Brazil’s President Hand-Picks Men-Only Cabinet — Including a Science Minister Who’s a Creationist

Via the National Post:

The new Brazilian president’s first pick for science minister was a creationist. He [also] chose a soybean tycoon who has deforested large tracts of the Amazon rain forest to be his agriculture minister. And he is the first leader in decades to have no women in his Cabinet.

Luckily, President Michel Temer‘s intended appointment of evangelical pastor Marcos Pereira to the science post went nowhere, so

He named Pereira trade minister instead. Then, to the dismay of leaders in Brazil’s scientific community, Temer merged the ministries of Science and Communications.

From Creationist pastor to the government’s top science boss trade honcho. Cut him some slack, they all involve running a ministry. How hard can it be?

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I thought I recognized “Marcos Pereira” — hadn’t I written about this guy? Well, sure ’nuff. A Brazilian pastor by that name was arrested three years ago for the rape of six girls and women. The U.K. Times claimed that that Pereira told his victims that

… they were possessed and could only be purified by sex with a holy man [such as himself].

Let’s hope that his cabinet-level namesake won’t need God-ordered sex purifications to be successful at his job.

(Image via Wikipedia)