-Opposition's about ask all the questions.
-And government is about not answering them.
-反对派就是用来质询这些问题的。
-而政府就是用来回避这些问题的。
The less you intend to do about something, the more you have to keep talking
about it.
你愈不想做什么事情，就愈会把这件事挂在嘴边。
-What's wrong with "open government"? I mean, why shouldn't the
public know more about what's going on?
......
-It's a contradiction in terms. You can be open or you can have
government.
-But surely the citizens of a democracy have a right to know.
-No. They have a right to be ignorant. Knowledge only means complicity and
guilt,
ignorance has a certain dignity.
-“透明政府”有什么不对的吗？我意思是，为什么公众不能对正在发生的事知道得更详细些？
……
-这个短语本来就自相矛盾。你可以“透明”或者你可以有个政府。
-可民主政府下的公民们有权利去获知。
-不，他们有无知的权利。知识只会代表阴谋和罪行，无知倒有一定的尊严。
If people don't know what you're doing, they don't know what you are doing
wrong.
如果人们不知道你在做些什么，他们就不会知道你做错了什么。
"Under consideration" means we've lost the file， "Under active consideration"
means we're trying to find it.
“在考虑当中”意味着文件已经丢了，“在积极考虑当中”的意思是我们正在找。
Six options for unfavourable opinion from a foreign country:
1. Do nothing - implicitly agree with the speech
2. Issue a statement deploring the speech - just look foolish
3. Lodge an official protest - it will be ignored
4. Cut off aid - can't cut off aid because we don't give them any
5. Break off diplomatic relations - can't negotiate the oil rig contracts
6. Declare war - it might just look as if we were overreacting
六种应对他国不利言论的选择：
1. 听之任之——等于默认了其内容
2. 发表声明对其表示遗憾——只会像个呆瓜
3. 提出正式抗议——不会被放在眼里
4. 停止援助——无法停止援助，因为从未援助过
5. 断绝外交关系——谈不成钻井合同了（适用于各种投资谈判）
6. 宣战——那就会显得反应过火了
Yes,Minister S01E03/E04 学习笔记
（基本来自于破烂熊字幕组，只在个别翻译上略有改动。强大的字幕组！）
Perhaps the government thinks that a tax is the best form of defence.
也许政府认为征税才是最佳的国防。
Public don't know anything about wasting government money. We are the
experts. (Humpy)
民众们对如何挥霍公家的钱财可是一窍不通。我们才是专家。(Humpy)
Suppose everyone went around saving money irresponsibly all over the
place......(Humpy)
要是所有人都开始不负责任地到处省钱……(Humpy)
Stalling technique for the implementation of new policy (five stages)
1. First, he'll tell you there's lots of things to be getting on with.
2. Then, if you still persist, he'll say something like "Ah, yes,
Minister, I quite appreciate the intention, certainly something ought to be done,
but are you sure this is the right way to achieve it?"
3. Now, if you are still undeterred, he will shift his ground. He will
shift from how to do it to when you should do it. I mean, he'll say "Now,
Minister, this is not the right time, for all sorts of reasons"
4. And if you don't settle for that, he'll say that the policy"has
run into difficulties, such as technical, political, legal......legal are the
best sort, he can make those totally incomprehensible."
5. And with any luck, this technique will have lasted for three years and
you'll be at the final stage when he says: "Now, Minister, we're getting
very close to the next general election. Are you sure you can get this policy
through?"
应对新政策实施的拖延战术（五个阶段）
1. 首先，他会跟你说内阁新建，尚有许多事务要处理。
2. 其次，如果你仍然坚持（实施政策），他会这么说：“好的，大臣阁下，意图很好，确实应予施行，但你肯定这就是实施它的正确方式？”
3. 如果你还没被唬住，他会改变立足点，从告诉你如何做转向告诉你何时做。他会这么说：“大臣阁下，出于各种原因，现在并非恰当的时机。”
4. 如果你仍未放弃，他便会说政策“实施起来困难重重，比方说在技术方面、行政方面、法律方面……法律是最好的托辞，他会使其听起来玄乎其玄。”
5. 走运的话，这个战术会持续三年。到了最后阶段，他会告诉你：“大臣阁下，下一届大选近在咫尺，你能保证这项政策通过吗？”
-There is a lot of nonsense talked about the Civil Service. It's actually
a marvellous, efficient, professional organisation, capable of enormous energy
and speed. It's staffed by a lot of talented, dedicated people who do
everything in their power to help the government make it's policies into law.
