大选活动已完成三分之一，各大政治人物正忙着分发奶油，以及来自“苹果派”的数十亿美元

奇怪的是，不久前我们还不会动用欧盟裁决带来的资金。现在，它是不断赠送的礼物。

A third of the general election campaign has passed and the main political parties are dishing out billions in promises, having been given a third of the money from the EU ruling.

大选活动已经过去三分之一，主要政党从欧盟裁决中获得了三分之一的资金，并做出了数十亿美元的承诺。

The world of science can rest easy as it will not have to adjust Newton’s laws of gravity. However, in politics even golden windfalls must eventually descend, no matter how long they have been kept suspended in mid-air. But the seemingly endless largesse has left voters a little bewildered.

科学界可以高枕无忧，因为它不必调整牛顿万有引力定律。然而，在政治上，即使是横财，无论悬在半空中多久，最终也一定会降临。但看似永无休止的慷慨让选民有些困惑。

The attitudes of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael towards each other are also baffling. The latest opinion poll, conducted by The Irish Times, still gives an edge to Taoiseach Simon Harris’s party, but predicts a close-run thing.

共和党和统一党对彼此的态度也令人费解。 《爱尔兰时报》进行的最新民意调查显示，爱尔兰总理西蒙·哈里斯（Simon Harris）领导的政党仍具有优势，但预测结果将很接近。

In government, the two main parties were presented as two sides of the same coin. Now they are vying for votes and need to convey an illusion that the gloves are coming off.

在政府中，两个主要政党被视为同一枚硬币的两面。现在他们正在争夺选票，需要传达一种假象：手套即将脱落。

But so far, it has just been a case of replacing the velvet with calf skin. The “hold me back, let me at him” routine is not fooling anyone.

但到目前为止，还只是用小牛皮代替天鹅绒的案例。 “阻止我，让我攻击他”的套路骗不了任何人。

The simple truth is, it is hard to see a pathway to government for one without the other.

简单的事实是，如果没有其他人，很难找到一条通向政府的道路。

Yet Fianna Fáil’s Jim O’Callaghan wanted to get a dig in, with the charge that Fine Gael could no longer claim to be the party of law and order. Fine Gael has held the justice portfolio for 14 years, but no progress has been made on crime, he claimed.

然而，统一党的吉姆·奥卡拉汉却想要挖苦，指责统一党不能再自称是维护法律和秩序的政党。他声称，统一党执掌司法部门已经 14 年了，但在打击犯罪方面却没有取得任何进展。

In response Justice Minister Helen McEntee said: “Women all over the country will understand what it feels like when men try to claim credit for women’s work.”

对此，司法部长海伦·麦肯蒂表示：“全国各地的女性都会理解当男性试图为女性的工作争取荣誉时的感受。”

So yes, we have seen some theatrics, but for the real pyrotechnics we may have to rely on the independents.

所以，是的，我们已经看到了一些戏剧性的场面，但对于真正的烟火表演，我们可能不得不依赖独立人士。

Meanwhile, Sinn Féin has been following a “steady as she goes” approach. Party leader Mary Lou McDonald said she was “in it to win it” and that if a week was a long time in politics, two weeks is an eternity.

与此同时，新芬党一直遵循“稳扎稳打”的方针。该党领袖玛丽·卢·麦克唐纳(Mary Lou McDonald)表示，她“致力于赢得胜利”，如果说一周对于政治来说是很长的时间，那么两周就是永恒。

The poll shows that Independents have made the biggest gains, up to 20pc. Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin are both on 19pc, while Fine Gael leads with 25pc support.

民意调查显示，独立人士涨幅最大，达到 20%。 Fianna Fáil 和 Sinn Féin 均获得 19% 的支持，而统一党 (Fine Gael) 则以 25% 的支持率领先。

As for the outcome, at this point, we are crystal-ball gazing. Or, as former football manager and pundit Ron Atkinson once put it: “I’m going to make a prediction – it could go either way.”

至于结果，目前我们正在拭目以待。或者，正如前足球经理兼专家罗恩·阿特金森曾经说过的那样：“我将做出一个预测 - 事情可能会发生任何一种情况。”

It is always worth hanging a question mark on things we take for granted, and never more so than when it comes to the will of the people.

对我们认为理所当然的事情总是值得打个问号，尤其是当涉及到人民的意愿时。

We should also keep in mind that of the 160 TDs elected to the 33rd Dáil, 36 are not running this time, and of those, 66pc are from the ranks of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil. So it is all to play for. Or, more pertinently, given the amount of taxpayers’ money being bandied about, it is all to pay for.

我们还应该记住，在当选第 33 届众议院的 160 名 TD 中，有 36 人这次没有参选，其中 66% 来自统一党 (Fine Gael) 和爱尔兰失败党 (Fianna Fáil)。所以一切都是为了玩。或者，更恰当地说，考虑到纳税人的钱被乱花钱，这一切都是要付出代价的。