Dear Economist,

My newly-wedded wife and I are deeply in love．There is, however, one issue that threatens the happiness of our marriage．I absolutely insist on shopping at Walmart．My wife, meanwhile, would rather avoid Walmart at all costs．

　　I have recently tried to convince her that not only does Walmart offer the lowest prices known to man, but that the chain is also a force for good―lower prices mean better standards of living for all consumers, increased global trade means a tighter-knit(紧密团结的) international community, and efficient operations translate into higher productivity growth for the economy．My wife complains about poor labour policies, the “fact” that Walmart squeezes suppliers, and that it puts local shops out of business．

　　Who is right? Will our marriage survive?

Brian Gee

Dear Brian,

I have to agree with you about Walmart．Jason Furman, then an economist at New York University, now an adviser to President Obama, famously argued in 2005 that Walmart was unwittingly (不知不觉地) a progressive success story．The chain’s prices don’t much affect me (I prefer Whole Foods) but Furman estimated that they benefited low-and-middle-income Americans to the sum of around $250 billion a year．

　　Walmart does not pay much, so it may depress wages．Then again, it may increase wages by offering jobs to the otherwise-unemployed．Either way, the benefits of low prices to Walmart shoppers far outweigh any seemingly reasonable costs to Walmart employees．And while it is true that Walmart employees tend to be poor, the same is true of Walmart shoppers．

　　Armed with this information you can face your wife with confidence．You are sure to win the conversation．The divorce is likely to be more argued．

Economist

1.What concerns Brian Gee so much that he wrote the letter?

2.Brian Gee’s wife tends to hold the opinion that _________．

3.What can be inferred from the reply letter?

阅读理解：

　　In the United States, boys and girls start school when they are five years old. In some states they must stay in school until they are sixteen. Most students are seventeen or eighteen years old when they graduate from secondary school. Another name for secondary school is high school.

　　Most children go to public elementary (初小) and secondary school. The parents of public school pupils do not have to pay directly (直接地) for their children's education because tax (税)money supports the public schools. If a child attends a private (私立) school, his parents pay the school for the child's education.

　　Today about half of the high school graduates go on to colleges and universities. Some colleges and universities receive tax money from the governments. A student at a state university does not have to pay very much if his parents live in that state. Private colleges and universities are expensive. However, almost half of the colleges students in the United States work while they are studying. When a student's family isn't rich, he has to earn money for part of his college expenses.

1．In the United States, children can start school ________.

[　　]

2．________ between secondary school and high school.

[　　]

3．Most parents in the US ________ for their children's education.

[　　]

4．Some students at a state university don't have to pay much money for their higher education because ________.

[　　]

A．tax money supports some colleges and universities

B．their parents live in that state

C．they earn money

D．their family are not rich

5．Students from poor families ________.

[　　]

A．stop studying after secondary school

B．don't go on to colleges and universities

C．have to work to support their families

D．earn money for part of their college expenses

最近，你班组织全班同学进行了一场英语讨论。讨论的主题是：中国是否应该发展私家车？请你根据下表所提供的信息，给报社写一篇报道，客观地介绍讨论的结果。

要求：1．词数：100左右。　　2．开头部分已给出，不计入总字数。

Recently, our class have had a discussion about whether China should develop its private car industry. The results are as follows:______________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________