紐約街頭現假和尚乞討

New York City Buddhist leaders are sounding the alarm to tourists: Beware the "fake monks."
紐約的佛教領袖們向遊客發出警告：小心“假僧人”。

Men in orange robes claiming to be Buddhist monks are approaching visitors to some of the city's most popular attractions, handing them shiny medallions and offering greetings of peace. They then hit them up for donations to help them build a temple in Thailand, and are persistent if their demands are refused.
在紐約一些熱門景點，有些穿着橘色袍子的人聲稱自己是佛教僧人以接近遊客，遞給他們閃閃發光的紀念章，送給他們平安的祝福。然後就向他們索要捐贈，幫他們在泰國興建寺廟，如果他們的要求被拒就會死纏爛打。

"The problem seems to be increasing," said the Rev. TK Nakagaki, president of the Buddhist Council of New York, a group that represents nearly two dozen Buddhist temples. "They are very aggressive and hostile if you don't give them money."
紐約佛教協會會長雷夫•TK•中垣說，“問題似乎越來越嚴重了，”佛教協會代表着二十多個佛教寺院。“你不給錢的話他們就會非常咄咄逼人，充滿敵意。”

His group has taken to the streets and social media to warn people that the men appear to have no affiliation to any Buddhist temple. "Please be aware," read one Facebook post, "this is a scam."
他的團隊走上街頭，並在社交媒體上警告人們，這些人和佛教寺院可能沒有任何關係。“請小心，”臉書上一條帖子寫道，“這是詐騙。”

Along the popular High Line elevated park, one of the robed men handed a couple a shiny, gold-colored medallion and a plastic beaded bracelet. He then showed them photos of a planned temple and barked, "Ten dollars! Twenty dollars!" When they wouldn't give up cash, he snatched the trinkets back.
在遊人衆多的高線空中公園，一個長袍僧人遞給一對夫婦一枚金光閃閃紀念章和一串塑料珠子做成的手鍊，然後向他們展示一座計劃中的寺廟的照片，並叫道：“十美元！二十美元！”如果他們不願意給錢，他還會把那些小玩意兒搶回去。

Other brightly robed men have been spotted pulling the same routine, albeit more successfully, in Times Square, not far from where costumed characters such as Elmo, Minnie Mouse and the Naked Cowboy take pictures with tourists for tips. Some of the monks were later seen handing wads of cash to another man waiting nearby.
有人發現其他光天化日之下搶劫的假僧人也遵守着同樣的程序，只不過更成功一點，他們是在時代廣場。不遠處還有穿着戲服的人扮卡通人物，比如艾摩、米老鼠米妮，和裸體的牛仔，他們同遊客拍照以收取小費。晚一點就會看到一些僧人把一堆堆現金交給一個待在附近的人。

The Associated Press tried to ask more than half-dozen of the men about their background and the temple they said the donations were being used to support. Each claimed to be a Buddhist monk collecting money for a temple in Thailand, but none could give its name or say where exactly it is located. All the men refused to give their names and ran off when pressed for answers.
美聯社記者試着向六七個僧人問了問題，瞭解一下他們的背景和他們聲稱的要用捐款修建的寺廟，每個人都說自己是佛教僧人，要籌款在泰國建寺廟，但沒有人說得上來那個寺廟的名字或具體地點。所有人都拒絕說出他們的姓名，硬要讓他們回答的話就都跑掉了。

The men first started appearing at the High Line, a New York City public park that's maintained by a private noNPRofit group, about three years ago, said Robert Hammond, executive director of Friends of the High Line. But it "became excessive" in the past year, he said, with up to a dozen of the men accosting tourists at once and sometimes grabbing them to demand cash.
“高線公園的朋友們”的常務董事羅伯特•哈蒙德說，約在三年前，這些人第一次出現在紐約的高線公園，高線公園是由一傢俬人非盈利組織運營的公共公園。但是去年“變本加厲”，他說，多達十幾個人同時向遊客搭話，有的時候還抓着他們要錢。

Panhandling on city streets isn't illegal in New York, as long as the person isn't acting aggressively. But the city's parks department has a rule that says it is unlawful to solicit money without a permit from the parks commissioner.
在紐約，在城市街頭乞討並不犯法，只要乞討者的行爲不帶有攻擊性。但是紐約市的公園管理部門規定，不經公園管理者允許的乞討是不合法的。

When asked about the men, New York City Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver initially said, "I have no idea what you're talking about." He later said that if the men aren't abiding by the law, "the parks enforcement patrol will take care of it."
當被問及這些僧人的時候，紐約公園委員會委員米歇爾•西爾弗一開始說，“我不知道你在說什麼。”之後他說如果這些人不遵守法律，“公園的執法巡邏隊會管的。”

But parks department spokeswoman Crystal Howard said parks enforcement officers hadn't issued any summonses and the men's actions were "aggressive panhandling," a violation of state law that would be enforced by police. New York City police say that in the rare cases when someone has called 911 against the men, they were usually gone by the time officers arrived.
但是，公園管理部門的女發言人克麗絲特爾•霍華德說，公園的執法人員沒有發佈過任何傳喚信息，而這些人的行爲是“有攻擊性的乞討，”違反了州法，警察應該來管他們。紐約警方說，針對這些人報警的案件很少，而且通常警察趕到的時候他們就跑了。

A few days after the AP inquired about the men on the High Line, several signs were posted there with photos of them, warning visitors not to give money to panhandlers.
就在美聯社記者詢問有關高線公園的乞討者的幾天之後，公園裏就豎了幾個指示牌，上面有他們的照片，警示遊客不要給這些乞討者錢財。

Similarly robed men have been spotted in San Francisco, asking tourists to sign their "peace petition" before demanding cash. In China, authorities said the problem of "fake" monks begging in the streets prompted them to create an online registry of all actual Buddhist and Taoist sites.
有人還在舊金山看到類似的長袍僧人，他們會要求遊客寫下“平安願望”然後再要錢。在中國，有關部門稱“假”和尚沿街乞討的問題迫使他們創建一個在線註冊網站，登記所有真正的寺廟和道觀的信息。

In Times Square, the warnings came too late for tourist Rob Cardillo, of Pennsylvania. He gave a robed man $10 to help out with his temple, without ever asking anything about the temple or what the money would be used for.
在時代廣場，警示對來自賓夕法尼亞的遊客羅伯•卡迪洛來說來得太晚了。他給了一個長袍僧人10美元幫他修寺廟，甚至都沒有問有關寺廟或錢財用途的任何事。

"He might be fake, but it's the thought and I feel it," Cardillo said as he gripped the gold medallion.
“他也許是假的，但重要的是思想，而我感受到了這種思想，”卡迪洛握着那金色的紀念章說道。

Vocabulary:

medallion: 獎章，紀念章
scam: 騙局
accost: 搭訕
panhandler: 乞丐