又中又英｜Promising the moon

Promising the moon

Promises are often made to be broken in politics. It is common for politicians to promise the moon during an election to get votes. Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are promising the moon on many hot-button issues to win voters ahead of the November 5 presidential election. Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has promised to eradicate (get rid of) subdivided flats considered to be below standard and improve the quality of other subdivided flats. I hope he is not promising the moon. To promise the moon means to promise things that are difficult or impossible to achieve.

A hot-button issue is an issue that people consider very important and have strong opinions on. The chief executive announced in his annual policy speech last week the government will eradicate subdivided flats smaller than eight square metres (86 sq ft) and those without a window or toilet. The government will rename subdivided flats with improved standards as Basic Housing Units. Owners of such flats must register with the government. Hong Kong has about 110,000 subdivided flats. About 250,000 people live in these tiny homes. This gives Hong Kong a bad rap globally. A bad rap means a bad reputation.

The chief executive’s promise is a good first step, but further steps are needed. A subdivided flat of eight square metres is about the size of a Hong Kong prison cell. Many families live in these tiny places. Hong Kong should plan to completely eradicate subdivided flats. It is a developed and wealthy city. Its people deserve homes that don’t give the city a bad rap.

在政治裏，很多時候承諾給許下來就是為了打破的。政客們在選舉期間往往為了爭取選票，而大開空頭支票（promise the moon）。在十一月五日的總統大選前，副總統賀錦麗與前總統唐納德‧特朗普在許多燙手的議題（hot-button issues）上都在開空頭支票（promising the moon）。香港行政長官李家超，亦承諾會取締（eradicate）那些被界定為低於標準的劏房，以及改善其他劏房的質素。我希望他不是大開空頭支票（promising the moon）。To promise the moon是指去作出很困難或無法兌現的承諾。

A hot-button issue是人們認為很重要但很具爭議性的敏感議題。特首在上星期的《施政報告》中宣告政府將會取締（eradicate）面績小於八平方米（八十六平方呎）及沒有窗或廁所的劏房。政府將那些改善而符合標準的劏房更名為「簡樸房」。這些單位的業主必須向政府登記。香港大約有十一萬個劏房，大約二十五萬人住在這些狹小的居所內。這讓香港在國際上得了 bad rap——a bad rap就是壞名聲、負面評價。

特首的承諾是好的第一步，但接下來需要實行更多的措施。八平方米的劏房就是大約一個香港監房的大小。許多家庭住在這些狹小的空間內。香港應該計劃完全取締（eradicate）劏房。它是一個已發展和富裕的城市，當中的人理應住在不會給城市帶來壞名聲（bad rap）的居所內。

mickchug@gmail.com
Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