This article was first published on the 27th of August, 2019 by Patrick Carpen.
Last updated: August 28, 2019 at 3:25 am
Too many of us make the mistake of accepting financial help from so-called “friends” who really don’t have our best interest at heart. As the saying goes, “open the door and the devil walks in.” Then there’s the saying “if you make a deal with the devil, one day, you’ll have to dance to his tune.”
Not too long ago, Bolsonaro’s counterpart Maduro refused to let US Aid into Venezuela on the grounds that it was a ruse to overthrow the government. He wasn’t entirely wrong. Now, far-right former military leader, Bolsonaro, is saying that the G7 is offering 22 million dollars in an attempt to undermine Brazil’s territorial integrity.
But the Amazon is no Venezuela and Macron is no Donald Trump. In fact, applying the lens of Venezuelan politics to the ongoing situation in the Amazon is absurd if not extremely dangerous.
Bolsonaro and Macron are trading a war of words – and let’s just hope it doesn’t escalate into a real war. The million dollar question is, “who’s the devil here?”
Certainly, I don’t think Bolsonaro is the good guy in this scenario after the sluggish way in which he responded to the forest fires – let it burn! And there is even rumors that he’s behind setting the fires.
Now Bolsonaro is telling the G7 to stay out of the Amazon Forest Fire Fight and to take that 22 million dollars they’re offering and use it to reforest various parts of Europe.
Later, he softens and says that he will accept the money if Macron “retracts his insults.”
Initially, Bolsonaro saw the 22 million US dollars donation from the G7 group as a way for the “colonists” to get more foothold into Brazilian territory. But he’s refusing it on the grounds that Brazilians can’t be bought for a dime-a-dozen – quite unlike the mercenaries who murdered Gadaffi by the way.
“Brazil never colonized any nations – we’re a democratic, free nation. That’s what the French did! But trust me, you’re not going to colonize any part of Brazil under my watch – not in your wildest dream.” – Bolsonaro. (Paraphrased)
In short, Bolsonaro is saying that “Brazil is not for sale and Brazilians won’t sell their souls to the devil.”
But does all this make Bolsonaro a good guy? Personally, I would think he’s a patriot. But the good guy in this scenario? Not by a long shot…at least I don’t think so after seeing images of all those beautiful animals and forests burning.
Here’s my take on the matter: if the Brazilian Government wanted, they could have put that fire out a long time ago. Why refuse funds to fight the fire when you had earlier said that you don’t have enough money to fight the fires? And furthermore, Brazil is already utilizing European funds that was donated under the Norway Agreement to fight the fires.
In other words, Bolsonaro is saying that the Amazon is not for sale – they’d rather burn it.
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