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"... there is very little income redistribution ... " Non-Brazilian here, but: doesn't Brazil basically _give_ you money if you're poor[1]? [1] http://www.gu

by ajays 13y ago

"... there is very little income redistribution ... " Non-Brazilian here, but: doesn't Brazil basically _give_ you money if you're poor[1]? [1] http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2010/nov/19/brazil-cash-transfer-scheme http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters...

ghshephard 13y ago
Non Brazillian, but I spent two months traveling parts of the country (São Paulo, Niterói , marituba (near Belém) - and the favela's (where I spent a lot of my time) made me initially think that Brazil was a very, very poor country - until I had a chance to look up the OECD stats [1] on Brazil - they are ranked firmly in the middle (on a GDP per capita, PPP). The security situation is pretty sketchy - I thought it was bad in the United States (having come from Canada) where everyone locks the door - even when they are at home - Every apartment I visited in São Paulo had a full-on-data-center-class man trap, with an elevated (and shielded) security guard to let you in. I've never seen anything like that in the United States outside of Data Centers. [1] https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2004rank.html https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/...
- cesarbs 13y ago
  Security was the #1 reason why I wanted to move out of the country. After my 4-year old stepdaughter saw her aunt being assaulted in broad daylight in a park, I definitely knew we couldn't stay there anymore.
cesarbs 13y ago
It does, but it's not a lot (and unfortunately the system is abused). There are still millions of people living in misery.
cfontes 13y ago
Brazilian here. Yes the government has several programs to give free money to "poor" people. With "Poor" I mean that a lot of this money get stolen, or is given to not so "poor" but criminals, before arriving to the ones that really need it. One of it is called "Bolsa Familia" and it's also a huge vote buying machine.
tellarin 13y ago
Brazilian citizen here too. While there are programs for income redistribution, and they do make an enormous difference on the lives of most of the poor people that receive it, it is far from enough. The Bolsa Família program pays from USD$ 16.00 to a maximum of USD$ 153.00 (few people get the max amount) per month to a family. This benefit is payed to some 12 million families. Just to give a more general view of the context. Brazil has the concept of a minimum monthly salary, that currently amounts to USD$ 334.15. But many people (even if employed) don't get a minimum wage per month. On the other hand, while Brazil has the world's 7th biggest economy (already adjusted by purchasing power parity), the bottom half of the population (~85 million people) only get 13 per cent of all household income.
- dasil003 13y ago
  Yeah, the Bolsa Família was a relatively inexpensive political move to bolster Lula's populist image, while behind closed doors his corruption was business as (if not great than) usual.

by ajays 13y ago

ghshephard 13y ago

Non Brazillian, but I spent two months traveling parts of the country (São Paulo, Niterói , marituba (near Belém) - and the favela's (where I spent a lot of my time) made me initially think that Brazil was a very, very poor country - until I had a chance to look up the OECD stats [1] on Brazil - they are ranked firmly in the middle (on a GDP per capita, PPP). The security situation is pretty sketchy - I thought it was bad in the United States (having come from Canada) where everyone locks the door - even when they are at home - Every apartment I visited in São Paulo had a full-on-data-center-class man trap, with an elevated (and shielded) security guard to let you in. I've never seen anything like that in the United States outside of Data Centers. [1] https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2004rank.html https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/...

cesarbs 13y ago
Security was the #1 reason why I wanted to move out of the country. After my 4-year old stepdaughter saw her aunt being assaulted in broad daylight in a park, I definitely knew we couldn't stay there anymore.

cesarbs 13y ago

It does, but it's not a lot (and unfortunately the system is abused). There are still millions of people living in misery.

cfontes 13y ago

Brazilian here. Yes the government has several programs to give free money to "poor" people. With "Poor" I mean that a lot of this money get stolen, or is given to not so "poor" but criminals, before arriving to the ones that really need it. One of it is called "Bolsa Familia" and it's also a huge vote buying machine.

tellarin 13y ago

Brazilian citizen here too. While there are programs for income redistribution, and they do make an enormous difference on the lives of most of the poor people that receive it, it is far from enough. The Bolsa Família program pays from USD$ 16.00 to a maximum of USD$ 153.00 (few people get the max amount) per month to a family. This benefit is payed to some 12 million families. Just to give a more general view of the context. Brazil has the concept of a minimum monthly salary, that currently amounts to USD$ 334.15. But many people (even if employed) don't get a minimum wage per month. On the other hand, while Brazil has the world's 7th biggest economy (already adjusted by purchasing power parity), the bottom half of the population (~85 million people) only get 13 per cent of all household income.

dasil003 13y ago
Yeah, the Bolsa Família was a relatively inexpensive political move to bolster Lula's populist image, while behind closed doors his corruption was business as (if not great than) usual.