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So if you ask most Americans, "Do they respect and have confidence in our men and women in uniform?" they will give a resounding "yes."
如果问一下多数美国人“他们尊敬或者相信这个国家穿着制服的那些人吗？” 他们会响亮地回答“是的”
But when you scratch the surface, this patina of respect for our military turns out to be a mile wide but less than an inch deep.
但如果你只懂皮毛 那么这种对军队的尊敬就只是浮在表面而已
First of all very few Americans are willing to actually serve in uniform.
首先 很少美国人愿意真正从军
During World War II—admittedly a total war and probably the peak of mobilization—about 13 percent of our population was in uniform.
在二战期间——公认的全面战争甚至是调动峰期——美国约有13%的人口是军人
Today the military participation ratio is less than half of one percent.
今天 军人比例不到0.5%
And so the burden of America’s global presence has been borne disproportionately by a very small percentage of our society.
所以美国的国际竞争重担很不协调地落在了极小一部分人口的肩上
And I don’t think there’s an easy fix to this.
而我觉得这种局面不好补救
Going back to a draft, for example, would not guarantee that the burden of service would be equally felt.
比如 寻求一种草案并不能确保服务重担能够人人共担
And likewise there are all sorts of political and practical arguments about doing it.
同样 关于这件事还有很多政治和实践争论
So what I’m calling for is simply a broader recognition of the fact that—
所以我只是希望大家能对这个事实有一种更宽泛的认识——
behind our sort of gaudy pro-military rhetoric and our cheering at football game flyovers or at NASCAR skydiving jumps—
在我们盛大的亲军言辞和为足球比赛天桥或NASCAR（美国赛车协会）跳伞欢呼的背后——
that we also think about affirmative support for our military, also involving care about when we send the men and women in uniform in harm’s way.
我们也会坚定不移地支持军队 也会关心我们何时用有害的方式派遣军队
And it’s easy to do that when our kids or the kids of our best friends are not likely to serve in uniform and to bear the burden of any decision to use military force.
当我们孩子或挚友的孩子不用从军 也不必承担决定使用武装力量的重担时 会比较容易做到这一点
And so that I think also ought to be a way of supporting the troops.
我觉得那也应该是一种支持军队的方式
Not only waving the flag but also saying, “We’re not going to ask you to potentially make the ultimate sacrifice unless we’re really sure it’s necessary to the security of the rest of our country.”
不仅仅只是挥舞旗帜 还要说“若非我们确定无疑它对这个国家剩余部分的安全必不可少 我们也不会让你冒险做出终极牺牲”
And many of us I think in the "restraint camp" feel a moral obligation to our men and women in uniform to be careful and be selective about the use of military force
我觉得“克制阵营”中的很多人感觉对我们的军人有一种道德责任 要小心谨慎地选择使用军事力量
given that such a small percentage of our countrymen are actually bearing that burden.
毕竟只有很少一部分的同胞真正承担着这份重担
