RIO 2016!!!

I am honored, excited and proud of my City. I know that I often spend this space writing only the dirt about Rio, but Rio is changing, and change is coming, and one way to help it is to be the host of the Olympic games.

The money that will come in together with the will and the pressure to make the city fit for all the many international tourists should be enough to turn reality around for this great city. The projects are many, the dreams are big, and now the resources are there to help it all materialize.

Rio needs this so much, as does Brazil and Latin America as a whole. Cariocas have been suffering because of the violence that has gotten out of control, and the leaders have had a hard time finding the means to resolve the situation. Now, more than ever, Rio can finally get back to what it used to be in the 1950's and 1960's: A Paradise for all. Nothing but tropical, blessed by God and beautiful by nature.

We are all so thankful for the opportunity the committee is giving us, and for the fact that not only do they care about having unforgettable Olympic moments, but they also care about helping make the world a better place.

CHANGE IS COMING!!!

It is with deepest pride and greatest pleasure that I share with the English-speaking world the news that the Rio police is finally taking action against criminals and their violent acts in a way that is efficient.

This morning a twice convicted criminal attempted to rob a mail truck when he was surprised by the quick police response. The cobs surrounded the area and closed down the street. The criminal, who did not want to be arrested, went into a pharmacy and took the pharmacy owner, a 48 year old woman, hostage.

Armed with a hand grenade, the criminal held on to the woman, making threats to finish her and all those around him, including the officers who attempted negotiations with him for almost 2 hours.

The woman kept bending over because she felt dizzy and ill, and at the moment in which she bends over completely, a police sniper, stationed in the building across the street, about 40 meters from the criminal, shoots him in the head, killing him instantly and freeing the hostage.

This was the best police action I have ever seen take place in Rio. Maybe now these criminals will start to fear their criminal activity, because they never know when a sharp shooter will be somewhere "invisible" to them, ready to take them out.

This officer deserves all the respect and admiration he has been getting, and I sure hope this continues to be the police reaction to criminal acts, so that one day they may actually drastically decrease in number.

ARNALDO JABOR FOR PRESIDENT

Yesterday I watched the Brazilian news at night, a terrible thing to do before bed if you want to avoid nightmares. As I watched all the bad news with horror, all the violent protests, the destruction caused by natural disasters that just recently hit the Southern region of the country, and the government's disdain to it all, I also watched with glory an extremely intelligent commentator named Arnaldo Jabor make a phenomenal analysis and call for change. I decided that it would benefit everyone to read what he had to say. So here it is:

"Formerly it was said that all the violence was caused by poverty, ignorance. It isn’t so. A country where all cases of obvious crimes disappear filed away in Congress, ethics disappear, the evidence vanishes, fired and resigned politicians rule the country…

In this environment the diffused idea spreads: not that 'anything can happen', because they do not fear punishment. It is much more than that. There is a fading awareness of evil. That's the thing. The consciousness of evil presupposes the idea of right, of good, but there's no longer not even that. There is no longer “good”. It is normal to beat a man to death at the mall, to place newborns in a trash bag and toss it in a public lagoon at the park, to fire shots randomly killing innocent people.

The crazy Islamic fanatic blows himself up in the name of Allah. Some others kill for any political causes, but here in Brazil there is no flag. Evil in Brazil horrifies because it happens without reason.

Philosophers talk of the banality of evil, but here there is the gratuitous evil, the lightness of evil, the pleasure of evil, the evil video game. This is the tragedy, there is no longer a cause or motive, only consequences.

And then Brazil arms itself against the enemy - With billions spent on planes and French submarines, but the war, gentlemen, is inside our country."

JUST BACK FROM RIO

I am sorry it has been so long since I last wrote any entries to my blog. It has been a pretty busy summer, I was studying for the bar exam and finally took it at the end of July. I won't know the results till November, so I guess in the meantime I will be busy with current events. I did take the opportunity to go to Brazil and spend some time in Rio de Janeiro with my family and making some sense of their reality. As many of you know, Rio is both blessed and cursed. It is blessed with the most beautiful landscape in the world, people of faith, a naturally wonderful world. But it is cursed with the plague of the drug war, and it is a city infested with crime.

