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The scandal of the Alabama poor cut off from water
By Brian Wheeler
BBC News, Alabama
Media captionSheila Tyson, a community activist in the deprived West End area of Birmingham, tells the BBC how her community has been affected
Banks stand to lose millions of dollars in debt repayments if the biggest municipal bankruptcy in American history is allowed to proceed.But the real victims of the financial collapse in the US state of Alabama's most populous county are its poorest residents - forced to bathe in bottled water and use portable toilets after being cut off from the mains supply.And there is widespread anger in Jefferson County that swingeing sewerage rate hikes could have been avoided but for the greed, corruption and incompetence of local politicians, government officials and Wall Street financiers.Tammy Lucas is the human face of a financial and political scandal that has brought one of the most deprived communities in America's south to the point of what some local people believe is collapse.She says: "If the sewer bill gets higher, my light might get cut off and if I try to catch up the light, my water might get cut off. So we're in between. We can't make it like this."
Mrs Lucas's monthly sewerage rate bills - the amount levied by the county to flush away waste and provide water for baths and showers - has quadrupled in the past 15 years. She says it is currently running at $150 (?97) a month, which leaves little left out of her $600 social security cheque for food and electricity. "We need to keep the water running because we're women," she says. "We need to take baths. I try to pay the sewer bill and the water bill together and then what little I got left I try to put on my lights. I got to have lights."Her neighbour in one of the poorest districts of Jefferson County's largest city, Birmingham, a father of four who asked not to be named, has already made that choice.
Image caption
The poorest citizens in Birmingham, Alabama, say they can no longer afford running water
His modest rented home, next to a busy freight train line, is one of a growing number in the area that now has a blue portable toilet next to it.He says he finds it cheaper to buy drums of water from a petrol station and pay a sanitation company about $14 a month to remove waste from his "porta-potty" than pay the combined sewer and water rate bill, which some months can reach $300."Most people who live here are on social security," he said."They can't spend this kind of money on sewerage. It's just outrageous. It's too high. "I pay my sewerage bill, then I'm going to slack on my groceries. Then what am I going to eat?" Sewerage rates and water rates, which are levied on drinkable water, vary widely across the United States.But they are generally rising faster than inflation as cities are forced by federal government to replace worn-out sewerage facilities.The two rates have been combined into a single bill in Jefferson County, which has increased by 329% over the past 15 years, making it among the highest in America, as the county has struggled to service the mountain of debt it took on to pay for a new sewer system. The facility, which has been under construction since 1996, was meant to cost about $300m.But the bill soared to $3.1bn after construction problems and a series of bond and derivatives deals that went sour in the financial meltdown of 2008.
Image caption
Sheila Tyson says residents are embarrassed by the "porta-potties" in their yards
If they let this stuff happen they are going to get the biggest riot the South has seenSheila Tyson, Community activist
Investment bank JP Morgan Securities and two of its former directors have been fined for offering bribes to Jefferson County workers and politicians to win business financing the sewer upgrade. Six of Jefferson County's former commissioners have been found guilty of corruption for accepting the bribes, along with 15 other officials. New county commissioners, struggling to service the debt they inherited from their crooked predecessors, took the decision to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy last month. But the county's bondholders, who stand to lose about $4.5m a month in repayments if the bankruptcy is allowed to proceed, are contesting it in court. A Birmingham bankruptcy judge, Thomas B Bennett, has yet to make a final ruling.Prior to the bankruptcy filing, the county's sewer rates had been due to go up by a further 8.2% a year for the next three years in a deal with the county's creditors, to the dismay of local residents. Now that is more likely to be 10% a year or even, according to the court appointed receiver John S Young, as much as 25%.Sheila Tyson, a community activist in the deprived West End district of Birmingham, says people in the city are reaching breaking point. "These people are going to end up rioting about this," she says. "If they let this stuff happen they are going to get the biggest riot the South has ever seen. Over this sewer business. I can see it coming."She says soaring sewer-rate bills have traditionally hit the poorest parts of the county hardest, as better-off people in the suburbs installed septic tanks at their properties.But the people affected are embarrassed to speak out about living in such unsanitary conditions, she tells BBC News."This is not even a race issue, if I'm telling the truth," says Ms Tyson. "It's just so happens that it's affecting black people. It's a class issue. They don't give a doo-doo about poor people period."And she adds: "Somebody from Washington DC needs to come down here and take these sewer bills to where they are affordable for the people in these districts. Injustice - that's all this is. They need to come down here and fix it."
