The sun still rises in Mexico, but far too many have lost their lives battling drug cartels.
“Mexico’s southern border awash in crime and violence” reads a headline in the Miami Herald. The article examines the alarming spread of crime and violence inspired by Mexican drug cartels into Guatemala and beyond.
The Mexican-Guatemala border is one I crossed myself back in 1999. We entered Guatemala via one of the more remote border crossings along the Usumacinta River, enroute from the Mayan ruins of Palenque in Southern Mexico, to the Mayan ruins of Tikal in Guatemala (both should be considered a “must see” for anyone who enjoys exploring ancient ruins).
I recall arriving at the border crossing fairly late in the evening, intent on catching the early morning “chicken bus” to Flores, the jumping off point to get to Tikal. When we arrived at the Guatemalan – Mexican border, the solo border control officer was asleep at his desk. He wasn’t embarrassed when we woke him up, he was annoyed.
So while the headlines about violence in Southern Mexico are alarmist by nature, it’s not hard to see why this remote area has become a trafficking point for drugs, humans, guns, and whatever else anyone feels like smuggling.
The problem is growing at a time when the bulk of Mexican security and military might is concentrated near the U.S. border, with ever fewer resources are being diverted to the southern border with Guatemala.
The big question is how far and how deep will the problems created by the Mexican drug cartels spread, not only within Mexico but elsewhere in the region.
Alvaro Colom, the President of Guatemala, claims that “either the countries of Central America join together to fight [the Mexican drug cartels] or they will defeat us and finish off our democracies”. This statement does not exactly exude confidence… in a world where most politicians usually promise “everything is under control”, Guatemala’s president is sounding the “Code Red” alarm bells.
The reality is, most of the population in Central America is still struggling to eke out a life of poverty, and security forces in the region are underfunded when compared to the financial prowess of the drug cartels.
Unlike China or India, where vast economic expansion has helped millions of peasants move off the farm and into better paying city jobs, most Central American businesses cannot compete with ultra low production costs on a global scale. It’s probably cheaper to make a pair of tennis shoes in China and ship it to the U.S. than it is to make a pair in Guatemala, even though it’s only a stone’s throw away by comparison.
Unfortunately, Mexican drug cartels are one of few groups who offer a “way out” for a lot of struggling Guatemalan youth whose prospects for a stable, well paying job are slim to none. In Guatemala and throughout Central America, there are a lot of people looking for a “way out” of poverty and underemployment, so it is easy to see how this situation plays into the hands of the cartels.
To demonstrate how lost our politicians are on deriving an effective policy to deal with this situation, the Clinton administration declared a war on drugs back in the 1990s, but targeted Colombia as the battlefield. By many measures, they won the battle… Colombia has enjoyed a sustained bout of stability and prosperity. But the war rages on… the guns and violence associated with the drug trade has simply shifted north.
The new battlefield for the war on drugs is much, much closer to home, just south of the U.S. border. Moving the battle closer to home can hardly be considered a success.
Of course, government war mongers would never look at the demand side of the equation – it’s easier to ignore the glaring reality that the majority of illegal drug consumers are inside the United States.
It’s also ironic that most of the guns found in possession by the Mexican drug lords and their minions are made in the USA.
So let’s get this straight… the drugs are consumed in the U.S., the guns are made in the U.S., but the bloodshed is the fault of insufficiently funded Mexican and Central American security forces. And the farmers in South America who grow these plants – they aren’t really drugs yet like the ones our doctors prescribe – is it THEIR fault for growing a product to sell to a willing consumer?
To complete the irony, we have the USA – a country on the verge of bankruptcy, one that cannot pay its bills, and must continue to raise its debt ceiling to be able to afford the interest payments on its massive and growing debt. A country where the single biggest issue splitting the government into two warring tribes is how to get its financial house in order to stave off bankruptcy… a country where the best solution the politicians have found so far is to print enough money to (hopefully) inflate away the debt (while simultaneously erasing the value of its citizens savings and the purchasing power of their pension receipts).
The solution could not be more clear – the U.S. should legalize and tax the cocaine industry, and the marijuana industry, effective immediately. Not only would south of the border hostilities end, but the U.S. government and the U.S. tax payer would receive a much needed windfall in the form of tax revenues.
This new tax revenue from the real economy (not money merely printed by the FED) could be used to move government spending from deficit to surplus, with the proceeds re-invested in education and health care prevention and other areas that require reform.
For those of you who think our society would deteriorate into chaos caused by drug-using maniacs as a result of drug legalization, I strongly disagree. First, because we already have those maniacs around us today anyway, and second, because the drugs Big Pharma legally panders on national TV and over the counter at pharmacies are equally detrimental.
Under a drug legalization policy, irresponsible people will still be irresponsible, and responsible people will still be responsible, but least the American tax payer is being compensated for tolerating irresponsible people. As it is now, our society actually pays for the tracking and jailing of drug using criminals, and the typical prisoner is more expensive to maintain than welfare payments to a struggling but law abiding family of four in inner city Detroit.
But until something radical changes at the political level, the problems in Mexico and Guatemala will get worse, and they could easily spread deeper into Central America.
