Will the European Union make it The question would have sounded strange not long ago. Now even the project"s greatest cheerleaders talk of a continent facing a "Bermuda triangle" of debt, population decline and lower growth.As well as those chronic problems, the EU faces an acute crisis in its economic core, the 16 countries that use the single currency. Markets have lost faith that the euro zone"s economies, weaker or stronger, will one day converge thanks to the discipline of sharing a single currency, which denies uncompetitive members the quick fix of devaluation.Yet the debate about how to save Europe"s single currency from disintegration is stuck. It is stuck because the euro zone"s dominant powers, France and Germany, agree on the need for greater harmonization within the euro zone, but disagree about what to harmonize.Germany thinks the euro must be saved by stricter rules on borrowing, spending and competitiveness, backed by quasi-automatic sanctions for governments that do not obey. These might include threats to freeze EU funds for poorer regions and EU mega-projects and even the suspension of a country"s voting rights in EU ministerial councils. It insists that economic co-ordination should involve all 27 members of the EU club, among whom there is a small majority for free-market liberalism and economic rigour; in the inner core alone, Germany fears, a small majority favour French interference.A "southern" camp headed by French wants something different: "European economic government" within an inner core of euro-zone members. Translated, that means politicians intervening in monetary policy and a system of redistribution from richer to poorer members, via cheaper borrowing for governments through common Eurobonds or complete fiscal transfers. Finally, figures close to the France government have murmured, euro-zone members should agree to some fiscal and social harmonization: e.g., curbing competition in corporate-tax rates or labour costs.It is too soon to write off the EU. It remains the world"s largest trading block. At its best, the European project is remarkably liberal, built around a single market of 27 rich and poor countries, its internal borders are far more open to goods, capital and labour than any comparable trading area. It is an ambitious attempt to blunt the sharpest edges of globalization, and make capitalism benign. The EU is faced with so many problems that ______
A. it has more or less lost faith in markets
B. even its supporters begin to feel concerned
C. some of its member countries plan to abandon euro
D. it intends to deny the possibility of devaluation
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Old people are always saying that the young are not what they were. The same【C1】______is made from generation to generation and it is always true. It has【C2】______been truer than it is today. The young are better educated. They have a lot more money to spend and enjoy more freedom. They grow up more quickly and are not so【C3】______on their parents. They think more for themselves and do not blindly【C4】______the ideals of their elders. Events which the older generation remembers vividly are【C5】______past history. This is as it should be. Every new generation is different from the one that【C6】______it. Today the difference is very【C7】______indeed. The old always assume that they know best for the simple【C8】______that they have been around a bit longer. They don"t like to feel that their【C9】______are being questioned or threatened. And this is precisely【C10】______the young are doing. They are questioning the assumptions of their elders and【C11】______their complacency. Office hours, for instance, are nothing more than【C12】______slavery. Wouldn"t people work best if they were given complete freedom and responsibility Who said that all the men in the world should wear dull grey suits and convict haircuts Why have the older generation so often used violence to solve their problems Why are they so【C13】______and guilt-ridden in their personal lives, so obsessed with mean ambitions and the desire to amass more and more【C14】______possessions These are not questions the older generation can【C15】______lightly. Traditionally, the young have turned to their elders for【C16】______. Today, the situation might be【C17】______. The old—if they are【C18】______to admit it-could learn a thing or two from their children. One of the biggest lessons they could learn is that enjoyment is not "sinful". Enjoyment is a principle one could apply to all【C19】______of life. It is surely not wrong to enjoy your work and enjoy your leisure; to【C20】______restricting inhibitions. 【C20】
A. shield
B. rein
C. resign
D. shed
It is all very well to blame traffic jams, the cost of petrol and the quick pace of modern life, but manners on the roads are becoming horrible. Everybody knows that the【C1】______men become monsters behind the wheel. You might tolerate the odd road-hog, the rude and【C2】______driver, but nowadays the well-mannered motorist is the exception to the rule. Perhaps the situation【C3】______a "Be Kind to Other Drivers" campaign,【C4】______it may get completely out of hand. Road politeness is not only good manners, but good sense too. It takes the most cool-headed and good-tempered of drivers to【C5】______the temptation to revenge when subjected to uncivilized behavior. On the other hand, a little politeness goes a long way【C6】______relieving the tensions of motoring. A friendly nod or a wave of acknowledgement【C7】______an act of politeness helps to create an atmosphere of goodwill and tolerance so【C8】______in modern traffic conditions. But such acknowledgements of politeness are all too【C9】______today. Many drivers nowadays don"t even seem able to【C10】______politeness when they see it. 