It’s an odd spectacle. Traditionally, Brazilians take to the streets only during Carnival. Now they do it to protest. What has happened?
It all started after the fares for public transportation were raised, but that was just an excuse. There was more to it. The profound truth is that much of society is tired of corruption, impunity, the intricate bureaucracy and the government’s poor performance.
Brazilians pay first-world taxes, but get third-world services. That’s very irritating. Thirty-eight percent of the wealth they create, the famous GNP, ends up in the hands of the government. In Canada, where the state educates, medicates and manages satisfactorily, the percentage is 37.3. In Spain, 35.9. The Swiss have built one of the most prosperous states with only 33.6 percent of their GNP.