When you look at the amount of debt, and you look at the revenue that is produced from the rate payers, there is no way it is going to come downTony Petelos, Jefferson County manager
To add further to Jefferson County's woes, it faces a budget shortfall next year of $40m after a local tax was declared illegal. The county is appealing to the Alabama state legislature for financial aid, but there are still likely to be cuts to public services.More than 500 county workers were laid off over the summer and are having to get by on unemployment benefit, while their jobs hang in the balance.Tony Petelos, the county manager appointed by the new commissioners to sort the mess out, admits it could take years to get the area back on its feet."The public has lost confidence in Jefferson County over the last decade and a half, because of the mismanagement, because of the corruption. We have got to rebuild that confidence," he says.He insists there is "light at the end of the tunnel" and that some of residents' worst fears about looming public service cuts are groundless, with most savings likely to be made through efficiencies and property sales.But he can offer few assurances to citizens struggling with soaring sewer and water rate bills. The decision is in the hands of the bankruptcy court, he stresses, but even if the judge decides to hand control of sewer rates back to the county - and Mr Petelos has offered to manage the troubled project himself - there is no prospect of the bills being reduced.
"When you look at the amount of debt, and you look at the revenue that is produced from the rate payers, there is no way it is going to come down," says Mr Petelos.When he was Republican mayor of Birmingham's neighbouring city of Hoover, Mr Petelos recalls attending a presentation by a Wall Street bank about the same kind of bonds that would later prove to be the downfall of Jefferson County.He says: "I turned to my finance director and said, 'did you understand that?' He said, 'no I didn't'. So I said, 'we had better not buy it then'."Perhaps if Jefferson County's previous commissioners had made the same decision, some of their poorest residents would not be facing daily life without basic sanitation and running water.
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Top Stories高三英语单选题The Beatles ,as many of you are old enough to remember ,came from Liverpoor.请问句中as引导的那个从句作什么成分?这里as的用法是什么?_百度作业帮
高三英语单选题The Beatles ,as many of you are old enough to remember ,came from Liverpoor.请问句中as引导的那个从句作什么成分?这里as的用法是什么?
高三英语单选题The Beatles ,as many of you are old enough to remember ,came from Liverpoor.请问句中as引导的那个从句作什么成分?这里as的用法是什么?
定语从句 修饰The Beatlesas可以作连词、介词及关系代词和副词.现将其用法小结如下:（一）、 as作连词的用法:1.作“在-------期间,当----的时候”引导时间状语从句.注意与when、 while的用法区别.①下列情形时,只用as,而不用when或while.1)用于表示同一个人的两种动作交替进行,指一边----一边.如:The girl sings as she goes to school.He looked behind occasionally as he went forward in the forest.2)表示两个同步发生的动作或行?意思是随着-----的发展.如:As time went on / by,she became more and more beautiful .As children get older,they become more and more interested in everything.3)表示两个短暂行为或事情几乎同时发生.如:I watched her as she read the book.I thought of it just as you opened your mouth.Just as the flying worm hit her face,she gave a loud cry.4)接在名词后面表示某一个年龄段时.如:As a young man,he was active in sports.②when作"当……的时候"解,可以指较短的(一点)时间,也可指一段时间.如:When I was at college,I could speak several foreign languages.When the clock struck twelve,I had slept for 2hours.③ while常表示一段较长的时间或一个过程,强调主句谓语动词与从句谓语动词同时发生.如:Work while you work.Play while you play.2.As =Since 作"既然"、"由于"解,引导原因状语从句,常用来表示已为人们所知或显而易见的原因或理由.如:As he’s been ill for ages,I will help him.As / Since you're not feeling well,you may stay at home.As he wasn't ready ,we went without him.3.As =in the way that作"像"、"按照……的方式"解,引导方式状语从句.如:Do as I told you.Remember,you must do everything as I do.4.用于as--- as或not / so/ as ---- as中,前一个as是副词,后一个as是连词,引导比较状语从句.如:They helped the old as much as possible.I don't speak English so/ as well as she does.5.