The saddest thing about Rio, to me, is that people have somewhat accepted their horrible reality, and they believe that it is something that happens "everywhere" and that they are just always placed in the spotlight. They believe that the closing down of tunnels during rush hour to rob many cars is ok because it only happens "sometimes". They believe that at least it's not Iraq...but I bet anything that there are a lot more deaths in Rio than in Iraq today.

Here is a pretty interesting slide show posted on Youtube that depicts the reality of Rio today. It portrays the war between the police and the drug dealers, and it concludes that the only victims are the people - the taxpayers. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtYCK-fIj4w&feature=fvw

I guess most of the victims are in fact non tax-payers, because most of the victims come from the favelas, where they are not required to pay anything at all to the government (fact that still shocks many people I tell it to, since they INVADED public land and remained there AT WILL, but somehow their illegal acts are compensated with the benefit of not having to pay taxes). It is very easy to be the "good hearted person" and claim that these "poor people" had "no other alternative" but I tell you that such IS NOT THE CASE. I personally know of one very inspiring story of a poor, hardworking black woman named Clarice, who raised five children in a very far away, dangerous, poor area of Rio, the hottest part of the city, to be successful men and women today, and she did it with dignity, paying bills, commuting from afar, not committing ANY illegal act. This is something that these people who tend to create excuses for the slum dwellers and the criminals of Rio should spend more time emphasizing. It is people like Clarice, whose story I will be sure to share, who deserve unyielding protection from all possible organizations, but instead, the organizations tend to protect those who make her already difficult life close to impossible.

In order for Rio to change the ones who need to change are the Cariocas. Change can only come from within.

WELL SAID

As the violence in Rio only increases, it is an obvious result that so does the anger of its law abiding citizens. Less than a month ago a bus cashier (in Brazil buses have not only the driver but another person, a cashier, who collects the money) was shot in front of the bus' security camera and many passengers, in broad daylight, despite the fact that he did not resist the robbery and handed over all the cash to the violent criminal teens (likely ages 12-17). That same week a drugstore sales woman in her 20's was also shot by the robbers after handing all the money to them as asked. Now a days there is nothing you can do to avoid death. Compliance or non-compliance, Rio's criminals are getting younger and more violent by the hour, and with the lack of deterrent laws (which protect minors from incarceration and limits lengths to 20 years with right of parole within 1/6th of the time) crime is worth it.

But still criminals and their families, with the help of "human rights" organizations, complain of prison conditions for things as ludicrous as the distance from the prisoners home towns, which increase the distance that their family members need to travel to visit them in their (short) stay. One woman however decided to speak out in a letter to one of these complaining mothers. She named the communication "letter from one mother to another" and her words accurately reflect the ridiculous lack of respect to the law abiding people of not just Rio, but the entire Federal Republic of Brazil. Carrying the slogan "human rights for the right humans" it read:

"Today I saw your strong protest in front of television cameras on the transfer of your child, a minor offender, from the dependencies of Febem in Sao Paulo to another dependency in the Febem farther within the state. I saw you complain about the distance that now separates your son from you, of the difficulties and expenses you now have in order to visit him, as well as other problems stemming from the whole transfer. I also saw the extensive coverage that the media gave to the fact, and saw that not only you but also other mothers in same situation, have the support committees, pastorals, organs and bodies for the defense of human rights. I am also a parent and thus can well understand your protest. So I decided to echo your sentiments. There is an enormous distance that separates me from my son. Working and earning little, I have the same difficulties and the costs that you have to visit him. With great sacrifice, I can only do it on Sundays because I work, including Saturdays, to assist in the maintenance and education of the rest of my family. Fortunately I have my husband, an inseparable companion, who, to me, has played the important role of friend and spiritual advisor. In case you don't know, I am the mother of that young man who your son brutally killed during a robbery, stupidly, at a video store, where he, my son, worked during the day to pay for studies at night. Next Sunday, when you are hugging, kissing and caressing your son, I will be visiting mine and placing flowers on his humble tomb in a cemetery on the outskirts of Sao Paulo ... Ah! I almost forgot: do not worry because even though I work very hard while earning very little, I still am able to pay my taxes in order to ensure that I will pay again for the mattress your son burned during the last rebellion in Febem, ok?"

I think it's important to disseminate these words. They are so powerful and show the disparate treatment, pro-criminal and anti-law abiding, tax paying, peaceful criminal. This extreme reversal of values is ruining my city and my country. Human rights should be owed to the right humans.

