The Economist (Sep27)
エコノミストによる福田新政権の評判はと・・。ま、ほぼ国内での評判どおりってところでしょうか。概して好意的？
- he has a reputation for competence and common sense, and seven of the party's eight factions backed him. →有能で常識に富んだ人という前評判。8つある党内派閥のうち7つが彼を支持。
- Mr Fukuda is the first Japanese politician to follow his father into the top job. →（祖父が総理大臣経験者という人は多数いたけれども)、父子二代で総理を務めたのは彼が初。
- In their tactics they are as likely to try killing the DPJ through conciliation as much as confrontation. →対民主党戦術は、対決姿勢に加えて協調姿勢に重きを置くようになるだろうと。
- As for the new government's liberalising bent, it is too soon to write Mr Fukuda off. →リベラル寄りになるかどうかはまだ不明。
- Although sometimes a master of obfuscation, he has been clear on the matter: with its population ageing and shrinking fast, Japan must boost productivity. →master of obfuscation=煙に巻くタイプの大家って；； 人口問題については明確な姿勢を打ち出していると。
- With high levels of debt, the government must also balance its books—by 2011, before interest payments, insists Mr Fukuda, reiterating an LDP commitment. →赤字体質については2011年までに収支バランスの調整を図ると繰り返している。
- Certainly, steps will be taken to help presumed victims of reform or those whom the economic recovery has not touched. There is talk of raising the minimum wage. The new government (which keeps 15 out of the 17 in Mr Abe's final cabinet), as well as the party leadership, has its share of budget-balancers and free-marketeers. →急速な改革による犠牲者と想定される人々への対策については触れていない。が、新内閣の顔ぶれは予算均衡主義者と自由経済主義者が占めている。
- Bold new reform initiatives can hardly be expected. But slowly, greyly might do it. →大胆な新しい改革のイニシアティブは予想しがたいが、ゆっくり灰色的に改革は進んでいくだろうと。
[その他気にかかった表現]
- factions' heavies=派閥の大物 →大物って、文字どおりheaviesか；；
- Mr Abe's iconoclastic predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi →iconoclastic=因習打破主義者的
- handing power to the bureaucrats →官僚を牛耳っていた
