News and opinions on current events from “The Land of the Southern Cross”.
Some quick observations: 1. The stated reason for the protest was a reduction in Social Security benefits. Many Brazilians are upset that the retirement age has been increased. The Brazilian government is trying to deal with a system that has no more money – something the American government is going to have to deal with…
Since our arrival in the US we have become accustomed to answering questions about the Summer Olympics in Rio. As we live roughly two thousand miles from Rio de Janeiro, our answers have been limited. We do have colleagues, however, who serve in Rio. The Patefield family – Nathan and Dawn – serve with…
In the course of the past few days I’ve been asked a lot of questions about the current situation in Brazil. I’ve written about it here, here and here. As I am not currently in Brazil, I am relying heavily on other sources for my information. I thought I would list some of the best…
With growing interest and some alarm I have been watching the increasingly chaotic political situation in Brazil over the past few days. In a previous article I wrote about the massive protests on Sunday in response to the corruption of Brazil’s ruling political party (the PT). It should be noted that many of the protesters…
A week ago I wrote briefly about the current political climate in Brazil. Today protesters took to the streets in record-setting numbers to demand the ouster of current president Dilma Rousseff, and the arrest of former president Luís Inácio “Lula” da Silva. In the past, the PT (the ruling, leftist, Workers Party) has been able…
October 27, 2002. I was sitting with the Brazilian Bombshell in a Brazilian restaurant in Orlando, FL. It was my birthday, and Brazilian cuisine was my present. It was also the birthday of one Luís Inácio “Lula” da Silva, and his birthday present was a little bigger: he had just been elected President of Brazil….
The week before our return to the US I went with Michael and Nathanael to take care of some business at the Mount Zion camp. After we resolved the issues at the camp, we had some time on our hands, so we decided to visit Francivaldo’s father Sr. Francisco, who lives in a rural community…
This is a fun ad Fiatt is running here in Brazil in conjunction with the release of the new Star Wars movie. At the end, the woman says “It’s so peaceful up there.”
What is Christmas like in a tropical city? Updated with more pictures.
Yesterday a judge here in Brazil imposed a 48-hour ban on WhatsApp, a popular social media platform here in Brazil.* While lesser known in the US, it is a national phenomenon here in Brazil. Businesses depend on it for communication with customers and divulgation of new products. Individuals use it extensively to communicate with others….