本文小编主要更新了雅思阅读话题素材，涉及的主要话题是政治上的中美关系新闻一则，以及“女性如何对待爱情中的金钱”。这两个话题风马牛不相及，雅思阅读考试就是这样，容易出现一些大家始料未及的题目。
Soldiers carry them into battle, fly them high over foreign bases, and triumphantly carry them in processions, but those stars and stripes, until now, have often been made in China.
美军士兵们不仅扛着国旗战斗，这些国旗还高悬在美军驻海外军事基地上，放在凯旋美军的行囊里，然而这些美国星条旗却常常是由中国制造。
That irony spurred North Bay Congressman Mike Thompson (D) to write legislation requiring flags purchased by the Department of Defense (DoD) be 100 percent “Made in America.” That legislation is now law, signed as part of the 2014 omnibus appropriations bill.
这让北湾(North Bay)民主党国会议员麦克·汤普森(Mike Thompson)深受刺激，他写信给美国立法机构要求美国国防部(Dod)购买的星条旗必须是百分之百美国制造。这个提议现在已经变成了法律，国旗的购买成为了美国2014年综合拨款法案的一部分。
“I thought it was appalling our Department of Defense would have flags made in other countries,” Thompson said. “But it’s also important because we need to be making more in America.”
汤普森说到：“国防部会购买外国生产的美国国旗，我想这真是耸人听闻，但这也很能说明问题，因为美国需要制造更多的国旗。”
While the military flag rule passed, a similar bill requiring all government-purchased flags be made in the US has repeatedly failed. The change isn’t cheap. Chinese-made flags cost significantly less than all-American ones.
军队使用美国本土生产的国旗法案已被通过，但与之相似的一项要求所有由政府购买的国旗也必须产自美国的提案却屡屡未能得到批准，要改变现状可不是易事，因为中国产的星条旗要比美国产的便宜很多。
The new requirements apply the existing Berry Amendment passed in 1941 to flags. That amendment bans the Defense Department from buying food, clothing, military uniforms, fabrics, stainless steel, and hand or measuring tools that are not grown or produced in the United States, except in rare exceptions.
这项新的诉求适用于1941年通过的有关国旗的贝瑞修正案(Berry Amendment)，该修正案禁止美国防部购买任何美国已经不生产或制造的食品、衣物、军装、织物、不锈钢制品、手工工具和测绘工具，但一些稀有紧俏物资除外。
“I am proud to have worked to pass this law so that our men and women in uniform never have to fight under a US flag made overseas, and so that our Defense Department never again spends American tax dollars on a US flag made overseas,” said the Vietnam War veteran and Purple Heart recipient.
这位越战老兵、紫心勋章(Purple Heart)获得者说：“我为能实现这项法案的通过而感到骄傲，从此以后我们的军人们再也不会在从国外买来的国旗底下战斗了，国防部也不会拿着美国纳税人的钱到国外去买国旗了。”
Thompson toured North Bay Industries on Tuesday. The Rohnert Park company makes thousands of flags each year, mainly for the Department of Veteran Affairs, which was already required to source memorial flags made in the United States with American-only materials.
汤普森周二的时候参观了北湾工业区，罗纳公园公司(Rohnert Park company)每年生产几千面国旗，主要销售给美国退役军人事务部(Department of Veteran Affairs)，退役军人部早已要求该公司使用由美国本土原料制造的有纪念意义的国旗。
North Bay Industries is a vocational rehabilitation center dedicated to assisting mentally, physically, and developmentally disabled adults through participation in agency-sponsored training, housing, and employment programs.
北湾工业区是一个职业康复中心，该中心致力于通过由一些机构赞助的培训、食宿和就业从而对那些心理上、生理上或成长上有障碍的成年人提供帮助。
Sit down and talk about financial goals and values.
