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Will Brazil return to dictatorship?

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MX8G5ECdvA]

Jair Bolsonaro (since this video was made) won 46% of the first round vote in the Brazilian election and will almost certainly be elected President of the country. He has praised the previous Brazilian dictatorship, believes in paramilitary policing, is against all minorities and has a Chicago school economist as his chief advisor. The best person to compare him to is probably Chile's General Pinochet.

A toxic combination has created this situation. An elite fighting back against the fear of lost privilege, people disillusioned with mainstream institutions and bad economic times. Also, the soft coup against Dilma Rousseff destabilised things. Desperate people look to a strong man for salvation.

A lot of the press compares Bolsonaro to Trump, like this article:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/oct/08/brazil-us-presidential-elections-bolsonaro

It's a bit much TBF. There are clear thematic links but Bolsonaro is worse than Trump. Also, Brazil is a new democracy and lacks the strong institutions to resist someone wanting to be a dictator. Worrying times.
Burnley123
41-45, M
32 replies 51 views Oct 11, 2018
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Northwest · M
He told the electorate to head to the beach on the 28th. Perhaps his supporters will listen :-)

Brazil seems poised to slide into quasi-dictatorship, if he wins, and it looks like he will. The Pinochet comparison seems to be accurate. He will also have the lower house on his side, with an expected win for this party there.

Brazilians are fed up with corruption, unless they can benefit from it, and the soft-coup against the Previous President, did not help. They're going to learn that the swinging pendulum strategy does not work.

If he loses, I believe the military will execute a soft-coup, and use some excuse to put him in power.

I noticed that you picked up an SW Trumpster Brazilian clone. They do argue the same way, don't they? no substance, foul language, personal attacks, and obfuscation :-)
+ 3 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@Northwest Oh yeah. For me it kind of underlines the danger, particularly in your own country, if there is no resistance strong enough. Trump would be a quazi dictator if American institutions were weaker and a load of people would actually support it.
+ 2 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
SatanBurger · 36-40, F
@Burnley123 To be fair I'd be a dictator too but like a benevolent one who favors cats drastically. I'd def. enact harsher laws for protecting cats and cat owners would get special privileges #notsorry 😏
+ 2 · Reply · Translate · Oct 12, 2018 · Edited: 5 yrs ago
firefall · 61-69, M
I agree Bolsonaro is emphatically worse than Trump, and that his election is likely to be truly disastrous in its results.

I wouldn't call it a soft coup against Rousseff ... just a coup. Shortsighted & dishonest as it could possibly be, and it's certainly going to cost the whole country ruinously.
+ 2 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
CountScrofula · 41-45, M
Yes, and I think this will hold true in new democracies such as in eastern Europe. I'd love to be wrong but authoritarianism is the trend right now and it has not peaked.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@CountScrofula Sad but I think you are right. Could it happen to a Western Democracy?
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
CountScrofula · 41-45, M
@Burnley123 Certainly. I'm not sure by what mechanism though. Like, for example I don't think it would be particularly easy for Trump to just remove term limits and stay in power indefinitely.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@CountScrofula The west is not at that stage yet. Things would have to get a lot worse and I hope they don't. Italy is currently Europe's biggest danger.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
SW-User
Wouldn't be surprised if it did turn into a dictatorship, but also wouldn't be surprised if it didn't. We'll see what happens..
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@SW-User Bolsonoro will win and launch a series of heavy neo-liberal reforms and use militarised police to break unions. Class warfare at its most brutal. That is the historic role of fascism IMO. The PT can't win this election but now its a new battle.
+ 2 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
SW-User
@Burnley123 he wont be able to fix anything. The left will come out swinging harder in the next recession
+ 0 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@SW-User I hope so. He will get tacit support from the west because he's a free market guy. I just think there will be years of strife whatever happens.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
monte3 · 70-79, M
Democracy is definitely not on the rise at this moment. Which is sad.
E onomist Magazine has a good article on the situation in Brazil about two issues ago.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@monte3 thanks
+ 0 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
TheConstantGardener · 56-60, M
No but they could win the next World Cup.
+ 0 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
monte3 · 70-79, M
The World Cup is also unlikely. Sadly I think football has passed Brazil by@TheConstantGardener
+ 0 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
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Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@LvChris The nationalist International...

Its like pen pals for teenaged NAZIs. 😆

Thanks for the share.
+ 2 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Northwest · M
@LvChris I love John Oliver, but I have not seen this episode. The economic crisis of the late 1920s, early 1930s, gave the world fascism, and dictators who promised that a little discipline, will go a long way toward law & order, and fixing the world's problems. We're still cleaning up that mess. No reason to believe nouveau fascism will fare better.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
MethDozer · M
Hey that's democracy sometimes.
+ 0 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
MethDozer · M
@Burnley123 It's very flawed.
+ 0 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@MethDozer Democracy is never perfect but I think its pretty much always preferable to dictatorship.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
MethDozer · M
@Burnley123 It usually just results in one. Nearly always.
+ 0 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
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snowbelt · 61-69, M
@Burnley123 So the US has Trumpettes, and Brazil has Bolsonaroettes? Scary to see the same rhetoric, the same playbook, that we unfortunately have become used to in the US. My prediction is that Trump and Bolsonaro will become best buddies until Trump is removed from office. They sound like two peas in a pod.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@Unavaliable You've never interacted with me before dumbass and of course I don't hide my politics because I live in a country that is not a dictatorship. Most Brazilians will soon be denied that luxury...

Now find where I have defended Venezuela... (clue. I haven't) 😘
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · Oct 11, 2018
 
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