VIGILANTES OR JUST FED UP CITIZENS?

I apologize in advance for taking quite a while to write another entry, but finally I have found some time to share some very interesting developments today.

Two traffic robbers on a motorcycle were killed by private citizens in Rio de Janeiro.  They had just robbed two young women at a busy highway while they were stopped at a light, and took off on their motorcycle, but two men in another car saw the whole incident, and decided to follow the assailants.  They were able to catch up to them, side-swipe their motorcycle with their car, and then run them over, killing both robbers instantly.  

Now, I am not advocating the dangerous idea of vigilantes, but I feel that it is ignorant and foolish to ignore the amazing courage and determination required from these two ordinary citizens, who were probably very fed up with the lack of formal measures to prevent and punish crime in Rio.  

I wish I could say I feel bad for the robbers, and maybe deep inside my heart, as a human, I do, but I on the surface all I can say is what many commentators are saying, I feel a sense of relief - two less violent criminals exist in Rio.  And although human rights activists may think, well, two more will emerge in their place, well, I find that such would be the case anyways, and at that point, had this not happened there would be twice as many criminals out there.  

I very much appreciate these ordinary citizens' courage and presence at a time where the only victims that we should care for are the two innocent women, who feared for their lives at the hands of the now deceased criminals.

TOUGHER PUNISHMENT FOR BULLIES - THE CASE OF JAHEEM HERRERA

I know that this blog is dedicated primarily to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, but today I feel compelled to write about a topic that greatly aggravates me and that I feel needs immediate attention: Bullying.

An 11 year old boy committed suicide after being tormented by his classmates at his school. He told his parents about it, and his mother complained to the school at least 7 times, but nothing was done to prevent the re-occurence of the torment. So Jaheem Herrera, who was severely bullied and even attacked in a bathroom, being called "gay" and "the virgin" (because he was from the U.S. Virgin Islands), told his mom he didn't want to go to school. But he had to. So he did, he came home with his report card, with excellent grades, and then he went up to his bedroom and hung himself with a belt in his closet.

This wonderful 11 year old child was tired of the torture he was exposed to, and felt helpless, as adults, especially the school officials, did not do enough to help him. His parents now feel guilty, blaming themselves for not being able to stop this tragic end, that now is irreversible. The school expressed their deepest sympathies, but that IS NOT ENOUGH!

What needs to happen is the following:
1) There should be ZERO TOLERANCE POLICIES for bullies. that means that once a child bullies another, that child should be expelled from school.
2) Bullying has to be defined for what it is: unwelcome remarks or aggressive behaviors towards another child that cause fear, sadness and/or anger. Bullying is not just a physical act. Words are as bad and as traumatizing as violence. So if you are asking me whether I am advocating expelling kids for being "mean", my answer is "yes, I am".
3) Schools need to be held accountable for not following the procedures in place (once they are in place), which should entail notifying the parents of the victim and perpetrator that such events are going on, and authorities, as there should also be laws that fine the parents of the bullies for being incompetent at educating their kids and deterring them from causing permanent harm to other human beings in society.
4) Parents of bullies need to be held responsible, and social workers should visit the homes of those parents to check whether these kids are being mistreated or ignored. There is a chance that they are bullies because they too are bullied, or because their parents are not parenting as they should be. If that is the case, these kids should be removed from their homes (depending on the severity of the circumstances) or mandated to attend, with their parents, a program to learn how to behave like a human being and not a monster.
5) There should be a cause of action available for the parents of the bullied child against the school system and against the parents or guardians of the bullies. This way there will be an incentive for these adults who are in a better position than the parents of the bullied children to fulfill their roles.

It is outrageous that laws are in place requiring children under 16 to go to school but laws are not enough to protect these children from verbal and physical abuse. Parents of bullied children know that sending their kids to school is at times the equivalent of sending them into torture prison camps, where their minds are crushed with the libel and slander, and their bodies violated with battery and assault. It is time that adults start acting like adults and do something to protect the future. Allowing this behavior to go on only creates tragedy, so how can we not stop it? Did we forget Columbine? How about the many psychopaths that were either bullied or were the bullies themselves and never stopped?

ENOUGH!

