World Cup 2014 in Brazil: Beautiful Game Showcases Ugly Inequality
Defeat of Eric Cantor A Bellwether for Grassroots Politics (Part 2)
The 20th edition of the World Cup, soccer’s international tournament of champions held every four years, begins today in Sao Paulo, Brazil, with the host country facing off against Croatia.
It’s Brazil’s second time as host (the first was in 1950), and President Dilma Rousseff has poured $15 billion into preparations that have been fraught with major cost overruns and construction delays, logistical nightmares and violent protests over neglect of extremely urgent social and economic needs.
Gilbert Mercier, cofounder and editor in chief of News Junkie Post, discusses World Cup 2014 as a metaphor for the raging inequality that plagues Brazil.
Leid Stories continues yesterday’s discussion on why the stunning defeat of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor by Dave Brat, a Tea-Party-endorsed political neophyte, should serve as a bellwether for grassroots political action and encourage the emergence of a vigorous, committed, people-centered alternative to Democratic Party co-optation and betrayal.
Cantor, who represented Virginia’s 7th District, had the benefits of a high-visibility position, a fat war chest, powerful allies, and a seven-term incumbency. But he became the first House majority leader to lose a primary election since the position was created in 1899—no match for irate voters.
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