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Brazil and the sixty minutes piece that was referenced in the OP is a shining example of a nation that has fallen in lockstep with the model proposed by the WTO. Brazil is a nation whose workers are so peed upon by it's upper controlling class that the average worker would leave in a heartbeat for better conditions and pay. The rich in Brazil are doing great, the natural resources are in their hands, it's a nation of poor and rich with little incentive to grow a decent size middle class. Unions in America did the duty of getting the working peoples rights into law and thus assuring a better distribution of the nations riches, unions in brazil are routinely rousted by the wealthy through their henchmen. Brazil's wealth is not a symbol of widespread prosperity it is the evidence of a lopsided distribution of wealth.
Sounds like it would be a great place to relocate to. Unemployment is probably low since they have a growing economy. Weather is great there too I would think. During the last cold snap Orlando had some flurries.
I've been there. It's a great place to visit, but you probably wouldn't want to live there long term. 1/3 of the population lives in crime ridden slums. I saw lots of tiny houses made of brick with no windows and tarps for roofs. The urban areas are high crime. Even the middle and upper classes are affected greatly by the crime and poverty around them.
If you think America is a country of haves & have nots, go to Brazil.
The difference is that at least Brazil is moving in the right direction economically, whereas America is not. Americans have unrealistic expectations about the effort and sacrifices required to maintain/improve our standard of living in the long run, whreas Brazil does not. And quite frankly, there is a lot less emphasis there (and in Latin Amercia in general) on materialism and material standard of living. There's a lot more emphasis on the importance of family & friends. Brazil is improving but starting from a much lower base. It will be at least a generation before the standard of living there catches up with what we have in the US.
The US is on the wrong side of the production/consumption curve. Even if we drilled every square meter, and kept burning Oil, like the crack-junkies we are, we still wind up burning right through anything / everything we would find and still be going broke trying to borrow money to import more Oil and sending troops around the world to kill anyone who gets in the way.
The trick with Oil for US is to stop using it.
Going off Oil takes care of our Jobs Problems, takes care of the Balance of Trade Problems, takes care of most of our Pollution Problems, takes care of our Endless Wars Problems . . . .
But the junkie do not wants to hear that.
And just to add on to some things you forgot to mention. No oil imports also improves our economic growth, which also helps with the government budget deficit.
I'm not 100% against drilling, but I agree that all the drilling in the world isn't going to fix the real problem. It's only a partial, temporary, stop-gap solution, at best.
The big problem Brazil has, according to those that I know that have done business there, is corruption and lack of attention to detail and promptness. For them to be some economic super star they have a lot to overcome, but I hope for their sake that they do.
My sister lived there for 6 months and said the same thing about the lack of attention to detail & promptness (not so much about the corruption because she didn't have direct experience with that).
If we Americans think our government is bloated and inefficient (and it is), go to Brazil.
If you want to look at retiring in another country, take a look at Panama. I saw a news special on it a few years ago. I think they allow Americans to buy houses there without paying taxes, there are a million other incentives, and the dollar goes alot further there. The only real downside was the weather, they have a long rainy season. They want our money.
There are several countries with special retirement programs involving long term visas, discounts on services, and other incentives. Panama is among the better ones, as is Malaysia. Others include Mexico, Nicaragua, Belize. I'm pretty sure Thailand has a retirement visa too, that is why you see so many fat old white guys married to pretty young Thai girls living there.
I love the last few sentences of the video about all the pleasures in Brazil and the question, "why fight a war?" You can see they are using their military power to fight the drug cartels in the slums. Maybe that is something we could learn in this country... stop worrying about everyone else and worry about our own needs. We could use some of our deployed troops here on our borders and in the War on Drugs.
I've been there. It's a great place to visit, but you probably wouldn't want to live there long term. 1/3 of the population lives in crime ridden slums. I saw lots of tiny houses made of brick with no windows and tarps for roofs.
If we had a climate like Brazil, never any fear of freezing to death (except in the deep south of Brazil) we'd have favelas here, too, with tiny houses with no windows and tarps for roofs.
When I've been in many parts of Central/SA I had no sympathy for these people. Why? They have one of the greatest luxuries in the world going for them, never waking up in the morning with frostbite, and if you can't afford a blanket, so be it, you won't miss it!
Those poor living in slum-like conditions in our country: eat your hearts out!
Brazil has become quite dependent on China. Sure as shootin' the clock is ticking as to when the bubble is going to pop over there, and when that happens pop! (Australia) pop! (Chile/Peru) pop (Brazil)!
The big problem Brazil has, according to those that I know that have done business there, is corruption and lack of attention to detail and promptness. For them to be some economic super star they have a lot to overcome, but I hope for their sake that they do.
I worry that Brazil will end up being too complacent because they appear to be too easy going and just think things will eventually get done.
I'm Brazilian, and I live in Brazil. Any doubt about the REAL THING in Brazil, ask me...
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