DieBruderschaft.com

RIO DE JANEIRO -- In the hills that hug Maracana Stadium, many Brazilians saw the flash and glitz of the opening ceremony for the Olympics from rooftops with exposed wiring and water pipes, amid trash-filled streets separated from the spectacle by a highway and train tracks.Mangueira is but one of the thousand favelas in Rio de Janeiro, a slum marred by gang violence and poverty that sits squarely in the shadow of the pageantry of South Americas first Olympic Games. In this neighborhood of tattered homes, the next two weeks are a visceral reminder of the lines dividing the citys haves and have-nots, and the opening gala just down the road punctuated those differences with every crackle and pop.The poor, we dont really get to experience the Olympics. We are close in distance, but far away, said Luiz Alberto Araujo, a 30-year-old doorman who works in the posh Ipanema beach but lives in the slums. We still have fun, but this party is for foreigners, for the rich.Araujo watched the gala from the rooftop of a lime green house high on a hill in Mangueira, occasionally staring in silence at the stadium where, inside, athletes and fans cheered a supermodel strolling across a stage and Grammy-winning musicians performing samba.Even from afar, the party was a momentary distraction for many of Mangueiras 40,000 or so souls, offering a brief respite from the countrys persistent economic and political woes.But they warned: Dont confuse temporary joy with lasting satisfaction.I like having my family over. Of course, it would be a lot better to be right there, Sandra Prado, a teacher, said as she pointed toward the Maracana. But those prices are impossible for us.Prado and her family invited Araujo and others to gather to watch the ceremony from a distance. They drank beer and shared fried snacks while their children stayed glued to a television screen, awed by the special effects and the acrobatics of the performers. At one point during the show, dancers jumped over colorful shacks -- meant to represent the citys slums -- and Araujo shouted: Its favela time! Now, we have to duck when theres a shooting.When a song they all knew was performed inside the stadium, the women gathered at Prados sang along: All I want is to be happy/ to roam free in the favela where I was born/ and to be proud/ and feel like us poor people have our own place.For the poor, the celebration that launched the coming competition was far out of reach financially. Ticket prices for the opening ceremony ranged from about $63 to $1,400. A minimum-wage worker in Brazil takes home some $55 a week.It is scandalous that ticket prices cater to very few higher-income residents and that the bulk of profits will leave the country, said Bruno Carvalho, a Princeton University professor and author of the book Porous City: A Cultural History of Rio de Janeiro. It was as if many Brazilians found out that they were hosting a global party to which only a select few had been invited.From a balcony in Mangueira, Adriana Santos, a 34-year-old dental secretary, celebrated the opening of the games with her sisters family and mother. Like many Brazilians who have protested for improvements in education and health care, Santos said her countrys leaders should focus on fixing economic woes rather than staging mega sporting events.Brazil is suffering its worst economic crisis in decades. Only two years ago, the nation also hosted the 2014 FIFA World Cup.Its not worth it, said Santos.Still, others couldnt help but feel a touch of pride when the stadium that serves as their backyard lit up in a stunning fireworks display. Many grabbed their smartphones and tried to shoot selfies with Maracana sparkling in the background, but most of the photos were too blurry or dark.Deisi Alves, a 46-year-old maid, said she would forever cherish watching the ceremony. She took it all in with her 19-year-old son and nieces in the living room of a home where half of the floor is tile, and the rest concrete or dirt.I know I am not there. With the money of one ticket, I could finish my home, she said. But at least I can watch it from here, with this view and my loved ones. Billy Turner Super Bowl Jersey .C. -- Todd Fiddler scored a hat trick, including the overtime goal, as the Prince George Cougars survived an 8-7 win against the Kamloops Blazers in Western Hockey League play Sunday. Marquez Valdes-Scantling Super Bowl Jersey . Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee? Green had bounced around the NBA when he wasnt playing overseas. The Pacers gave up on Plumlee after just one season. Now Green and Plumlee are key cogs in the Suns surprising breakout season. http://www.officialgreenbaypackerspro.com/Jason-spriggs-packers-jersey/ . Two pressure cooker bombs exploded near the finish line of the April 15 race in an area packed with fans cheering the passing runners. Three people were killed and more than 260 injured, including at least 16 who lost limbs. Bart Starr Super Bowl Jersey . -- Eastern Kentucky thrives off creating havoc for others. Aaron Jones Super Bowl Jersey .com) - The Montreal Canadiens embark on their first road trip of the season as they head out west to battle the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Toms Ready was the winner Saturday in the Grade 3, $100,000 Ack Ack at Churchill Downs, although perhaps the bigger story was the fourth-place finish for heavily favored Runhappy.Toms Ready, ridden by Brian Hernandez Jr., came from well off the pace to win the one-mile Ack Ack by a half-length over Iron Fist after Runhappy tired on the lead as the 3-10 favorite.Toms Ready, owned by GMB Racing of New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson, returned $11.80 as second choice in a field of six after finishing a mile in 1:34.86 over a track rated wet-fast. It was his second graded victory of the year, following the Grade 2 Woody Stephens at Belmont Park in June.I was pretty confident the whole way, Hernandez said.Trainer Dallas Stewart was in New York to saddle Forever Unbridled in the Grade 1 Beldame. He said later by phone that Toms Ready likely will make his next start in the Nov. 4 Breeders Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita.Meanwhile, an entourage of about two dozen people led by owner Jim Mattress Mac McIngvale and his sister-in-law, trainer Laura Wohlers, were on hand to cheer for Runhappy and came away visibly disappointed with the defeat. Making his first start in more than nine months, the 2015 Eclipse Award winner for top sprinter appeared very relaxed in settiing fractions of 23.dddddddddddd08, 45.95, and 1:10.22, but he had no punch in the final quarter mile, finishing 2-1/2 lengths behind the winner.Well, well just live to play another day, go back and regroup to square one, McIngvale said.Edgar Prado was in from Maryland to ride Runhappy.He relaxed nice and easy, Prado said. He was sharp, though, and he rated nice for me, so thats good.With Runhappy having been sidelined by minor injuries for much of the year, Wohlers was squeezing in a prep for the colt prior to the BC Dirt Mile. McIngvale already has paid $1 million for one of 12 spots in the Jan. 28 Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park for Runhappy.Toms Ready, a Pennsylvania-bred by More Than Ready, now has won three of 13 career starts and has earned $640,267. Stewart had considered bypassing the Ack Ack in favor of the $350,000 Kelso Mile next Saturday at Belmont before deciding to stay home following the colts latest breeze.I had never seen him work any better so I said, We need to run him right here, Stewart said.The $2 exacta (3-1) paid $45, the $1 trifecta (3-1-6) returned $117.90, and the 10-cent superfecta (3-1-6-5) was worth $32.19. ' ' '