A pedestrian walks past a sex shop. A sex toy shop in the US state of Alabama on Tuesday launched a Valentine's Day offer it hopes will trigger a large response in a limp economy: customers can swap their guns for sex toys. (Agencies)
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A shop in the US state of Alabama on Tuesday launched a Valentine's Day offer it hopes will trigger a large response in a limp economy: customers can swap their guns for sex toys.
"In today's economy, this is a way of helping people who may feel they can't afford something for Valentine's Day," said Sherri Williams, the owner of the "Pleasures" sex toy shop, where assorted erotica during the next week can be obtained in exchange for cast-off firearms.
"This way, they can take something that's just lying around and swap it for something they can take home and make love, not war with," she told the reporters.
A video posted on its website said the shop, housed in an old bank building in Huntsville, "is trading guns off the street for fun between the sheets."
As soon as Pleasures opened its doors on Tuesday, a customer came in and exchanged an Iver Johnson revolver for a $40 gift certificate to be spent in the shop, which stocks everything from steamy videos to naughty negligees.
The gun was inspected by licensed gun dealer and gunsmith David Smith, who happens to be Williams' husband.
Guns can be exchanged at Pleasures from Tuesday until February 15, the day after Valentine's Day.
Firearms found to have been stolen or used in a crime will be handed over to the police, while others will be auctioned off, with proceeds going to victims of gun violence, said Williams, who said she is not looking to make money out of the deal.
"I'm in it to help people enjoy Valentine's Day in a tough economy," she said.
"I'm also in it to get guns off the street -- to take them out of the hands of people who would potentially do harm with them, and put them in the hands of collectors."
Williams conceded that the guns could be resold at auction, in which case they might end up back on the streets, but said the effort still is worthwhile.
"We might just change one person's mind," she said.
"You never know, maybe there will be someone who says, 'I've got this gun that I could go rob a liquor store with, or maybe I can get me a blow-up doll for Valentine's Day, instead. '"
(Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)
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(Agencies)
美国阿拉巴马州的一家商店周二推出了一个情人节特别活动：顾客可以用枪来交换性玩具。这家店希望在疲软的经济形势下，这一活动能够引起广大的反响。
“乐趣”情趣用品店店主雪莉威廉姆斯说：“在当前的经济形势下，这能够帮助那些在情人节买不起东西的人。”在未来一周人们将能用闲置的枪支在这家店换取各种各样的情趣用品。
她对记者说：“这样，他们就能够用闲置的物品换回家能够用来做爱的东西，而不是用来打架。”
这家店位于汉斯维尔的一幢旧银行大楼里，商店网站上发表的视频称，“来本店，在街头就能用枪换取床上的快乐。”
周二这天，“乐趣”商店一开门，就有一位顾客走进来，用一把伊夫约翰逊左轮手枪交换了一张在该店消费的价值40美元的礼品券。这家店从色情录影带到女性情趣睡衣应有尽有。
枪支由特许枪支经销商兼枪匠戴维史密斯负责检验，而史密斯正是威廉姆斯的丈夫。
从周二起到2月15日（情人节过后一天），枪支可以在“乐趣”店进行交换。
威廉姆斯说，她并不是为了从这一交易中获利，这些枪支如果发现是偷来的或是在犯罪案件中使用过的，将被送交给警察，而其他枪支将被拍卖，拍卖所得将送给枪支暴力事件中的受害者。
她说：“我这么做是为了帮助人们在严酷的经济形势下享受情人节。”
“我也是为了让枪支从街头消失，从那些可能会用枪造成伤害的人手中拿走枪支，把它们放在收藏者手中。”
威廉姆斯承认说，枪支将会在拍卖会上再次被卖出，这些枪也许还会在街头出现，不过这一努力依然是值得的。
她说：“说不定我们可以改变一个人的想法。”
“这很难说，也许有人会想，‘我可以用这把枪去抢劫酒类专卖店，或者我也可以给自己在情人节换一个充气娃娃。’”
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（中国日报网英语点津 陈丹妮 编辑：冯明惠）
Vocabulary:
assorted: of various different sorts（各种各样的）
erotica: literature or art intended to arouse sexual desire（色情用品）
cast-off firearms: 废弃不用的枪械
lying around: 闲置的
between the sheets: 床第之间
naughty: connected with sex（色情的）
negligee: a woman's dressing gown made of very thin fabric（质地轻薄的）女式晨衣，长睡衣
gunsmith: a person who makes and repairs guns（造枪工；修枪匠；军械工人）
proceeds: the money that you receive when you sell something or organize a performance, etc.; profits （售物或演出等的）收入，收益，进款