Brazzil

the workers need to just stop working
go too the beach for a few days

it worked for the drug leader when he called a strike from prison
no busses ran and rio shut down

if 2/3 of the work force stoped the congress would have to think about it

This is like penalizing a football team for bringing the ball through midfield with short passes instead of playing long balls and hoping for the best - any Brasilian should be able to understand this. No wonder there is this supposed gulf between the haves and have-nots in Brasil; the two groups are forced to operate in parallel but divided economies because of bizarre directives like this from the government. I wonder what percentage of Lula's majority operates on a cash only basis? Compare to the flat tax regimes implemented in Ireland and Eastern Europe , including Russia, and it is not hard to understand why Brasil's economic growth rate lags.

We all know that politicians are always thinking of themselves. Much like the one's sitting at the Ministerio daEducacao, and will continue to "mamando na teta"! All of them are parasites. Lula's has used his "personal history" for his benefit. He doesn't give a s**t about, the desperate, abused, hungry and homeless children of Brazil. He doesn't care about that the middle class is shrinking. How are they going to continue to pay for their luxurious salary? Are they going to ask the favelados? My dad's IPTU is 2 times higher than mine!( equivalent to US property tax). I never went to public schools or went to a public hospital, but he continues to be heavily taxed. John is absolutely right, he nailed down the problem and understands the consequences.The politicians in Brazil are the scumbags of our society, yes keep growing sugar cane, we''ll need little hands to cut them.

....such as combating poverty and paying for pensions"

Interesting to know that emerging countries with similar GDP per capita than Brazil, dont have such tax and problems to combat poverty and pay for pensions !!!!

Interesting to know that Brazil has the World Highest Poverty Rate, when compared to its GDP per capita, within the ranks of middle income countries !!!!!!! And this despite Brazil has an overall HIGHER tax rate than similar countries.

but this is already what tthey are doing ONCE a year, when they go on strike to demand higher wages.
And higher wages to the tune of 25-40 % year after year.
Guess how such things end up....inexorably....sooner or later !
Hyper inflation. Something you are accustomed to in your history.
Already forgotten ? Short memory ?

No one can get an annual pay increase of 25-40 % for long, not even in the best managed countries. In those countries such demand is just unthinkable...even from the workers !
You will just end up getting more local currencies but a currency worth less and less making goods more expensive...by the day !
That is what hyper inflation is !!!
Dont you recall when your bread cost was 1000.- cruzeiros....and even more than that ????
What did you do after ?
You cut 3 zeroes to your currency and continued for 25-40-60 higher wages.
What did you then ?
You cut 3 zeroes to your currency and continued for 25-40-60 higher wages.

And you did that 4 times in the last 70 years.
On top of that you also devalued your currency by around 70 % just before you pegged your currency to the dollar.
Sadly (laugh) you continued to raise your salaries by 25-40-60 %.
Then in 1998 you deppeged your currency from the US$, and your currency fell by 70 %...again.

and now you caress your navel because your currency doubled.......from such a low base !

End results ? You would need thousands of billions of your then 1930 currency to buy 1 bread.....TODAY !!!!!!!

Curiously......thousands of billion for 1 bread...is VERY ACCURATE !

You are simply addicted to hyper inflation and cannot/will not live long....without it !

On top of that you also devalued your currency by around 70 % just before you pegged your currency to the dollar.

Here you blew it.It was just 67%

and now you caress your navel because your currency doubled.......from such a low base !

Our currency was and is still strong, thanks to our leaders. Do you think that we have to print a new currency with the inscription " In Ethanol we trust" ?

joao with that sort of thinking , brasil will have to trade frood for ethanol just to feed the slaves to big business

my father inlaw told me at least working on a ranch you can get some sort of food when you dont get paid

We can see your extraordinary knowledge about Brazil's economy...

"Then in 1998 you deppeged your currency from the US$, and your currency fell by 70 %...again. "

As the great economist you are, you would see that if Brazil had maintained a parity with the dollar, our end would be just as terrible as Argentina's was. Our hyperinflation ended two decades ago, and it was caused by the oil crisis of 1973. Brazil was a major buyer of oil, and in the period of 1967-1973 our country was living the "Brazilian Miracle", growing 14% a year. China today grows 9%. It ended only because of the crisis. Hyperinflation only existed between 1973-1990.

And Shelly, Brazil will never have to trade ethanol for food, because we have space to both feed the entire world and supply the entire world with ethanol. Our agriculture doesn't need to be like your tiny American/European. If Brazil uses the expensive techniques you use to increase production, we'll be able to feed the Universe.