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Brazil gets hot and bothered over erotic pastry shops

AFP

At a Rio de Janeiro pastry shop, customers are waiting in line to buy waffles — but the chocolate-covered treats come with a twist that is causing controversy in Brazil: they are shaped like penises.

Since the “Putaria” pastry shop opened last month in the upscale beach neighborhood of Ipanema, it has drawn a steady stream of titillated customers, but also disapproval from some neighbors, who have called in the authorities.

This week, the justice ministry’s consumer protection agency ordered the shop and similar businesses across the country to suspend sales to minors of “all products reproducing or suggesting the shape of human genitalia and/or body parts with a sexual, erotic or pornographic connotation.”

It also barred them from displaying the products in shop windows and ordered them to take down any signs with words or pictures referring to them.

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The shop already had a policy against selling to minors, anyway, says co-owner Juliana Lopes, who also has franchises in Lisbon and the Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte.

But having to cover up the sign outside the shop came as an “unpleasant surprise,” she told AFP.

“It made me sad. I knew some people might not like us — as with any business. But I didn’t think it would reach this point.”

The shop has placed pink cloth over its sign — matching the decor inside — but does not appear to have lost customers over the kerfuffle.

Inside, clients laughed and snapped pictures with the waffles of their choice — phalluses or vulva — against a backdrop of neon signs with phrases such as “Tastier than your ex.”

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“I don’t agree with the decision. It’s a business like any other,” said an elderly woman, Neusa, holding a freshly purchased penis shape.

“It’s just for fun, I think it’s great.”

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International

Paraguay summons Brazilian ambassador over Itaipú espionage scandal

Paraguay summoned the Brazilian ambassador in Asunción on Tuesday to demand “explanations” and called its own representative in Brasília for consultations following Brazil’s acknowledgment of an espionage operation. The Brazilian government, led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, attributed the operation to the previous administration.

The surveillance effort aimed to uncover Paraguay’s position in now-suspended negotiations with Brazil regarding the pricing of electricity from the binational Itaipú hydroelectric plant, according to reports in the Brazilian press.

The Brazilian government “categorically denied any involvement in the intelligence operation,” stating in a Foreign Ministry communiqué on Monday that the espionage was carried out under former President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration (2019-2023).

“The operation was authorized by the previous government in June 2022 and was annulled by the interim director of the (state intelligence agency) ABIN on March 27, 2023, as soon as the current administration became aware of it,” Brazil’s government asserted.

Paraguay’s Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez announced that Brazilian Ambassador José Antonio Marcondes de Carvalho was summoned “to provide detailed explanations” regarding the operation. Additionally, Paraguay recalled its diplomatic representative in Brasília “to report on aspects related to the intelligence activity conducted by Brazil regarding Paraguay’s government affairs.”

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International

Elon Musk to step down as government advisor, per Trump insiders

President Donald Trump has informed his inner circle that Elon Musk will be stepping down from his role as a government advisor, according to a report by Politico today.

Citing three individuals close to Trump, Politico states that the president is pleased with Musk’s leadership at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he has implemented significant budget cuts. However, both have agreed that it is time for Musk to return to his businesses and support Trump from a different position outside the government.

A senior administration official told Politico that Musk will likely maintain an informal advisory role and continue to be an occasional visitor to the White House. Another source warned that anyone thinking Musk will completely disappear from Trump’s circle is “deluding themselves.”

According to the sources, this transition is expected to coincide with the end of Musk’s tenure as a “special government employee,” a temporary status that exempts him from certain ethics and conflict-of-interest regulations. This 130-day period is set to expire in late May or early June.

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International

Milei vows to make Argentina so strong that Falkland Islanders “choose” to join

Argentine President Javier Milei reaffirmed his country’s claim over the Falkland Islands (known as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina) and praised the role of the nation’s armed forces during a ceremony marking the “Veterans and Fallen Soldiers of the Malvinas War Day,” commemorating 43 years since the 1982 conflict with the United Kingdom.

Argentina continues to assert sovereignty over the islands, arguing that Britain unlawfully seized them in 1833.

“If sovereignty over the Malvinas is the issue, we have always made it clear that the most important vote is the one cast with one’s feet. We hope that one day, the Malvinas residents will choose to vote with their feet and join us,” Milei stated.

“That is why we aim to become a global power—so much so that they would prefer to be Argentine, making deterrence or persuasion unnecessary. This is why we have embarked on a path of liberation, working to make Argentina the freest country in the world and once again the nation with the highest GDP per capita on the planet,” he added.

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