eader question:

Please explain "taking up space" in this sentence: As a political analyst, if you're not making enemies, you're just taking up space.

My comments:

A political analyst is a pundit who tries to see through what a politician says or does in order to help the public form an opinion - or perhaps change an opinion.

Politics being politics, one's analysis may make friends or enemies for the analyst.

Politics being politics? By that I mean people have different political positions, either on the left, right and middle of the road, either progressive, conservative and anything else in between, the green, e.g.

Because of that, that people have their different politics, what you say, whatever you say, is likely to cause disagreement, offense or even enmity.

Enmity denotes feelings of an enemy, someone in opposition, someone hostile.

Hence the remark that if you're not making enemies, you're taking up space.

Meaning?

This means you're not doing your job. If you don't have your readers enthused and sometimes riled up, you are not doing a good job. Instead, you're merely eating your meals, as the Chinese say, and wasting your time and ours as well.

Oh, taking up space.

Taking up space? It's easy to get the hang of this idiom by imagining a large piano in a small room.

You know, for example, some parents buy a large piano for their prodigal child to practice on - in the hope that someday, the child will become the next Lang Lang or something.

The room in which the piano is put, however, is small, with the piano, like, occupying more than half of the space.

Time flies and a few years later, the child leaves home for college - which leaves the parents with a dilemma. What do we do with the piano?

Keep it where it is makes some sense, in that it reminds them of their child. However, removing them also makes a lot of sense. It frees up space for the parents to put other furniture in.

None of the parents being musically literate, the piano looks useless now that the child is gone.

Now, you get it. That piano, with the child gone, does nothing but take up space - it merely takes up space.

Yes, "take UP" has a slight negative connation to it.

OK, no more ado, here are media examples of people and things that just take up space in one situation or another:

1. Dealing with anxiety has always been something that was “normal” for me. I’m an over-thinker and an over-analyzer to the nth degree. If I didn’t worry so much, maybe I would forget that Monday meeting I needed to prep for. Or, maybe if I didn't over-analyze, I would have dropped the ball on planning my BFF's birthday party. Because anxiety is something I’ve always dealt with, it’s almost like it’s a part of me — a part of who I am.

When I found out I carry a mutation on my BRCA gene (aka the breast cancer susceptibility gene) in March 2018, and that I have a greatly increased risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer, you can only imagine how intense my anxiety became. My “normal” anxiety went from livable to unbearable. I couldn’t focus at work, my heart was racing, I couldn’t eat or sleep, and I sometimes felt numb of any emotion. It guess it's all fun and games until someone tells you carry an 85% chance of developing breast cancer.

After I found out I carry the BRCA 2 mutation, I knew I needed to make some tough decisions. One of those tough decisions was deciding if I wanted to have surgery to reduce my risk of breast cancer. It was my anxiety that actually led me to make the decision to undergo a preventative double mastectomy. I can’t stress enough how much of a personal decision it is for women carrying the breast cancer gene to have this surgery or not. But for me, I knew what I could handle and I knew what I couldn’t.

I’m the person who gets anxiety about flying, work meetings, and first dates. I knew my anxiety about developing breast cancer wasn’t just going to just go away. And honestly, it would probably only get worse. If I had decided to go the surveillance route, every six months I would have had to get a breast MRI and a mammogram and wait to hear my results. I didn't want to face that anxiety every six months, so I elected to have a prophylactic double mastectomy. Even though that surgery was terrifying and comes with its own set of anxious feelings and emotions — like having panic attacks about being under the knife for so long and fearing the unknown — I knew ultimately this was better for my mental health and well-being.

...

Through this journey, I realized that no matter how many times I thought about what could happen, it didn't change anything. All of the time I spent over-thinking and worrying only took up space in my head and time away from me.Even though I'm always going to be a bit anxious and scared of mostly everything, I learned that I have more power over this than I thought. I can get the help that I need, I can take steps to help improve my quality of life and I can share my struggles with others. And, yes, this BRCA diagnosis will always give me some unpleasant feelings and worries, but it's also given me a new perspective on life and a new perspective of myself. And even more, it gave a deeper look into my own mental health.

- My Mental Health After My BRCA Diagnosis Made Me Take A Look At My Self-Care Practices, by Sara Altschule, May 20, 2019.

