By the seashore, Fortaleza - Brazil

Fortaleza - Brazil  31.07.2012

Today is last day of month. I could not avoid being astonished by a notice I read on a brazilian site today. See it below:

The market for pet dogs, cats and fishes is already generating more money in Brazil than one of the economy's most traditional industries, appliances. Sales of ovens, refrigerators and washing machines totaled R$17.9 billion in 2011, according to consultancy GfK. During the same period, the market for pet products and services reached R$18.2 billion in revenue, according to the Brazilian Association of the Pet Industry (Abinpet).
“Nobody can call our market superfluous anymore,” says José Edson Galvão de Grança, Abinpet's president. Proof of that is that the Agriculture Ministry just launched the Pet Sectoral Chamber to serve as direct communication link between businessmen and the government to discuss issues like regulation, public policies and tax costs (the industry pays up to 49% taxes on its products and services).

Wow! Brazilians are spending more on pets than on appliances! How on earth could this country be called a "poor and/or emerging nation"!? Indeed, we are literally superfluous in every aspect! Brazil has about 190 million inhabitants, from which over 35 millions live in poverty - yes, I said: poverty! On the other side, pets are treated far much better than humans! There might be something wrong! Yes, there is something terribly wrong: a human's heart! How to amend this broken-heart? A good beginning is the reading of the Bible and, as a consequence, the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.

To those who spend too much money on pets, I say: watch out! Pets have no soul; men do! You fellows have souls and God waits for you, on the day of judgement. It is a simple question of time...

Paulo Cesar Sampaio
Pastor/journalist
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