#military coup of 1964

[randomize-stuff-blog]

I don't think any country affected by the USA will ever forgive them, because I know Brazilians never will

[airlock]

as the din of fascism continues to intensify in the US, there's a particular sort of online conversation that I keep seeing more of lately

it's the one where someone tries to jam the flow of radical thought by going "oh yeah? you think revolutions are all niceness and candy? well they're NOT, people die in them. you don't understand the scale of the violence you're pushing for". and lots of people will flock to whoever's saying this at a given time -- after all, what's a surer path to social media prestige than taking up the mantle of brave, outspoken defender of all things milquetoast and mainstream?

meanwhile, outside the comfortable confines of the imperial core, there were and are countless people backed up against the wall, forced to seriously address the question: knowing exactly how dangerous and costly revolutions are, do we have any other option right now?

there are always louts who want to push for violence at the drop of a pin; these types tend to accomplish little more than be loud. when an organized mass moves, it's full of people who have weighed their options, and seen that they're in a situation dire enough that the costs of revolting outweigh the costs of letting things stay as they are.

this thing that USamericans are doing in their conversations is like a first baby step towards radical thought more mature than disorganized rabblerousing. I'd maybe be more appreciative of seeing it, if it weren't so thoroughly laced with condenscension always. if, before opening their mouths about the nature of revolutions, the USamerican would listen to those who live in them, without dismissing those people as denizens of inherently chaotic shitholes; without ignorance of where their frustration with USamerican political apathy comes from.

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Brazil’s dictatorship: Repression, torture, slaughter of Indigenous people and censorship

On the night of March 31, 1964, the Brazilian military deposed the legitimate president, the leftist João Goulart, in a bloodless coup. A dictatorship began that would last more than two decades. In the midst of the Cold War, the elites were furiously anti-communist and Goulart promised agrarian reform and public policies for the working class. Four years later, the generals closed Congress and toughened repression through Institutional Act number 5. Brazil would not return to democracy until 1985.

For the many supporters of the coup, it was a revolution so that Brazil did not fall into the clutches of communism, in an interpretation of the constitutional breakdown backed by far-right ex-president Jair Bolsonaro. During his presidency, the 1964 coup was officially celebrated in the military. The current president, the leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, wants the events of 60 years ago to be marked with a low-key anniversary so as not to ruffle any feathers in the Armed Forces. The president is treading carefully, as Bolsonaro and several military officials have been accused of plotting a coup in the most serious attack on democracy since the end of the dictatorship. Their alleged actions indirectly resulted in the assault on the headquarters of the three branches of government in Brasília in January 2023.

This is a review of some of the key moments from the military regime and the transition to democracy.

Continue reading.

[gregorsamsadementiaravenway]

So here are my two cents about Hilda Furacão's ending (and some considerations about the show as whole):

The ending of Hilda and Malthus story is perfect. Actually, their whole story is pretty close to perfection. I do dislike the part with the two farmers that want to marry Hilda, it's just too absurd and tacky for my style, and the airplane thing is a bit much as well, but, apart from that *chef's kiss*. Of course they wouldn't be able to stay together in 1964. @just-an-enby-lemon put it perfectly when they said Hilda and Malthus just couldn't stay together as the military dictatorship was kicking off. The military coup is a moment of triumph for the Loló Venturas and the Father Nelsons of the world, a moment of triumph for the people that put Malthus and Hilda in their boxes and kept them apart for so long. It's not a moment of triumph for young, forbidden love.

Still, Hilda and Malthus do get their happy ending, I think. Roberto never makes it clear whether Malthus remained a priest or not, but even if he did, things are different in 1968. Times are darker than ever, but now he and Hilda are on the same side, and he's not under the influence of his mother and Father Nelson anymore. He's free to be who he wants.

Father Nelson does overstay his welcome in the plot, but I like it when he tells Malthus he would come back after spending time together with Hilda because, at that moment, it is most likely true. It is probably the only true thing he says in the entire series. They wouldn't make it because they're so much alike, impulsive and tempestuous, though Malthus hides it well under his religious facade, and yet they are completely different at that point in time. And the passage of time is key to understanding Hilda Furacão (no wonder the op song is all about it). Time had to do its job to make Hilda and Malthus right for each other.

Politics-wise, Hilda Furacão is not a pro-dictatorship show, but it is also not pro-communist, as I've seen some claim. Actually, it seems quite confused about what it thinks communism is, and I don't say that because of Comrade Zico's communist morals classes, but mainly because of the introduction of Comrade Lorca and his whole being a communist while waving an anarchist flag in one hand and the national flag in another. Sure, we can read that as a stand-in for different groups that tried to resist and were massacred by the military coup and dictatorship, but I don't know if I'm maybe giving Glória Perez too much credit here. She's not exactly a subtle writer.

There are some small elements that betray a more conservative worldview as well, very much in line with the Bolsonaro supporter that Perez would become. Placing a communist guerrila in Brazil pre-coup when actually the first guerrila war started somewhere around 1966 (in Minas Gerais, nonetheless) reeks of pro-military rhetoric to me.

Still, I like the fact that Zico ran away with a bunch of chickens while Bonfim became the guy that died in the guerrila, fighting for his cause and for the end of the military regime.

I loathe everything involving Tunico Mendes, Gabriela, and Aramel. That story is so misogynistic. Along the light homophobia and the lack of Black representation in the show, it's one of the things that make me glad the 90s are gone. I hate how they paint Gabriela as being in the wrong for making the practical choice, I hate how they paint Aramel as being in the right even after he hits her, I hate that Aramel gets his happy ending, I hate that Gabriela gets her ~comeuppance~, hate it, hate it, hate it.

As for other storylines, I found myself caring less and less for them as my interest in Hilda and Malthus grew. I don't care much for what happens in Santana dos Ferros, I don't care for the MC, I care just a little about the communists.

Overall, Hilda Furacão is indeed one of the best fictional shows produced by Brazilian television. It's not a telenovela, though it has telenovela-like elements, but a miniseries, a much more ambitious, prestigious, and expensive kind of project that has been largely abandoned due to the current crisis of the linear TV model. It's a pity. I wish they would make more like it. THOUGH PLEASE PRETTY PLEASE I AM NOT ASKING FOR A REMAKE GLOBO IF YOU REMAKE THIS I AM GOING TO KILL SOMEONE

[aibazuos]

My Brazilian ass is thinking way too much about a One Piece Brazilian military dictatorship AU and I need to put it out there or I will explode

Honestly, the only reason that's something I have such strong opinions about is bc Luffy is Brazilian and there's just so little Brazilian characters in media in general (There's more in Japanese media than in other places but I don't have the time to explain it, if you want to learn more about that you can watch this video).