THE UNBELIEVABLE CRUELTY OF RIO'S ROBBERS IN THE CASE OF LESLIE LIMA DA VITORIA

It is unbelievable what happens in Rio.  But today's news in  the Brazilian newspaper "O Globo" really breaks the heart.  A woman, nurse, who was six months pregnant, was with her husband in their car after coming back from a shopping mall (which I must say I have gone to many times in my life) when they were apprehended by four armed men in two motorcycles.  They wanted their car.  Both Leslie and her husband did not react, and opened their doors to get out of the car and hand it to the robbers, when she got nervous and had difficulty unbuckling her seat-belt,  one of them shot Leslie twice on the head.  They ran away without taking anything.  Her husband rushed her to the hospital, but she was unable to survive the gunshot wounds to the head.  But the doctors were able to deliver her baby, a little girl, who was born three months premature, and is being kept under intensive care at the hospital.  

The robbers escaped and have not yet been caught.  The question in everyone's mind is "why", or at least it should be.  I cannot think of one reason why these monsters would want to injure an innocent woman, who just did what she was ask - get out of the car so they could steal it, and then leave taking only her life, and almost that of her unborn baby girl.  

Leslie was only 32 years old.  She dedicated her life to save the lives of others in her professional career as a nurse.   Both her and her husband were excited for the birth of their first child, and the idea that their lives would be forever changed like this, and worse, that this crime, like many others will either go unpunished or under-punished is extremely hard to live with, at least for me.  Until when are we going to take this?  Until when is Rio going to take this?   We need to stop only caring when it happens to one of our own.  

RIO, BRAZIL:  BASTA!  ENOUGH!  

THE CASE OF JOAO HELIO

I recommend sitting down before reading this one, if you haven't already done so, because it should be quite painful to read.  

Joao Helio was a six year old child from Rio de Janeiro who was coming back from soccer practice and later religious services with his mother and older sister.  He was sitting on the back-seat of his mother's 4 door car with his seat-belt on.  His mother was driving.  They approached a red light, and although it was night time and they know that, in Rio de Janeiro, one should never stop at a red light at night, she had to stop because there was already a car stopped in front of them.  While they were waiting for the light to turn green, three men got out of the car that was stopped in front of them, carrying riffles, and pointing it at them while screaming "get out of the car skank!".  Little Joao's mother quickly got out of the car and ordered her daughter to get out too, and she made her way to the back-seat to get her son out as well, as he was still buckled in.  She quickly opened the door and begged the criminals to please wait because her child was stuck to the seat-belt, but the 16 year old criminal yelled "hurry up skank" and slammed his door, taking off with the back door opened and her son still stuck to the seat-belt.  

They dragged her son on the hot asphalt for 7 kilometers, only stopping at a dead end street, where they got out and ran away towards the slums where they lived.  While they were dragging the child, motorists who saw something that "looked like a child" being dragged, tried to warn the driver, yelling for him to stop, saying that "there is a child being dragged by your car", but the criminals replied "it's not a child, it's a Judas doll that we are dragging".  

A Judas doll.   They called this innocent, sweet, loving 6 year old child, who was carefully raised with so much love by his parents, his sister and his whole family, a name that is the synonym of betrayal and lack of faith.  But calling her son Judas and calling her "skank" are not what destroyed Joao's family, of course.  What destroyed this otherwise completely normal and happy middle class family was the unsuspecting brutal killing of their baby boy.  

Joao's body was found by police officers who were unable to contain their tears at the scene of his little body completely disbanded, the asphalt, for 7 kilometers, covered in blood and body parts of a child that had done nothing to deserve this horrific and tragic fate.  Joao's mother stated that she ran after the car, but she knew that she was powerless before this horrible act, that she could not run fast enough to release her child, and felt impotent beyond imagination.   She only wished she had "superpowers" and could fly and release him from that tragic situation.  She felt guilty and destroyed.   She knew right away that she had lost her only son.  

Joao's father remembers that day well.  He said that it was not an ordinary day, that by chance he was scheduled to see a client next to where his son Joao played soccer, and while he was waiting for his meeting, he decided to go watch him play, something he never got to do.  That day Joao scored a goal, and even the teacher said that did not usually happen.  For his father, it was a good bye.  It was God's way of letting him have one more moment of joy with his son, see him score his first goal, and be there with him, in that moment, for the first and last time.  

