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Extra! New Petrobras Corruption Allegations Hit Brazil's Ruling Party

The fallout from the Petrobras scandal continues to consume Brazil. A former head of the energy giant has alleged that the governing Workers’ Party had received between $150 and $200 million in kickbacks from 90 of the biggest contracts Petrobras signed with major companies from 2003 until 2013, O Globo reports Friday.

According to the former executive, Pedro Barusco, at least $50 million of that sum passed through the hands of the Workers’ Party treasurer Joao Vaccari Neto. Vaccari was taken to a police station Thursday for questioning. He denies the accusations.

This tops a difficult week for Brazil's recently reelected president, Dilma Rousseff, who is also a former chairwoman of the company, and for the state-owned company, which saw its boss and five senior executives resign.

Read more about this topic with this America Economia/Worldcrunch piece: The Petrobras Scandal And The Future Of Brazilian Democracy

ABOUT THE SOURCE: O Globo is a nationwide newspaper based in Rio de Janeiro. It was founded in 1925 and is one of the cornerstones of the media conglomerate Organizações Globo, led by businessman Roberto Marinho.

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Society

Sleep Divorce: The Benefits For Couples In Having Separate Beds

Sleeping separately is often thought to be the beginning of the end for a loving couple. But studies show that having permanently separate beds — if you have the space and means — can actually reinforce the bonds of a relationship.

Image of a woman sleeping in a bed.

A woman sleeping in her bed.

BUENOS AIRES — Couples, it is assumed, sleep together — and sleeping apart is easily taken as a sign of a relationship gone cold. But several recent studies are suggesting, people sleep better alone and "sleep divorce," as the habit is being termed, can benefit both a couple's health and intimacy.

That is, if you have the space for it...

While sleeping in separate beds is seen as unaffectionate and the end of sex, psychologist María Gabriela Simone told Clarín this "is not a fashion, but to do with being able to feel free, and to respect yourself and your partner."

She says the marriage bed originated "in the matrimonial duty of sharing a bed with the aim of having sex to procreate." That, she adds, gradually settled the idea that people "who love each other sleep together."

Is it an imposition then, or an overwhelming preference? Simone says intimacy is one thing, sleeping another.

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