I already noted that the Brazilians have surprised me with their lack of enthusiasm for the billions spent on the World Cup. Now they've impressed me with their ability to take a loss. It can't be easy to take an embarrassing loss, in the sport that means the most to them, at home, while the world is watching. Here in Canada, we've lost at hockey, but at least we know no one else cares.
As the game was going on, I saw numerous tweets worrying of violence on the streets in Brazil, as people take out their frustrations. But that doesn't seem to have materialized. I saw one TV report that mentioned fear of violence, given the protests against the World Cup. That seemed like odd reasoning: there's been violence over government spending, so there'll be violence over losing a soccer game.
So maybe that's why the Brazilians have been able to deal with the loss more maturely: they've been forced to examine their priorities. There were lots of sad people on the streets, but most were keeping it in perspective. Again, I don't think we in Canada compare well, considering Vancouver's riots over their Stanley Cup loss a few years ago.
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