调查：西班牙对欧洲丧失信心《金融时报》
Why Europe is no longer the solution for Spain
Travelling between Madrid and Barcelona on a recent weekday afternoon, I wandered into the first-class section of the train. There was only one passenger, snoozing on the black leather seats ? and he turned out to be the conductor, who looked up startled at the sound of an intruder.
最近一个工作日的下午，我坐上了马德里至巴塞罗那的高铁。当我走进头等车厢时发现，那里仅有一名乘客坐在黑色皮椅上打盹――后来得知他是列车长，他听到有人进来显得特别吃惊。
Spain’s magnificent high-speed rail network testifies to the dramatic modernisation of the country in recent decades. But the empty trains speeding between the country’s two leading cities are evidence of a deep economic malaise. Trouble in Spain is trouble for Europe. All the euro rescues so far have been for relatively small countries: Greece, Portugal, Ireland and Cyprus. But Spain is one of Europe’s largest economies and talk of an eventual bailout is once again commonplace.
西班牙庞大的高铁网络是该国几十年大规模现代化的见证。但行驶在两大城市之间的空荡荡的列车表明该国经济严重低迷。西班牙的麻烦就是欧洲的麻烦。迄今欧元区推出的所有纾困措施都是针对相对较小的国家：希腊、葡萄牙、爱尔兰和塞浦路斯。但西班牙是欧洲最大的经济体之一，该国最终不得不接受纾困的言论再次甚嚣尘上。
The statistics are frightening. Unemployment is about 26 per cent; youth unemployment is more than 50 per cent. The economy is forecast to contract again this year, by about 1.5 per cent. The banks have had to be bailed out ? but there is a fear that if the economy keeps sliding, they will be hit by a second wave of bad debts. The government has cut spending sharply and loosened labour-market regulations. But the fiscal deficit this year remains on track to be about 6.6 per cent of gross domestic product ? and the national debt is heading up to 90 per cent, often regarded as the danger level.
统计数据令人震惊。失业率为26%左右;青年失业率超过50%。预计西班牙经济今年将再次收缩 1.5%左右。银行不得不接受纾困，但人们担心，如果经济持续下滑，银行将遭受第二波坏账冲击。西班牙政府大幅削减支出，并放松劳动力市场监管。但今年财政赤字与国内生产总值(GDP)的比率依然会保持在6.6%左右，国家债务与GDP的比例将接近90%――这往往被视为危险水平。
The economic crisis is a particular shock for Spain because ? since the coming of democracy at the end of the 1970s ? the country has been Europe’s most optimistic and exciting. While the French, British and Italians struggled with a sense of national decline, Spain powered forward. Prosperity was soaring and Spain became a global leader in football, fashion, food and cinema.
经济危机对西班牙的冲击尤为严重，因为自上世纪70年代末建立民主体制以来，该国一直是最让欧洲感到乐观和振奋的国家。在法国、英国和意大利陷入困境、感觉国家实力下降之际，西班牙却一路高歌猛进。西班牙迅速繁荣起来，在足球、时尚、食品和电影领域成为全球领军者。
Spain has suffered deep recessions before, even in the 1990s. But in previous eras, the sacrifices had a purpose, linked to joining first the EU and then the euro. The difference this time is that the Spanish no longer seem sure that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Instead, the economic tunnel keeps growing darker and longer. As a result, Spaniards are losing faith in national and European institutions.
西班牙曾经历过严重的衰退，甚至在上世纪90年代也衰退过。但是，以前的牺牲都是有目的的――最初是加入欧盟，随后是加入欧元区。这次的不同之处在于，西班牙似乎再不能确定隧道尽头是否还有希望之光。相反，西班牙的“经济隧道”越来越黑，也越走越长。结果，西班牙人失去了对本国和欧洲机构的信心。
