23 Comments
Jan 18, 2023·edited Jan 18, 2023

In general, this is a case of a good idea implemented for bad reasons.

When I interened in Brazil, I was struck by how similar the country was to the US. Both countries cover a huge area of land across many climates.

In terms of world history, both countries gained independence from their colonial powers relatively early.

Both countries were shaped by many generations of immigrants bringing parts of their old culture to the new country. (Parts of Brazil celebrate Octoborfest. San Paulo, Brazil has the largest population ethnically Japanese outside of Japan*)

Culturally the US and Brazil have a lot more in common than the US and Japan or South Korea.

It's kinda like in they dying days of the 2016 campaign Trump cut a campaign ad in Hindu. The US developing closer ties to India particularly with growing Chinese aggression is a great idea. India and the US have a lot in common.

Unfortunately (but predictably), all Trump did in regards to India is give Modi a pat on the back for his growing authoritarian and religious nationalism..

* At least as of 2011 when I was taking my Portugal Culture class.

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I’m an expatriate who’s been living in Italy for 15 years. Although we have some unsavory characters in Italian politics(some on the left also) Italy is nothing like Brazil. People like Lake and the others mentioned are too stupid to know this. I’m surprised they can spell Italy let alone know anything about it. As usual they see everything thru their own special American kaleidoscope! Italy has it’s own set of problems and conflicts with basically nothing in common with these MAGA dimwits. We have a real immigration problem here,and that accounts for much of the support for a right of center govt. Will it last? Maybe,maybe not,but it won’t be because of MAGA.I’m amazed about how most of the US knows so little about the world. Don’t get your pants in a snit about Maga in Italy.

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I’m guessing Mr. Bantz knows less about Brazil than he does about his own kids and that’s a low bar. I also suspect the closest he’s ever come to visiting Brazil is watching a travelogue of Ipanema Beach and then only to gawk at the women in G-string bikinis or see what the latest sunscreen’s being used. Tans are so important, you know. Nothing worse than a faux political pundit “punditificating “about places he’s never been and homogenizing everyone according to his own limited knowledge of the global political landscape. “Most of the US knows so little about the world.” And he would know that from his comfy confines in Tuscany how? And how much is “most.” Nothing like being painfully generic while attempting to be painfully political. And I was enlightened to know that, apparently, the US doesn’t have a “real immigration problem” unlike Italy’s. Does Mr. Bantz read about that? Since he’s an escapee from the US he should remember it borders with Mexico. You know, Texas, Arizona, California. Those places. If he’s not into reading, then he can always Google it. Uma fraude dessas. Sad. Very sad.

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Conservatives? This ideology has been so twisted from its original concept I doubt many really understand the original conservative. Let's be really frank.

Fascism has found its way into our

House and the houses of other,

once democratic governments.

I never thought I would ever see

a president of our country, try to

overthrow the very government

he was supposed to protect. To

To see 20 malcontent fascists hold

our House of Representatives hostage, while they bickered over

over a "secret" agreement with a

weak man chosen to be the speaker

of OUR house. My father fought Nazis and fascists in WWII. Why

are we still fighting them, and in

our own country!?

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Yeah, the former White House doctor who said the grossly obese president could live to be 200.

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This was a very informative review of current politics in Italy, which hasn’t crossed my news feed as often as it should, given the relevance. It’s alarming and scary. It will be interesting to see if the EU has any power to tamp down this budding fascism.

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Nice work, as always. In other news, your Niners look hot as a pistol. Because your a terrific young man, I will not root for them. It would be the kiss of death. Best regards.

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That reminds me. I've owned 2 cars in my life, a Saturn and a Saab. And then before I had my own car I used my Mom's old Oldsmobile. I've thought that I should get car manufacturers to bribe me NOT to buy one of their cars. BTW, not all that young, just managed to get 27 years out of those 2 vehicles.

Having just written that, I'm seriously starting to think that a Tesla should be my next car. :)

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They should be called radical reactionaries at this point, not conservatives. There is nothing conservative about the Trump and MAGA GOP. That being said, MAGA cannot abhor any loser (except Trump) and it is no surprise that they abandoned their pal in Brazil after he lost and was seen in a Publix in Florida. They will do the same to Meloni if she loses an election/power.

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Italy wants nothing to do with these MAGA dimwits! I live there.

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*PAIN (performative, authoritarian, ignominious nihilists)

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This is what true conservatism is though. Conservatives across the globe exist to defend established hierarchies (economic, religious, racial, gender, etc). Fascism is just a populist form that attempts to reimpose a decaying social order by force.

The only good aspects of American "conservatism" were the ones borrowed from liberalism. Now that they've shed those tendencies you can see conservatives in their full oppressive, bigoted, autocratic glory.

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Definitely. Lately I’ve been cringing every time I hear the word “conservative” to describe radicals like MTG, Gaetz, Boebert, and the rest of the fascist wing of the Republican Party. It’s past time to update the terminology for these anti-democracy reactionaries.

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founding

Just call them cons and leave it at that. In some cases, it might be preferable if events transpired in a way that ex- could be added after an appropriate amount of time.

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Excellent! Double entendre, kind of.

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Add the fact that Trump is a professional con man, and you get a triple entendre!

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Whenever I read of American "conservatives" cozying up to fascists, it brings to mind the figure of Peter Viereck who gave perhaps the earliest expression of an intellectual conservatism in this country. Viereck conceived of conservatism as a centrist movement, with nothing but contempt for the fanaticisms of the left or right. Viereck was soon written out of conservatism over his support for the New Deal and his strong opposition to McCarthyism. Here and there, Viereck's influence lives in figures like David Brooks and David Frum. And there seem to be echoes among Bulwarkians. Perhaps conscientious conservatives need to leap back to pre-Buckleyan ideas.

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Why is it that these alt-right republican non-conservative think they need to visit foreign countries when we have a foreign affairs office to do so. them going alone without the current administration does NOT represent the People of the USA

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I guess it fits, because they don’t believe in our institutions. And they are all narcissistic prima donnas, busy building their personal brand. Outrage is their positive currency, and they stay busy creating it, to keep themselves in the news.

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Kind of worrying that Italy had Berlusconi before we had Trump, and now Meloni before we end up with President MTG.

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founding

I guess when the Schlapps are not too busy with the sexual battery lawsuit against Matt, they can start arranging CPAC in Italy next year.

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It's gonna be fun to watch how they react to Meloni's eventual defenestration by Salvini and resulting fall of the Italian right with it.

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You don’t know anything about Italy. I live here!

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