2. For nearly 15 minutes on Friday afternoon, Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love delivered a powerful commencement speech to the Class of 2020 as part of Verizon’s virtual commencement series, “Class of 2020: Ready for Anything.”

Love, an outspoken advocate for mental health and founder of the Kevin Love Fund, shared personal words of wisdom and experience while also challenging graduates to write their own story.

During and after his speech, Love referenced some of his favorite books -- “The Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius, “The Hilarious World of Depression” by John Moe, “21 Lessons for the 21st Century” by Yuval Noah Harari and “Range” by David Epstein. All of those books have had a profound impact on Love in some way, allowing him to better understand himself and helping him learn how to cope with obstacles while living a better, more fulfilling life. Love also quoted William Shakespeare and Robin Williams.

"Are you ready to write your own story,” Love asked during his intro. “Will you determine what your verse will be or will you let someone else pick up the pen and write it for you?”

Love’s speech centered on leadership, life lessons, dreaming big, finding balance, overcoming obstacles, togetherness, the importance of paying it forward and speaking your truth.

...

Love -- who has been open about his struggles with anxiety, panic attacks and depression -- admitted those mental health issues nearly consumed him in the past. The pandemic continues to test him -- and others -- on a daily basis. It threatens society in countless ways, even taking away the game he loves temporarily. But Love believes the most excruciating part is the isolation. So, he shared tips on coping, spoke about the importance of living in the moment and trying -- if possible -- to pull some positives out of this.

"If COVID-19 hasn’t taught us something monumental then we haven’t been listening,” he said. “The worst that can come from this unimaginable time in history is that as people, a generation and individuals, we go unchanged. Be grateful for what we have. We need to make the most of what we have right now. I think this moment has reminded us just how fragile life is.

"Everyone wants to be on the winning side of history and instead of just taking up space we want to know that we’ve added value to the world. It’s up to you to determine your destiny. Meet your future halfway. Generation Z has been tested by chaos. This is your opportunity to put fear and doubt behind. Dream bigger than big. Write a different story for yourself because, as a generation, you have a potential impact that few others have ever had. It’s up to each of you to make that matter.”

- Kevin Love delivers powerful commencement speech to Class of 2020, encourages them to find ‘North Star’ and write own story, Cleveland.com, May 29, 2020.

3. There’s an old joke about treadmills. It goes something like this:

One time I bought a treadmill, now it’s the most expensive clothes hanger in my home.

People laugh—they know it’s true.

The fact is we often buy items with good intentions but never end up using them.

Of course, in the scenario above, if the treadmill was only serving as an extra clothes hanger in the corner of our bedroom, that would be one thing. But the reality is, that unused item is more than a hanger.

It is taking up space—lots of it.

It is taking up valuable physical space in your home.

It’s another physical object, in your home, that you need to dust and clean and vacuum around. It’s just another thing to walk around every day… or pack up when you move.

But more than physical space, it also takes up mental space in your mind.

As Randy Alcorn says, “Every increased possession adds increased anxiety onto our lives.” And that is definitely true.

- Your Stuff is Only Taking Up Space, BecomingMinimalist.com, June 6, 2020.

本文仅代表作者本人观点，与本网立场无关。欢迎大家讨论学术问题，尊重他人，禁止人身攻击和发布一切违反国家现行法律法规的内容。

About the author:

Zhang Xin is Trainer at chinadaily.com.cn. He has been with China Daily since 1988, when he graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Write him at: zhangxin@chinadaily.com.cn, or raise a question for potential use in a future column.

（作者：张欣 编辑：丹妮）

来源：中国日报网

共中央政治局5月31日召开会议，听取“十四五”时期积极应对人口老龄化重大政策举措汇报，审议《关于优化生育政策促进人口长期均衡发展的决定》。

5月30日，江苏连云港一家幼儿园举行庆六一亲子活动。（图片来源：新华网）

The meeting unveiled a policy that would allow all couples to have up to three children, in a bid to cope with an increasingly aging society. It also pledged stronger support for families.会议提出，实施一对夫妻可以生育三个子女政策及配套支持措施，以应对人口老龄化程度加深问题。

【知识点】

党的十八大以来，党中央根据我国人口发展变化形势，先后作出一系列重大决策部署。

2013年，十八届三中全会决定启动实施“单独二孩”政策（夫妻中有一方为独生子女的可生育两个孩子，two-child policy for couples of which one partner is an only child）。

