Brazilian President defends $11 billion choice

The world may be ready for the June 12 opening game of the 2014 World Cup, but those living in the host country, Brazil, in this case, do not appear to be ready.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Brazil is a country famous for its love of soccer, but that love is impossible to detect as the country has suffered countless riots since the beginning of the year over the games.

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The Brazilian government has spent $11 billion on these games, constructing 12 stadiums for the event, and the nation's population of almost 200 million is not happy. Why is the money going to this game when people are starving, homeless or living in slums, education is non-existent for some and numerous public works projects have been stalled or cancelled.

Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff says her country is ready, and blames the riots on a few "pessimists" in a TV address to her nation.

In the address she rejected criticism of overspending, and claiming that the tournament would leave a lasting legacy for the Brazilian people.

Rousseff defended her $11 billion expenditure, blaming this "false dilemma" on the rioters.

"Rest assured of this, the World Cup accounts are being meticulously scrutinized by the country's auditing institutions," she said.

Fears are growing that some of the stadiums will not be ready by the time of the opening match between Brazil and Croatia at the Itaquerao stadium in the outskirts of Sao Paulo, and work continues to be done less than 48 hours before the match.

Metro workers have been on strike off and on in the last few weeks, and their Union promises that they will continue to do so. More than 150,000 police and military forces, with brand new uniforms and gear, have been deployed to the areas.

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