I don't know how ethical it is to find parallels between a fictional work and very real events that caused the suffering and death of a lot of people. But I think that this is a way to share more of this very important moment in Brazilian history.

So, let's start with a bit of actual history before jumping into my strange attempt at mixing a media that I love and the history of my country.

(Tw: discussions of torture, death, abuse of power by the government, gun use, armed revolution, censorship and anything you can think about that has to do with a military dictatorship. I won't go into detail, but if that's something that triggers you be mindful of that)

Oh, not a TW but something you should know, there's a lot, and I mean a lot, of communism, socialism and anarchism, just so you know

The coup d'état

In 31th of March, 1964 the Brazilian President João Goulart was overthrown by the army. The coup would later be described as a "revolution" by Castelo Branco, one of the Presidents during de dictatorship. It was said to be revolution bc of the "threat of communism" that had been taking over Brazil.

I need to make this very clear, Brazil had at the time some communist and socialist party's, but there was no actual threat from them, since they weren't popular enough with the general population.

This anti-communism reasoning had been used before to instal dictatorships is Brazil, such as the Getulio Vargas government. And it's still being used to this day by far-right politicians to manipulate the public (no, I'll not be arguing about this, if you truly think Brazil has an actual communist threat you can go and find another blog for you, mine isn't the place. block me if you feel the need)

The coup, and the whole dictatorship, was funded by the US

The Institutional Acts

The Institutional Acts were extra-legal decrees that were issued. There were 17 of them and more than a 100 complementary acts.

The Institutional Act number 5 is considered the more violent one, it allowed: the revocation of mandate of any elected politician, the president to interfear in government of states and county's and it made possible for a citizen to lose their constitutional rights. This Act was the one that basically legalized the torture that was already happening.

The Torture and Assassinations

Again, not going into detail, but there was a lot of people who disappeared after being arrested. The most infamous case is of Vladimir Herzog who was found in his cell after "self deleting" with his tie. The photo of his body was sent to the news by the army, but it was questioned by the public, bc he used his tie, but his his legs could touch the floor, so not the most efficient way. I do not recommend looking for his name online unless you want to see the fake self deleting photo, there's no blood or gore, but it is a dead body.

You could be arrest for subversive behavior, basically anything that the government deemed to be against it. A lot of students and teachers were arrested, journalists, actual revolutionaries and people that they would call "communists" even if a lot of them weren't communists.

The Censorship

A lot of art was censored during the dictatorship. Some musicians, such as Chico Buarque , found ways to still criticize the government in their songs but in a more subtle way that wouldn't get them caught. But even then Chico Buarque had to flee the country at some point. (Construção, Cálice and A Banda are very good songs that he wrote during the dictatorship and that are seen a symbol of resistance, really recommend them)

Carlos Marighella

Carlos Marighella was at one point considered enemy number one by the government and was classified as a terrorist. He participated in the armed fight against the dictatorship and founded the Ação Libertadora Nacional (National Liberation Action)

Before the coup he was already part of the Communist Party and an atheist, getting arrested even before the coup bc of an offensive poem he wrote about the administration of Bahia.

The ALN was involved in the kidnapping of an American ambassador in 69, along side the MR-8, another revolutionary movement.

Later that year Marighella was killed in the back of a car after being shot multiple times by the police. The photo of his body would be sent to papers, and through that way his son, fifteen at the time, discovered about his father’s death.

His death would get the urban guerrilla slowed down, but the rural guerrillas still happen and it got more support.

In 1996 the Ministry of Justice would recognize Marighella’s death as the estate’s responsibility. In 2007 it was decided that his wife, Clara Charf was to have a lifetime pension from the government (she is still alive at 99 years old). And, in 2012, after investigations, the Ministry of Justice declared his amnesty post mortem.

(Again, be careful when searching about him, the pictures of his body are not hard to find, and it’s a very bloody image. He was shot multiple times)

The end

The dictatorship ended in 1985. At that point the military was having difficulties keeping itself in power, since the direct elections for governor in 1982 had already elected 10 governors that were in opposition to the dictatorship.

Along side that, during 1983 and 1984 there was a civil movement called “Diretas Já” that wanted the direct elections for the president back, since those stopped happening after the dictatorship took place. That movement was taken down, but even then in the indirect elections of 1985 the non-military candidate, Tancredo Neves, won the election, officially ending the dictatorship.

The end of the dictatorship had already been expected by the military. So in 1979 the president João Batista Figueiredo signed the amnesty for anyone who had committed political crimes, including the torturers. Dilma Rousseff, the first woman to be president of Brazil, elected in 2012, was one of the many people to be tortured by the military and one of the few that survived it. And the current president, Luís Inácio "Lula" da Silva, was part of the syndicalist movement during the dictatorship (not saying I like them, but they are very important figures today and I think it puts into perspective that this events weren't that long ago)

About 400 people were confirmed dead after the end of the dictatorship, but more than 20,000 were missing. It's very hard to find the information about the missing people, since even if files were made about them they are either hidden somewhere or they have been destroyed. To this day new information about this period is being discovered.

In 1988 the new constitution had been written and put into place. It still is the constitution that is being used to this day and is called the citizen constitution, since it was made for the new democratic government. It also made the presidential elections direct again.

WTF AM I DOING??? (AKA: the actual One Piece part)

(honestly there's still a lot of history during this part, I'm terrible at this)

The Marighella question

I just needed to work someone based on Marighella into this, he is such an important figure in all of this. I had two main ideas, either Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Dragon could fulfill this role of a number one enemy but bc the main character is obviously Luffy i kinda want to make it Dragon.

I think I have some ideas abt their father-son relationship, or lack of it, that would make it interesting.

What I'm writing here is basically a pre-story and the very beginning of it, bc of it some characters are going to be left out (also I haven't watched all of one piece)

Monkey D. Garp

Born in 1904 in the city of Rio de Janeiro

Joined the military in 1922 at 18

Had Dragon in 1929 at 25

Fought in WWII as part of the cobras fumantes (smoking snakes)

Had a difficult time being there for Dragon when he was growing up since he at the time was to rising up the ranks

Tried to get Dragon to join the military

In 1951 when the Getúlio Vargas got into power again Dragon had been affiliated to the communist party for 5 years and Garp stated to hide their connection so that he wouldn't have to report his son.

Luffy is born in 1952 and Dragon takes care of him until 1955. Garp tries to take care of him for a few months, but bc he's a this point a Brigadier General he doesn't have the time to take care of a kid, so Luffy is sent to live with Dadan in Salvador.

