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-- Brazil: The Gentle Giant Awakes

Brazil: The Gentle Giant Awakes

I must say I was surprised when I found this programme on the BBC:

quote:

In the 21st century, Brazil is starting to become a power in the world. Sue Branford looks at what happens when a developing country achieves political stability and steady economic growth. How does it manage to make sure that development brings real benefits to as many as possible, and how does it compete with the rest of the world? Part 1: Social movements Sue starts off in Redenção, which at the time of her first visit in 1974 was a tiny hamlet of a few dozen houses, immersed in dense tropical forest. She finds that today it has grown into a bustling town of some 80,000 inhabitants, surrounded by large cattle ranches. Only small fragments of forest remain. Cattle farming and mining are helping to fuel economic growth. And, along with economic expansion, has come political stability. Brazil today has a flourishing democracy, a far cry from the military repression of the 1970s. In 2002 Brazilians elected their first working-class president, the former industrial worker Lula, who is trying gradually to put an end to the country's severe social problems, particularly its poverty and its marked social inequalities. Social movements, particularly Brazil's one-million-strong landless movement, the Movimento dos Sem-Terra (MST), believe that Lula is moving far too slowly. Part 2: Foreign Policy The area where change is most apparent is foreign policy. Turning away from its old introversion, Brazil is fast becoming a world leader and is no longer reluctant to get involved in distant, intractable conflicts. Brazilian troops are, for example, heading the UN operation in Haiti. Brazil's influence is even clearer in South America, where the country is emerging as a regional leader. In Uruguay, Brazil has emerged as the main influence over the new 'Broad Front' government, headed by Tabaré Vasquez. But Brazil doesn't just wish to have a stronger voice on the world stage. It also wants a more just world in which developing nations get a fairer deal. This adds up to a coherent and innovative strategy. But is it enough to turn Brazil into a fully developed nation? Back in the shantytowns of Rio de Janeiro, the inhabitants complain that the government's fine words have not yet meant an end to their unemployment and poverty. A courageous and innovative foreign policy will not alone, it seems, turn Brazil into a developed and equitable nation.

Part one [read] [listen]
Part two [read] [listen]

How is Brazil seen abroad? How do the lot of you see it?

Honestly, I think that it's a big country that you don't really hear too much from. I do think it has the reputation of being the most modern and progressive of South American countries. Really though, in terms of politics and gloabal affairs, I rarely hear Brazil mentioned. I'm just stating how I percieve Brazil to be portrayed in the 'States.

They have a great football (soccer) team though. I wouldn't mind a vacation down there either, especially if Alessandra Ambrosio decided to tag along.

I have no respect for Brazil and the Brazilian people. They are ruining the Amazon forest with sugarcane fields to produce Ethanol. Ethanol is not only 70% of the energy output gasoline has it is also more expensive.

The Brazilian gov is killing life that exists nowhere else except in Brazil.

EDIT: Deleted pic of Adriana Lima b/c neo asked me to refrain.

quote:

Originally posted by metalgearsolid I have no respect for Brazil and the Brazilian people. They are ruining the Amazon forest with sugarcane fields to produce Ethanol. Ethanol is not only 70% of the energy output gasoline has it is also more expensive.

You're aware of the fact that sugarcane cannot grow in the Amazon region, aren't you? The soil there is not even appropriate, and any sugarcane plantations there would simply die.

If you're going to get mad, do it for the right reasons: the Amazon is being destroyed because of gold, iron, cattle and wood - all caused by poverty, which is something we're dealing with thanks to our history. That's all true, and I'm not the one denying it. Also, the Brazilian government's been taking measures in order to protect the forest (and spending millions), so it would be irresponsible of you to blame it for something it fights against. Besides, we can only protect 60% of the Amazon, as the rest is not ours.

Finally, if you do lose respect for someone just because of the country this person lives in (which is completely meaningless), then your respect isn't worth much, is it?

