You’re part of the first generation to grow up in the digital age. Some of you grew up with cell phones tucked into your book bags, while others can remember the early days of landline, dial-up internet. You’ve gone from renting movies on VHS tapes to purchasing and downloading them in a matter of minutes. Today, more of you are earning college degrees than ever before?—?and more young people from low-income families are getting a shot at higher education than previous generations. Along with having higher education levels, you’ve got a lower gender pay gap than other generations?—?and we’re working to close it even further. Take all those things together, and it’s no surprise that entrepreneurship is in your DNA. One survey found that more than half of Millennials expressed interest in starting (or have already started) their own business. So here’s something we know for certain: Your rising generation of Americans isn’t just adapting to a 21st-century economy. You’re actively changing it. And we know that when we invest in your potential, rather than stack the deck in favor of the folks who are already at the top, our entire economy does better. It’s the reason we’ve expanded grants, tax credits, and loans to help more families afford college. It’s why we’re giving nearly 5 million Americans the chance to cap student loan payments at 10 percent of their income. And thanks to the Affordable Care Act, the number of uninsured young adults has fallen by nearly 40 percent over the past four years. You may have graduated into the worst recession since the Great Depression, but today?—?for all the challenges you’ve already faced, and after all the grueling work it’s taken to bounce back?—?you’re in the best position to break into the newest sectors of the new American economy. Your generation is going to continue to shape that economy for decades to come?—?and that’s exactly why we know we have more work to do to address the challenges you still face. That means making student loan payments even more affordable. It means investing in the kind of basic research that led to the internet and GPS technology to help our next generation of American companies succeed. And at a time when increased investments in education have meant that young women are making the strongest start in the workforce of any generation before them, it means fighting to make sure they get the equal pay for equal work they deserve. Let’s talk for a second about this new American economy?—?one marked by new industry and commerce, humming with new energy and new technology, and being driven forward by highly skilled, higher-wage workers. Our medical professionals are part of a workforce that also includes folks who are developing cutting-edge software to help us diagnose diseases. We’re not just punching in and pounding rivets?—?we’re coding computers and guiding robots. In this new economy, an entrepreneur can start a new business and succeed, an older worker who sees opportunity in a new field has resources available to retool for that new job, and a student can graduate from college with the chance to advance through a vibrant job market. Today, I’m heading to a place that’s helping to shape that economy. It’s called Cross Campus?—?a collaborative space in Los Angeles that brings together folks at the cutting edge of a technology revolution, from investors and entrepreneurs to designers and engineers. Because their drive and talent don’t just boost their businesses, they boost our entire economy?—?and the innovative ideas that they’re coming up with are helping to power our recovery. Think about this: Last month, our businesses created 236,000 new jobs. Over the past 55 months, they’ve created 10.3 million new jobs?—?the longest uninterrupted stretch of private-sector job creation in our history. That’s why, for the first time in more than six years, the unemployment rate is below 6 percent. We’re on pace for the strongest year of job growth since the 1990s. Since we emerged from the crisis, America has put more people back to work than Europe, Japan, and every other advanced economy combined. So for all the challenges in the world, there are some really good things going on here at home. And the reason I’m heading to Cross Campus today is because innovation is one of them. Technologies that didn’t exist 20 years ago, from mobile apps to streaming video to social networks, support millions of American jobs today. Today, our tech sector is the envy of the world. And the innovation fueling this economy isn’t just happening in Silicon Valley. From Kansas City to Colorado to L.A.’s “Silicon Beach,” entrepreneurs are turning great ideas into great companies. I saw this new economy at Pittsburgh’s TechShop, one in a chain of community centers where members get access to professional tools, equipment, and software, as well as the space they need to make or design or prototype almost anything?—?for the same price you’d pay for a gym membership. I saw this new economy at a factory in Austin, where workers are building the equipment that makes cutting-edge microchips. It was just a few years ago that the very first iPhone was introduced, and we were all marveling over touch screens. Now, even our coffee shops have touch-screen ordering systems, and there are American workers punching in every day to manufacture the hardware for our smartphones and tablets. And I saw this new economy only a few miles from that factory, at Manor New Tech High School. Students there focus on STEM subjects, and I got to see some of their work up close?—?from using mathematical equations to build musical instruments, to running bungee-jumping tests using rubber bands and weights, to building robots. At Manor New Tech, nearly all of the students graduate, and along with their diploma, they’ve earned real-world skills they need to fill the jobs we know are available right now. I’ve seen what your generation is capable of firsthand. And one of the reasons I’m so confident about America’s future is that I’m confident in you?—?a generation that’s more educated, diverse, and digitally fluent than any before you. Throughout my time in office, my Administration has bet on American innovation. We’ve bet on America’s young people. And today, I’m betting that you’ll continue unleashing new ideas and new enterprises for decades to come.