When the coup happens Garp burns every file that has Dragon's full name

When Dragon is expelled from the communist party, in 1967, Garp thinks that he's going to calm down and stop, but a few months later more violent revolutionary actions start happening and Garp just knows that it is his son

Garp tries to disturb the investigations that are slowly getting closer to Dragon, but when the U.S starts putting more and more funds into finding and killing Dragon he is forced to stop or he'll be under suspicion of treason

When Dragon dies in 1969 Garp goes to Salvador to tell Luffy face to face abt his father's death

He again tries to get Luffy to join the military, trying to get his grandson to be safe, maybe that way he can resign

Luffy refuses and Garp knows that if he resigns he won't be able to protect Luffy, so he doesn't resign

When his colleagues start talking about this new traveling artists that are making subversive plays in the more rural areas Garp promises himself that no one will kill his grandson

Monkey D. Dragon

Born in 1929 in Salvador, Bahia

He remembers the fear that he felt every time a soldier came bearing news of his father's situation. Would this be the time they tell him he died while fighting the nazis?

The first time he learned about communism was by chance. Some activists had ran scared after the police arrived and left behind some copies of the communist manifesto. He was 14 and that was the first book he read through that wasn't for school

When WWII ended in 1945 Dragon was relieved to have his father back, but that didn't last long. Soon Garp was back to work

They moved to Rio de Janeiro after Garp came back

Since Rio was, at the time, the capital and Gétulio Vargas had just been deposed it wasn't particularly difficult for Dragon to start going to communist meetings

In 1946, when Dragon is 17, he officially joins de communist party

After he graduated high school in the end of that same year he officially moves out and start living in a college commune

He goes to the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ - Federal University of Rio de Janeiro) to get a sociology degree

He graduates in 1950

When Vargas becomes a President again in 1951 Dragon is arrested for subversion for the first time

He's in prison for a few months

When he sees Garp after that they both know that no one can know about their connection. Vargas is in power again and an active member of the communist party that is also the son of an important figure from the military has the biggest target in his back

They wouldn't see each other for years. Both still living in Rio de Janeiro, but no attempts at contact would be made

In 1952 Luffy is born, Dragon is his sole caretake

For his son he tries to lay low, he knows what is like to have an absent father, he doesn't want his son to have the same. He does more office work, publishing unsigned papers in various communist papers and that works

For 3 years that works, but then he's arrested in a violent way. He is shot in the stomach and 2 cops press him to side of the car while putting handcuff on him

Luffy sees everything

When he gets his one call he calls one of his friends and asks them to take Luffy to Garp's house in as many codes as he can use, trying to make sure that the cops didn't know he had a son.

This time his arrest lasts 2 years, he thinks that it would've lasted more if Vargas hadn't ended his own government by killing himself

He goes to visit Garp, to visit Luffy

But Luffy isn't there and Garp won't tell him where Luffy is

He's angry, furious, but at the same time he knows that Luffy is going to be safer away from him

He never sees Luffy again

Juscelino Kubitschek (JK) is elected President in 1955 and the construction of Brasília, the new capital, starts

Things calm down for a few years between JK's government, Jânio Quadros resignation from office and than João Goulart

But the coup happens

Everyone in the party knows that if things had been hard when Vargas was president they are about to get worse now

The younger members of the party, the ones that hadn't been there when Vargas was president, either get even more radicalized or leave the party

Dragon feels like they aren't doing enough, people are getting tortured and killed and they are writing articles that are never going to be published

He's expelled from the party, his colleagues see him as being way to violent, but he takes some people with them and makes his own revolutionary group

They finally get some world out there, but the military makes sure that none of it gets to the papers, censoring everything

The military gets more vicious in their search for Dragon, so Dragon gets more violent

Civillians are never to be killed, even if they are sometimes caught in the crossfire

They throw a grenade in an U.S building and things get harder, now the U.S wants Dragon's head too

He knows that he's going to die, that the police has found his colleagues, his friends. He knows that he is one of the few left and, maybe, if he dies first, the ones that are still alive can get away, maybe live normal lives

He writes letter and records messages in tapes, most os them are for Luffy

When he gets shot the first time he knows that this it, that he's going to die there in the backseat of a car

Quickly the other shots follow

Monkey D. Luffy

Born in 1952 in the city of Rio de Janeiro

His gramps sent him to live in Salvador when he was very young

For some reason he doesn't have many memories from before he went to live with Dadan... but he remembers someone being shot

He's 5 when he meets his brothers. He loves them

School is boring

Gramps wants him to join the army when he grows up

One day, when Luffy is 7 a band of traveling artists appear in town, the cops hate them but Luffy is immediately interested

Shanks is just so cool and so strong

Luffy wants to be like him when he grows up

They get into a fight with some low grade soldiers and Luffy tries to defend them

He fails

Shanks has to protect him and gets shot in his shoulder, he loses movement of his arm

Luffy promises himself that he would get strong enough to not let anyone he cares about get hurt

Shanks continues to tell him that it wasn't his fault, the cop should't have pointed at gun at a child

Just as sudden as they came the leave, Shanks gives Luffy his straw hat

Things go back to how they were before, except now Luffy knows he will never be part of the military

Gramps is angry when he hears that

When he's twelve his teachers start talking about how the military is now in power, they say it's a good thing "We'll finally get ride of the commies, there will be order in the country"

Luffy feels something sick in him

A month later Sabo dies

Luffy and Ace didn't go to school for a week

Ace graduated and left. He said he wanted to do something good, make their childhood dreams of changing the world into reality

Luffy wants to go with him but Ace refused

Luffy is now alone

School is still boring and now his teachers continue to praise the military in everything they do. Some of them seem scared of the military though

He's 15 when he hears whispers of this “commie bastard” that is been causing havoc in Rio de Janeiro

He's 16 when the papers now have the face and name of the commie bastard, a guy with a face tattoo, " THE TERRORIST DRAGON"

He's 17 when his gramps shows up in town, with a paper in hands that declared that Dragon was dead

"Your dad Luffy, he died"

Gramps begs him to join the military, to keep himself safe

Luffy can't agree to that, not after having see the military hurt so many people and stop them from being free

All Luffy wants is to be free

That is the first time he sees his Gramps cry

His gramps said that his dad left him tapes and letters

Luffy hears and reads all of them that night

When Dadan and gramps go to wake him up next day they find an empty bed

Okay, this post is already way to long and characters like Ace and Sabo are more interesting if I talk abt them at a later point

Honestly I really recommend taking pieces of the history of your country and characters you love and smash them. It doesn't need to be something so traumatic as my choice was, you can just use something that you think is interesting.

My choice was the dictatorship bc I think One Piece deals a lot with themes like these with the marines that it was the most obvious choice. Also communist Dragon, honestly that was a big part of it too

Less important, but like, I really do need to change the names of the IRL presidents and stuff like that. bc even the idea of "Monkey D. Dragon" and "Getúlio Vargas" being two people alive at the same time is weird

I don't know if this post will get attention, but I do plan on writing more of whatever this is

Also, this shit wasn't beta'd I just needed to get this out there as soon as possible

[silver-screen-divas]

She next appeared again with Burt Lancaster, her co-star from The Killers, this time with Kirk Douglas and Fredric March, in Seven Days in May (1964), a thriller about an attempted military takeover of the US government. Gardner played a former love interest of Lancaster's who could have been instrumental in Douglas preventing a coup against the President of the United States.