By the way, where are you from?

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono Honestly, I think that it's a big country that you don't really hear too much from. I do think it has the reputation of being the most modern and progressive of South American countries. Really though, in terms of politics and gloabal affairs, I rarely hear Brazil mentioned. I'm just stating how I percieve Brazil to be portrayed in the 'States.

That's interesting actually - I feel Brazil is just like India in that sense: unless there's something happening in the Kashmir, you don't hear almost anything from them. (Do you?)

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Originally posted by Lira You're aware of the fact that sugarcane cannot grow in the Amazon region, aren't you? The soil there is not even appropriate, and any sugarcane plantations there would simply die. If you're going to get mad, do it for the right reasons: the Amazon is being destroyed because of gold, iron, cattle and wood - all caused by poverty, which is something we're dealing with thanks to our history. That's all true, and I'm not the one denying it. Also, the Brazilian government's been taking measures in order to protect the forest (and spending millions), so it would be irresponsible of you to blame it for something it fights against. Besides, we can only protect 60% of the Amazon, as the rest is not ours. Finally, if you do lose respect for someone just because of the country this person lives in (which is completely meaningless), then your respect isn't worth much, is it? By the way, where are you from?

Wait, in my chem class we went over this maybe its corn? Well, anyways I was just messing around about hating Brazilians I love em all .

I am from Chicago the best city in the Western Hemisphere so what you got to say about Chicago?

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Originally posted by metalgearsolid Wait, in my chem class we went over this maybe its corn? Well, anyways I was just messing around about hating Brazilians I love em all

No, corn wouldn't grow in the Amazon either. The soil there is horrible for agriculture (which should be a good thing ).

However, we do get Ethanol out of sugarcane (you got that bit right), and that's been a great help here.

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Originally posted by metalgearsolid I am from Chicago the best city in the Western Hemisphere so what you got to say about Chicago?

You guys steal all our bloody wind!!!

And you guys have Punky Brewster and house music - you guys are to blame for half of the things I liked in my childhood

edit: Who the hell let Punky Brewster have breast reduction surgery? That should be outlawed!

Re: Brazil: The Gentle Giant Awakes

quote:

Originally posted by Lira How is Brazil seen abroad? How do the lot of you see it?

Topless Hotties.

To be honest there's not much news on Brazil around, and in a way that is a good thing. When a country gets itself stabilized and starts to make steady progress there's not much to report about, except an occasional article like that. Japan, for example, gets hardly any news coverage at all, and it's one of the most advanced countries out there. Anyway, considering the size and progress of Brazil, I'm guessing you guys are soon gonna be one of the bigger players in the global scene.

Anyways, Lira, nice to see you started visiting this subforum again.

quote:

Originally posted by Lira That's interesting actually - I feel Brazil is just like India in that sense: unless there's something happening in the Kashmir, you don't hear almost anything from them. (Do you?)

Nope, I agree. You really don't hear anything about Brazil unless something big is happening. All the surrounding nut-job countries of South America tend to steal the spotlight.

As said before though, I don't see that as a bad thing. I wish the US were in the news a hell of a lot less.

Lira what is the population growth? And don't you guys have a socialist leader but less extreme compared to Bolivia and Venezuela? I have also heard that Brazil was going to lose money because of Bolivia nationalizing their resources. Anyways I always hear about how AIDS is a huge problem in Brazil and not due to drugs but due to sex. Seems like you guys hump eachother like rabbits.

Anyways I feel that if the population is growing as it might be than the newer generation will accomplish great things for Brazil as long as they are educated enough to hold serious jobs in the international market, but if not than you will have serious crime trouble.

quote:

Originally posted by metalgearsolid Lira what is the population growth? And don't you guys have a socialist leader but less extreme compared to Bolivia and Venezuela? I have also heard that Brazil was going to lose money because of Bolivia nationalizing their resources. Anyways I always hear about how AIDS is a huge problem in Brazil and not due to drugs but due to sex. Seems like you guys hump eachother like rabbits. Anyways I feel that if the population is growing as it might be than the newer generation will accomplish great things for Brazil as long as they are educated enough to hold serious jobs in the international market, but if not than you will have serious crime trouble.