This family is forever changed.  The image of their only son/brother dragged by these monsters the Brazilian penal code calls children, will never leave their mind.  Their impotence before such a tragic and torturous scene is ongoing, and probably haunts them day in and day out.   The city of Rio as well as Brazil as a whole was appalled at such cruelty, and the police was able to arrest the men because the father of the perpetrator turned them in.  This father is a hero, and someone worthy to be called a human being.  Someone who was hardworking, poor but dignified, who may have unwillingly raised a monster, but cannot be blamed for that act when he worked two jobs and went to school at night just so he could motivate his son to go to school too, and help him get through his studies.  

The criminal's father has a conscience and a sense of social order, but Brazil's justice system does not.  Joao Helio's murderers too are just one more example of impunity, but that story is beyond this entry, and I will have to address it at yet another time.  

THE IMPUNITY IN THE CASE OF TIM LOPES

After yesterday's entry it would be expected that a reader wonder what happened to the perpetrators of this horrific crime.  But, as you can tell from the topic herein, the truth is extremely frustrating and even more abhorrent than the crime itself.  Tim Lopes' murderers - the ones who were over 18, which were not than many - received a penalty of a little over 20 years in jail, of which they served 1/6 and were released on parole for the infamous Brazilian judicial reason of "good behavior".   

Where is the deterrent component?  WHY would these monsters not kill again?  As I have said before, crime over there is worth it, or at least that seems to be the message being sent by the penal code of the land.  When justices cite to the code as the reason behind their incomprehensible decisions to release these menacing animals back into society I say "then code needs to change".   You can't reward these people, who day after day and crime after crime prove themselves not able to be rehabilitated.   And you can't expose society to these people because they have proven themselves apathetic towards others, and capable of the most heinous acts of violence.  

I just want the American media to start reporting on these incidents.  I don't think that any help will come from any foreign nation, but I do think that once Americans know of this, and once tourism slows down, then the local government will do something because the universal language of money and profits is able to translate the need for change better than the popular shouts of "enough".  

THE CASE OF TIM LOPES

Tim Lopes was an award winning journalist and a concerned citizen, much like myself.  His outrage with the violence in Rio was such that he lost his life trying to broadcast it to the world in hopes of better days that have yet to come.  

In 2001, Tim Lopes and his team won a prize, Premio Esso, for a story they did called "Feirao Das Drogas" about the illegal drug business taking place at the infamous Morro do Alemao.  His documentary was a success, causing people to take notice and put pressure on the local authorities, that in turn ended up arresting many drug lords.   

In 2002 Tim Lopes decided to do another documentary, this time about child prostitution and abuse, as well as the sale of narcotics  in another favela, Favela do Cruzeiro, in Penha, north side of Rio de Janeiro.   He carried a hidden camera and infiltrated a "baile funk" or "funk dance", a type of outdoor dance club common to every favela in Rio, where MCs usually sing a tune similar to rap music in the United States, paying their respects to the drug lords, sponsors of the parties.  

The drug dealers noticed something fishy about Tim, especially when locals who lived in the community rattled him out to get on the good side of the drug lords, and although it remains a mystery whether they thought he was a police officer or they knew who he was and wanted revenge because of his 2001 report that led to many drug dealers' arrests, the fact is that Tim could not escape his very drastic fate.  "Tried" by the drug dealers and found guilty under punishment of death, Tim Lopes was tortured, dismembered, and put inside a tire, covered in gasoline and set fire to, then rolled down the hill while the drug dealers celebrated their so called victory.  One of the perpetrators, who was 12 years old at the time, stated that Tim begged not to be killed, but that only excited his murderers.  They burned and stabbed each of his eyes, cut off his hands, feet, legs and arms, all while he was still alive, they decapitated him, and then put all his body parts inside the tire, to be set on fire in the hopes to never be found. I wonder what kind of people are these, who are capable of doing something like this to any living thing, much less a fellow human being.  Nothing can possibly justify this behavior.  But this is the law of the drug traffic.  This is the law of the favelas, the law "of the hills".  It is no law at all, and we need actual law to stop all of this.  

It isn't abnormal to fear these men, after all, they are merciless and unscrupulous.   But one thing is for sure: Tim Lopes is a hero, never to be forgotten.  Someone who did something other than just quietly complain about a VERY disturbing reality.  We need more people like him so there will be less people like the ones who killed him.  

