十个不能

一个朋友电邮了左边的这篇短文给我。他的电邮标题是: "Abraham Lincoln's Advice for 1Malaysia"。

据我的查证，这「十个不能」虽然常被误以为是林肯的语录，但是实际上却是在1916年出自Rev. William J. H. Boetcker之笔。无论如何，这确是智慧之言。

也许最近看了不少以文革为时代背景的小说，我在看这「十个不能」时首先想到的却是毛泽东，尤其是这两个句子：
"You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich" 和
"You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred"

而最符合我国国情的莫过于：
"You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong" 和
"You cannot help men permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves"

想当年的毛泽东应该没看过这些话。或者看了，不过却认为都是些废话。我国的政治领袖应该也一样。搞不好，可能还认为那是西方荼毒我国人民思想的阴谋。

在网上找不到好的中译，所以尝试将这「十个不能」翻译如下：

1. You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
   你不能以劝阻节俭来促进繁荣。
    
2. You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
   你不能以削弱强者来增强弱者。
    
3. You cannot help little men by tearing down big men.
   你不能以贬低大人物来帮助小人物。
    
4. You cannot lift the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
   你不能以扳倒发薪者来提升受薪者。
    
5. You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
   你不能以毁灭富人来帮助穷人。
    
6. You cannot establish sound security on borrowed money.
   你不能依赖借来的钱建立健全的安全措施。
    
7. You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
   你不能以煽动阶级仇恨来增进人们的情谊。
    
8. You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn.
   你不能以超过你所得的开销来解决问题。
    
9. You cannot build character and courage by destroying men's initiative and independence.
   你不能以毁灭人们的主动性和独立性来塑造他们的个性和勇气。
    
10. You cannot help men permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves.
    你不能以代替人们去做他们能做也本应该做的事，来长久地帮助他们。