(Jim)
-......Well, thank you for the commercial, Minister.
-关于行政部门，一直颇多微词。其实它是一个非凡而高效的专业机构，充满活力、高速运转，它汇集了许许多多有才干而又无私奉献的人们，这些人正尽其所能地帮助政府将政策转化为法律。(Jim)
-……感谢您所做的广告，大臣阁下。
Yes,Minister
S01E05/E06/E07 学习笔记
（基本来自于破烂熊字幕组，只在个别翻译上略有改动。强大的字幕组！）
-Yes or no? Straight answer! (Jim)
-Well, Minister, if you ask me for a straight answer, then I shall say
that, as far as we can see, looking at it by and large, taking one time with
another, in terms of the average of departments, then in the final analysis it
is probably true to say that at the end of the day, in general terms, you would
probably find that no to put to fine a point on it, there probably wasn't very
much in it one way or the other. As far as one can see......at this stage.
(Humpy)
-是或不是？明确回答！(Jim)
-大臣阁下，如果您一定要我明白点讲，我只能说，就目前的情况，综观全局，纵览古今，考虑各部门平均水平，分析总结下来，也许可以这样认为：综上所述，概括说来，您很可能发现——尽管可能不中听——无论如何，恐怕前景微妙。现阶段只能这样预期。(Humpy)
I know what with "with respect" means, that anything I suggest
is beneath contempt.
我知道“恕我直言”是什么意思，你是在暗示我的建议全都不值一提。
Britain has had the same foreign policy objective
for at least the last 500 years: To create a disunited Europe.
英国的外交目标500年来从未变过：创造一个分裂的欧洲。
It's just like the United Nations. The more members it has, the more
arguments it can stir up, the more futile and impotent it becomes.
就像联合国一样，群龙无首，人多嘴杂，它就越发鸡毛蒜皮。
-It's top secret.
-You mean everyone know about it.
-这是最高机密。
-你是说人人都知道。
That's not fair. Those Civil Servants may be always kowtowing to
Daddy(Minister), but they take any notice of him.
这么说可不公平。那些公务员对你爸是挺恭敬的没错，不过可从没把他放在眼里。
The Official Secrets Act is not to protect secrets, but officials.
《官方保密法》可不是用来保护秘密的，是用来保护官方的。
-Well, my dear, do you know about?
-Nothing. Nothing really. I'm a banker.
-老伙计，你到底懂些什么？
-什么都不懂。真的。我可是个银行家。
-Most original and imaginative. (Humpy)
......
-Those are two of Humphrey's most damning criticisms. (Jim)
-很有独创性，富有想象力。(Humpy)
……
-这两个词是汉弗莱最严厉的批评。(Jim)
Yes,Minister
S02E01/E02/E03/E04 学习笔记
（基本来自于破烂熊字幕组，只在个别翻译上略有改动。强大的字幕组！）
Every stone will be left unturned in a search for the settlement.
问题不解决我们决不动摇。
-I wonder why we got two really good roads to Oxford,
before we got any to Southampton, Dover or Lowestoft or any of the ports?
-Nearly all our Permanent Secretaries went to Oxford, Minister. And most Oxford Colleges
give very good dinners.
-为什么有两条这么好的路直通牛津，却没有一条通往南安普敦、多佛或者洛斯托夫特，或是别的什么港口？
-几乎全体常任秘书都出身牛津，大臣。而且牛津各个学院的晚宴都非常不错。
First law of Political indiscretion: Always have a drink before you leak.
政坛泄密第一法则：酒后吐真言。
You know what compound interest is? Well, a jolly good thing. That's the sort
of thing a compound is.
你们都知道复合利息吧？对对……让人高兴的东西。“化合物"大概就是这类东西。
-You mean we suppress it?
-Certainly not, we just don't publish it.
-What's the difference?
-Oh Minister, all the difference in the world. Suppression is the
instrument of totalitarian dictatorship, we don't talk of that sort of thing in
a free country. We simply take a democratic decision not to publish it.