2015年，十八届五中全会决定实施“全面二孩政策”（the universal two-child policy），积极开展应对人口老龄化（aging population）行动，促进人口均衡发展（improve the balanced development of population）。

实施三孩政策，有哪些配套措施？

They stressed the need for unified policymaking in terms of marriage, births, parenting and education, with stronger measures to guide young adults on issues related to marriage and family values and to target unhealthy social conduct during wedding ceremonies and excessive betrothal gifts.要将婚嫁、生育、养育、教育一体考虑，加强适婚青年婚恋观、家庭观教育引导，对婚嫁陋习、天价彩礼等不良社会风气进行治理。

【知识点】

彩礼（betrothal gifts）是我国婚礼习俗中的一部分，指婚前男方送给女方的礼金和聘礼，送彩礼代表婚约正式缔结，若有反悔，彩礼一般要退回。彩礼一般分为礼金（gift money）和实物（gift items）两部分。与彩礼对应的是女方出嫁时娘家准备的“嫁妆”（dowry）。

The level of services to ensure good prenatal and postnatal care must be improved, and a child care service system that benefits all families will be established.

提高优生优育服务水平，发展普惠托育服务体系。

The meeting called for greater equality in education and an enhanced supply of high-quality education resources to reduce families' education expenditure.

推进教育公平与优质教育资源供给，降低家庭教育开支。

More incentives in taxes and housing will be rolled out and the legitimate interests of women in the job market will be safeguarded.

加强税收、住房等支持政策，保障女性就业合法权益。

【词汇讲解】

Roll out something或者roll something out都表示“首次推出、发布（服务、产品、政策等）”，比如：The company plans to roll out the new product across Europe in the coming months.（公司计划未来几个月在欧洲发布这款新产品）。其名词形式为rollout，表示某个产品或服务经过试用后逐步扩大供应至更多人群，比如：rollout of COVID-19 vaccines（新冠疫苗供应）。此外，英语里还有一个固定短语roll out the red carpet for (someone)，字面意思是“为某人铺红毯”，其实也是“欢迎某人，盛情款待”的意思，比如：The city council decided to roll out the red carpet for the visit of the foreign prince.（该市议会决定为这位外国王子举办盛大的欢迎仪式）。

China should continue to implement its current reward and assistance system as well as preferential policies for families with one child and rural families with only two daughters who were born before the implementation of the two-child policy.对全面两孩政策调整前的独生子女家庭和农村计划生育双女家庭，要继续实行现行各项奖励扶助制度和优惠政策。

The nation will establish and improve various policies for such families under the family planning policy.

要建立健全计划生育特殊家庭全方位帮扶保障制度。

The meeting urged efforts to deepen the national medium- and long-term population development strategy and regional population development planning to promote long-term and balanced population development.

要深化国家人口中长期发展战略和区域人口发展规划研究，促进人口长期均衡发展。

【相关词汇】

劳动年龄人口 working-age population

全面二孩政策 the overall two-child policy

生育率 fertility rate

出生率 birth rate

二孩经济 second-child economy

人口老龄化 population aging

延迟退休 raise the retirement age

参考来源：新华网、中国日报

（中国日报网英语点津 Helen）

来源：中国日报网

对经济运行下行压力，如何用好政策工具箱，实现经济合理增长？国家发展改革委副秘书长欧鸿6月28日表示，我国经济韧性好、潜力足、回旋余地大，完全有信心克服经济运行中的困难挑战，有能力应对可能出现的各类超预期变化，确保经济平稳健康可持续发展。接下来将落实落细已经出台的各项政策，高效统筹疫情防控和经济社会发展，统筹发展和安全。欧鸿介绍：“与此同时，为应对更为复杂困难局面，我们从解决两难多难问题出发，常态化充实完善政策储备工具箱，将根据情况适时及时出台。”

Part of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project runs through Nanyang, Henan province. [Photo/Xinhua]

Pro-growth policies to speed up infrastructure construction, spur consumption and stabilize growth overall are expected to lend solidity to China's economy, and the country's GDP is likely to see positive growth in the second quarter, officials and experts said on Tuesday.

政府官员和专家6月28日表示，加快基础设施建设、刺激消费和稳定宏观增长的稳增长政策预计将稳定中国经济。

The National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic regulator, said Chinawillroll out more policy tools in a timely manner to cope with economic challenges. The country has the confidence and capacity to ensure stable, healthy and sustainable economic development, it added.

