Built to Break

Brasileiros in daily life complain continuously about
shoddy Brazilian-workmanship, and the poor quality
of national brands and services, yet, they are very
sensitive to criticism from non-Brazilians.

John Roscoe

"Built to last", "Ford-Tough", "Takes-a-lickin'-and-keeps-on-ticking", "Die-hard", "Still-going".

Yes, just a few of the first-world idiomatic-slogans that don't translate well in Brazilian culture. If the U.S. and Europe have a consumer throw-away society by design, Brazil has its own version by default. Products that are labeled durable-goods in the U.S. are not so durable here, while construction and maintenance standards here, more than likely, would lead to lawsuits or even prison-time in the states.

When the Petrobras offshore drilling platform capsized last year, a newly graduated engineer explained to me, "Maintenance isn't part of our culture." Brazil has installed many modern and innovative structures throughout the country, only to have them poorly operated, utilized or maintained. In the Parque da Cidade (City Park) of Brasilia, a beautiful wave-pool was installed to alleviate the beachlessness of this landlocked capital. Within a few years of its inauguration, it now lies beneath a luxuriant carpet of algae. A German-designed nuclear power plant is still in operation in Rio de Janeiro. After several decades, however, it has never produced more than a small-fraction of the power it was meant to generate. Then there is the Brazilian submarine that sank at the dock.

But these are the obvious, eye-catching items.

More interesting is going to the construction-site of a new house or apartment complex. Rebar, the steel reinforcement within concrete structures, has a slightly greater diameter than a drinking-straw here, as opposed to triple or more the thickness in U.S. design standards. The plumbing here is almost entirely of plastic, and people don't flush toilet paper after using it, but instead deposit it in a wastebasket with all the other previously used toilet paper. The reason for this is that the plumbing won't tolerate the bulk of toilet paper.

Beds here are similar, to "French beds", in that they lack a box-spring. The difference is that French beds are sturdy, while the Brazilian version supports its mattress on lattice not much thicker than a garden trellis. While it is possible to sleep on this arrangement if done delicately, with care; more strenuous activities commonly result in the need for repairs or a new bed. I personally know three active married couples that now sleep on the floor.

In a country that has a great need for locks on its doors, it is amazing that many doors are secured with mechanisms better suited for a screen door than a front door. It's the type of lock that you have to keep the key in at night, in case you need to make a quick exit because of a fire or other emergency.

Even the sub-culture here is affected by the "Quality is job 3,987-mentality". Instead of buying rolling papers to smoke marijuana, paper napkins are routinely used. The irony is that the paper napkins here are much better suited as rolling papers then as napkins.

In a moment of frustration and pique, I angrily responded, via e-mail, to anti-American propaganda that used some poorly crafted "documented proof". I wrote: "…if you wish to distribute disinformation, you should strive to produce something of higher quality, above the usual Brazilian standard of mediocrity".

If I wanted to make him as angry as he became, I should have just called his mother a "whore". Brasileiros in daily life complain continuously about shoddy Brazilian-workmanship, and the poor quality of national brands and services, yet, they are very sensitive to criticism from non-Brazilians. It's as if to say, "I can criticize my family, but nobody outside my family can do this in front of me," which is understandable.

To be fair, economics, of course, are a major determinant of standards everywhere in the world. You can only use, buy and provide the best that you can afford. But this doesn't explain the poor maintenance of public facilities, poor customer service in the retail sector, and the strong demand for premium-brand foreign products.

However, there are "islands of brilliance" in Brazilian manufacturing. The aircraft industry of Brazil is becoming increasingly renowned for its competitiveness, and well-designed products. And there are consumer goods, such as stoves and refrigerators that are manufactured in the Euro-centric south of Brazil, that are reliable and well suited to Brazilian needs. When it comes to traditional, handcrafted products such as rough-hewn furniture, objet d'art, and clothing the workmanship is quite often superior, as well as beautiful.

Brazilian media and Brazilian economists routinely point to the inadequacy of internal markets for Brazilian goods and services, as a major obstacle in advancing the Brazilian economy as a whole. One reason postulated for this state of affairs is the relationship between consumers and manufacturers in Brazil.

Each side holds the other in low esteem, with a lack of commitment to develop the other, while maintaining customary low expectations. It is a self-perpetuating, vicious-cycle.

The Brazilian manufacturers will produce "crap" because they think that this is all that masses can afford and because this is what the masses will accept. Those that demand, and can afford, better quality will, of course, buy anything stamped with "Made in USA, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, or UK."

And Brazilian shoppers, if given the opportunity and means, with few exceptions will pass over national goods because of their traditionally dubious reputation.

John Roscoe is a 43 year-old Hawaiian-American living in Brasília. He studied journalism and communications at the University of Hawaii and has written, folksy, feature-stories for small island newspapers, as well as résumés for all of his friends. He currently works as an English teacher and can be contacted at johnthemedic@hotmail 

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