Just read the article that the general reaction to the troops being deployed in Rio is favorable with a dramatic drop in crime.  If accurate, that is good to hear.  I am generally uncomfortable with the military being deployed domestically for law enforcement purposes in any country.  Apparently, attitudes have changed since the days of the dictatorship in Brasil.

Brasilian Troops Reduce Crime in Occupied Favelas (click here)

The problem has historically been the military's fear that their troops will get dragged into the general corruption if they were to occupy the favelas.

Also, face reality folks: there is no such animal as "paralel power" here. Everytime the Brazilian army has decided to occupy a favela, they've done it quickly and competently and with relatively few deaths. They are not undergunned and do not need more equipment or training for this mission. The firepower of the drug gangs here in town is HIGHLY over-rated when compared to that which the army controls.

So why don't they just occupy the favelas all the time, you ask? Because what are they going to DO there? The Brazilian state simply can't afford to include the favelas into the general urban network. Folks ther pay too little taxes to fund the necessary infrastructure. Keeping troops in the field COSTS and who, exactly, is going to pay those costs?

This is why the Brazilian state CHOOSES to ignore the favelas unless something outrageous occurs. They have not been "pushed out" by the drug dealers, they've turned their backs and walked away.

I suggest that anyone who's interested in a decent view of favela life and politics read "Abusado" by Caco Barcellos, rather than the sensationalist ans wildly innaccurate Globo, or the foreign newspapers that use Globo as a primary source.