What if the United States of America，uniquely founded to preserve liberty，ceased to exist as a free and independent nation?What if the legal principles upon which the nation was founded，those that recognize the natural rights of man，were submerged and harmonized with the laws of other nations，laws alien to the traditions of freedom bequeathed to the nation by the brilliant wisdom of the Founding Fathers?①Would individuals continue to be free to pursue their dreams?Would parents continue to be free to impart their own values to their children and to work for their future?Or would a veil of oppression slowly obscure the American dream?
It seems preposterous，but the question of the age is whether America shall remain free and independent or whether it will be subordinated to some alien bureaucracy that will prevent our great country from pursuing its own destiny．o An agreement was reached in 1993 through which international legal structures might actually force the abandonment of the entire governmental framework built so carefully by the Founding Fathers．That agreement was the North American Free Trade Agreement(NAFTA)and upon it，as its proponents have argued，can be built the future integration of Canada and Mexico with the United States．④Indeed。NAFTA alone already has had a substantially deleterious effect on the well-being of the citizens of the nation．But if left unchallenged，it poses a greater threat for the future：the potential final dissolution of the United States through the harmonization of U．S．1aw with that of Canada and Mexic0．
The American dream is made possible by our national independence and personal freedom．But internationalists have a conflicting dream。that of an integrated hemisphere modeled after the European Union．And that integration is coming quickly if internationalists have their way．In its report entitled Building a North American Community，the influential New York—based Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)calls for“the creation by 2010 0f a North American community…．Its boundaries will be defined by a common external tariff and an outer security perimeter within which the movement of people， products，and capital will be legal，orderly，and safe．”It’s a plan that has the support of President Bush wh0，at the White House on February l6，2001，announced that the United States，with Canada and Mexic0，“will strive to consolidate a North American economic community．”⑥It is NAFTA that is the basis for this planned integration．
NAFTA is not about creating jobs and prosperity，as its backers allege．Instead，NAFTA is about formulating a North American Union，the next steps of which are j ust over the horizon．If，for future generations，we wish to preserve the American way of lire，we must keep America free and independent--and that means withdrawing from NAFTA before it’s tOO late．[467 words]
1．By asking several questions in the first paragraph，the author intends to show that ______．
A．America is no longer a free and independent nation
B．the American dream has been totally abandoned
C．the tradition of freedom is an invaluable legacy
D．the American way of life is being threatened
2．The word“preposterous”(Line 1，Paragraph 2)most probably means______．
A．a(chǎn)bsurd
B．prevalent
C．deleterious
D．controversial
3．The author argues that with the agreement reached in 1993，______．
A．America will still be a free and independent nation
B．America will prevent itself from pursuing its own dream
C．America will be forced to abandon its own values entirely
D．America will be harmoniously integrated with its neighbors
4．The author asserts that NAFTA______．
A．threatens the future of North American nations seriously
B．calls for the compromise between U．S．a(chǎn)nd its neighbors
C．facilitates the harmonization of U．S．with other countries
D．prevents U．S．from maintaining its national independence
5．The supporters of NAFTA claims that it______．
A．creates jobs and prosperity for North America nations
B．sets about to consolidate fl North American community
C．preserves the American way of life for future generations
D．formulates a free and independent North American Union
It seems preposterous，but the question of the age is whether America shall remain free and independent or whether it will be subordinated to some alien bureaucracy that will prevent our great country from pursuing its own destiny．o An agreement was reached in 1993 through which international legal structures might actually force the abandonment of the entire governmental framework built so carefully by the Founding Fathers．That agreement was the North American Free Trade Agreement(NAFTA)and upon it，as its proponents have argued，can be built the future integration of Canada and Mexico with the United States．④Indeed。NAFTA alone already has had a substantially deleterious effect on the well-being of the citizens of the nation．But if left unchallenged，it poses a greater threat for the future：the potential final dissolution of the United States through the harmonization of U．S．1aw with that of Canada and Mexic0．
The American dream is made possible by our national independence and personal freedom．But internationalists have a conflicting dream。that of an integrated hemisphere modeled after the European Union．And that integration is coming quickly if internationalists have their way．In its report entitled Building a North American Community，the influential New York—based Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)calls for“the creation by 2010 0f a North American community…．Its boundaries will be defined by a common external tariff and an outer security perimeter within which the movement of people， products，and capital will be legal，orderly，and safe．”It’s a plan that has the support of President Bush wh0，at the White House on February l6，2001，announced that the United States，with Canada and Mexic0，“will strive to consolidate a North American economic community．”⑥It is NAFTA that is the basis for this planned integration．
NAFTA is not about creating jobs and prosperity，as its backers allege．Instead，NAFTA is about formulating a North American Union，the next steps of which are j ust over the horizon．If，for future generations，we wish to preserve the American way of lire，we must keep America free and independent--and that means withdrawing from NAFTA before it’s tOO late．[467 words]
1．By asking several questions in the first paragraph，the author intends to show that ______．
A．America is no longer a free and independent nation
B．the American dream has been totally abandoned
C．the tradition of freedom is an invaluable legacy
D．the American way of life is being threatened
2．The word“preposterous”(Line 1，Paragraph 2)most probably means______．
A．a(chǎn)bsurd
B．prevalent
C．deleterious
D．controversial
3．The author argues that with the agreement reached in 1993，______．
A．America will still be a free and independent nation
B．America will prevent itself from pursuing its own dream
C．America will be forced to abandon its own values entirely
D．America will be harmoniously integrated with its neighbors
4．The author asserts that NAFTA______．
A．threatens the future of North American nations seriously
B．calls for the compromise between U．S．a(chǎn)nd its neighbors
C．facilitates the harmonization of U．S．with other countries
D．prevents U．S．from maintaining its national independence
5．The supporters of NAFTA claims that it______．
A．creates jobs and prosperity for North America nations
B．sets about to consolidate fl North American community
C．preserves the American way of life for future generations
D．formulates a free and independent North American Union