Good and bad news from Brazil

[Caipora]

From Carta Capital magazine, a respected weekly, sometime in June:

http://www.cartacapital.com.br/noticias/2007/06/o-nudismo-e-a-tendencia

Nudism is the tendency
by Wálter Fanganiello Maierovitch

European summer of 2007 will be that of the explosion of the nudism phenomenon

France, Spain, Italy and Croatia will be the countries most sought where the phenomenon of naturalism is growing significantly, concluded the Observatory Alviero Martino (on behavior and tendencies).

In a survey disclosed today, in a sample of 500 italian men and women between 25 and 55 years of age, 37% had already gone, at least once in their lives, for a holiday period in areas reserved for nudists.

[...]

The same data - but with less sweeping conclusions - can be found here:
http://www.italymag.co.uk/2007/news-from-italy/general/...forced-to-go-abroad/ (http://www.italymag.co.uk/2007/news-from-italy/general/italian-nudists-forced-to-go-abroad/)

This is from the newspaper O Estado de S.Paulo (motto: "Once a great newspaper") not really a reliable source - notice the inability to differentiate Saturday and Sunday - but Rio papers carry a similar story. I picked this version because it's less to translate, and it doesn't have a photo, a very great advantage. The Rio beach is the one that has the hulking, nude security guards.

http://www.estadao.com.br/ultimas/cidades/noticias/2007/jul/08/165.htm
July 8, 2007 - 22:59

Bathers beat up man on nudist beach
Iran Cesário masturbated at the location, which is prohibited, and revolted bathers

RIO - Handyman Cesário, 35 years old, was beaten up this Sunday, July 8, on a nudist beach in Rio. He was, last Saturday, on Abricó beach, where he kept masturbating, which is prohibited there. Irritated by Cesário's presence, bathers beat up the handyman. He wound up leaving the place and was treated at Lourenço Jorge Hospital, in Barra da Tijuca.

- Caipora

[Caipora]

From Carta Capital magazine, a respected weekly, sometime in June:

http://www.cartacapital.com.br/noticias/2007/06/o-nudismo-e-a-tendencia

Nudism is the tendency
by Wálter Fanganiello Maierovitch

European summer of 2007 will be that of the explosion of the nudism phenomenon

France, Spain, Italy and Croatia will be the countries most sought where the phenomenon of naturalism is growing significantly, concluded the Observatory Alviero Martino (on behavior and tendencies).

In a survey disclosed today, in a sample of 500 italian men and women between 25 and 55 years of age, 37% had already gone, at least once in their lives, for a holiday period in areas reserved for nudists.

[...]

The same data - but with less sweeping conclusions - can be found here:
http://www.italymag.co.uk/2007/news-from-italy/general/...forced-to-go-abroad/ (http://www.italymag.co.uk/2007/news-from-italy/general/italian-nudists-forced-to-go-abroad/)

This is from the newspaper O Estado de S.Paulo (motto: "Once a great newspaper") not really a reliable source - notice the inability to differentiate Saturday and Sunday - but Rio papers carry a similar story. I picked this version because it's less to translate, and it doesn't have a photo, a very great advantage. The Rio beach is the one that has the hulking, nude security guards.

http://www.estadao.com.br/ultimas/cidades/noticias/2007/jul/08/165.htm
July 8, 2007 - 22:59

Bathers beat up man on nudist beach
Iran Cesário masturbated at the location, which is prohibited, and revolted bathers

RIO - Handyman Cesário, 35 years old, was beaten up this Sunday, July 8, on a nudist beach in Rio. He was, last Saturday, on Abricó beach, where he kept masturbating, which is prohibited there. Irritated by Cesário's presence, bathers beat up the handyman. He wound up leaving the place and was treated at Lourenço Jorge Hospital, in Barra da Tijuca.

- Caipora

[Eric6420]

Brazil is a country with a long history of violence. Rio de Janero is probably more violent than Miami or L.A.

South America was run for a long time by very conservatives regimes and that explain the big gap between rich and poor in thoses countries.

However, since the last 10 years, there is a shift in South America, now most governments there a more left wing progressive.

Sao Paulo has one of the largest gay parade in the world, and a lot of left wing ideas are very strong in Brazil. But they have still a long way to go before reaching european standards.

[DoctorSurferDude]

Hmm....if he can beat it, then they can beat him. Neither one is appropriate behavior, but they seem to compliment eachother well.

[Naturist Mark]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Brazil is a country with a long history of violence. Rio de Janero is probably more violent than Miami or L.A.
</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I don't think you can blame Brazil for this.

What do you suppose would happen to a man who sat down at a textile beach in America and masturbated while staring at young women and kids? He'd be lucky to only end up in the hospital - and I doubt his attackers would even be cited.

I guess the subtext is that this type of behavior isn't as outrageous at a nude beach. Wrong.

[atalanta]

Apart from a visit to the nudist beach at Buzios, which is (was) unregulated, I have not visited other naturist places in Brazil but have felt concerned at what I have read about the "thought police" dictating who can go where - families this way, singles that way, gays over there and obliging everyone (even newcomers) to do an immediate complete strip. Agreed, many parts of Brazil have particular problems of criminal and other anti-social activity which may make some kind of self-policing necessary on nudist beaches, but it does seem to take away the "naturalness" which should be the core of the activity.

[Caipora]

Rio is an immense city, about six million, and much of it desperately poor. That brings problems. While I do object to the guy being beaten up, he will recover from that far more quickly and with less pain than from a charge of public indecency and a lifetime sex registry in the U.S.

Visitors to Brazil will have a great time if you avoid the big cities. Go to any small town on the seacoast, or the historic cities in Minas, or the beach cities to which Brazilians themselves go on vacation. You will find people in general far more friendly and peaceful than in the United States.

- Caipora