Last Update: June 15, 2003

Brazil: Here, Vice-Presidents Count
The vice-presidency has helped shape Brazil's history. In 1992, Vice-President Itamar Franco rose to the top in place of Fernando Collor de Mello, who was forced to step down. In 1985, Vice-President José Sarney took over when President Tancredo Neves, became ill and died before being inaugurated.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Brazil's Lula: Displeasing Greeks and Trojans
Lula is clearly trying to pull off a delicate balancing act. He is adhering to IMF policies to stave off capital flight and keep economic pressures from abroad at bay while carrying out some limited reforms and staking out political and trade policies that he hopes will give Brazil more independence and stimulate economic growth in the long run.
by Roger Burbach

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No Reason to Be Bullish on Brazil
Amid talks of tax and pension reform and the measures before Congress at the moment, Lula's government has made no attempt to reduce government payrolls or make the huge bureaucracy more efficient to meet the needs of the population. On the contrary, he has created several new secretariats.
by Richard Hayes

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Brazil: We Have No Roadmap
The Lula administration still lacks an action script. The President's Workers Party should have started drafting one 12 years ago, when Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ran for President for the first time. What we hear is that we must resume growth. But we remain generic. We need a true Action Plan.
by Carlos Chagas

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Brazil: Bullying and Death in the Countryside
The police investigated the site, made their report, and even succeeded in arresting landowner Marcos Napoleão and three of his gunmen. However, they were released the next day after a judicial hearing. Part of the tragedy of this incident is that the workers lost all of their personal legal documents in the fire and now cannot enroll their kids in school.

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Out of Africa: Race in Brazil and in the US
In Portuguese, the word for "race", raça, is not surprisingly the same as the word used for "breed", and the word raça is used for both animals and humans. The subtext of the word "race" is still inherently imbued in eugenic ideology, otherwise known as "social Darwinism." There is only one human "race."
by Alan P. Marcus

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The Trouble with Lula
The government's major strategist, Duda Mendonça, is an extraordinary talent in political marketing, but he is not a communicator of administration platforms. Zero Hunger is sloshing because it was plucked from a presidential speech and turned into a finished product before the product was even made.
by Alberto Dines

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Lula's Plane Takes Off
A draft prepared by the Executive to reform the public pension system has been approved by a Brazilian House Committee. This is just the start, though. Meanwhile, the failure to get the Zero Hunger project up and running has caused Lula little loss of face because people are still giving him the benefit of the doubt.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Regards from São Paulo, Brazil
A little vanity saves a higher-up on Lula's party from being kidnapped. Capoeira without Baianos is something else. In São Paulo, driving through red lights, the wrong way up one-way streets, and parking on the pavement is the norm. Still you can taste a piece of paradise in Sampa.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Brazil: The Cruel Rite of Churrasco
The Brazilian tradition of churrasco is a lamentable example of mere human selfish gluttony. Related to it, some Brazilian rodeos are sadistically perverse, as onlookers and rodeo participants stick broken-glass into an animals' anus to make it buck more fiercely, and then beat and literally torture the oxen until they die.
by Alan P. Marcus

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Brazil and Cuba: More than Good Friends
Chief of Staff, José Dirceu, says that the generation who came to power with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is in debt with Cuba. Dirceu also reminds us that the Brazilian Left, during the years of the military regime, could always count on Cuba—on its solidarity, its "friendly hand" and its "strong arm". "I consider myself a Cuban Brazilian and a Brazilian Cuban", he says.
by Janer Cristaldo

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Dear Saudis, Play Safe, Bring Your Money to Brazil
If I were the Finance Minister of Saudi Arabia, I would be cashing in, and moving most of Saudi Arabia's assets out of the US for safekeeping. Doing otherwise would be foolishness. Confiscation of Saudi money by the US seems imminent. Brazil is a good place to put at least part of the 2 trillion dollars, which are now in American hands.
by Ricardo C. Amaral

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Brazilian Press: Lolita to the Rescue
Advertisers don't want circulation but money to ensure their survival. The middle or upper-middle classes, who buy expensive items, never stopped buying papers. Grocery stores and electronics/appliance stores know that consumers will only come back when the economy improves.
by Alberto Dines

