مکالمه ی فعالانه قسمت ب

ACTIVE SPEAKING / PART B

TURNING POINTS IN HISTORY

Even less significant than an art school rejection letter, a small piece of tape changed history and brought down a US president.

What changed history and brought down a US president? A small piece of tape changed history and brought down a US president.

On the night of June 17th, 1972, a security guard at the Watergate office complex was doing his rounds.

Who was doing his rounds? A security guard was doing his rounds. Where was he doing his rounds? He was doing his rounds at the Watergate office complex.

This office complex was the home of the Democratic Party headquarters.

Who used this office complex? The Democratic Party used this office complex.

The Democratic Party was at the time, the opposition to the ruling Republican Party with President Nixon at its head.

Who was the ruling party, the Democratic Party or the Republican Party? The Republican Party was the ruling party. Who was at the head of the Republican Party? President Nixon was at the head of the Republican Party.

No one would have expected Frank Willis, who was a lowly private security guard earning a mere $80 a week, would bring down a president.

What was the private security guard’s name? The private security guard’s name was Frank Willis. How much did Willis earn a week? Willis earned a mere $80 a week.

Some people called Willis a hero for what he did that night, but he says he was just doing his job when he spotted the tape.

Did Willis call himself a hero? No, Willis didn’t call himself a hero. Did he say he was just doing his job? Yes, he says he was just doing his job.

It was a very small piece of tape covering the lock in a way that prevented it from locking.

What was the tape covering? The tape was covering a lock. Did it prevent the lock from locking? Yes, it prevented the lock from locking.

He removed the tape and continued making his rounds.

What did Willis do when he saw the tape? He removed the tape and continued making his rounds.

When he returned 30 minutes later, he saw that the tape was there again.

What happened when he returned 30 minutes later? When he returned 30 minutes later, he saw that the tape was there again.

That’s when he knew something was afoot. He quickly called the police who arrived and found five burglars.

Did Willis know something was afoot? Yes, Willis knew something was afoot. Who did he call? He called the police. Did Willis find the five burglars? No, Willis didn’t find the five burglars. The police found the five burglars.

It would turn out that all five men had connections with the White House.

Who did the five men have connections with? The five men had connections with the White House.

It wasn’t their first break-in of the Democratic Party headquarters.

Had the five men done this before? Yes, the five men had done this before.

In addition to looking for information that would help Nixon get reelected, one of their goals in the 2nd break-in was to fix faulty wiretaps installed during the first break-in.

What kind of information were they looking for during the 2nd break-in? They were looking for information that would help Nixon get reelected. What else were they doing during the 2nd break-in? They were fixing faulty wiretaps installed during the first breakin.

This was a time of rampant dirty tricks and illegal operations directed by President Nixon and his staff.

Was this an unusual illegal act by Nixon and his staff? No, this wasn’t an unusual illegal act by Nixon and his staff. This was a time of rampant dirty tricks and illegal operations.

The Watergate burglars were being supervised by G. Gordon Liddy and Howard Hunt, who sat in a hotel room of the Watergate Hotel across the street.

Who were supervising the burglars? G. Gordon Liddy and Howard Hunt were supervising the burglars. Were they supervising from the Watergate Hotel? Yes, they were supervising from the Watergate hotel.

Liddy and Hunt were members of a secret White House investigative unit nicknamed the White House Plumbers.

What was the nickname of this secret White House unit? The secret White House unit was nicknamed the White House Plumbers.

The nickname Plumbers is derived from the double meaning of the word leak in English.

Does the word ‘leak’ only have one meaning? No, the word ‘leak’ doesn’t have one meaning. It has a double meaning.

While a leak can mean the accidental loss of liquid through a crack or hole that often requires a plumber to fix, the idiomatic meaning of a leak is the release of secret information.

What is the idiomatic meaning for the word ‘leak’? The idiomatic meaning for the word ‘leak’ is the release of secret information.

Just one year before Watergate, a government official named Ellsberg leaked information showing that the US had secretly enlarged the war in Vietnam to include attacks in Laos and Cambodia.

Was Ellsberg a private security guard? No, Ellsberg wasn’t a private security guard.

Ellsberg was a government official.

The Plumbers’ first job was to discredit Ellsberg, so they broke into his psychiatrist’s office to find damaging information about him.

What was the Plumbers’ first job? The Plumbers’ first job was to discredit Ellsberg. What were they looking for? They were looking for damaging information about Ellsberg.