Youth is wasted on the young. But wealth is wasted on the old
Jan 5th 2023
PITY THE millennial. Greying at the temples, thinning on top and thickening round the middle. Once a shorthand for rebellious youth, now even the prime minister (born in 1980, uses more than two fingers to type) falls into this increasingly aged category. The typical millennial is haunted by Instagram adverts for fertility treatment, wills and Viagra.
millennial
adj. 一千年的；千禧年的
n. 生于千禧世代的人（生于1980或1990年代的人）
Greying
adj. 灰白的
temple
n. 庙宇, 太阳穴, 犹太教堂, 圣殿
rebellious
adj. 反叛的，叛逆的， 桀骜不驯的， 叛乱的，反抗的
haunted
adj. （被认为）闹鬼的, 忧心忡忡的, 满面愁容的
v. “haunt”的过去式和过去分词
advert
n. 【英口】广告（同advertisement）
v. （在演讲或写作中）提到
fertility
n. 丰产, 富饶, 能生育性, 可繁殖性
Viagra
n. 威而刚
千禧一代真可怜。鬓角变灰，顶部变薄，中间变厚。曾经是叛逆青年的代名词，现在就连首相(出生于1980年，打字用的手指超过两根)也越来越老了。典型的千禧一代被Instagram上关于生育治疗、遗嘱和伟哥的广告所困扰。
If the ravages of time were not bad enough, then the iniquities of British society make things worse. Life is pretty tough for the generation sinking into their middle years. It is a time when people are supposed to be kicking on with their careers, rearing children and, often, caring for ageing parents. But it is also a time when housing and child-care costs combine with uneven taxes and an unbalanced welfare state to create a miserable period. Call it the Dark Ages. (Bagehot should declare an interest: he is slap-bang in the middle of them.)
ravage
v. 毁坏, 损坏, 严重损害
n. 灾害, 破坏, 暴力
iniquity
n. 很不公正
miserable
adj. 悲惨的，痛苦的
如果说时间的摧残还不够糟糕，那么英国社会的不公正让事情变得更糟。对于步入中年的这一代人来说，生活相当艰难。在这段时间里，人们应该继续自己的事业，养育孩子，通常还要照顾年迈的父母。但同时，住房和儿童保育成本与不平衡的税收和不平衡的福利国家结合在一起，造成了一个悲惨的时期。称之为黑暗时代。(白芝浩应该表明自己的兴趣:他正好站在他们中间。)
As with most problems in British politics, it all starts with housing. The average age of a first-time buyer is 32. Those who bought a house recently may be on the wrong side of a leveraged bet on the most expensive asset they will ever buy. If house prices crater, younger people will find it easier to buy; older homeowners will be insulated, having built up more equity. Those in the Dark Ages will be stuffed. Even before mortgage costs shot up, affordability was stretched. The average house costs about £300,000 ($362,000). When the median salary is about £33,000, it takes two earners to afford one. That makes child care inevitable, unless Granny and Grandpa are around.
leveraged
adj. 杠杆的；杠杆作用的
insulated
adj. 绝缘的, 隔热的
stuffed
adj. 饱
v. “stuff”的过去分词和过去式
stretch
v. 撑大；伸展，张开；延伸；舒展；绵延，延续
n. 伸展，张开；绵延的一片
inevitable
adj. 不可避免的，必然（发生）的
Granny
n. 奶奶, 姥姥
a pair of granny glasses
一副老花眼镜
与英国政治中的大多数问题一样，这一切都始于住房问题。首次购房者的平均年龄为32岁。那些最近买了房子的人可能在他们所能买到的最昂贵的资产上做了错误的杠杆赌注。如果房价暴跌，年轻人会发现买房更容易;年长的房主将不会受到影响，因为他们已经积累了更多的资产。黑暗时代的人会被填满。甚至在抵押贷款成本飙升之前，负担能力就已经捉襟见肘。房子的平均价格约为30万英镑(36.2万美元)。当工资中位数约为3.3万英镑时，两个工薪阶层才能负担得起一个家庭。这使得照顾孩子成为不可避免的，除非奶奶和爷爷在身边。
Unfortunately, Britain has among the most expensive child care in the world. British parents spend between a quarter and a third of their income, depending on how it is measured, on paying other people to look after the sprogs. The government has parked plans to give parents more free child care, along with a scheme to reduce required staffing ratios in a bid to make it cheaper.
sprog
n. 小孩, 婴儿
park
n. 公园, 园区, 运动场, 专用区
v. 停（车）, 泊（车）, （在某处）坐下（或站着）, 把…搁置
bid
n. 出价；投标；努力争取
v. 出价；投标；吩咐；努力争取
不幸的是，英国是世界上儿童保育费用最高的国家之一。英国父母将收入的四分之一到三分之一(根据衡量方式的不同)花在雇人照顾孩子上。政府计划为父母提供更多的免费托儿服务，同时还计划减少所需的人员比例，以降低成本。
Still, 30-somethings on average earnings can surely console themselves that their basic rate of income tax is a mere 20%. Unfortunately, things sometimes go haywire in the tax system—and those in the Dark Ages are often the victims. Policies such as whipping away child benefit from the moderately well-off mixes poorly with a byzantine and often cruel working-age welfare system. An unlucky household with children could in some circumstances face a marginal deduction rate of between 80% and 96%, according to the Resolution Foundation, a think-tank.