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I Nominate Brazilian Furtado to the Nobel
It is long overdue for the Nobel Committee to award the Nobel Prize for Economics to the outstanding Brazilian intellectual and economist Celso Furtado. At times, it seems that Brazil is the only country in the world that never got a single Nobel Prize. It's time to correct this grave oversight.
by Ricardo C. Amaral

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Brazil-USA: Learning to Bridge Cultures
When Brazilian and American executives are briefed on what to expect from their counterparts in negotiations, the results can be surprising. The key is to understand the differences. Brazilians generally prefer to establish personal relationships at the start while Americans prefer less initial "small talk."
by Kim Hugget

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Vila Velha: Best-kept Secret in All Brazil
Vila Velha, with its freakish sandstone formations much like Monument Valley in Arizona, was where an ancient race kept their treasures and worshipped Tupã, the Tupi god. A select band of warriors, the apiabas, stood guard and were not allowed to touch women in case they lost their powers.
by JohnM

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Will Argentina Roar Again?
The fact that the IMF has gone out of its way to help Brazil, while treating Argentina harshly, reflects the difference in the regional and international importance of the two countries. Argentineans did not like this treatment but Brazil has become the de facto Latin America's main power.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Hungry for change in Brazil
Lula's transformation, from radical socialist to international statesman, has drawn lazy comparisons with Tony Blair. The two have little in common. Lula's "third way" involves a genuine attempt to make the private sector see that its interests lie with helping to address deep social problems.
by Richard Adams

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No One's Minding the Store Brazil
Chief of Staff José Dirceu commands the political tractor to get reforms passed. Finance Minister Antonio Palocci chains himself to the fiscal calculator. And Lula does what he loves to do—campaigning—happily this time, followed by constant applause, free from superegos, absolutely loose.
by Alberto Dines

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Lula Shining Abroad
The Brazilian Gross National Product growth was negative in the first three months of 2003 and shows few signs of reviving very soon. Contrasting with the gloomy reality of the real economy, Brazil's image and that of Lula seem to continue to glisten overseas. Domestically the honeymoon is over, however.
by Richard Hayes

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Brazil, End Illiteracy or Change Your Flag!
Some say that it is inefficient to spend money on literacy programs for adults who would have little to offer the national economy. First, the 20 million people learning to read and write would become a considerable workforce. Second, it may even be inefficient, but it is decent.
by Cristovam Buarque

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Indy: Let Brazil Shine
Not only the boys from Brazil, but from all over the world. Formula Indy should open all doors, let anyone and everyone who can compete do so and if you don't like it, go out and secure more sponsorship, build more competitive cars and train better drivers.
by Phillip Wagner

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Death Squads Won't Die in Brazil
Amnesty International in its latest report on Brazil shows that high levels of crime continues to drive underfunded, poorly trained and often corrupt police forces to the further use of repressive methods. Military and civil police are responsible for thousands of deaths and human rights defenders are dismissed as "defenders of criminals".

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Brazil: Northeasterners Get No Respect
Brazilian TV viewers may associate what is deemed as successful attributes with urban or North American lifestyles. Perceptions acquired from television, US movies and popular music, affect attitudes leading to ethnic and "racial" self-doubt pertaining to Brazil's African and Amerindian ancestry.
by Alan P. Marcus

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All Eyes on the Amazon
Scholars gathered at Dartmouth College to discuss Amazon issues such as human rights, cultural preservation, technology, bio-piracy, sustainable development, education, religion, art, and literature. Participants talked about their growing expectations toward policies forged by President Lula of Brazil.
by Dário Borim

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Dreadful, puzzling, almost lovely Brazil
A beloved music producer is murdered in cold blood; the opposition becomes the government's ally; and dirty, dangerous São Paulo still hides some charm. Amid all of this, Chico Buarque's silence is a hit and Veja magazine puts on its own grisly act profiling a mortuary attendant accompanied by a picture of him with the tools of his trade, extracting instruments included.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Food for Nukes, the Answer for Brazil
The big lesson from the Iraq fiasco to all nations around the world is: if you don't have nuclear weapons to defend your country, then you are out of luck. Brazil should learn this lesson and withdraw from the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Brazilians should exchange food for North Korean nuclear weapon know-how.
by Ricardo C. Amaral

