Everything Shouldn’t End in Pizza
By B. Michael Rubin
There is a Brazilian expression that translates as, “Everything ends in pizza.” It’s used to describe political debates that go on forever and never accomplish anything. It’s a saying that articulates everyday frustration with politics. No matter which political party is in power, it’s impossible to please everyone.
In June and July, we witnessed this frustration in the U.S. with the “debt ceiling” debate. Everyone in the world, except the U.S. Congress, agreed that a resolution was needed quickly. Otherwise the financial markets would suffer. Instead, the debate over the U.S. government’s budget dragged on endlessly, and even though it was resolved in the final moments of the deadline, no one was happy, and the resolution didn’t prevent the U.S. stock market from taking a “nosedive”.
Unfortunately, with the Congress ignoring the will of the people, and the fall in the U.S. stock market two days later, there is now a large majority of Americans who feel that everything has “ended in pizza.” In a recent survey, 82 percent of Americans disapproved of the way Congress was doing its job. And it certainly isn’t surprising, considering only 58 percent of adult Americans are currently employed.
The disturbing feelings of mistrust and disbelief at such political behavior in the U.S are not unique. In Brazil, it’s present in the concern people are already expressing over the way the government is or isn’t preparing for the upcoming World Cup Soccer and Olympic Games. The economic and organizational power of the government doesn’t seem able to move fast enough to keep up with reality.
Even worse for the U.S. as opposed to Brazil is that when people lose faith in their government, they not only become cynical, but they simply don’t vote. They have that option because voting is not mandatory in the U.S. However, as a result, it becomes possible for a small number of people to have a large influence over the next government. For example, if only 40 percent of the population votes for a new senator, that means 20.1 percent of the population can decide whom the next senator will be.
Besides refusing to vote, another disturbing trend in the U.S. is the way Americans are cheating themselves by purchasing large cars. Big cars require more energy because they have bigger engines and use more gas, especially if they have an automatic transmission. About ten years ago, a new class of car became popular in the U.S. They were advertised as apt for driving through off-road, which rarely happens. They were given the label, Sport Utility Vehicle or SUV. They became so popular that every automaker, whether an American company or not, began manufacturing SUVs for Americans.
Today, SUVs are moving into the Brazilian car market. Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Kia, and Honda are selling them here, along with Mercedes, BMW, and even the Porsche Cayenne. It’s conceivable to justify buying an SUV if you have three or four children and regularly take long auto trips with your entire family. However, in the past few decades, Brazil has been lowering its birthrate so large families who can afford an SUV are disappearing. It may be the case that upper class Brazilians are starting to buy SUVs from an overall euphoria from the booming economy and anticipating the boost in oil production promulgated in the news of exploration of the new Tupi oil and gas fields.
However, if Brazilians really want to plan for their futures without cheating their children and grandchildren, they would be smart to avoid SUVs. No matter how well the Brazilian economy is doing, nothing lasts forever, whether it’s the booming economy, which has already disappeared in the U.S., or the oil reserves, which are destined to disappear eventually, and much more quickly if people drive SUVs.
Even if you have no concern for the future or caring for the environment, and have plenty of money to spend on a big car and more gas, there is a critical factor worth considering before buying an SUV. Everyone in the U.S. bought SUVs because they believed they were safer. Since an SUV is bigger than an ordinary car, the driver has better visibility. Also, in a crash between two cars, the SUV will incur less damage than an ordinary car because of its greater weight. Unfortunately, the factor that no American realized a few years ago but has now become apparent is that once most people started buying SUVs, the visibility and damage advantages vanished.
The most recent studies of auto accidents in the U.S. have also proven this unexpected fact — SUVs are involved in more accidents than ordinary cars. This occurs for the simple reason that SUV drivers incorrectly believe they are safer and therefore pay less attention to their driving. Thus the original idea, which created the SUV market, that people are safer in an SUV, has turned out to be completely false.
We can change the world one car at a time, by not believing that everything Americans are doing Brazilians should try. We can change the world by voting for politicians who will accomplish something. We can change the world by changing the old ways of thinking so that everything doesn’t end in pizza.
Michael Rubin is an American living in Curitiba. He can be contacted at rubin.brazil @gmail.com.