haywire
adj. 混乱的, 杂乱无章的, 匆忙拼凑成的, 〈美俚〉疯狂的
n. 〈美〉捆干草的铁丝
whip
v. 鞭打, 鞭笞, 〈口〉击败, 抽打
n. 鞭子, 【无线】鞭状天线, 投票指示, (某党)议员领袖
moderately
adv. 适当地，适度地，中庸地；勉强地，一般地
byzantine
adj. 拜占庭帝国的，东罗马帝国的
n. 拜占廷人，拜占廷风格的画家
circumstance
n. （复数）情况，环境，境况；（单数）命运
marginal
adj. 小的；微不足道的；不重要的；非主体的；边缘的；写在页间空白处的
adj. 边际的，边缘的
然而，30多岁的平均收入的人当然可以安慰自己，他们的基本所得税税率只有20%。不幸的是，税收系统有时会出现混乱，而那些在黑暗时代的人往往是受害者。诸如剥夺中等富裕阶层儿童福利的政策，与错综复杂且往往残酷的工作年龄福利制度相辅相成。根据智库决议基金会(Resolution Foundation)的数据，在某些情况下，有孩子的不幸家庭可能面临80%到96%的边际扣除率。
Every generation thinks they have it rough. Someone with a mortgage during the early 1990s may have struggled with rocketing interest rates (even if lower house prices made those loans more affordable). Houses may have been cheap in the 1960s, but petrol had lead in it, men dropped dead in their 60s and women could not open a bank account in their own name.
petrol
n. 汽油
v. 给…加汽油, 用汽油消除
每一代人都认为他们过得很艰难。在20世纪90年代初有抵押贷款的人可能一直在与飙升的利率作斗争(即使较低的房价使这些贷款更容易负担)。20世纪60年代的房子可能很便宜，但汽油里含有铅，男人60多岁就死了，女人不能以自己的名义开银行账户。
Some have it better than others, however, even if they do not always like to admit it. Those who are now at retirement age will have benefited most of all. On average someone born in 1956 will pay about £940,000 in tax throughout their life. But they are forecast to receive state benefits amounting to about £1.2m, or £291,000 net. Someone born in 1996 will enjoy less than half of that figure: a fresh-faced 27-year-old today will receive barely more than someone born in 1931, about a decade before the term “welfare state” was first popularised.
barely
adv. 仅仅, 只不过; 几乎不; 贫乏地; 光秃秃地
然而，有些人比其他人过得好，即使他们并不总是愿意承认这一点。那些现在已经到了退休年龄的人受益最多。1956年出生的人一生平均要交94万英镑的税。但预计他们将获得约120万英镑的政府补贴，即29.1万英镑净额。1996年出生的人将享受不到这一数字的一半:今天一个27岁的年轻年轻人所获得的收入仅比1931年出生的人多一点，1931年是“福利国家”一词首次流行的大约10年前。
And so a fundamental part of the social contract has broken down. Before Britons exchanged a miserable middle age for a gilded retirement. “Giving goods to an older person is figuratively giving goods to yourself when old” is a neat adage from Paul Samuelson, an economist. Those in the Dark Ages will pay more and receive less. Boomers used their demographic weight to slant the state to their benefit, argued David Willetts, a Conservative grandee, in “The Pinch”, a prescient book published in 2010 on inequality between the generations. Millennials are bearing the cost.
miserable
adj. 悲惨的，痛苦的
gilded
adj. 镀金的, 涂金色的, 富贵的, 上层阶级的
v. “gild”的过去式和过去分词
figuratively
adv. 在比喻的意义上
adage
n. 格言, 俗语
demographic
adj. 人口学的; 人口统计学的; 人口结构的
n. 人口统计数据; 特定年龄段的人口
slant
v. 歪斜, 有倾向性地陈述, 有偏向地报道
n. 倾斜, 斜面, 歪斜, 斜线
adj. 歪斜的
grandee
n. （旧时西班牙或葡萄牙的）大公, 大人物, 显要人物
Pinch
v. 捏, 掐, 拧, 捏住; 使紧缺, 节制
n. 捏, 掐, 拧; 一撮; 紧缺; 紧急情况
adj. 【棒球】由替补击球员完成的, 替补的
prescient
adj. 预知的, 先觉的
Millennials
n. 千禧一代
因此，社会契约的一个基本部分被打破了。在英国人将悲惨的中年换成镀金的退休之前。经济学家保罗•萨缪尔森(Paul Samuelson)曾说过一句简洁的格言:“把东西送给老年人，相当于把东西送给老了的自己。”那些处于黑暗时代的人将付出更多，得到更少。保守党要人大卫·威利茨(David Willetts)在2010年出版的一本关于两代人之间不平等的有先见之明的书《危机》(the Pinch)中指出，婴儿潮一代利用他们的人口权重使国家向他们的利益倾斜。千禧一代正在承担成本。
It would be better—politically, economically and socially—to offer younger voters something today. It is in the Conservatives’ political interest. British millennials are the first generation to buck the trend of drifting right with age, according to one study by the Financial Times. For some MPs this is proof that the generation is irredeemably woke. More thoughtful Conservatives take a materialist view: it is hard to vote for the party that offers them so little. At the moment, neither head, heart nor wallet provides much reason for younger people to vote Conservative.
