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So yes, the world has changed. The competition for jobs is real. But this shouldn’t discourage us. It should challenge us. Remember – for all the hits we’ve taken these last few years, for all the naysayers predicting our decline, America still has the largest, most prosperous economy in the world. No workers are more productive than ours. No country has more successful companies, or grants more patents to inventors and entrepreneurs. We are home to the world’s best colleges and universities, where more students come to study than any other place on Earth.
所以，是的，世界發生了變革。就業崗位的競爭是真實存在的，但這不應當使我們灰心，它應當成為激勵我們的動力。請記住，盡管我們在過去幾年遭受到了巨大打擊，盡管所有的悲觀者預言美國在衰落，但美國仍是世界上最大、最繁榮的經濟體。我們工人的勞動生產率是最高的，我們的公司是最成功的，我們的投資者和企業家所擁有的專利數是最多的。我們擁有世界上最好的院校和大學，來美國就讀的學生超過任何其它國家。
What’s more, we are the first nation to be founded for the sake of an idea – the idea that each of us deserves the chance to shape our own destiny. That is why centuries of pioneers and immigrants have risked everything to come here. It’s why our students don’t just memorize equations, but answer questions like “What do you think of that idea? What would you change about the world? What do you want to be when you grow up?”
更為重要的是，我們是首個以思想立國的國家，這個思想是我們中的每個人都應當有機會來塑造自己的命運。這就是為什么先驅們和移民們數個世紀以來不惜冒著失去一切的風險來到美國的原因。這就是我們的學生不只是記住方程式，而是會提出“你認為這個想法如何？你想如何改變世界？當你長大后你想成為什么樣的人”等問題。
The future is ours to win. But to get there, we can’t just stand still. As Robert Kennedy told us, “The future is not a gift. It is an achievement.” Sustaining the American Dream has never been about standing pat. It has required each generation to sacrifice, and struggle, and meet the demands of a new age.
我們將贏得未來，但為了實現這一點，我們不能原地踏步。正如羅伯特·肯尼迪所說的那樣“未來不是一個禮物，它是一個成就。”維持美國夢從來不是墨守成規。它需要每一代人作出犧牲、斗爭，滿足新時代的要求。
Now it’s our turn. We know what it takes to compete for the jobs and industries of our time. We need to out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world. We have to make America the best place on Earth to do business. We need to take responsibility for our deficit, and reform our government. That’s how our people will prosper. That’s how we’ll win the future. And tonight, I’d like to talk about how we get there.
現在輪到我們這一代人了。我們知道在我們的時代為工作和行業進行競爭需要什么。我們需要在創新、教育和建設方面超越其它國家。我們要使美國成為商業環境最好的國家。我們需要對我們的赤字負責任，對我們的政府進行改革。這就是我們的人民實現繁榮的方法。這就是我們如何贏得未來的方法。今晚，我想談談我們如何作到這些。
The first step in winning the future is encouraging American innovation.
贏得未來的首個步驟是鼓勵美國人創新。
None of us can predict with certainty what the next big industry will be, or where the new jobs will come from. Thirty years ago, we couldn’t know that something called the Internet would lead to an economic revolution. What we can do – what America does better than anyone – is spark the creativity and imagination of our people. We are the nation that put cars in driveways and computers in offices; the nation of Edison and the Wright brothers; of Google and Facebook. In America, innovation doesn’t just change our lives. It’s how we make a living.
我們所有人都無法肯定地預言下一個主要行業將是什么行業或者新的就業崗位來自哪里。三十年前，我們不知道一個被稱作互聯網的東西會引發經濟革命。我們所能做的是，爭取在這些方面比其它國家的人做得更好，激發美國人民的創造性和想像力。我們是一個將車開到車道上、把計算機放在辦公室的國家，是一個擁有愛迪生、萊特兄弟的國家，是一個擁有谷歌和臉譜（Facebook）的國家。在美國，創新不只改變我們的生活，更重要的是，這是我們賴以謀生的方法。