DRUG WAR CLAIMS ITS DAILY VICTIMS

It isn't news that Rio de Janeiro has a serious problem with drugs. The news are the daily victims, which, if we were to report every day, would take up all available space. Today the crossfire between the police and the drug dealers caused panic to locals, injuring ordinary citizens as they went about their daily lives.

It's very common in Rio to know someone who has been somewhat impacted by a stray bullet. I personally know quite a few people, none of which live in the slums. My aunt's apartment was hit, my grandparents building was hit (the bullet hit just one inch above their bedroom's air conditioning unit, which, if hit, would have exploded, killing them instantly and possibly claiming other lives), my tailor was hit on the ear while riding the public bus on her way to the bank, my school (the private school I went to in Rio) was constantly having to shut down because of the danger, and the kids would collect bullet capsules, which could be found all over the playground, and many other similar stories, which I will spare you from.

Drug dealers are in a category of their own. Some view them as evil doers, who terrorize society, especially the middle class, waging wars among themselves, claiming innocent victims, exercising their power over ordinary citizens, and often times innovating torture methods that would make your skin crawl. Others see them as protectors, doing for communities what the government fails to do. They keep order in the slums, with eye-for-an-eye punishing methods that regulates behavior and provides a sort of peace. They also loan money for those in need when banks won't, help make medications accessible when the government won't, and all they ask for in return is loyalty - a price that may seem reasonable but is in fact very high to pay. Despite their somewhat "reasonable" demeanor with the local slum dwellers, these drug lords are fierce with ordinary cariocas, claiming lives in ways that will be told...on entries to come.

MAN ARRESTED, GOVERNOR OUTRAGED, AND YET IT'S JUST ANOTHER DAY

A man was arrested in connection with the murder of the 25 year old student, Karla Leal dos Reis. The Brazilian newspaper reports that the man, 28 year old Augusto Cezar de Souza, was conditionally free on parole, and had already served four years in prison for robbery, theft, and other crimes. If convicted for this crime, he could get up to 20 or 30 years in prison. But reality is, that rarely happens. 20-30 is already not enough for a murderer, but they usually serve a much shorter sentence, around 5 years, and can always be released for "good behavior".

Shouldn't good behavior be expected? I mean, the idea should be to increase their sentence for bad behavior, and not to reward them for good behavior by decreasing their sentence. It's ridiculous what happens over there.

Meanwhile, the news describes the man as a drug addict, missing a row of teeth. I am sorry, but, being a drug addict and missing a row of teeth should not be the emphasis. His monstrosity should. It doesn't matter if he has no teeth, or if the drugs ease his pain of being a "victim of society", there is no excuse for acts such as his, and the local media and "human rights activists" should stop architecturing such image of pity on these individuals who serve no purpose than to injure others who, although also poor, have chosen to live a life of hard work and dignity.

Where are the human rights of the tax paying poor cariocas? Where are the rights of righteous citizens of Rio? The governor's outrage is expected, but it is not enough to solve the problem. He needs to stop feeling and start doing something to fix the state, and help the mayor fix the city.

Rio de Janeiro, the marvelous city (as the song so claims, and I can assert is true in so many ways) is crime ridden. Everyday people leave their homes to go to work or school or go about their daily activities with fear, not knowing if they will return. Parents, wives, children, husbands, siblings, bless their loved ones on their way out of the house. The hope is that God will protect them, since no legal authorities can.

It is not uncommon for drug lords to send their "foot soldiers" to close off tunnels and rob every person in every car stuck there. When it rains or there is terrible traffic on Avenida Brasil (Brazil Avenue) on the northern part of town, motorists fear that the marginalized youth, residents of the two large favelas located on either side of the avenue, will come running to take advantage that no car moves to rob everyone in sight.

Stray bullets kill more people in Rio than in many countries at war. Drug lords fight for control of different favelas, almost always up the hills, and the crossfire hits apartment buildings, schools, churches, hospitals, cars, and pedestrians, of all ages, all races and all social-economic statuses. My aunt's own apartment was hit by a bullet from an automatic weapon. the bullet was about 4 inches long, and an inch wide. It could have killed her. It could have killed someone else in my family. And they live on the 12th floor of a nice building in a nice part of town. No favelas are right there, but the bullets travel far, and nowhere in Rio is safe.