【C11】______, misplaced politeness can also be dangerous. Typical examples are the driver who brakes violently to【C12】______a car to emerge from a side street at some【C13】______to following traffic, when a few seconds later the road would be clear anyway; or the man who waves a child across a zebra crossing into the【C14】______of oncoming vehicles that may be unable to stop in time. The same goes for encouraging old ladies to cross the road wherever and whenever they care to. A【C15】______driver, whose manners are faultless, told me it would help【C16】______motorists learnt to filter correctly into traffic streams one at a time without causing the total blockages that give rise to bad temper.【C17】______, modern motorists can"t even learn to drive, let alone【C18】______the subtler aspects of roadsmanship. Years ago the experts warned us that the car-ownership【C19】______would demand a lot more give-and-take from all road users. It is【C20】______time for all of us to take this message to heart. 【C16】
A. unless
B. if
C. because
D. for
It is all very well to blame traffic jams, the cost of petrol and the quick pace of modern life, but manners on the roads are becoming horrible. Everybody knows that the【C1】______men become monsters behind the wheel. You might tolerate the odd road-hog, the rude and【C2】______driver, but nowadays the well-mannered motorist is the exception to the rule. Perhaps the situation【C3】______a "Be Kind to Other Drivers" campaign,【C4】______it may get completely out of hand. Road politeness is not only good manners, but good sense too. It takes the most cool-headed and good-tempered of drivers to【C5】______the temptation to revenge when subjected to uncivilized behavior. On the other hand, a little politeness goes a long way【C6】______relieving the tensions of motoring. A friendly nod or a wave of acknowledgement【C7】______an act of politeness helps to create an atmosphere of goodwill and tolerance so【C8】______in modern traffic conditions. But such acknowledgements of politeness are all too【C9】______today. Many drivers nowadays don"t even seem able to【C10】______politeness when they see it. 【C11】______, misplaced politeness can also be dangerous. Typical examples are the driver who brakes violently to【C12】______a car to emerge from a side street at some【C13】______to following traffic, when a few seconds later the road would be clear anyway; or the man who waves a child across a zebra crossing into the【C14】______of oncoming vehicles that may be unable to stop in time. The same goes for encouraging old ladies to cross the road wherever and whenever they care to. A【C15】______driver, whose manners are faultless, told me it would help【C16】______motorists learnt to filter correctly into traffic streams one at a time without causing the total blockages that give rise to bad temper.【C17】______, modern motorists can"t even learn to drive, let alone【C18】______the subtler aspects of roadsmanship. Years ago the experts warned us that the car-ownership【C19】______would demand a lot more give-and-take from all road users. It is【C20】______time for all of us to take this message to heart. 【C15】
A. rude
B. polite
C. civil
D. veteran
It is all very well to blame traffic jams, the cost of petrol and the quick pace of modern life, but manners on the roads are becoming horrible. Everybody knows that the【C1】______men become monsters behind the wheel. You might tolerate the odd road-hog, the rude and【C2】______driver, but nowadays the well-mannered motorist is the exception to the rule. Perhaps the situation【C3】______a "Be Kind to Other Drivers" campaign,【C4】______it may get completely out of hand. Road politeness is not only good manners, but good sense too. It takes the most cool-headed and good-tempered of drivers to【C5】______the temptation to revenge when subjected to uncivilized behavior. On the other hand, a little politeness goes a long way【C6】______relieving the tensions of motoring. A friendly nod or a wave of acknowledgement【C7】______an act of politeness helps to create an atmosphere of goodwill and tolerance so【C8】______in modern traffic conditions. But such acknowledgements of politeness are all too【C9】______today. Many drivers nowadays don"t even seem able to【C10】______politeness when they see it. 【C11】______, misplaced politeness can also be dangerous. Typical examples are the driver who brakes violently to【C12】______a car to emerge from a side street at some【C13】______to following traffic, when a few seconds later the road would be clear anyway; or the man who waves a child across a zebra crossing into the【C14】______of oncoming vehicles that may be unable to stop in time. The same goes for encouraging old ladies to cross the road wherever and whenever they care to. A【C15】______driver, whose manners are faultless, told me it would help【C16】______motorists learnt to filter correctly into traffic streams one at a time without causing the total blockages that give rise to bad temper.【C17】______, modern motorists can"t even learn to drive, let alone【C18】______the subtler aspects of roadsmanship. Years ago the experts warned us that the car-ownership【C19】______would demand a lot more give-and-take from all road users. It is【C20】______time for all of us to take this message to heart. 【C13】
A. hazard
B. attention
C. adventure
D. gamble