Kay, one answer at a time:

• Population growth: 1.04% [source]
  
  
• Socialist leader: Although he is a left-wing leader, there's something I once heard that makes sense in this context. More often than not, moderate left-wing leaders might actually behave as if they were right-wing, the reason being the need of stability in order to keep the country running. Therefore, even though this is a left-wing government, I don't feel that much of a difference compared to the previous one (which was a moderate right-wing one).
  
  
• Bolivia: This could be related to the previous answer. During the first couple of days when Morales seemed to have lost it, Bolivia sounded tough and there was a thread discussing its attitudes and the possible consequences [here]. However, Bolivia seems to have realised that it was a really stupid stance against a partner, and now seems to be taking it easy.
  
  Nevertheless, we did lose some money there, and the industry is now cautious on investing in Bolivia. However, Bolivia sure lost a lot more than we did, and this shouldn't bring us more problems in the long run.
  
  
• AIDS: Although this is still a problem, Brazil is doing a fine job tackling AIDS, and has drawn some attention worldwide because of the impressive results. The levels aren't that high, and the government has been distributing free HIV medicine for a while (there was an international commotion because of a problem with patents related to this). Among the BRIC countries, we're the ones with the lowest number of infected people (which makes sense, as we have the second smallest population ).
  
  In fact, Brazil is not that much of a lustful country - there was this thread about this issue a while back.
  
  
• Education: That's a concern of mine as well, and there's a myth that this is one of the reasons why South Korea came out of a military dictatorship in a better situation than we did.
  

quote:

Originally posted by Lira Among the BRIC countries, we're the ones with the lowest number of infected people (which makes sense, as we have the second smallest population ).

Say, does BRIC have any real-life organization, or is it just a term to lump the 4 countries together?

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Originally posted by metalgearsolid EDIT: Deleted pic of Adriana Lima b/c neo asked me to refrain.

dude.

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Originally posted by Q5echo dude.

Donnybrasco complained about it and it wasn't even a bude pic

Now we need to start a poll.

Although I think it's more CORe than political discussion/debate.

Adriana Lima or Alessandra Ambrosio?

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono Adriana Lima or Alessandra Ambrosio?

awwhh c'mon! why man?

prolly take me three days to answer that one.

both are eat-the-corn hot!

Ironically, should there be a discussion about Brazilian beauty, I wouldn't pick either of these girls mentioned as my favourite, but one of the following... (yes, I'm posting the most "safe for work" pictures I can


Luana Piovani


Mariana Ximenes


Daniele Suzuki

There are loads of other actresses who are worth mentioning, but let's not hijack this thread

quote:

Originally posted by DrUg_Tit0 Say, does BRIC have any real-life organization, or is it just a term to lump the 4 countries together?

Although all these countries are part of G20, it's more of a term so these 4 countries could get some of the hype there is about their economies Actually, there's a special report from the BBC about them as well.

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Originally posted by Lira There are loads of other actresses who are worth mentioning, but let's not hijack this thread

There's nothing wrong with hijacking a thread for the right reasons.

That first chick (with the Italian last name) is worth doing some research on.

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono There's nothing wrong with hijacking a thread for the right reasons. That first chick (with the Italian last name) is worth doing some research on.

Considering the fact that this is not the chill-out thread, and we don't want this to be a testosterone-driven forum, I never told you that there's an "interesting" photoshoot Luana Piovani did for a Brazilian magazine named "Trip". Also, I never told that "photoshoot" is "ensaio fotográfico" in Portuguese, and that, being a celebrity, you can easily find more information on her if you look it up on google, wikipedia and imdb.

