英语说－－光打雷不下雨

英语说－－ 光打雷不下雨／说一套做一套

一个人如果只是夸夸其谈虚张声势却不见任何行动，我们便用'光打雷不下雨’来形容。

那么美国人有没有类似的表达呢？

2008年2月21日星期四晚，CNN播放奥巴马和希拉里在德克萨斯州位于澳斯汀的德州大学进行了90分钟的辩论(The two rivals sat next to one another in swivel chairs in a University of Texas auditorium for the 90-minute debate)

CNN 图

辩论中这黑白阵营你来我往，唇枪舌剑，相互指责贬损，抨击当朝总统，抬高自己，为美国的另四年献计献策，标榜自己完全有能力改变美国现状，把美国劳苦大众从水深火热中解救出来。

45 分钟后，CNN主持人political correspondent John King发问：

......

And, Senator Clinton, I want to talk specifically about some words you've spoken here in the state of Texas over the past couple of days.

You've said, quote, "My opponent gives speeches; I offer solutions."

You said the choice for Democrats in this campaign is, quote, "talk versus action."

Now, in a campaign that some of us are old enough to remember, maybe not many of the students here, this would be called the "Where's the beef?" question.

But, since we're in Texas, I'd like to borrow a phrase that they often use here and you've used yourself in the context of President Bush. Are you saying that your opponent is all hat and no cattle, and can you say that after the last 45 minutes?

CLINTON: Well, I have said that about President Bush, and I think our next president needs to be a lot less hat and a lot more cattle.

......

So, yes, I do think that words are important and words matter, but actions speak louder than words.
 
在美国，all hat and no cattle 的意思是：

Someone talks about doing big, important things, but doesn't take any action.
这就是我们说的：光打雷不下雨。

例如：

1、When someone talks big, but cannot back it up, they are all hat, no cattle.
高谈阔论，脱离实际，无法实现，这些人是干打雷不下雨。

2、We expect a leader to be effective in his job, not just a public relations artist who is "all hat and no cattle."（Wiki）
我们要的是工作中有成效的领导，而不是光打雷不下雨的公关师。

3、But when it's time to put his money where his mouth is, the president is, as they say in Texas, all hat and no cattle.（ＵSA Today）
（总统高调称赞美国小企业给美国的就业和生产贡献巨大）但是真到了联邦经费如他说的分 配时，就如德州人所说的，说一套做一套了。

我们中文的光打雷不下雨很生动形象，而all hat and no cattle则让人有点摸不着头脑。请看google到的内容：

There’s an old Texas saying about a cowboy who was “all hat and no cattle.” That is, he was all show and no substance. This phrase applies to pretend cowboys that dress and talk the part, pretending to be what they aren't.

原来，这是来源于德州的一个谚语，一个人把自己全副武装成牛仔，戴着那顶象征牛仔的帽子，特别抢眼，但却没有关键实质性的牛群，给人的印象无非就是摆架势气派做样子，而实际上是虚的根本不是那么回事。

现在 all hat and no cattle 指被形容的人不仅是只说不做的夸夸奇谈的家伙，还是撒谎家，骗子，夸海口而不切实际的人。 all hat and no cattle implies the person thus described is a liar, a fraudster, not just a boaster who won't do what he says. It's a guy(or gal) who makes grandious claims that have no basis in reality. For somebody who talks the talk without walking the walk,

布什的籍贯是德州，奥巴马和希拉里在德州辩论，后半场双方便围绕德州的名言：all hat and no cattle展开话题。说了半天，鬼才知道那些高招妙计能不能go realized，搞不好还是‘光打雷不下雨’，‘说归说，做归做’。
 
英语中类似的同义词组Synonyms还有：

all bark and no bite, all bluff and bluster, all booster no payload, all crown no filling, all foam no beer, all hammer no nail, all icing no cake, all lime and salt no tequila, all mouth and no trousers, all mouth and trousers, all shot no powder, all sizzle and no steak, all talk and no action, all wax and no wick
(From Wiki)


中文说－－－－Where is the beef?


上文中John King说道：Now, in a campaign that some of us are old enough to remember, maybe not many of the students here, this would be called the "Where's the beef?" question.

什么是 "Where's the beef?"

字面意义是：牛肉在哪里？这句话来自于1984年Wendy's 汉堡广告。

Wendys' "Where's the Beef" Commercial



广告一出现，Where's the beef？一夜窜红，被人们广为应用于指一个观点或一次事件或某产品的最关键的实质性东东在哪里？

“Where's the beef?” is a catch phrase best known in the United States and Canada. Since it was first used, it has become an all-purpose phrase questioning the substance of an idea, event or product.

It came to public attention in a 1980s U.S. television commercial created by Joe Sedelmaier as part of Dancer Fitzgerald Sample's fast food advertising campaign for the Wendy's chain of hamburger restaurants. In the ad, titled "Fluffy Bun", elderly actress Clara Peller receives a competitor's burger with a massive bun (the competitor's slogan was "Home of the Big Bun"). The small patty prompts the gruff Peller to angrily exclaim, "Where's the beef?" The humorous ad and Peller's memorable character soon gave the catch phrase a life of its own, and it was repeated in television shows, films, magazines, and other media outlets.

First airing on January 10, 1984, "Fluffy Bun" featured three elderly ladies examining an exaggeratedly large hamburger bun topped with a minuscule hamburger patty: the other two ladies poked at it, exchanging bemused comments ("It certainly is a big bun." "It's a big fluffy bun.") before being interrupted by Peller's outraged, irascible demand. Sequels featured Peller yelling at a Fluffy Bun executive on his yacht over the phone, and approaching drive-up windows at fast food restaurants that were slammed down before she could complete the line.
(From Wiki)

1984年的总统大选， 候选人Gary Hart 和 Walter Mondale之间辩论时，前副总统Mondale针对对手Hart的‘新政’，反问：“Where's the beef?”，从此加重了这个句子流行的分量。

The phrase was associated with the 1984 U.S. presidential election. During primaries in the spring of 1984, when the commercial was at its height of popularity, Democratic candidate and former Vice President Walter Mondale ridiculed the candidacy of his rival, Senator Gary Hart, by using the phrase during a March 11, 1984 televised debate prior to the New York and Pennsylvania primaries.

Hart had moved his candidacy from dark horse to the lead over Mondale based on his repeated use of the phrase "new ideas". When Hart once again used the slogan in the debate, Mondale leaned forward and said, "When I hear your new ideas, I'm reminded of that ad, 'Where's the beef?'" The line got a great response from the audience. Subsequently, the two campaigns continually clashed using the two dueling slogans (Hart presented his book, published later, to the press between two slices of bun).
（From Wiki）

朋友的女儿临盆在既，医生预计2月份第一周生，第二周还没生，现在第三周了还没生，采取了吃药催产措施，还是没生。朋友与女儿相隔3小时车程，一边要工作赚钱，一边担心着宝贝女儿和小baby，生活秩序大乱。天天抱怨：Where's the beef? All hat and no cattle.

哈哈，这里也可以用'Where's the beef?’ All hat and no cattle.。