It's very difficult to understand how all of this can happen and nothing really be done about it. Not just Rio, but the whole country is in need of a legal reform, a penal reform and a judiciary reform. I agree that educations is important. But health is even more important, because to learn you need to be healthy. And more important than health is safety, because to be healthy, you need to be alive.

I am surprised that cariocas haven't taken upon themselves to do justice against criminals, to police their own neighborhoods, and admit that there is a war going on, and it's a civil war. A civil war of bad versus good, where the good has yet to start fighting. But I am confident that many minds together can come up with an idea for change. That's why I ask for sincere thoughts from anyone who is reading this. What do you think can be done to wage change?

When Crime is Worth It

Yesterday, Sunday, March 28, 2009, a girl who had just turned 25 the day before was shot and killed in front of her parents during a robbery at 8:00 p.m. on the streets of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  The reason?  She had the "audacity" to ask the robber to please let her keep her bible and her work I.D. tag.  The man handed her the bible, but held the I.D.  As she and her parents turned and started walking away from the scene, the man cold bloodily shot her on the back of her neck.  She died before she even got to the hospital.  They could not have thought that on their way back from church, as early as 8:00 p.m. something like this could have happened.  

Her parents have not spoken since.  Her father, a doorman who had spent every penny he earned paying for her college education, which she was about to complete this year, had mentioned that today, Monday, he was going to take his daughter, who is the couple's only child, out to pick a present for her birthday.  Instead, he followed her flower covered casket, arm-in-arm with his wife, quietly walking the path to burry his child, who he and his wife had to watch be murdered.  

This is merely one of many shocking crimes that happen in Rio on a daily basis.  The reason?  Crime is worth it over there.  With sentences that are as arbitrary and unpredictable as world's financial prospects, the chances are that, if caught, this cold blooded killer will only get five years in prison.  

While most cariocas (as those born in the city of Rio are called) will eventually go back to their daily lives, not to mention all those all over the world who, sadly, won't ever hear the news, this poor girl's parents will never be the same again.  The moment where they lost the most important person in their lives will play over and over and over again in their heads, and they will be forced to also watch crime go severely unpunished, so much so that their precious, studious, dedicated, smart daughter will not be the only victim of the streets of Rio.  

Too many governments have changed, and the situation in Rio has only gotten worse.  A little over a year ago a little boy was dragged for miles on the hot asphalt of Rio, his foot tangled on the seat-belt of his mother's car after four armed men approached them at a light, demanded they got out, and despite her pleas for just a few more seconds because her son's foot had gotten tangled, the robbers took off anyways, dragging her child as a rag doll on the streets at high speed.  His body was destroyed, with body parts found all over the streets of Rio where the men drove.  Motorists tried to tell the men that it looked like someone was being dragged by the car, but they laughed and replied that it was just "a Judas doll".  That poor mother...that poor child...that poor family.  Again, robbed of what they most valued in life.  Their child, who they loved so much, treated like he was completely meaningless.  And the wrongdoers?  Well, they were minors.  So nothing serious could happen to them by the local laws.  

These are just a couple examples of what is a predominant problem there.  Rio de Janeiro is a beautiful, but violent place.  A city that is dominated by drug-lords who reign over the cariocas from high up the hills in the favelas (slums).  When one of them is killed, they rebel against the people, coming down the streets with their Uzis, AK 47s and hand grenades, ordering commerce to shut down their doors, setting fire to buses full of working class people, causing chaos, terror, and despair.  But does anything change after all that takes place?  No.  Nothing changes.   Cariocas sometimes get mad when "outsiders" comment on these events, replying that violence exists everywhere.  

Does it though?  I want to know whether here in the United States crimes like these would happen at the scale they do over there.  And I wonder what would be done here to the perpetrators of these terrible acts.  At least here there is justice.  There is a system in place, that works well and is respected by most people.  

The saddest thing is, Brazil is not in Africa, and is not a middle eastern country at war, so there is no foreign intervention.  Disregard or simply unawareness keeps international citizens shielded from these incidents, and if you are still wondering why you should care, well, firstly that is a topic outside the scope of this entry, but on a more direct note, I assume if you are reading this, you are human, and, as a human, it is puzzling if you don't care.