In six months time the world’s biggest sporting event will get underway in Rio de Janeiro. Here, Jules Boykoff, author of “Power Games: A Political History of the Olympics” takes a look at the winners and losers in the race for financial, rather than Olympic, gold.
Arquivo - Tag: Politics
Tristes Tropiques – Brazil’s gloomy 2015 in review
The economy tanked, President Dilma Rousseff faced toxic approval ratings and the threat of impeachment, the shoddy, megalomaniacal caperings of the likes of Eduardo Cunha, the Speaker of the country’s Lower House, dragged an already grubby political landscape further into the mire, and the internet reflected back a society that often seemed riven by social(…)
School’s not out for summer: student protests in São Paulo
With many Brazilian schoolchildren already enjoying their summer holidays, thousands of pupils in São Paulo have been protesting to save their schools from closure. Their efforts have provided a welcome break from the unseemly behaviour of the country’s adult political leaders in Brasília.
Rio Olympic spending turns from gold to bronze
As the Rio Olympics draw closer, organizers are cutting costs – but it may have more to do with Brazil’s crumbling economy than IOC initiatives or financial good governance. Jules Boykoff, author of “Power Games: A Political History of the Olympics” explains. By Jules Boykoff Rio de Janeiro Back in 2009, when the International Olympic Committee awarded(…)
Brazil’s political crisis explained
While much has been made of Brazil’s economic downturn, a toxic political climate is equally responsible for the current woes of President Dilma Rousseff and her government. Mauricio Savarese looks at the complex backdrop to the crisis. By Mauricio Savarese São Paulo There is no easy explanation as to why, just under a year after being reelected by a narrow margin,(…)
Dilma’s approval rating
President Dilma Rousseff’s performance in the polls has been absolutely disastrous recently. At the same time, it is misleading to say, in English, that her “approval rating” is 10%. That is because unlike polls done on American presidents, Brazil’s Datafolha polling system is tripartite. Respondents are given three options. They can rate the government “good/great,”(…)
Brazilian football and (corrupt) politics – a brief history
Brazilians’ love for soccer has been exploited by crooks, dictators, and dirty politicians for decades. Above, dictator Emilio Médici celebrates after his country’s 1970 World Cup victory. By Mauricio Savarese When former Brazilian soccer boss José Maria Marin was arrested in Switzerland at the end of May, most fans here just knew him as the old guy that(…)
Who’s who in the battle for Brazil?
Why do ‘pro-government’ protesters battle cops, while pro-impeachment protesters hug them? Which team are these guys on, again? A guide to the current crisis Vincent Bevins São Paulo I just spent a month away from Brazil, which served to remind me of just how inscrutable the struggles currently rocking this country are to foreign observers. They may know(…)
Brazil’s upper middle class returns to public life
For years, crime, classism and old habits have kept Brazil’s well-to-do away from the messy reality of the country’s streets. But the World Cup, and now, anger at the government, have brought them back onto the scene. By James Young “Go downtown?* Are you crazy! It’s far too dangerous!” (*Or “Go to the football” or(…)
Brazil’s economy and election, summarized quickly
I’ve left the bitterness of São Paulo on a brief vacation outside of Brazil, but I wanted to share insights into the country’s current situation from two excellent commentators that generally hold the “pro-market” viewpoint. The first is from Tony Volpon of Nomura Securities: Structurally, the end of the commodity boom can now be dated(…)