buck
n. 雄鹿, （一）美元, （一）澳元, （一）新西兰元
v. 弓背四蹄跳起；猛然震荡；反抗，抵制（似乎难以忍受或不可避免的事物）
adv. 〈方〉完全
adj. 雄的, 〈美俚〉男的, 〈美俚〉某一军衔等级中最低一级的
drift
v. 漂流；缓慢移动；漂泊
n. 漂流，移动，（情形，意见的）渐变，趋势
irredeemable
adj. 不能改正的, 无法改进的, 不能挽救的
n. 定期偿还公债
从政治上、经济上和社会上来说，今天就为年轻选民提供一些东西会更好。这符合保守党的政治利益。英国《金融时报》的一项研究显示，英国千禧一代是第一代抵制随着年龄增长而向右漂移趋势的人。对一些议员来说，这证明了这一代人已经无可救药地觉醒了。更有思想的保守党人持唯物主义的观点:很难把票投给一个给予他们这么少的政党。目前，无论是头脑、感情还是钱包，都不能为年轻人投票给保守党提供太多理由。
Helping those stuck in the Dark Ages might boost the economy, too. Better access to child care could boost output per worker by 30% according to one controversial study, if inept male workers are replaced by competent women. Even if the gains from better child care are smaller, they would be welcome for an economy in sore need of productivity growth.
stuck
adj. 被…困住的, 陷于…而动不了的, 被…难住的, 不知所措的
v. stick的过去式及过去分词
controversial
adj. 引起争论的, 有争议的
inept
adj. 缺乏技巧的, 无能的, 笨拙的
competent
adj. 有能力的，能胜任的
帮助那些被困在黑暗时代的人也可能促进经济发展。根据一项有争议的研究，如果有能力的女性取代无能的男性工人，更好的儿童保育服务可以使每个工人的产出提高30%。即使更好的儿童保育带来的收益较小，但对于一个迫切需要提高生产率的经济体来说，这也是受欢迎的。
More self-interested millennial moaning below
Intergenerational inequality leads to intergenerational conflict. Some pensioners are poor, but more are rich. Although one in five pensioners is in poverty, one in four lives in a household with assets of more than £1m, thanks to a booming property market and generous pensions. Friction between haves and have-nots is inevitable, even if they are separated by age. Merely waiting for inheritances to cascade down through the generations is a recipe for an unhappy society.
moan
v. 呻吟, 哼叫, 抱怨(有时没原因地)
n. 呻吟声, (波浪,风等的)号, 悲叹声, 〔诗〕悲叹
pensioner
n. 领养老金（或退休金、抚恤金）者
generous
adj. 慷慨的, 大方的, 慷慨给予的, 丰富的
pension
n. 养老金, 退休金, 抚恤金
v. 给…养老金[恤金,津贴等]
adj. 有关退休金的
Friction
n. 摩擦，摩擦力；分歧，争执
inheritance
n. 继承, 继承物（如金钱、财产等）, 遗产, 遗传特征
cascade
n. 小瀑布；倾泻；下垂物；倾泻或涌出的东西
v. 倾泻；大量落下
adj. 型栅的
下面是更多自利的千禧一代的抱怨
代际不平等导致代际冲突。一些领养老金的人很穷，但更多的人很富有。尽管五分之一的养老金领取者处于贫困状态，但由于繁荣的房地产市场和丰厚的养老金，四分之一的人家庭资产超过100万英镑。富人和穷人之间的摩擦是不可避免的，即使他们被年龄分开。仅仅是等待遗产一代代传承下去，就会导致一个不幸福的社会。
Each of these problems is fixable. The government could and should do more for young parents. That child care is unaffordable is not a fact of life, as any German can attest. That Britain’s homes are small and dear is not a law of nature, but a choice of successive governments. That Britain’s taxation system is tilted too far towards income, while property wealth is left undertaxed, is a policy decision. The government could choose differently. Spread some light on the Dark Ages and everyone would be better off. ■
fixable
adj. 可固定的
attest
v. 证实, 是…的证据, 作证
taxation
n. 税收, 征税, 税制, 课税
tilt
v. （使）倾斜，倾侧
n. 倾斜，倾侧；尝试，努力
这些问题都是可以解决的。政府可以也应该为年轻的父母做更多的事情。任何德国人都可以证明，负担不起儿童保育费用并不是现实。英国人的房子小而贵，这不是自然规律，而是历届政府的选择。英国的税收体系过度向收入倾斜，而对房地产财富的征税却过低，这是一个政策决定。政府可以有不同的选择。照亮黑暗时代，每个人都会过得更好。■
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