John Huston chose Gardner for the part of Sarah, the wife of Abraham (played by George C. Scott), in the Dino De Laurentiis film The Bible: In the Beginning..., which was released in 1966. In a 1964 interview, she talked about why she accepted the role:

He [Huston] had more faith in me than I did myself. Now I'm glad I listened, for it is a challenging role and a very demanding one. I start out as a young wife, and age through various periods, forcing me to adjust psychologically to each age. It is a complete departure for me, and most intriguing. In this role, I must create a character, not just play one.

Two years later, in 1966, Gardner briefly sought the role of Mrs. Robinson in Mike Nichols' The Graduate (1967). She reportedly called Nichols and said "I want to see you! I want to talk about this Graduate thing!" Nichols never seriously considered her for the part, preferring to cast a younger woman (Anne Bancroft was 35, while Gardner was 44), but he did visit her hotel, where he later said "she sat at a little French desk with a telephone, she went through every movie star cliché. She said, 'All right, let's talk about your movie. First of all, I strip for nobody.'"

Gardner moved to London in 1968, undergoing an elective hysterectomy to allay her worries of contracting the uterine cancer that had claimed the life of her mother. That year, she appeared in Mayerling, in which she played the supporting role of Austrian Empress Elisabeth of Austria, with James Mason as Emperor Franz Joseph I.

She appeared in disaster films throughout the 1970s, notably Earthquake (1974) with Heston, The Cassandra Crossing (1976) with Lancaster, and the Canadian movie City on Fire (1979). She appeared briefly as Lillie Langtry at the end of The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972), and in The Blue Bird (1976). Her last movie was Regina Roma (1982). In the 1980s, she acted primarily on television, including the miniseries remake of The Long, Hot Summer and in a story arc on Knots Landing (both 1985).

[thequeenofthedisneyverse]

La Violencia (Research I did for Encanto fic writers so you don't have to)

TW: Assassination and death

Long but necessary post

@yellowcry @miracles-and-butterflies @evostar (if you already knew about it, that's fine, but reblog so others can too.)

To put it simply;

During this time, an estimated 200,000 people lost their lives, with 112,000 of those deaths occurring between 1948 and 1950. Additionally, two million people were forcibly displaced from their homes, primarily to Venezuela.

The root of this conflict lies in the intense partisan rivalries between Colombia’s two traditional political parties: the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party. These tensions created a divide between liberals and conservatives, eventually leading to the partial collapse of the state and existing institutional structures. As violence escalated, economic motivations began to outweigh political ones, and armed bands took advantage of the chaos to commit robberies, assaults, and revenge against their neighbors.

More in depth;

La Violencia was a ten-year civil war in Colombia from 1948 to 1958, between the Colombian Conservative Party and the Colombian Liberal Party, fought mainly in the countryside.

Liberal hegemony continued through the 1930s and the World War II era, and Alfonso López Pumarejo was reelected in 1942; however, wartime conditions were not favourable to social change. In the elections of 1946, two Liberal candidates, Gabriel Turbay and Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, stood for election and thus split the Liberal vote. A Conservative, Mariano Ospina Pérez, took office. 

Conservatives had been embittered by political sidelining and, since 1930, had suffered violent attacks at the hands of Liberal supporters. With the electoral victory of 1946 they instituted a series of crude reprisals against Liberals. It was the initiation of the period that was dubbed La Violencia. On April 9, 1948, Gaitán, leader of the left wing of the Liberal Party, was assassinated in broad daylight in downtown Bogotá. The resulting riot and property damage (estimated at $570 million throughout the country) came to be called the bogotazo.

La Violencia originated in an intense political feud between Liberals and Conservatives and had little to do with class conflict, foreign ideologies, or other matters outside Colombia.  Authoritative sources estimate that more than 200,000 persons lost their lives in the period between 1946 and 1964.

The most spectacular aspect of the violence, however, was the extreme cruelty perpetrated on the victims, which has been a topic of continuing study for Colombians. La Violencia intensified under the regime of Laureano Gómez (1950–53), who attempted to introduce a fascist state. His excesses brought his downfall by military coup—Colombia’s first in the 20th century. Gen. Gustavo Rojas Pinilla assumed the presidency in 1953 and, aided by his daughter, María Eugenia Rojas, began an effort to end La Violencia and to stimulate the economy.

Rojas was a populist leader who supported citizens’ demands for the redress of grievances against the elite. Support for Rojas began to collapse when it appeared that he would not be able to fulfill his promises, when he showed reluctance to give up power, and when the economy faltered as a result of a disastrous fall in coffee prices in 1957. He was driven from office that year by a military junta.

The arrangement for the National Front government—a coalition of Conservatives and Liberals—was made by Alberto Lleras Camargo, representing the Liberals, and Laureano Gómez, leader of the Conservative Party, in the Declaration of Sitges (1957).

The unique agreement provided for alternation of Conservatives and Liberals in the presidency, an equal sharing of ministerial and other government posts, and equal representation on all executive and legislative bodies. The agreement was to remain in force for 16 years—equivalent to four presidential terms, two each for Conservatives and Liberals. The question of what governmental structure would follow the National Front was left unsettled.

It had been contemplated that a Conservative would be the first to occupy the presidency in 1958. When the Conservative Party could not agree on a candidate, however, the National Front selected Lleras, who had previously served in that office for 12 months in 1945–46.

During Lleras’s tenure an agrarian reform law was brought into effect, national economic planning for development began, and Colombia became the showcase of the Alliance for Progress (a U.S. attempt to further economic development in Latin America). But severe economic difficulties caused by low coffee prices, domestic unemployment, and the apparent end of the effectiveness of import substitution were only partially offset by Alliance aid. 

The Alliance increased Colombia’s economic dependence on the United States, which, to some Colombians, had serious disadvantages. By 1962 economic growth had come almost to a standstill.

The precarious state of the economy and the degree of social tension were revealed when only about half of those eligible to vote did so in the 1962 presidential elections, which brought Guillermo León Valencia, a Conservative, to the presidency.

During Valencia’s first year in office internal political pressures led to devaluation of the peso (Colombia’s currency), wage increases among unionized workers of some 40 percent, and the most rampant inflation since 1905. Extreme deflationary policies were applied in the next three years, raising the unemployment rates above 10 percent in the major cities and turning even more Colombians against the National Front. 

Less than 40 percent of the electorate went to the polls in the 1964 congressional elections.