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How I Taught English in Brazil and Survived to Tell the Story - Lesson 1
If you are a clock-watcher or a nitpicker and want to be an English teacher in São Paulo, my advice would be to put away that timepiece, give yourself plenty of leeway to get to where you want to be, and go with the flow. The sheer number of vehicles in the city can have a truly mind-numbing effect on a person's sanity.
by Joe Lopes

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Trying to Gag Lula
By creating phony crises, the media is falling into the hands of those who profit from this volatility—the speculators, many of which are the big Brazilian banks. A free news media is essential in any democracy, but much of what the media produces is of little or no value.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Indy 500: Brazil All Over
Gil de Ferran, Hélio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan complete unprecedented 1-2-3 sweep, marking a third straight year of Brazilian dominance at Formula Indy's premiere competition. The three Brazilians were separated by less than one-quarter second, marking the closest ever 1-2-3 finish in Indianapolis 500 history.
by Phillip Wagner

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The Brazilian Six-Pack at Indy
There are six Brazilians in the spotlight this Sunday, May 25, competing in 87th annual Indianapolis 500. They are Hélio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, Gil de Ferren, Felipe Giaffóne, Vitor Meira and Airton Dare. Can Castroneves make history becoming the first driver ever to win three consecutive Indy 500s?
by Phillip Wagner

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All the Sounds of City of God
The soundtrack of City of God is a treat. It brings a concise mini-history of the music of Rio de Janeiro and its evolution over the years chronicled in the movie's plot. In the final section of the album, the music turns a bit darker as the drug war comes to a climax.
by Ernest Barteldes

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The Making of Lula of Brazil
A new book on Lula explores the Brazilian President's private and emotional life in detail and even draws explicitly on psychoanalytic concepts to probe his unconscious mind. Lula's saga is Brazil's version of a Horatio Alger story. He channeled his anger into a struggle to do better than his father.
by Ted Goertzel

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Brazil: Next Stop, Civil War
The correct name for what we are up against in Brazil is narcoterrorism. Violence has become a federal issue and the fight against violence, with or without formal intervention, with or without the Armed Forces in the streets, must also become a federal issue.
by Alberto Dines

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Gil and Gal - What a Guy, What a Gal
Brazil's Culture Minister, Gilberto Gil, should make singer Gal Costa an arts ambassador and send her round the world. This single act would lead to Portuguese ousting English as the international language and have tourists flocking here by the million. Gal's voice is as clear as a bell with a sensual warmth that cocoons the listener in ethereal bliss.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Brazil, Still a Banker's Paradise
Banks in Brazil rank among the planet's most profitable with returns on equity that are the envy of bankers anywhere. An overdraft facility can cost the customer nearly 200 percent a year. Credit card finance and personal loans run over 100 percent a year. Most personal loans are made to pay off existing debts.
by Richard Hayes

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Erasing the National Memory in Brazil
Due to lack of funds, São Paulo's TV Cultura has been reusing old videotapes to record new shows. Entire series are disappearing, never to be seen by future generations. One of these shows is Metrópolis, which showcased Marisa Monte in 1988. News and children programs have also been erased.
by Marianna Castañeda

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How Brazil's Lula Is Fooling the World
Lula's party, the PT, covered up its historic radicalism during Brazil's presidential campaign with world-class marketing. Once in office, the PT was able to pacify Wall Street while giving itself cover to gradually re-nationalize formerly privatized assets. This strategy has worked brilliantly, so far.
by Gerald Brant

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The Rise of the Brazilian Empire
Brazil's imperialism is generally overlooked by Brazilians. The boundaries of Brazil were created mainly by force of arms and sometimes by diplomatic guile, backed up by the saying that "possession is nine-tenths of the law." More recently Brazil took over territory belonging to Paraguay, Bolivia and Peru.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Brazil to Say 'No, Thanks' to US
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will veto a proposal being discussed in Congress that would allow the US military to use the Alcântara missile launching base located in the Amazon. According to some, with this accord, Brazilians would lose sovereignty over their territory and get very little in return.

