ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with some general observations on certain dimensions of what could be called the “belief system” of the Brazilian military. The radicals stirred up feeling against his candidacy in the barracks, until a detail in the electoral legislation made him ineligible. In Brazil, the term “return to the barracks” has a metaphorical sense; the armed forces’ influence on the life of the country has always been so great that it might well be said that the military have literally never stayed in their quarters. Faced with lack of support from neutral generals, the coup faction might consider mobilizing subordinate or junior officers. The purpose of the comparative study of military institutions is to discover what is invariable in the conduct of the men who have donned uniforms under highly diverse social, economic, political, and cultural conditions. The nation is in the midst of a transition period, with a constitution bequeathed it by authoritarianism.