Marxist guerrilla groups began appearing in Colombia during Valencia’s presidency. The first was the National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberación Nacional; ELN), which was created by a group of Colombian students who had studied in Cuba.

Founded in 1964, the ELN followed strategies espoused by Che Guevara. Another guerrilla group, which followed two years later, was the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia; FARC), which was more connected to Soviet-influenced communist movements. Much of FARC originated in the “resistance committees” that had appeared in Colombia during La Violencia.

Carlos Lleras Restrepo was the third National Front president (1966–70). He returned the economy to a sound footing, improved government planning for economic development, and pushed through political reforms essential to an orderly end to the Front (which seemed increasingly to constitute a monopoly of power by the Conservative-Liberal oligarchy).

Although the constitutional reform of 1968 stipulated that elections would become competitive again after 1974, the president was still required to give “adequate and equitable” representation to the second largest political party in his cabinet and in the filling of other bureaucratic posts.

Read more here (This article is mostly where I got my info from as well as copilot.ai. I know, AI is bad, but please don't judge me. I was not about to do six hours of research when I have a tool that can help me in seconds.)

What does this have to do with the madrigals?

Well, if you're planning on writing any madrigal (or all) outside of Encanto, La violencia is something you need to take into consideration. It's an important part of Colombia's culture and shouldn't be ignored.

(I just learned about it recently and in turn, need to rewrite some stuff. So I can only imagine that half of the Encanto fandom knows nothing about it)

What cities were safe you ask? I don't think there really was any.

Bogotá: As the capital of Colombia, Bogotá witnessed significant unrest during this period. Political factions clashed, leading to violence and instability.

Cali: Cali, located in the southwestern part of the country, also suffered from La Violencia. It was a hotspot for clashes between Liberal and Conservative supporters.

Medellín: Medellín, another major city, faced its share of violence. The conflict often played out in the streets, affecting civilians and communities.

Barranquilla: This coastal city experienced tensions between rival political groups, resulting in bloodshed and loss of life.

Cartagena: Cartagena, known for its historical significance, was not immune to the violence. The struggle between Liberals and Conservatives left scars on its urban landscape.

Cúcuta: Located near the border with Venezuela, Cúcuta also witnessed violence during La Violencia.

Palmira, Santa Marta, Soledad Atlántico, Armenia, Pereira, Neiva, Valledupar, Bucaramanga, Popayán, Villavicencio, and Soacha were other cities affected by the turmoil.

So, in either city, the madrigals would be exposed to this war if they chose to come out. Now, let's say Encanto is in the very center of Colombia (or at lease close to it) -

(Right where the red dot is)

The closest area is Villavicencio, Puerto Lypez, and Bogota. All three cities that were affected by the war. And I'm not saying Villavicencio is THAT close to Encanto, probably a week trip at best, but still.

Why did I choose the center of Colombia?

Because I don't see it sitting anywhere else. And it's convenient fic wise. But you can do what you want.

Now I'm not saying the Madrigals won't experience fun in the new world. They most certainly will (culture and technology wise), but the war is really unavoidable for them.

That's all for now, but if you have anything to add or for me to correct, reblog or message me.

[akindplace]

Chico Buarque - Apesar de Você

Apesar de você, amanhã há de ser outro dia

Despite of you, tomorrow will be a new day

(song written by Chico Buarque criticizing the military dictatorship in Brazil that came to power through a coup in 1964 with the help of the usa, same with many countries in latin america around that time)

Thought some of you might like it (I recommend checking the whole lyrics)

There is always a new day. You have to stay alive to see it. Take care of yourself

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Ruth Ben-Ghat at Lucid:

The benchmark of democratic political systems used to be elections, and the practice of holding elections was often used to determine whether a country could be classified as a democracy. Today, as "electoral autocracies" take hold around the world, that's no longer the case. Many illiberal leaders come to power through elections, and then manipulate the electoral system to get the results they need to stay in office. As the U.S. election approaches, it’s useful to remember that the history of autocracy is the history of war on the idea and practice of free and fair elections. For authoritarian leaders on the right and the left, allowing a population to determine through their votes who is in government and for how long is unthinkable. Why should lesser beings decide the fate of the strongman, who alone can lead the nation to greatness?

Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini derided elections as a “childish game” that had “already humiliated the nation for decades.” Il Duce replaced democratic elections with occasional plebiscites. In 1934, as he prepared to invade Ethiopia and was dealing with increased internal unrest, he staged a vote. Italians were actually weighing in on a purge of the political class: a single list he had approved of nominees for seats in Parliament, with the choices YES or NO. The real point of the exercise was to show Italians and the world that he had popular approval for his governmental measures. To that end, voting was “assisted” by Fascist "poll watchers," (squadrists in black shirts, armed with knives), and the regime’s communications about the vote can be summed up as “vote yes or else,” in the Fascist manner. This propaganda piece, on the façade of Palazzo Braschi in the center of Rome, depicted Mussolini's face as a kind of death mask, suggesting what could happen to those who voted no. The result of the plebiscite --99.85% YES, and only .15% NO--suggests that Italians got the message.

Today’s autocrats may keep elections going, but they won’t hesitate to game the competition by finding ways to silence rivals. Here’s Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in 2018 when CNN asked him if he was a dictator. "Here we have a ballot box...the democracy gets its power from the people. It's what we call national will," But in advance of the 2023 Turkish presidential contest, Erdoğan sentenced popular Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu to several years in jail. That way İmamoğlu could not be the opposition candidate. The newer autocratic tactic, facilitated by disinformation, is to discredit elections before the election is held so the public will believe you when you say, in the event of defeat, that the whole contest was “rigged” against you or invalidated by fraud. If the authoritarian is able to marshal his party and allies into sustaining the falsehood in public, then the idea of an illegitimate election can gain traction. This is called institutionalized lying: when a lie that is particularly important to the leader and his survival in politics becomes party doctrine. Then anyone who wants to have status in the authoritarian party or state must perform the lie in public, or at least refuse to refute it. Propagandists know that a lie, when repeated with enough frequency, becomes familiar and eventually can be taken as truth.

[...] The outcome of this scenario In Brazil offers an example of gatekeeping as democracy protection. After President Jair Bolsonaro lost the 2022 election, he decided to try and replicate the Donald Trump playbook, claiming that the election was rigged and planning an insurrection for January. Stephen Bannon and Jason Miller were among his advisors. Lack of military participation was among the reasons for the failure of Bolsonaro’s insurrection. Brazil had a military coup in 1964, which led to a military dictatorship that only ended in 1985. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva acted promptly to prosecute participants. In 2023, Bolsonaro was convicted of abuse of power in office and banned from running for office until 2030 for spreading lies about election fraud. In America, Trump, who incited a far bloodier insurrection, continues to maintain he won the 2020 election as he prepares to possibly contest the 2024 outcome. Trump has worked hard for almost a decade to get Americans to give up their quaint ideas about voting as a valued democratic right. He has conditioned them to see democracy as a failing system, and to view elections as an inferior and unreliable way to choose leaders.