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奧巴馬總統(tǒng)2014年10月9日在新媒體Medium網(wǎng)站發(fā)布文章,暢談在互聯(lián)網(wǎng)中成長(zhǎng)的新一代年輕人將如何塑造美國(guó)未來(lái)的經(jīng)濟(jì)模式,全文如下: 你們是在數(shù)字時(shí)代成長(zhǎng)起來(lái)的第一代人的一部分。你們很多人從小書(shū)包里就裝著手機(jī),有些人可能還記得以前的撥號(hào)上網(wǎng)。你們經(jīng)歷了從租錄像帶到僅僅花上幾分鐘就買(mǎi)下或下載好這些影片。 如今,你們中取得大學(xué)學(xué)歷的比以往要多很多——并且相對(duì)于前幾代人,更多的來(lái)自低收入的年輕人拿到了高學(xué)歷。你們這個(gè)年代性別收入差距也比其他年代低——且我們致力于進(jìn)一步的縮小。綜上所述,你們的基因里充滿著企業(yè)家精神并不奇怪。調(diào)查顯示超過(guò)一半的千禧一代有興趣或已經(jīng)開(kāi)始創(chuàng)業(yè)。 因此目前我們已明確知道:你們這一代美國(guó)人不是去適應(yīng)21世紀(jì)的經(jīng)濟(jì)。你們將積極的改變它。我們知道與其暗中布局支持那些已經(jīng)處于頂端的人,不如挖掘你們的潛力,為我們開(kāi)創(chuàng)更好的經(jīng)濟(jì)局面效果來(lái)得好。這也是為什么我們提高津貼、抵稅額和貸款,幫助更多的家庭的孩子上大學(xué)。這也是為什么我們?yōu)槭裁唇o予近500萬(wàn)的美國(guó)人機(jī)會(huì),以他們收入的10%繳納學(xué)生貸款。多虧了《平價(jià)醫(yī)療法案》(Affordable Care Act),缺乏醫(yī)療保障的年輕成年人在過(guò)去四年降低了近40%。 你們可能慢慢進(jìn)入自美國(guó)大蕭條時(shí)期起最蕭條的一個(gè)階段,但是今天你們處于最佳位置擠進(jìn)美國(guó)新經(jīng)濟(jì)的最新部門(mén)——由于你們已然面對(duì)的種種挑戰(zhàn),以及勞累工作后的是該到重新振作的時(shí)候。 在未來(lái)的幾十年,你們這一代將繼續(xù)塑造著我們的經(jīng)濟(jì)——這也是我們?yōu)槭裁辞宄闹牢覀冞€需付出更多的努力解決當(dāng)下面對(duì)的種種挑戰(zhàn)。這就意味著讓更多的人負(fù)擔(dān)得起學(xué)生助學(xué)貸款。這意味著投資基礎(chǔ)研究可以促進(jìn)互聯(lián)網(wǎng)和GPS技術(shù)幫助美國(guó)下一代公司取得成功。并且當(dāng)我們?cè)黾咏逃矫娴耐度耄@就意味著如今的年輕女性正比以往任何一代更具實(shí)力地開(kāi)始投入工作。這也意味著我們要正確確保她們得到自己應(yīng)有的公平收入。 我們談一談美國(guó)的新經(jīng)濟(jì)——一個(gè)重要特征就是新型工商業(yè),涵蓋新能源和新技術(shù),在高技能的高新員工驅(qū)動(dòng)下不斷發(fā)展。我們的醫(yī)療職業(yè)技術(shù)人員也包括發(fā)明前沿技術(shù)軟件的工作人員,幫助我們?cè)\斷疾病。我們不只是上班打卡,然后敲打鉚釘——我們是在電腦里編碼,指揮機(jī)器人。在這新經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展過(guò)程中,一名企業(yè)家能夠創(chuàng)業(yè)并取得成功;一名能看到這新領(lǐng)域的機(jī)會(huì)的老員工,有資源進(jìn)行重組以適應(yīng)新工作;一名大學(xué)畢業(yè)生能擠進(jìn)充滿活力的就業(yè)市場(chǎng)。 今天,我將要去一個(gè)能夠塑造新經(jīng)濟(jì)的地方。它名叫十字校園——這是一個(gè)云集著來(lái)自各技術(shù)革命前沿技術(shù)人員的位于洛杉磯的合作機(jī)構(gòu),人員有投資者和企業(yè)家,也有設(shè)計(jì)家和工程師。