“碰瓷者”成笑柄

上個月，湖南永州一名女子在馬路上碰瓷一名女司機，雙方討價還價之后，女子拿到了20元，竟高興的跳起舞來。她自稱半小時能訛250元，搞錢是為了打麻將。她在微博上火了，可是這下火的可不是什么好事啊。

The scam may be as old as the automobile itself: A fraudster throws himself in front of a vehicle and demands that the driver pay for his self-inflicted (or nonexistent) injuries. But in an age of ever-present cameras, it’s getting a lot harder to pull off.
“碰瓷”這種騙術可能和汽車一樣古老：騙子自己在汽車前倒下，要求車主為自己受傷賠錢，這種傷害是自己造成的，或者根本就不存在。但在遍地攝像頭的年代，這么騙錢就更難了。

There are scores of videos online that capture these scams, known in China as “pengci,” or “porcelain bumping.”
這種騙術在中國被稱為“碰瓷”，網上有很多碰瓷視頻。

Some attempts have resulted in broken bones or even death on the part of the “professional porcelain bumpers,” as they are known.
一些碰瓷行為導致“職業碰瓷者”骨折甚至死亡。

There is no reliable information on the scale of the fraud, and it is usually not prosecuted. For many victims, paying a bit of cash is preferable to arguing with the perpetrator.
目前還沒有碰瓷規模的可靠信息，通常碰瓷者也不會被起訴。對于很多受害者來說，掏點錢比和他們爭吵更省事。

The term “pengci” derives from the practice of dishonest shopkeepers placing a porcelain item in a spot where it was likely to get knocked over and broken, allowing them to claim damages from the “clumsy” customer, said David Schak, an anthropologist at Griffith University in Australia.
澳大利亞格里菲斯大學人類學家沙學漢說，“碰瓷”來源于不誠實的店主將瓷器放在很有可能撞翻打破的地方，他們以此要求“笨手笨腳”的顧客賠償。

Videos of the modern scam started appearing on China’s internet several years ago, and the perpetrators have become the butt of jokes and a source of public entertainment.
碰瓷視頻幾年前開始在中國的互聯網上出現，碰瓷者已成為了笑柄和公共娛樂的來源。

（中國日報網英語點津 yaning）