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Indy 500: Boys from Brazil Raring to Win
Mark your calendars for May 25th. Penske, Toyota position Hélio Castroneves for three-peat at Indianapolis 500. It will be a superhero face off: "Spiderman" vs. "X-man." True to the form of 2001 and 2002, Brazilians have galvanized the imagination of their fans and continue to win converts.
by Phillip Wagner

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Afrobrazilianists: Such Arrogance!
Brazilian progressive blacks are doing what they can to allow us to reach the enviable levels of racial hatred of a First World country. They have the valuable support of activists bringing degrees from American universities. We now have academic factories of racism called 'centers for black studies'.
by Janer Cristaldo

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Fast Times in Lula's Brazil
The sudden resurgence of the real has scared some people, including President Lula. In another front, by appointing three new judges to the Supreme Court, so early in his administration, the Brazilian president has an excellent chance of influencing the way Brazilian society is shaped in coming years.
by John Fitzpatrick

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How to Marry a Brazilian
For an American citizen the road to marry a Brazilian can be rugged and intimidating. In Brazil, religious wedding ceremonies are not legally recognized. You need to present among other documents your birth certificate and evidence that you are single. And remember that registering your intent to marry is different from registering the actual marriage.
by Kim Rachell Lainhart Lira

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Brazil's Favorite Nephew
Playwright Mauro Rasi will be remembered for his refined use of language in which even tragic situations were injected with humor and grace. He drew flesh-and-bone portraits of people that every Brazilian can find in his own family. He was also known for glorifying women.
by Marianna Castañeda

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Sky Is Falling over Varig
Varig will keep its name, but very little more, after its merger with TAM and a rescue package from the Brazilian government that will make the state the main shareholder of the new airline, which should be called Varig.
by Émerson Luiz

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What Brazil Taught Me
Don't try to change Brazil, let Brazil change itself. Shine a little light in the right direction, focus on the positive aspects of Brazil culture, people. Don't let the shit get you down. Draw inspiration from the good things and enjoy life with the same passion with which Brazilians enjoy life.
by John Miller

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Jazz Can't Resist Brazil
For decades, the recordings and live appearances of famous and less celebrated American singers, bandleaders, soloists and performers have featured Brazilian sidemen and session players or been influenced by Brazil's most sublime and precious commodity: her music.
by Joe Lopes

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Can God Save Rio?
Under a new restrained, conservative conception of democracy, religion has slid into the equation. Apart from Israel and the US, religion has also become the measure of accountability in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Rio's state government is experimenting with its own version of the national security state.
by Norman Madarasz

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Tough Lula To Oust Rebels
While the rest of us think President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has been behaving responsibly, his own party's extreme left-wingers think he has betrayed their cause. They want the government to tax and spend. They want higher taxes on industry and commerce and high-income individuals.
by John Fitzpatrick

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Lula: "We Should Stop Blaming Others"
Lack of money is not an excuse, says Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, appealing to lawmakers to approve reforms that are expected to jumpstart the Brazilian economy. Lula thinks it's time Brazil stop blaming the rest of the world for its own problems and take matters in its own hands to deal with hunger and unemployment.
by Francesco Neves

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IMF Wants More from Brazil
Every Brazilian had to work one whole month in 2002 just to pay Brazil's interest rates on its loans. However, in spite of meeting the demands of the International Monetary Fund, Brazil did not succeed in balancing its payments and had to sign a new Letter of Intention with the IMF.

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The Old Boys (and Girls) from Brazil
The proportion of Brazil's elderly is increasing more rapidly than that of children. In 1980 there were 16 elderly for every 100 children. In 2000, there were 30 elderly for every 100 children. The Catholic Church in Brazil is focusing its attention on them, this year.
by Daniel F. McLaughlin

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Brazilian Wonderland
Trade figures for Brazil look quite promising. Fact unheard, gasoline prices fell and the real gained nearly 15 percent on the dollar in the last month. On top of all a surplus of over US$16 billion is predicted for this year thanks to a reversal of negative sentiment and the positive performance of Lula.
by Richard Hayes

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More Than Jobim's Alter Ego
Newton Mendonça and Tom Jobim met in 1942, when they were fifteen, and became inseparable. There have been speculations about Mendonça's songwriting abilities. Would he have measured up without Tom as his partner? What did he contribute to the songs they wrote together?
by Daniella Thompson

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