坐下来好好谈谈你们关于金钱的计划和价值观
Many couples often neglect this step, even if it seems obvious and commonsensical. But because talking about finances can be uncomfortable, they leave these important things unsaid, and often don't even think about it individually. They have goals and values when it comes to money, but they're not examined. That's a mistake, as one person might want to be frugal in order to save for future goals, while the other might like to spend and enjoy things now, while the getting is good. The differences often come from different upbringings, and they can be emotionally charged (see next step for more on this). It doesn't have to be difficult, though. Just tell your partner you'd like to sit down and have a talk about the future — what your goals are and how you can work together, as a team, to achieve them. In the beginning, just start spitting out different things each of you wants — a house, kids, college education for the kids, a healthy emergency fund, nice cars, travel each year, nice clothes, gadgets and computers, etc. Then start to prioritize, and see if you can come up with things in common. If you want different things, it is important that you talk about why, and consider the other person's desires. If that's what makes the other person happy, you should want to make them happy — that's the basis of a good relationship. But relationships aren't one-sided, either, so you should be able to be happy too. The point is that both sides should be considered, and you should look for a win-win solution or compromise so that you can both be happy. It might take a few meetings to get to actual written goals, with a timeframe for each, but that's where you want to be eventually.
2. Remove emotions from financial talk.
切忌将情绪融入这场金钱对话
From your first meetings about financial goals to your subsequent weekly talks (see Step 5), it's important that the two of you stay calm, don't get hurt or angry over any of the issues, and try to look at these issues objectively. Often financial issues are tied up in all kinds of emotional issues, stemming from childhood, from issues of security to feeling like your way is better to feeling hurt if your way of spending is criticized in any way, and much more. These emotional issues are all tangled together with financial issues, and it's important that you untangle them and just deal with financial goals and habits. First, don't use emotional, accusatory, or inflammatory language. Don't blame the other person or even be negatively critical. Simply talk about your financial goals, developing a plan for getting to those goals, developing a system for dealing with finances, and so forth. Also try not to feel like you're under attack if the other person talks about your goals or habits — let this be an open discussion, and if you feel under attack, stop and take a breath and remember that this isn't a discussion about you personally but about how the two of you are going to meet your goals. Again, think of this as a team effort, not as a you-vs-me effort.
3. Come up with a plan to meet your goals.
为你的目标拟定一个可实施的计划
Once you're able to come up with common financial goals (a huge step — celebrate!), you need a plan to get you there. This will take into account your joint income, your debt, your savings, how much you can put towards debt and/or saving each month, whether you want to cut back on certain things in order to meet your savings goals, how long you want to give yourself to meet financial goals, and so forth. Start by having a definite timeframe for each goal, and then figure out how much you need to save (or pay towards debt) each month to get to your goals. Create a spending plan (if you haven't yet) for each month, and see if you can adjust it to meet that monthly goal. You might need to cut back on some things, or earn extra income, or both. Or you might discover that your goals aren't realistic and you need to cut back on them, reprioritize, or push them back a bit in order to meet them. This plan to meet your goals is how you will align your daily and monthly spending with your long-term goals. It's also a great way to resolve minor short-term disputes — you should definitely buy fewer shoes, and I should buy fewer video games, so we can buy that house in three years and travel to Europe in two years.
4. Develop a system for finances that works for both of you.
双方制定一个关于金钱问题都认可的方案
In order to put your financial plan into action, you'll need to figure out how you're going to pay your bills, pay debt, deposit into savings, have money for various spending needs (like gas and groceries and eating out), and so forth. Someone will have to take responsibility for each part of the system (it's better if you're both involved, but you should find what works best for you as a couple). One person might go to the bank while the other updates your financial program (like Quicken or Money) or your checking register to make sure you're in balance, for example.
5. Have weekly financial meetings.
每周开一次讨论会
This is very important, and it's a step that many couples overlook. Just because you have common financial goals and a plan and a system doesn't mean that everything is fine. If one person takes responsibility for the finances, for example, and the other is out of the loop, then there will likely be problems down the road. I've known several couples like this — one partner took care of the finances and the other was blissfully ignorant … until it was revealed that they were way behind on payments and would soon have to file for bankruptcy. That wasn't a good time in their relationship. To prevent problems like this, have a weekly meeting where you sit down and talk about finances. You can review your accounts, your spending plan, what is coming up in the next few weeks that you'll need to budget for, any problem areas, what to do with your annual bonus, where you are with your goals, and so forth. Make sure you're both caught up on everything, and that you're working well as a team.
6. Above all, stay positive and be honest.
总之，保持积极乐观和诚实最重要
Remember: you're a team. You have the same goals and you want each other to be happy. Team members can help each other out and encourage each other, or they can rip the team apart by being negative, by blaming, by working against common goals. If you always stay positive, you'll succeed as a team. Be encouraging, stay focused on solutions not blame, and make sure love is the foundation of everything you do.
好啦，本文的更新就是这样啦，咱们来日文章再见！
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