The most powerful businessperson in America famously understated about his station in life. Sure, Warren Buffett enjoys some of the trappings that come from being the second- richest man in the world, such as winging around in one of his Netjets and playing bridge with pal Bill Gates. Mostly, though, the 72-year-old brushed aside1 the notion that he is the Atlas2 of American business.“It really just means that if I do something dumb3, I can do it on a very big scale , ”he chuckles,“ It means you could add a lot of zeros to the losses. ”
There haven’t been many of the latter. Buffett’s company, Berkshire Hathaway, has become an all-American juggernaut4, with multibillions-dollar interests in everything from insurance —where Buffett is one of the world’s leading players — to newspapers, carpets, and boots. In racking up compound annual returns of 21% over the past 15 years ( vs. the market’s 11%) , Buffett has proved himself the world’s greatest investor. As such, his influence on stocks and the market is unparalleled. Word that Buffett is buying or selling certain shares will move a stock like a pinball, which is why he is extra-guarded when it comes to discussing investments.
One of the few places where he does talk about investment — his annual letter to shareholders — is far and away the most widely read communication from a CEO in the world. When former Chinese President Jiang Zemin discussed the mystifying nature of the U. S. stock market with a visiting Bill Gates, Gates told him that there was really only one guy who understood it: Warren Buffett. Gates added that when he got back to the U. S., he would send Buffett’s most recent annual report to him. Which he did.
What’s more, Buffett is without question the world’s most sought-after businessman by other CEOs who want guidance. “ CEOs are surrounded by people who are getting paid, ”says Buffett.“I’m getting nothing, so I can give them unbiased advice . ”Over the past five years dozens of CEOs have come to Omaha to visit the sage, including General Electric’s Jeff Immelt.“ I’ve been there two or three times to speak with him and have a steak, ”says Immelt.“He ’s the world’s most astute investor and I’m trying to pick his brain . ”
The U. S. Congress hangs on5 Buffett’s words too. On May 20, 2003, just days be017 fore lawmakers voted on Bush tax bill, Buffett wrote an op-ed6 piece in the Washington Post that pointed out what he perceived as the folly of eliminating taxes on dividends. The tax cut, Buffett argued, would mostly benefit the wealthy. Powerful stuff coming from Buffett — powerful enough to persuade certain members of Congress to water down7 the final version of the tax cut. Quietly simply, Buffett is respected and admired more than any other businessperson alive, not only by others in business but by the general public as well. Now that’s power.
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CET4大學英語四級閱讀練習題：
Ⅰ. Complete th e se ntences with ph ra ses from the a bove pa ssa ge :
1. He my objection to his plan.
2. She ’s the best actress I’ve seen.
3. A great deal this decision.
?、? True o r Fa lse :
1. Warrant Buffet is the richest man in the world.
2. Warrant Buffet is regarded as the only one person who can understand the stock mark.
3. Warrant Buffet even influenced the Congress.
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參考答案
?、? 1. brushed aside 2 . far and away 3 . hangs on
?、? 1. F 2. T 3 . T
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CET4大學英語四級閱讀參考譯文：
美國商界泰斗沃倫·巴菲特
美 國重量級的商人在生活中都是出了名地低調。當然, 沃倫· 巴菲特倒能自得其樂地做他的世界第二富人, 比如說開著自己的噴氣式飛機到處閑逛, 與老朋友比爾· 蓋茨打橋牌。大多數(shù)時候, 這位72 歲的老人全然不顧自己是美國商界的頂梁柱。“ 這不過意味著我要是干了什么蠢事兒, 就會殃及一大片。”他咯咯地笑著說, “ 那樣損失的數(shù)額后面會再添許多零。”
當然, 這種事情很少發(fā)生。巴菲特的公司——— 伯克希爾· 哈薩維是全美的巨頭, 收益達到數(shù)億美元, 涉足從保險( 他是世界主要玩家之一) 到報紙、地毯、靴子等各個行業(yè)。過去十五年, 巴菲特的綜合年利潤率高達21% ( 市場為11% ) , 他不愧是世界最偉大的投資家。因此, 他對股票和市場的影響也是無人能及的。有關巴菲特買賣某個股的消息會引起該股票價格上下波動。因此, 談論投資時, 他極為謹慎。
寫給股東的年信是少數(shù)幾個他談論投資的地方之一。在全世界高級執(zhí)行官的書信中,這封無疑是最為人們廣泛閱讀的。中國前國家主席江澤民與來訪的比爾· 蓋茨談及美國股票市場的神秘莫測時, 蓋茨告訴江主席只有一個人——— 沃倫· 巴菲特, 真正了解股票市場 。蓋茨補充說他一回到美國, 就會把巴菲特最新的年度報告給江主席。他確實這樣做了。
巴菲特無疑還是其他高級執(zhí)行官趨之若鶩的顧問。“ 高級執(zhí)行官身邊都是花錢請的人, ”巴菲特說,“ 而我什么也不要, 因此我能給他們不偏不倚的建議。” 五年來, 到奧馬哈朝拜這位圣人的高級執(zhí)行官絡繹不絕, 其中包括通用電器公司的杰弗· 伊梅爾特。“ 我和他交談了兩三次, 吃了牛排, ”他說, “ 他是世界上最敏銳的投資家, 我正想‘ 竊取’一些他的智慧。”
連美國國會對巴菲特的話也洗耳恭聽。2003 年5 月20 日, 就在立法者為布什減稅議案投票前幾天, 巴菲特給華盛郵報寫了一篇專稿, 指出取消利息稅是完全錯誤的, 他認為此舉主要使富人受益。巴菲特的文章深刻有力, 足以說服某些議員們否決減稅議案。簡而言之, 巴菲特比其他在世商人更受到商界同仁以及公眾的尊敬和愛戴。這就是力量。
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閱讀導評
沃倫·巴菲特可謂當今世界上最成功、最著名的投資大師。他從小就滿肚子掙錢的“ 道兒”———他五歲的時候就在家中擺地攤兜售口香糖; 稍大后他帶領小伙伴到球場撿用過的高爾夫球然后轉手倒賣, 生意頗為紅火; 11 歲時, 他便投身股海, 購買了第一張股票?？磥?“ 三歲看小, 七歲看老”這話是有些道理的。每個人都有其擅長的地方和不擅長的方面, 在哪方面有天賦, 我們就應該往哪方面努力,“ 全面發(fā)展”有的時候會不會使人成為庸才呢?
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閱讀講解：
1. brush aside 不顧, 不理, 漠視, 如: brush a proposal ( protest, demand) aside ( 對建議、抗議、要求等置之不理) 。此外, brush 還有“排除”的意思, 如: brush all obstacles aside ( 清除一切障礙) 。
2. Atlas n. 阿特拉斯, 希臘的神, ( 喻) 身負重擔的人。
3. 這里的dumb 不是“ 啞的, 沉默”的意思, 而是作俚語, 意為“笨蛋”。
4. juggernaut n. 世界主宰, 偶像崇拜。
5. hang on 在這里的意思是“ 取決于, 有賴于, 仔細考慮”。
6. op-ed 是Opposite Editorial page 的縮寫, 指“ ( 美國報紙的) 專欄版, 寫稿版”。
7. water v. 向??摻水。它與down 連用可引申為“ 削弱, 使打折扣, 使緩和” 意思。
