Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[faith2k]

Dear teachers,

what does "at the brink of one illness away from disaster" mean? (original source is Obama's speech where he talks about a woman in Ohio)

Thank you.[/quote]

[CP]

It's not the best way to phrase it, but I think he meant that the woman had no health insurance and no savings, so one illness could spell disaster for her -- and for lots of others.
_________________
You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

[faith2k]

thank you very much for the help. The sentence makes much more sense to me now.

Then would you also be able to clarify what has happened to the man from Indiana, who had to ship all his equipment to China after 20 years of hard work. (this was also cited from Obama's speech, followed right by the quote of the woman in Ohio.)

Thank you very much!