Ruth Ben-Ghiat’s Lucid post on how elections are the enemy of the autocrat is a must-read.

[determinate-negation]

Funeral de um Lavrador (Funeral of a Worker) - Chico Buarque

“When a military coup in 1964 plunged Brazil into a long period of repression the already grim life of peasant workers worsened considerably. The army ruled in the best interests of a tiny class of landowners whose ears were deaf to the popular outcry for justice. Soldiers and police made sure that land reform activists lived short and painful lives.

This piece was composed by exiled dissidents for an international theatre festival held in France in the mid-sixties. João Cabral De Mello Neto and Chico Buarque express the sarcastic views of a wealthy Brazilian land owner on the subject of agrarian reform.”

English Translation:

This grave that you’re in,

Measured in hand-spans,

Is the paltry amount

You got out of life.

It’s of good size,

Not too long or deep.

It’s your share

Of this large estate.

It’s not a big grave,

It’s a measured grave.

It’s the land that you wanted

To see divided up.

It’s a big grave

For your little corpse,

But you’ll have more scope here

Than you ever did in life.

It’s a big grave

For your meagre corpse.

You’ll feel you can walk tall,

More than you ever could in life.

It’s a big grave

For your little flesh,

And the land’s been granted now

So don’t open your mouth.

[tortiefrancis]

Rio Grande do Sul History (Day 3)

Jango

PT: Jango /End PT

Disclaimers: Abya Yala is the name for the land known as "America" in the kuna language, adopted by other indigenous groups. Pindorama is the name of the coast of the land known as "Brazil" given by the tupi-guarani people, but also used to talk about the entirety of the modern country. I'll be using these terms throughout the posts.

ID: Colored photo of João Goulart, a man with light tone skin and short, straight, black hair with a receding hairline. He wears a black and white suit and tie. He smiles. /End ID

João Belquior Marques Goulart, known as João Goulart or "Jango", was born in what's known as São Borja, Rio Grande do Sul, in 1919. He was vice president of Juscelino Kubitschek and Jânio Quadros, and 24th president of 'Brazil', Pindorama, from 1961 to 1964. His family was of portuguese descent and consisted of large scale farmers and military men.

ID: Black and white photo of Juscelino Kubitschek and João Goulart surrounded by men who are clapping. Both of them smile, and Juscelino has his hand on Goulart's chest. /End ID

During his presidency, the country was suffering from an economic crisis and internal political and military issues, inherented from the last presidents. Because of this, Jango created a series of reforms called "reformas de base", which would presumably help lower the inflation rates and other problems the country was facing. Included in these reforms were agrarian reforms, which would take away unused farmland, educational reforms, which would combat illiteracy, extremely high in this time, and electoral reform, which would make people who were illiterate able to vote. Other changes were included in these reforms.

These reforms would not see the light of day, however. Not only were they not approved by Congress, but a much larger political crisis was about to erupt.

ID: Black and white photo of João Goulart sitting in front of microphones, staring off into the distance with a serious expression. /End ID

The United States of America, Turtle Island, had grown hostile towards Jango due to his refusal to aid them in the invasion of Cuba. In Pindorama, large groups of conservatives against his government marched around the country, saying Jango would install a communist regime and that he must be stopped immediately. The military was growing more and more desperate for power, and demanding Jango leave the presidency for good.

ID: Black and white photo of João Goulart and Juscelino Kubitschek standing next to each other, with men in military uniforms behind them. /End ID

In the early hours of April 1st, 1964, the military did a coup d'etat, with the help of the government of the USA (Turtle Island). Jango met with fellow Southern political Brizola in Porto Alegre after being escorted by another sect of the military. It is said that in this meeting, he cried. Wanting to avoid a civil war, he flew to São Borja, where his family was, and fled with them to Uruguay.

ID: Black and white photo of Jango in a chair on the front porch of his house, looking at the scenery. /End ID

He lived for years in Uruguay and still participated in brazilian politics there, wanting to gain back control of the country from the military, however, he was unsuccessful. He then moved to Argentina. He died in 1976, in Mercedes, supposedly of a heart attack, although many suspect he was poisoned. The dictatorship in Brazil (Pindorama) would only end in 1985.

I did not write anything for the 60 year anniversary of the 1964 coup d'etat, so I'm making it up now. Next posts will focus on more regional history but I felt like I had to write this. Anyways.

Rio Grande do Sul flood funds:

Paybox/doare (Humanitarian help) . Apoia-se (Food) . Pix (RS Archives)

[diabolus1exmachina]

Hino Contessa 1300 Coupé

The name Hino was taken from the homonymous town in the Tokyo prefecture where the company's headquarters were (and still are). His first steps were to create powerful military vehicles for the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. Once the greatest war of all time was over, it dedicated itself to the manufacture of diesel engines, trucks and buses. The post-war Japanese automobile industry underwent a major transformation thanks to the numerous agreements that many manufacturers made with car brands in Europe and the United States. Hino was no different. The operations were going from strength to strength, they had already earned an important place in the industry and even theirs was the first trolleybus in the history of Japan. The brand wanted to expand its business by launching into the world of passenger cars. Already under the name of Hino Motors, it signed a collaboration agreement with Renault in February 1953 and two months later they began to manufacture the Renault 4CV (also called Renault 4/4) under license. In Japan it was marketed as the Hino PA and some 35,000 units were sold in the 10 years it was in production. The French brand ceased production of the Renault 4CV in 1961, so Hino set out to take another step in the automotive world: manufacture its own car. They contacted the prolific Italian designer Giovanni Michelotti, who had worked with brands as relevant as Ferrari, Lancia, Maserati, Alpine or Triumph, to draw the silhouette of the new Japanese car.

The Hino Contessa 900 used the base of the Renault 4CV but at first glance no one could recognize that link due to the charming sedan body designed by the Turin designer. Renault's 35 hp 0.9-litre engine was positioned at the rear and was sufficient to animate the rear axle with the 750 kg that the car weighed. Shortly after, the Hino Contessa 900 Sprint was launched, a coupe version that reduced the weight by 100 kg and had an engine powered by Nardi up to 45 CV. With an attractive design, greater habitability -it offered space for five passengers, one seat more than the 4CV- and the proven reliability of its engine, it was not surprising that the Contessa achieved good sales results. 47,299 units were marketed between 1961 and 1964, a small part of them manufactured beyond the Japanese borders. The great reception in the market of its first car encouraged Hino to develop the second generation. Once again, Michelotti was in charge of its design, who had an overwhelming personality. The front with double optics and no grille was clearly reminiscent of the Chevrolet Corvair while the general lines were similar to other models designed by Michelotti such as the Triumph 2000. The Italian designer had been inspired by the English and American cars for this Japanese model with a French engine. Long live globalization! The Hino Contessa 1300 was bigger and heavier than its predecessor, but also more powerful by using a 1.3-liter 55 hp engine from the Renault 8. It began its commercial journey in 1964 and a few months later the sports version with bodywork arrived. two-door, the Contessa 1300 Coupé with 65 CV. The second generation of the Contessa was exported to several countries around the world, being manufactured in Japan, Israel and New Zealand.