-你是说禁掉它？
-当然不是，只是不公布而已。
-有什么区别吗？
-区别可大了。查禁是独裁专政的手段，咱们自由国家可不讲这些。我们是经民主程序决定不公布。
作者：海洋
链接：
http://www.zhihu.com/question/20545147/answer/15441360来源：知乎
著作权归作者所有。商业转载请联系作者获得授权，非商业转载请注明出处。
The Mirror is read by the people who think they run the country
镜报的读者是自以为在统治国家的人
The Guardian is read by the people who think they ought to run the country
卫报的读者是自以为应该统治国家的人
The Times is read by the people who actually do run the country
泰晤士报的读者是真的统治国家的人
The Daily Mail is read by the wives of the people who run the country
每日邮报的读者是统治国家的人的夫人
The Financial Times is read by people who own the country
金融时报的读者是手里攥着国家的人
The Morning Star is read by people who think the country should be run by another country
晨星报的读者是想把国家交给别国统治的人
The Daily Telegraph is read by people who think it is
每日电讯报的读者是觉得我们正被别国统治的人
The Sun reads don't care who runs the country as long as she's got big tits
太阳报的读者不在乎谁统治这个国家，只要她前凸后翘就行
J:我什么时候才有时间回复这些信件？
B:其实不用回，大臣。要是不想回就不用回，可以草拟一份官方答复。
J:官方答复是什么意思？
B:就是回复：「大臣感谢您的来信」，再说些「正在考虑当中」之类的话。当然您也可以说「正在积极考虑当中」。
J:有什么不同？
B:「在考虑当中」意思是文件已经丢了；「正在积极考虑当中」意思是我们正在找。
H:如果我们停止节约运动，关闭监察办公室，那就可以立即发布新闻通告，说您砍掉了800个职位。
J:但没人担任过这些职位，还没认命过谁呢。
J:这样节约就更为可观，我们还节省了800份裁员费用。
有四个词能让大臣采纳提案，快捷，简单，时兴，便宜。
还有四个词能让提案被大臣否决，复杂，耗时，昂贵，争议。
要彻底排除被采纳的可能，就得说这决定有魄力。争议只表示会失去部分选票，魄力表示会失掉整个大选。
W:你对我的提议怎么看？
H:很有独创性，富有想象力。
W:你支持？
J:这两个词是最严厉的批评。
J:幸好多数记者素质低下，大概连今天星期三都不知道。
B:今天星期四，大臣。
J太太:这个职位怎么样？(指英国驻欧共体官员）
J:惨透了。跟英国政治完全隔绝，比领爵位还惨，永世不得翻身，要想回来除非自己建个党。
J太太:这工作具体干什么?
J:身处恐怖的欧共体官僚中心，进了保险箱，每年薪水5万磅，报销2万磅，香槟，龙虾，周游列国， 高级酒店，豪华轿车，私人飞机，午休时间，比利时海滩度周末。
J太太:我们去看看吧？
J:……好啊，偶尔失败一下也不错。
J: 这就是公务员的问题，论资排辈，好的人才就要赶快提拔。
H:没错，只要轮到他们。
J:一派胡言，拿破仑30岁就统治欧洲了，亚历山大20岁征服世界。
H:他们做不了副秘书。
J:他们没有论资排辈。
H:看看他们的下场。
J:军火卖给恐怖分子是不对的，你不懂吗，汉弗莱？
H:不，大臣，军火要么卖要么不卖，卖的话总会落到出钱的人手里。
J:恐怖分子不行吧？
H:我想我们可以在枪托上贴政府健康警示，「枪支严重损害健康」。
H:我们国防政策的目的是什么？
B:保卫英国。
H:不，是为了让人相信英国受到了保卫。
B:让俄国人？
H:不是俄国人，是英国人。俄国人知道没有。
J:外交部应该亲欧洲吧？
H:是，也不是。外交部亲欧洲，实际上是为了反欧洲。我们团结在这一理念之下，保证共同市场不能形成。所以我们打进去。英国的外交目标500年来没有变过：创造一个分裂的欧洲。因此，我们联荷兰制西班牙，联德国制法国，联法国和意大利制德国，联法国制德国和意大利，分而制之。一贯效果很好，为什么要改变？
J:这都是老皇历了吧？
H:对，也是现行政策。我们得打进去，从内部攻破。我们施加过外力，没有成效。现在可以从里面把它搅成一锅粥了。挑德国反法国，挑法国反意大利，挑意大利反荷兰，外交部高兴坏了，光辉岁月又回来了。
J:但我们都忠于大欧州理念吧，不然为什么要增加成员国？
H:一个道理，就像联合国，人越多，嘴越杂，就越发鸡毛蒜皮。
J:这也太世故了吧。
H:是的，不过我们一般称之为外交。大臣。