国家发展和改革委员会表示，中国将适时出台更多政策工具，克服经济运行中的困难挑战。中国有信心和能力确保经济平稳健康可持续发展。

China will also accelerate the construction of infrastructure projects in areas likewaterconservancy, transportation, underground utility tunnels, and large wind power and photovoltaic bases in the Gobi Desert and other arid regions, saidOuHong, NDRC deputy secretary-general, at a news conference on Tuesday in Beijing.

6月28日，国家发展改革委副秘书长欧鸿在北京举行的新闻发布会上表示，中国将抓紧推进一批戈壁沙漠等干旱地区的水利、交通、地下综合管廊、大型风力发电和光伏基地等基础设施项目建设。

Ousaid the country's economic recovery gathered pace in May, with major economic indicators witnessing improvements, fueled by better containment of the COVID-19 pandemic, gradual resumption of work and production and a series of pro-growth policies.

欧鸿称，疫情得到有效管控，复工达产加快推进，稳增长政策发力显效，5月份经济呈现边际改善，主要指标均有所回升。

China's economy has shown strong resilience and has ample room for growth,Ousaid. "We are fully confident of overcoming difficulties and challenges in economic operations, and have the ability to deal with all kinds of unexpected changes to ensure the stable, healthy and sustainable development of the economy."

他表示，中国经济韧性好、潜力足、回旋余地大，“我们完全有信心克服经济运行中的困难挑战，有能力应对可能出现的各类超预期变化，确保经济平稳健康可持续发展”。

The country will speed up efforts to implement a package of stimulus measures, like boosting the sales of big-ticket items like automobiles and home appliances, so as to further unleash consumption potential,Ousaid.

欧鸿称，将加快推动一揽子刺激政策落地见效，落实促进汽车、家电等领域消费的若干政策，加快释放消费潜力。

ChengQiang, chief macroeconomic analyst at CITIC Securities, said the nationhasattached great importance to strengthening infrastructure construction, which plays a vital role in stabilizing economic growth. The revved-up steps to issue special-purpose bonds by local governments are expected to support the financing of infrastructure projects.

中信证券首席宏观经济分析师程强表示，国家高度重视加强基础设施建设，这对稳定经济增长起着至关重要的作用。地方政府加快发行专项债券将支持基础设施项目融资。

The country's economy will continue to improve this month with the epidemic situation gradually easing and a package of stimulus measures taking effect, Chengsaid.

程强称，随着疫情逐步缓解及一揽子刺激措施落地生效，本月中国经济将继续向好。

He said recovery momentumis expected to be extendedin the second half of this year and the country is likely to see its GDP expand by around 6 percent in the third and fourth quarters.

他表示，预计今年下半年将延续经济复苏势头，第三季度和第四季度GDP增长可能在6%左右。

In addition, more efforts should be made to expand investment in manufacturing and high-tech industries, boost the transformation and upgrade of traditionalindustriesand enhance the core competitiveness of the manufacturing sector, the NDRC said.

此外，国家发展改革委表示，应扩大制造业和高技术产业投资。加大传统产业改造提升，提升制造业核心竞争力。

"China has witnessed significant improvements in investment structure in recent years, and there are plenty of investment opportunities in emerging technology segments like new energy and power batteries," said LiuChunsheng, an associate professor at Central University of Finance and Economics.

中央财经大学副教授刘春生表示：“近年来，中国的投资结构有了显著改善，在新能源和动力电池等新兴技术领域存在大量投资机会。”

The government has introduced a series of supportive measures, especially speeding up the construction of infrastructure projects and promoting therecoveryof consumption, which are of great significance in expanding domestic demand and shoring up the economy, Liu said.

刘春生称，政府在在加快基础设施建设和刺激消费方面等出台了一系列鼓励措施，这对扩大内需和支撑经济具有重要意义。

The country is also enlarging the scope for foreign investment with a draft version of the catalog of industries in which such investment is encouraged, andguideforeign investment in key sectors like manufacturing and in certain places like central and western regions as well as the northeast, said the NDRC.

国家发展改革委表示，将修订扩大《鼓励外商投资产业目录》，引导外资投向制造业等重点领域，以及中西部和东北等重点地区。

来源：中国日报编辑：董静