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Brazilian University awards diplomas to students and civil servants persecuted by the dictatorship

As the country uncovers a recent military coup plot, the University of Pernambuco honors former students

This Monday (25), the University of Pernambuco [public state university in the city of Recife] celebrates its 59th anniversary. As part of the celebrations, the institution will award diplomas to students and civil servants persecuted by the civil-military dictatorship that ruled Brazil from 1964 to 1985.   

One of the honorees is Rosane Alves Rodrigues, who was studying medicine at the university and was a member of the Central Student Directory (DCE, in Portuguese) when she came under military scrutiny and had to go underground, fleeing to Chile and Denmark. The long period of repression in Brazil prevented her from returning to complete her degree. The diploma in memoriam will be awarded to Rodrigues 's relatives, recognizing her struggle for democracy, freedom, and human rights.  

Staff and former students who completed their courses but contributed to the fight against the dictatorial regime will also be honored with the "Diploma of Resistance." The list includes three civil servants: Enildo Galvão Carneiro Pessoa (former engineering professor), Javan Seixas de Paiva (former dentistry professor), and Severino Vitorino de Lima (former technical-administrative civil servant at the Pernambuco School of Dentistry).  

Eight other students will graduate in addition to Rodrigues: Francisco de Sales Gadelha de Oliveira (medicine), José Romualdo Filho (medicine), José Luiz de Oliveira (medicine), Paulo Santos Carneiro (medicine), Maria Zélia de Sousa Levy (dentistry), Rildege de Acioli Cavalcanti (dentistry), Ilmar Pontual Peres (administration), and José Almino Arraes de Alencar Pinheiro (engineering).  

Continue reading.

[vulturevanity]

Hi! Loved hearing from an actual Brazilian about this. My understanding is Elon didn't want to appoint a representative out of fear for political retaliation. But fining masivley for usage over vpns seems pretty... big brother lol. But my perspective is obviously very skewed being an American. We have had a censorship problem stateside over "far-right misinformation" even though it is protected under our first amendment rights. I just wonder what those accounts were being investigated for in the first place?

Hi! Thanks for reaching out. I'll try to keep this simple.

Brazilian constitution is very different from US constitution, and in this particular case there are two factors: the disinformation spread about the elections and the riots it led to.

The disinformation was a systematic campaign funded and strategized by private companies and far right pundits and it happened all across social media in order to sew doubt over the electoral process and therefore delegitimize the results. The goal was to put Jair Bolsonaro (who, if you are not aware, speaks favourably of the military dictatorship of 1964-1985 and how it "cracked down on crime" [i.e. arrested, tortured and "vanished" dissidents, actively censored all media and blacklisted artists who spoke out against it, etc.]) back in the presidency regardless of results. This started on the years leading to the 2022 elections and continues today. In Brazilian Law, this constitutes as electoral interference, and is a serious crime.

Despite their efforts, Bolsonaro was not elected (by a uncomfortably close margin), and Lula became President. But the disinformation campaign had made its (wrongful) arguments that the election was rigged and unreliable, and it culminated in the Jan 8 2023 riots on the Congress which was not only violent and put the lives of many at risk, but also resulted in the destruction of several historically important and irreplaceable objects. This is why the participants of the riot are being prosecuted and investigated. Other far right protests across the national territory were not given legal attention because they didn't break the law (in fact several right wing crowds camped outside military facilities everywhere for months [with funding from private companies!], begging for another coup d'état to "fix the election fraud", and all they got was laughed at by the soldiers).

As you can see, the request for information on the 7 accounts linked to these events isn't an attack on the right to protest, nor is it retaliating against political opponents -- it's part of an investigation for very serious crimes. I am very against the judge establishing a hefty fine for using VPN to access twitter, but other social media sites are still perfectly functional and accessible in Brazil, and so is access to international news sites and all other information available anywhere else. We Brazilians aren't going anyhwere.

[girlactionfigure]

The #US arms embargo on #Israel, which began at its inception in ‘48, remained until after Israel’s brilliant military victory in the ’67 #SixDayWar. After that, the U.S. finally realized the #Arab states had fully aligned with the #Soviets and that Israel could be a key U.S. ally in the #ColdWar.

But the #American decision was not based on Israel’s #military victory alone.

You see, the #Israeli triumph in the Six Day War was no accident. It was the result of Israel’s obsessively careful planning and some major #intelligence coups regarding the most advanced #Soviet military equipment.

The following reads like a #SpyNovel, but the story is entirely true.

In 1963, the Cold War was at its hottest. A few months earlier, in October 1962, the world came to the brink of total #nuclear annihilation during the 13-day #CubanMissileCrisis standoff.

Then, in June of 1963, #JFK gave his most famous anti-#communist speech (known as the “Ich bin ein Berliner” (“I am a Berliner”) speech) in West #Germany to an adoring crowd of nearly half a million West #Germans.

And then the biggest shock of all that rocked the entire world. On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated by Soviet sympathizer #LeeHarveyOswald. The world changed forever.

Meanwhile, in Israel, Meir Amit became the new director of #ShinBet (internal security) and #Mossad (foreign intelligence). He took over at a time when Israel was seen by the U.S. (and the whole world) as a country living on borrowed time.

Sure, the Israelis managed a modern-day miracle by fighting off five invading Arab armies to a stalemate and #armistice in 1949; but the country was still technically at war with all of them, and Israel remained massively outnumbered and was increasingly finding itself massively outgunned.

Throughout much of the 1950s and 1960s, the Arab countries turned to their new best friends in the #SovietUnion. 

The Soviets were more than happy to continue expanding their sphere of influence in the #oil-rich #MiddleEast and, therefore, aggressively armed and trained the Arab militaries with some of their most advanced weaponry.

Most concerningly, the Soviets had begun delivering and training Arab fighter pilots on their newest #supersonic strike aircraft – the MiG-21 (below).

Every Western nation, including the U.S., was completely in the dark about the capabilities of this cutting-edge #Russian aircraft and were fearful of the jet the Russians called the “most advanced strike aircraft in the world.”

Amit made a bold – some said insane – decision. Israel was going to steal a Soviet MiG-21.

Shortly after the U.S. bombed North #Vietnam for the first time in February of 1964, Israel was focused on gathering intelligence on Arab pilots charged with flying the MiG-21 for Egypt, Iraq, and Syria.