Well, since we are on the topic. I really don't like the way supermodels look. They are too tall for me and the worse thing popssible for a girl is that they are too skinny. A girl needs to at least have an athletic figure for me I enjoy the fact that a women can keep up on rigorious activities and not bitch about it.

None, of the supermodels look like they are at all active.

Back on the topic.

I can't see Brazil being like the worlds superpower. But I can see them being one of the wealthiest nations in the world. But not having a favorable distribution of wealth.

And as long as the Brazilians don't have a fair distribution than things won't really be that different than they are now,

Lira: Thank you for the educational material and link suggestions. I believe that it has increased by political knowledge and understanding of the Brazilian culture tremendously. Although I never considered myself a "fan" of Brazil, I do think I am a fan of her people, or at least her female people.

As far as the shape of the supermodel..I have no problem with it. I like tall and skinny with legs that last forever. I lucked out, my woman is nearly as tall as I am, skinny (but not anorexic) and we met at a dance club. It's the perfect combination. Oh yeah, she's smokin' (in my humble opinion).

If have to write a 750 word paper on a developing economy by Tuesday and I think I might just do it on Brazil now that this thread is here. If have any links to sites with Brazilian economic data handy, Lira (or any more pictures of Luana Piovani, for that matter ) you'd be doing me a big favour.

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono Lira: Thank you for the educational material and link suggestions. I believe that it has increased by political knowledge and understanding of the Brazilian culture tremendously. Although I never considered myself a "fan" of Brazil, I do think I am a fan of her people, or at least her female people. As far as the shape of the supermodel..I have no problem with it. I like tall and skinny with legs that last forever. I lucked out, my woman is nearly as tall as I am, skinny (but not anorexic) and we met at a dance club. It's the perfect combination. Oh yeah, she's smokin' (in my humble opinion).

quote:

Originally posted by metalgearsolid Well, since we are on the topic. I really don't like the way supermodels look. They are too tall for me and the worse thing popssible for a girl is that they are too skinny. A girl needs to at least have an athletic figure for me I enjoy the fact that a women can keep up on rigorious activities and not bitch about it. None, of the supermodels look like they are at all active. Back on the topic. I can't see Brazil being like the worlds superpower. But I can see them being one of the wealthiest nations in the world. But not having a favorable distribution of wealth. And as long as the Brazilians don't have a fair distribution than things won't really be that different than they are now,

I don't mind the "supermodel look"

Oh, and I'm happy to know the articles were useful for you, NeoPhono, ad I do agree with your opinion on fair distribution, metalgearsolid

quote:

Originally posted by Renegade If have to write a 750 word paper on a developing economy by Tuesday and I think I might just do it on Brazil now that this thread is here. If have any links to sites with Brazilian economic data handy, Lira (or any more pictures of Luana Piovani, for that matter ) you'd be doing me a big favour.

hmmm... economic data? This is what I could think of:

• IBGE - Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estat�stica: As you could probably gather by its name, this is the website of the Brazilian Insitute of Geography and Statistics. This link should redirect you to the English version, which is not complete yet, but should have tons of info. As a matter of fact, IBGE is
  
  
• La Vie En Rose, avec Luana Piovani.
  
  
• Goldman Sach's predictions on Brazil, Russia, India and China: I had already posted this one, but this is just in case you missed it the first time
  
  
• The Moon: Luana Piovani's official website. "Lua" means "moon" in Portuguese, hence the name. I didn't find many pictures, although it was a good reference so I could find this, this and a nsfw'ish this.
  
  
  
• Economic History of Brazil: In case you need a historical background, Wikipedia's got this article. From what I've read, it seems to be quite accurate, although you might want to read this article, in case you want to know more about the 10 last years.
  
  
• Brazilian Central Bank: Title should be self-explicative
  
  
• Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: They've got some stuff about trade.
  

Ah good stuff, thanks a bunch Lira. Really appreciate it.

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