Known for Copacabana, Carnival, soccer and the bossa nova beat, Brazil is the largest country in South America and the only one that was colonized by Portugal. I spoke Portuguese fluently 42 years ago and now find myself struggling to express myself on the level of a 4-year-old. Returning to the area where I lived in Brazil for two years and visiting people I knew then is not deja vu for me. Why? Brazil has changed — dramatically!

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Latin America will do well, but not great

Brazil’s economy is on a roll now, but looking ahead the picture is not as bright as this article points out.

Brazil has made impressive progress over the last 15 years, but it needs to make some fundamental changes to get the country growing faster.  Brazil is capable of much faster growth than the much talked about 5%.

Brazil Sept. Budget Deficit Widens to Nine-Month High (Update3) – Bloomberg.com.

Diary: Amazon Road Trip The Brazilian government is seeking to repave the almost impassable BR-319 route between Porto Velho and Manaus. But the plan is controversial because the 900 km (560 mile) road cuts right through the Amazon rainforest.

• GO TO ARTICLE: Diary: Amazon road trip

JBS Spreads Its Wings  Cluck, moo, oink, ka-ching

UNLESS you work with quadrupeds, it may have escaped your notice that a Brazilian company, JBS, is about to become the world’s largest processor of meat. Its recent acquisition of Pilgrim’s Pride, a big chicken processor in America and Mexico, and a pending merger with Bertin, another Brazilian firm, will soon give it bigger sales than Tyson Foods, the American firm that currently claims the top spot. Other Brazilian names—Vale in mining, Embraer in aviation, Petrobras in oil—may be more famous. But JBS is now the second-largest private-sector company in Brazil by sales, after Vale. And a large majority of its sales come from outside the country.

• Go to article: JBS spreads its wings: Cluck, moo, oink, ka-ching | The Economist.

The American Society of Rio de Janeiro

About us

The American Society of Rio de Janeiro has a long and distinguished existence, founded in 1917 as the planet was in the midst of the terrible conflagration of World War I and American soldiers were being sent to France. A group of American women in Rio got together to make bandages for the war effort; their husbands decided that the American community in this far-flung outpost needed a full-fledged organization to support the wives’ initiative and maintain the American community united in a foreign city.

Over the ensuing decades, the host city of Rio de Janeiro has undergone considerable change. Although it was the capital of Brazil at the time, Rio still was something of a backwater in world terms until the 1930s. Then it was to burst onto the world scene, one of a handful of vibrant world capitals. Suddenly, everybody was "Flying Down To Rio."

During the first 50 years of its existence, The American Society was in many ways, as the 50th anniversary Yearbook put it, "the unofficial arm of American foreign policy in Brazil."The late Rev. Wallace Williams — the AS president who presided over the 50th anniversary gala dinner-dance at the U.S. Embassy residency together with Ambassador John Tuthill — recalled a few years ago that "the president of The Society in those days was considered to be almost as important as the Ambassador himself. It was a very big deal."

During its first five decades, the president of The American Society of Rio de Janeiro was usually one of the top American businessmen in the community and Board members were usually of the same executive ilk. The Society pursued the mandate set out in the by-laws: promoting good relations with Brazilians, celebrating American holidays, involvement in local charitable work, assisting American in distress, pursuing an active social program. More recently, the makeup of the Board has reflected a more diversified mix representing the Americans present in Rio de Janeiro in the first decade of the new millennium.

In its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s, The Society congregated upwards of 800 American families and individuals of other nationalities who supported its goals. The sparse oral and written histories of the organization cite some major personalities who were responsible in the early decades for growing The Society into Rio’s major foreign community organization: Amb. Edwin V. Morgan, who headed the U.S. diplomatic mission to Brazil from 1912 to 1933 and was a great backer of The Society; Dr. Hugh Clarence Tucker, a charismatic Methodist missionary in Brazil, one of the stalwarts for several decades; Joe Brown and Jim McLean, dedicated servers of the cause; and more recently but no less importantly, Luz Wright, who was the Society’s tireless secretary in the 1970s, 80s and 90s.

The Society has had over 80 individuals serve as it president during its existence. Perhaps the one who is most remembered today, because of the founding of the prestigious community award in his name, is Ralph Greenberg, who suffered a fatal accident on his way to a board meeting he was to preside. The list of Greenberg award winners is a Who’s Who of distinguished private Americans who have lived and served selflessly in Rio de Janeiro.

The first woman  — Kem Barbosa  — only was elected to the presidency in 1986, 69 years after The Society was founded because of the work of American women. But since then, another four women have served as chief executive.

As it makes its way in the 21st century, The American Society of Rio de Janeiro has demonstrated, through good times and bad, constant and faithful respect to its founder’s ideals, holding high the U.S. flag while promoting American ideals. It continues to be one of the most outstanding examples of a foreign community organization in Rio de Janeiro — or the world, for that matter.