Israeli intelligence learned that one of the #Iraqi #AirForce pilots was a #Maronite #Christian Arab. Israel knew the Maronites had frequently been subject to #persecution in #Muslim-dominated countries like Iraq. Perhaps he could be turned.

The Mossad sent a beautiful, intelligent, and lively American-born woman to #Baghdad to try to establish contact with the Maronite pilot whose name was Munir Redfa. She met Redfa at a party, and Redfa was infatuated with her immediately.

Not knowing the Mossad agent’s identity, Redfa told the #beautiful #woman with whom he was clearly smitten that he was “in violent disagreement with the current war being waged by his government against the minority #Kurdish tribesmen in northern Iraq.” He was especially disgusted that he, a persecuted minority himself, was being asked to bomb the defenseless #Kurds.

He continued sharing his gripes against the Iraqi government including his shock at the imprisonment of some of his best friends who were Maronites. He also shared that he was being mistreated “because he was a Christian” and had been “passed over as commander” of his squadron, was kept stationed far from his home in Baghdad, and was permitted to fly “only with small fuel tanks” – a restriction he said was placed only on Christian pilots.

Redfa went even further, speaking in a way most Arabs dared not speak in public. He confessed he had a “sneaking admiration” for the Israelis who had managed to fight off five Arab armies despite being “so few against so many #Moslems.”

The Mossad agent knew she had her mark, and she maintained her relationship with him. It turned out Redfa had a wife and several children, but he still carried on a several-years-long intimate relationship with the Mossad agent.

Then, in July of 1966, the Mossad agent suggested that she and Redfa go on a trip together to #Europe. Redfa excitedly accepted the invitation.

After a few days in Europe, the Mossad agent suggested Redfa “fly to Israel with her. She had friends there who might be of service to him.”

Seeing the expression on Redfa’s face change from joy to confusion, the Mossad agent reached into her bag and pulled out a brand-new passport and tickets to Israel.

The jig was up. Redfa knew the woman he fell for was an Israeli spy. But, instead of being upset by this revelation, he was intrigued once he realized the Israelis (for whom he had “sneaking admiration”) were ready to make him an offer he couldn’t refuse.

The Israelis would give Redfa a way out of bombing innocent Kurds, they would pay him $1 million, they would sneak his entire family out of Iraq, and they would give him and his entire family Israeli citizenship, a home, and a job for life. Redfa agreed.

Mordecai Hod, commander of the Israeli Air Force, met with Redfa and discussed the plan for getting the MiG-21 out of Iraq and into Israel.

Hod showed Redfa how to fly a zig-zagging route that would allow him to avoid both Iraqi and Jordanian radar. It was a long way from Baghdad – around 560 miles – and Redfa would need nerves of steel to pull off his mission.

Redfa was a confident man. In this scheme, Redfa saw a way to provide his family with much better, freer lives. So, he told Hod, “I will bring you the plane.”

The date of the heist was set: August 16, 1966. Redfa followed the planned zig-zag pattern, but suddenly a ground crew member realized Redfa was heading way too far west.

Frantically, he radioed Redfa and ordered him to turn around immediately.

Redfa did not respond.

The ground crew warned, if Redfa did not turn around instantly, they would shoot him down!

Redfa stayed silent and kept flying.

Finally, he left Iraqi airspace and took a single breath.

Shortly thereafter, once Israeli radar picked up his plane (still hundred of miles away), the Israelis sent a squad of IAF Mirage fighter jets to escort him the remainder of the way to a base in the #NegevDesert.

After he landed, some of Redfa’s family was already there to greet him. The rest of his family was being smuggled across the #Iranian border by Kurdish guerillas. Safely in pre-#Islamic #Revolution #Iran, they were able to fly to Israel to be with the rest of their family.

Israeli intelligence had completed its mission and now had access to the most powerful weapon in the Arab armies’ possession.

Quickly, Western nations like the U.S., #France, and #Britain were all contacting Israel pressing for a chance to see the MiG-21 themselves. Every one of them was floored that this little nation, whose days were presumably numbered, had pulled off such an incredible intelligence feat. Meanwhile, none of these great Western powers had ever before had access to a MiG-21.

The Soviets, however, were furious; and they threatened the Israelis that they faced destruction if they did not get their fighter jet back.

Staggering the U.S., France, and Britain, with its response, Israel did not blink.

"No," they told the Russians. They would not “return” the jet.

Israel knew it was under constant threat of annihilation, and it was only a matter of time before the Arabs staged another massive invasion. The Israelis felt their only means of survival was to ensure they had better intelligence and were better prepared than their enemies.

On the other hand, the Israelis were happy to oblige the #Western powers, but they felt it wise to let things calm down a bit first.

After a few months passed, Israel “loaned” the MiG-21 to the U.S. and permitted them to conduct testing – all of which proved a boon to America’s strategic capabilities.

Meanwhile, the strategic value to Israel would be obvious a mere nine months later when, on April 7, 1967, Israeli jets got in a #dogfight with Syrian pilots flying MiG-21s.

The Israelis shot down six Syrian MiG-21s without losing a single plane of their own; and in the Six Day War two months later, the IAF took advantage of its overwhelming air superiority over the Syrian and Egyptian MiG-21s to carry them to a quick and decisive victory that shocked the entire world.

These combined events led the U.S. to realize that the tiny country of Israel had developed into a Western democracy with a formidable military and a daring intelligence apparatus that was right in the heart of the Middle East.

No longer was Israel seen as “the little country that could.”

Instead, Israel became one of America’s most important allies during the Cold War.

Captain Allen

[partisan-by-default]

Federal police confirmed on Thursday that investigators had concluded their long-running investigation into what they called a coordinated attempt to “violently dismantle the constitutional state”.

In a statement, police said the report – which has been forwarded to the supreme court – formally accused a total of 37 people of crimes including involvement in an attempted coup, the formation of a criminal organization, and trying to tear down one of the world’s largest democracies.

The accused include Bolsonaro, a disgraced army captain turned populist politician, who was president from 2018 until the end of 2022, as well as some of the most important members of his far-right administration.

They included Bolsonaro’s former spy chief, the far-right congressman Alexandre Ramagem; the former defense ministers Gen Walter Braga Netto and Gen Paulo Sérgio Nogueira de Oliveira; the former minister of justice and public security Anderson Torres; the former minister of institutional security Gen Augusto Heleno; the former navy commander Adm Almir Garnier Santos; the president of Bolsonaro’s political party, Valdemar Costa Neto; and Filipe Martins, one of Bolsonaro’s top foreign policy advisers.

Also named is the rightwing blogger grandson of Gen João Baptista Figueiredo, one of the military rulers who governed Brazil during its 1964-85 dictatorship.