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A Brazilian isn't just a shaved pussy, you know?
A Brazilian isn't just a shaved pussy, you know? The Economist Magazine asked a few weeks ago whose side Brazil was on? Today i read a net article from an Australian source that asked the same question. leaving aside the way that the two stories mirrored each other i was a little disappointed with the sanctimonious attitude adopted by both authors- especially given the lack of priority each country gives to its relations with what is the biggest economy in South America. apparently Brazil is interested in joining the Commonwealth of Nations with Australia and Canada as joint sponsors via their collective association through the Cairns group. not being aware that Canada was in fact part of that group i hesitate to say that the story is true- but if it were, surely for the future interests of Australia, not to mention the Commonwealth, would require that we move that interest forward as quickly as possible. but it seems the best our Foreign Minister can muster is a vague commitment to increase dialogue on trade opportunities. i think if i were a Brazilian minister i would be insulted by that. the four most important emerging economies are China, India, Russia and Brazil. it is rather ironic that of the four the Brazilians have done the best in the current climate given that almost every other nation of importance in the world seems to regard it as a setting for mardi gras, extreme porn and violence. the American and Australian authors of the articles involved might be better served asking who is on Brazil's side before admonishing Brazil for trying to walk a fine line with its neighbours. for all its problems the last two administrations have done some admirable work in strengthening the government and trying to fix its problems. trying to represent South America as being past the stage of petty wars and dictators is in its own best interests. its various overtures to its neighbours to settle their differences in forum instead of violence is not siding against America but trying to give a new image to South America. the US should be welcoming this new role Brazil has accepted for itself as a sign of maturity in the region. the continued political pandering to China that seems to be the increasingly sole consideration of all sides of Australian politics is simply placing all our diplomatic and economic eggs in one basket; India and Brazil, and to a lesser extent Russia, are ripe for Australia's exporters to cement lucrative and long term relationships instead of coming to the party when the best bits have been already taken up by others- as was the case with China. it is by no means coincidental that our economic woes in the 1990's just happened to occur as our overwhelming economic partner, Japan, began its own long term romance with economic stagnation. by the time we started moving into China we were well behind the US and the Europeans, in particular, in securing predominance for our products and produce. placing China in the same position Japan once occupied only serves to demonstrate our myopathy in relation to our economic opportunities. when you consider that Australian expertise has built a national highway and two fibre-optic networks that circles and bisects a continent as well as a railway line through the desert heart of the country, how much would our expertise be of use to both India and Brazil, both of which are desperate to improve their infrastructure to continue economic growth. and yet the capabilities developed under these projects are being allowed to whither away because the government and the opposition have both failed to make either nation a priority in comparison to China. As an aside- a)there's this famous Chinese dancer who is now a stock broker in Australia having defected or something- wasn't really listening but i caught this at the right moment. he had been taken to these various restaurants- Italian, Greek, Skippy- and it was decided that in the middle of his trip he would like to taste some of the cuisine from his homeland. so they took him to the best Chinese restaurant in Sydney and ordered a buffet. his hosts made this big song and dance about having traditional fare from home- and then out comes peking duck and sweet and sour pork and Mandarin Chicken. the dancer is just staring goggle eyed at all this food. finally he turns to his hosts and says, "i grew up on a farm out in the country- a good meal for us was capsicum (peppers) in the rice bowl. i don't know what any of this stuff is." b) i have bought a couple of books on the great speeches of history; one American and one British, plus an Australian book celebrating the great speeches of Parliament. i love hearing English spoken well but if the orator is lost to us then i look forward to reading their words. i think that it is the best way to learn a love for language. In truth is there no beauty? I am not in love; but i am open to persuasion. |
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