[单项选择]Though （）smart at all, Mr. Danes became a successful entrepreneur
A. being   
B. not being
C. because he
D. he being not

[单项选择]Despite Denmark’s manifest virtues, Danes never talk about how proud they are to be Danes. This would sound weird in Danish. When Danes talk to foreigners about Denmark, they always begin by commenting on its tininess, its unimportance, the difficulty of its language, the general small-mindedness and self-indulgence of their countrymen and the high taxes. No Dane would look you in the eye and say, "Denmark is a great country." You’re supposed to figure this out for yourself.
It is the land of the silk safety net, where almost half the national budget goes toward smoothing out life’s inequalities, and there is plenty of money for schools, day care, retraining programmes, job seminars -- Danes love seminars: three days at a study centre hearing about waste management is almost as good as a ski trip. It is a culture bombarded by English, in advertising, pop music, the Internet, and despite all the English that Danish absorbs there is no Danish Academy to defend against it--old dialec
A. sets the people apart from Germans and Swedes.
B. spares Danes social troubles besetting other peoples.
C. is considered economically essential to the country.
D. prevents Danes from acknowledging existing troubles.