表示虽然,尽管 等,引导让步状语从句,常用倒装语序,模式为:adj./adv./ n.+as +主语+谓语+主句.如:Young as he is,he knows much.Tired as they were,they walked on.6.表示也------一样.She is a doctor,as was her husband.（二）、 as作关系代词,引导定语从句,表示正如,这一点.如:He is very careful,as we all know.As is well-known,Taiwan belongs to China.另外,当先行词被the same,such等词修饰时,常用as来引导定语从句.如:Such a clever girl as she can learn anything quickly.I was reading the same book as he bought yesterday.（三）、as作介词的用法.1.表示好像.如:He dressed as a policeman.2.表示作为当作.如：I found a job as a guide.3.当某人是某身份时.如：As a child ,she was sent to abroad.4.as引导的介词短语大多用作状语,as译为"作为";少数情况可引起宾语补足语.如:As a Party member,I'll take the lead in everything.(状语) She works as a model.(状语) She has me as one of her best friends.(引起宾语补足语) （四）、作副词的用法 1 表示与------等同.如：This dress is twice as expensive as that one.2 像,如等.如：As before,he remained unmoved.总之,通过以上的分析,我们对as的词性和用法有了比较全面的理解和把握,才能在实际的运用中做到心中有数,应付裕如.
作为条件。一整句话的意思是：披头士，像你们这样的年龄应该记得，它发源于利物浦。提问回答都赚钱
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回答题With so many of the deaths each year from around the world directly related to poor
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回答题With so many of the deaths each year from around the world directly related to poor health choices we make．world health leaders have set a goal of lowering the number of preventable deaths by 25％from 2010 rates by 2025．That would save 37 million lives over 15 years．Reporting in thejournal Lancet，public health experts note that the ways to prevent those deaths area’t surprising．But acting on those strategies will take individual and political will．Here’s how the experts hope to do it． Not smoke．The UN General Assembly set a target of cutting smoking around the world by 30%by 2025．Already，higher-income nations that already adopted smoking bans in public places and instituted tobacco taxes have seen drops in smoking rates，however，residents in lower-income nations continue to light up at high rates． Limit excessive drinking．While moderate amounts of alcohol have been linked to some health benefits， overindulging can increase the risk of certain cancers and liver disease，as well as contribute to high blood pressure．Educating people about the risks of excessive drinking，as well as instituting taxes on alcoholic products，has been somewhat successful in curbing（遏制abuse． Cut back on salt．High sodium （钠diets can increase blood pressure and contribute to heart disease and stroke，and in many developed countries，people eat several times the amount the salt their bodies need．In the U．S．，the average American consumes about 800mg more salt every day than health experts consider acceptable．Promoting alternatives，such as the citric acid in lemons，to satisfy the need for salt， Call help to bring sodiunl consumption down． Get blood pressure under control．Lack of exercise and high sodium diets contribute to hypertension（高血压，and uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to stroke and heart disease．Monitoring blood pressure with regular screenings，and treating elevated levels with changes in diet and exercise，or medications if necessary，are the most effective ways to address this risk factor． Address diabetes．Closely tied to the obesity epidemic（肥胖病that now affects developing as well as developed nations，diabetes can increase the risk of heart disease，kidney disease and other conditions that can shorten life．Studies show that lifestyle. changes incorporating healthy diets low in sugar and phy’sical activity call be as effective as medications in keeping blood sugar levels in check． What does the author mean by sayin9“acting on those strategies will take individual and political will”（Line 4-5，para．1?A.Both politicians and individuals wish to put the strategies into practice．B.Conducting those strategies needs to consider both personal and official will．C.Carrying out those strategies needs both individual and govemmental support．D.Either individual or government can carry out those strategies．请帮忙给出正确答案和分析，谢谢！
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