.
oblivious [əˈblɪviəs]: unaware, not knowing about or not noticing something that is happening around you
be oblivious to/ of sth eg. He seemed oblivious to the fact that he had hurt her.
seemingly/ apparently oblivious eg. Congress was seemingly oblivious to these events.
10. I started cussing her out.
cuss sb out : [kʌs] to sear because you are annoyed by sth
She got mad and started cussing him out.
cuss word 脏话
PART 2 Thoughts
People love to say, "Give a man a fish, and he'll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he'll eat for a lifetime." What they don't say is, "And it would be nice if you gave him a fishing rod." That's the part of the analogy that's missing. Working with Andrew was the first time in my life I realized you need someone from the privileged world to come to you and say, "Okay, here's what you need, and here's how it works." Talent alone would have gotten me nowhere without Andrew giving me the CD writer.
想起之前看过的一段对哇哈哈董事长宗庆后的采访。他在采访里说：“企业家把辛苦赚来的钱用来投资，就能产生更多的就业机会，能为国家和社会带来更多财政收入，但若是捐出去，这些资产就失去了生命力，‘杀富济贫’是不对的。”他认为，“让更多的人因为哇哈哈的存在而生活无忧，这样才是大善。”像比尔盖茨、巴菲特、扎克伯格那样捐出大部分的个人资产当然令人敬佩，但是效果如果恐怕是令人存疑的。他们的巨额资产对于世界上存在的大量贫困人口来说其实也不过是杯水车薪。电视剧《那样花开月正圆》里周莹成功说服落草为寇的韩三春回归正常的生活和职业，她用的不是金银珠宝，而是一个有稳定收入的工作机会。如今好多的慈善看似声势浩大，其实不过是用一时性的远水来解近渴，真正的行善应该如Trevor所有，是授人以渔并且提供渔具。