About usThe American Society of Rio de Janeiro has a long and distinguished existence, founded in 1917 as the planet was in the midst of the terrible conflagration of World War I and American soldiers were being sent to France. A group of American women in Rio got together to make bandages for the war effort; their husbands decided that the American community in this far-flung outpost needed a full-fledged organization to support the wives’ initiative and maintain the American community united in a foreign city.

Over the ensuing decades, the host city of Rio de Janeiro has undergone considerable change. Although it was the capital of Brazil at the time, Rio still was something of a backwater in world terms until the 1930s. Then it was to burst onto the world scene, one of a handful of vibrant world capitals. Suddenly, everybody was "Flying Down To Rio."   During the first 50 years of its existence, The American Society was in many ways, as the 50th anniversary Yearbook put it, "the unofficial arm of American foreign policy in Brazil."The late Rev. Wallace Williams — the AS president who presided over the 50th anniversary gala dinner-dance at the U.S. Embassy residency together with Ambassador John Tuthill — recalled a few years ago that "the president of The Society in those days was considered to be almost as important as the Ambassador himself. It was a very big deal." During its first five decades, the president of The American Society of Rio de Janeiro was usually one of the top American businessmen in the community and Board members were usually of the same executive ilk. The Society pursued the mandate set out in the by-laws: promoting good relations with Brazilians, celebrating American holidays, involvement in local charitable work, assisting American in distress, pursuing an active social program. More recently, the makeup of the Board has reflected a more diversified mix representing the Americans present in Rio de Janeiro in the first decade of the new millennium.   In its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s, The Society congregated upwards of 800 American families and individuals of other nationalities who supported its goals. The sparse oral and written histories of the organization cite some major personalities who were responsible in the early decades for growing The Society into Rio’s major foreign community organization: Amb. Edwin V. Morgan, who headed the U.S. diplomatic mission to Brazil from 1912 to 1933 and was a great backer of The Society; Dr. Hugh Clarence Tucker, a charismatic Methodist missionary in Brazil, one of the stalwarts for several decades; Joe Brown and Jim McLean, dedicated servers of the cause; and more recently but no less importantly, Luz Wright, who was the Society’s tireless secretary in the 1970s, 80s and 90s.

The Society has had over 80 individuals serve as it president during its existence. Perhaps the one who is most remembered today, because of the founding of the prestigious community award in his name, is Ralph Greenberg, who suffered a fatal accident on his way to a board meeting he was to preside. The list of Greenberg award winners is a Who’s Who of distinguished private Americans who have lived and served selflessly in Rio de Janeiro.  The first woman  — Kem Barbosa  — only was elected to the presidency in 1986, 69 years after The Society was founded because of the work of American women. But since then, another four women have served as chief executive.

As it makes its way in the 21st century, The American Society of Rio de Janeiro has demonstrated, through good times and bad, constant and faithful respect to its founder’s ideals, holding high the U.S. flag while promoting American ideals. It continues to be one of the most outstanding examples of a foreign community organization in Rio de Janeiro — or the world, for that matter.

• The American Society of Rio de Janeiro
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The American Society of São Paulo Blog

Welcome — how to navigate this blog

The bulk of material in this blog comes from the most recent issues of Forum, the monthly newsletter of AmSoc. Scroll down to see the first few paragraphs of each story, and click the blue “read more” links if you are interested in, well, reading more.

Along the right side of the blog should be a series of topical categories. There you can quickly sort these blog posts to find those specifically about, say, AmSoc sports or Traditional Events.

• The American Society of São Paulo Web Site
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Brazilian Property Tax Made Simple

By Nicholas Storey, Contributing Reporter

Brazilian investment opportunities run from beach properties to historical purchases in towns such as Ouro Preto, in Minas Gerais, photo by Brazilian Ministry of Tourism.

RIO DE JANEIRO – All land purchased in Brazil is subject to a tax known as ‘Imposto sobre a Transmissão de bens Imóveis Inter-vivos’, ITBI, (title transfer tax on goods and real estate) which is equivalent to two percent of the value of the purchase. In addition, in relation to some oceanfront properties, there is another tax called laudemeo (marine tax), which is five percent of the land value (disregarding the value of the buildings), according to a statutory valuation.

Go to Full Article:   Brazilian Property Tax Made Simple | The Gringo Times .

Despite the high quality of this video, it is so “Not Rio”!!!   Way too slick.  No reality here.  Says this comes from the Prefeito (Mayor’s) office of Rio.  Has a 50s Hollywood style to it.  Nice narrative in Brit English, but where is the noisy?   Still, always nice to watch beautiful Rio!!!

Lula Spending Spending

Brazil’s Lula Turns to the Economic Left | Newsweek International | Newsweek.com.

Lula on spending spree

Although Brazil escaped the worse of the economic crisis and is being mentioned around the world as an up and coming economic power, increased government spending makes those of us who lived through the inflation years nervous.  This combined with the Obama’s spending spree, make for double nervous.