他們的推進(jìn)力和才能不僅僅促進(jìn)他們各自的企業(yè),而是促進(jìn)我們整個(gè)經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展——并且他們想出的創(chuàng)新理念也能為我們經(jīng)濟(jì)復(fù)蘇提供支撐。 思考一下以下現(xiàn)象:九月份,我們的企業(yè)創(chuàng)造了23.6萬(wàn)個(gè)就業(yè)職位。在過(guò)去的55個(gè)月里,他們已經(jīng)創(chuàng)造了1030萬(wàn)就業(yè)職位——我們歷史上延續(xù)時(shí)間最長(zhǎng)的私營(yíng)企業(yè)創(chuàng)造就業(yè)崗位。這也是為什么超過(guò)六年來(lái)我們的失業(yè)率能夠首次低于6%。我們也將步入20世紀(jì)90年代以來(lái)就業(yè)崗位創(chuàng)造最快年代。自經(jīng)濟(jì)危機(jī)出現(xiàn)后,美國(guó)公民重新就業(yè)的人數(shù)比歐洲、日本以及其他發(fā)達(dá)經(jīng)濟(jì)聯(lián)合體要多得多。 盡管當(dāng)今世界存在種種挑戰(zhàn),但是國(guó)內(nèi)還是上演著許多好事。今天我要去十字校園的原因之一是創(chuàng)新。20年前,沒(méi)有科技。從移動(dòng)應(yīng)用軟件到流媒體再到社交網(wǎng)絡(luò),支撐了當(dāng)今美國(guó)千千萬(wàn)萬(wàn)的工作。如今我們的高科技板塊令世人羨慕不已。 創(chuàng)新推動(dòng)經(jīng)濟(jì)不僅僅局限于硅谷(Silicon Valley)中。從堪薩斯城(Kansas City)到科羅拉多(Colorado),再到洛杉磯的“硅谷海灘”(Silicon Beach),企業(yè)家們把偉大的想法變成偉大的公司。我在匹茲堡(Pittsburgh)的技術(shù)工坊看到這種新經(jīng)濟(jì),這是位于社區(qū)活動(dòng)中心的一個(gè)技術(shù)工坊,它的成員可以使用專(zhuān)業(yè)的工具、設(shè)備和軟件,并且擁有他們需要制造、設(shè)計(jì)或還原各種東西的空間——這一切他們只需支付與健身俱樂(lè)部會(huì)員卡相同的費(fèi)用。 我在奧斯丁(Austin)的一家工廠看到這種新型經(jīng)濟(jì),他們的工人生產(chǎn)制造前沿微芯片的設(shè)備。在幾年前剛剛引入蘋(píng)果手機(jī)時(shí),我們驚嘆觸摸屏的奇妙。如今,就連咖啡店都有觸摸屏的點(diǎn)餐系統(tǒng),且美國(guó)職工每天上班加工制造智能手機(jī)和平板電腦的硬件。 我就在那家工廠的幾英里之外的馬諾新技術(shù)高中看到這種新經(jīng)濟(jì)。那里的學(xué)生專(zhuān)注于STEM科目學(xué)習(xí),我看到他們的一些工作逐漸發(fā)展緊密——從運(yùn)用數(shù)學(xué)方程式建造樂(lè)器,到使用橡皮筋和砝碼進(jìn)行頂端測(cè)驗(yàn),再到制造機(jī)器人。在馬諾新技術(shù)高中,幾乎所有學(xué)生可以順利畢業(yè),他們不但可以獲得畢業(yè)證書(shū),更可以學(xué)到滿足目前工作需要的技能。 我已看到你們這一代實(shí)踐能力。我對(duì)美國(guó)未來(lái)如此自信的原因之一是我對(duì)你們這一代充滿自信——一個(gè)比以往任何一帶更有學(xué)識(shí)、更多樣化和更數(shù)字流利的一代。 在我在職期間,政府以創(chuàng)新為依托。我們將希望寄托在美國(guó)年輕人身上。今天,我打賭你們?cè)谖磥?lái)的幾十年將繼續(xù)不斷想出新思路并成就更多的企業(yè)。 (譯者 sunflower1020 編輯 Julie) |
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