Hi, vgonis, thanks for the words.
I will try to answer some questions you have posted, by I'm afraid my knowledge is not enough for things that are economically complex. But let's see if I can point out my opinion, again.
I remember when Russia led the way to an international crisis, Argentina were the country, here in South America, which suffered the most. They even created a new extraofficial currency, based on changes of services between people. The country is still weaker than its neighbours, but it's better than than in the 90's. What did they do? Stopped paying international debts and renegociated them. Most countries and banks accepted. Better half of debts than nothing, they probably thought. So, Argentinian priority was to ensure money for the country, nor for the international monetary system. Wright or wrong?, anyone of us can judge by our own thoughts.
Now getting back to Brazil to comment on commercial barriers. Here, some sectors - like show or furniture factories, for instance - are protected, being able to compete against cheap imports. To do so, some countries are taxed (is this correct?) not to ruin our domestic micro-economy.
Regarding to the connection between the economies from the whole world, I think Brazil took advantage from the good mood of the international market, from 2002 to 2008, to equalize its debts and to form a strong money reservation in dollars. We don't own anything for the IMF since 2007 or so, just to private institutions, with official bond papers that are partly payed in time, mostly renewed, just like any other country. So now, my country doesn't suffer to much with all the money flying from country to country searching for better rates.
The mains products we import are heavy and medium machinery to industries and agriculture, electronis, toys and alcohol. We export a lot of primary products, like ore and grains.
As for our political situation, we are on the edge of a little crisis down here. Some leaders of the Worker's Party, leftist, are being judge by our supreme court and are being sentenced to decades on prision. They supporters say it's a political judgement, because the judicial branch would be allied to the conservative political field, despite being mostly indicated during the Lula da Silva term as president.
I don't believe it will bring instability to the country, but it's surelly renewing the bloody dispute between Worker's Party and the Social-democrat Party, which is not SD, but conservative. And all the press marches with the right-winged politics - in the tatcherism-fashion, we don't have nazi or fascists supporters here, even more among politicians.
People in general do not bother with ideological discussions around here. Worker's Party initiated a program of "minimum wage" to every family under some level of poverty, with some like 50 dollars per family that keep their children in school instead of putting them to work or whatever. It costs little, a year of "Bolsa-Familia" is less than a month of interests paid to banks. And, by the way, it's another way of putting the economy to move in small towns and poor neighbourhoods of big cities. Education and health are still big issues here, indeed, sided by violence and drugs. Both are free to everyone who don't want to pay private schools or medical plans. Public hospitals and healthcare centers suffer from long waiting times. Public schools don't have structure like the private ones, lacking laboratories and computers, for instance.
But again, is better than ever. Teachers from the public sector now have the warranty of a minimum wage and are more stimulated to work. The Congress just passed a law that requires the government (national, states and cities) to put at least 8,5% of all tribute takings in education.
In health, our cancer post-treatment is better in public sector than in the private institutions. But still there is much more people in need than public medics to attend them, hence the long lines at the hospitals.
But I think our biggest problem is the violence. There are organized groups which control the drug distribution, specially in Rio and Sampa, our big cities, but even in medium sized cities. And robberies resulting in assassionations or related to drug wars are still high. There are 45.000 citizes killed every year here, mainly young boys from 18 to 24 years.
In Rio de Janeiro, the federal government are supporting the local adminstration to put, in every
favela, a policial post with good structure and a closer contact with the citizens, to bring "pacification" to the community. The results are starting to appear, and other cities are starting to copy the system.
I'm not saying Brazil is perfect. We are far away from it. We have millions and millions of people living in poverty. We have violence, we live with the absence of the government in portions of the country and even in big centres. But I look to the past and I can clearly see that we are improving. The Bolsa-Familia I've just told you is a big example. With a little amount of money, families are able to surpass poverty and to build better life conditions.
Well, I hope I have explained things to you. Thanks again for your compliments, but I feel I could do better if I was more skilled. It is hard for me to express things correctly in English, sometimes I have the idea clearly in Portuguese, but cannot put it in appropriated words. We have a say here in Brazil, when we don't understand something: "This is Greek to me".
I hope this won't be Greek to you