And the U.S. debt problem will get worse too, until the debt ceiling Congress is unable to impose, is imposed by the markets instead through higher interest rates. If we keep the status quo, the middle class of America “loses”, with the only winners being the drug cartels, and the dealers on the streets of U.S.A.
The other winners, of course, are the banking elite who siphon illicit gains by gambling with billions of dollars in free Federal loans that are pumped into the system to keep us out of recession and our debts to China paid in full.
Whenever I’ve seen this debate on public television, most people outright dismiss the idea of legalizing drugs as a solution of any sort. Politicians are terrified of even considering the subject for fear of losing credibility and destroying their career forever. I’m curious to hear your opinions… feel free to comment below…
legalize all drugs and let the stupid people commit suicide by using them. You cannot what these idiots do anyway. Take the market out of it and the crime will almost go away when the profit of selling it goes away also. Sure these people will inially go mad and be unreal levels of drug induced deaths but that is what it will take to get this society under control. Let the stupid ones kill themselves off and if they commit crimes against others while on these drugs then they do deserve the strict jail times for hurting people who choose not to be involved. Otherwise we go back to population control through our governments use of warfare wever it wants and for what ever reason it wants keep the population in check so others don’t see we really are just a third world country slowly losing control of it’s power to do anything. It’s already lost most of it’s respect in the international community. I would guess totally lack of control and total backrupcy would be next.
Let the illegal drug users have there drugs legally. It will just be that much quicker we reduce our population problem which has until now been controlled through warfare. If the dumb want to give up their lives to drugs let them. If there acts while on them harm others them put them away where they would rightfully belong by hurting others.
“Clinton administration declared a war on drugs back in the 1990s”
Actually, it was Nixon who declared the War on Drugs in 1971.
You are absolutely right but being absolutely right counts for nothing in U.S. politics. Self-interest rules. There are too many individuals(LEOs), private companies, and governmental agencies at all levels making a living off the prohibition of drugs. It’ll never happen so why even dsicuss it.
The name of the BATFE sting operation is Project Gunrunner. Interesting that all but one of the replies, and that one admitting that they agreed with the first part of the story, is pro-legalization. The problem is that government is going to fight tooth and nail to keep the war on drugs going. The feds and the states get a lot of revenue from busting non-violent drug users and without that revenue which is in effect a “fear tax” they are going to have a lot harder time keeping their little “empire” going.
I agree totally. Vices should be up to an individual. Alcohol can be a killer to some…as well as cigarettes…yes and drugs. No one has the power to stop people from doing what they want to do. Legalize drugs and it will benefit the country and people with common sense will do whats right and will help people make the right decisions. Laws do not work. They just cost taxpayers more and more money.
Yes, definitely legalize marijuana and then legalize the rest.
Have faith in people to make their own choices.
The author’s blaming Americans for the cartels’ illegal activities reminds me of the Opium Wars in China. England used that very same excuse to FORCE open the Chinese market so that Chinese addicts could have their drug.
Somehow that argument didn’t convince the Chinese.
I think you have hit the nail on the head.
It is so logical and sensible that it likely will not be accepted by politicians and/or anyone else in charge of making the necessary decisions.
Hi Art,
I just posted (from right here in Panama) an article on drug legalization. It also discusses, more broadly and more importantly, how we draw conclusions about our world. Take a look:
http://laiglesforum.com/global-leaders-want-felons-decriminalized/2536.htm
The guns being purchased in the US is mostly a canard – to the extent that the BATF recently had a program/scandal (the name escapes me)to actually approve illegal sales and try to track the guns into Mexico for mostly political purposes. Resulting in the death of a US Border patrolman by one of the subject guns.
The greatly increased armament of the gangs is fully automatic military type stuff (also grenade launchers etc.)not available OTC in the US. Mostly AK-74 types from the international black market (bulk sales) and M-16 types often absconded with from the (Mexican) military. The idea that big time drug gangs will be onesy-twosying semi-auto rifles and pistols in any meaningful way is ridiculous. They have known ties to terrorist(e.g. Hezbollah)at this point and have no shortage of cash or bartering goods.
Further to my comment earlier, if anyone wants to sign a worthy petition to stop the war on drugs, here’s the link:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/end_the_war_on_drugs/?rc=fb&pv=35
Recall to the decade-long history of Prohibition in the 1920′s — it failed miserably. Recall too the Mob growth and the black market that evolved — big money was made and fear on the streets of major U.S. cities took root. Fear mongers convinced the U.S. public that legalizing alchol would surely lead to depravity, social chaos, and complete collapse. Legalizing drugs today, all of them, will resolve the reign of terror by drug cartels — the profit motive will move to thousands of ‘legitimate’ pharmacies. Drug addicts should be issued very low/no cost supply to remove their crime motive. Negotiate with financial-aid recipient countries to establish low-cost rehab centers where convicted addicts are sentenced to “rehab” and manual labor — no release and no return to the U.S. without a one-year addiction free blood tests. Three stikes your out laws should prevail.
I think there is a movement to legalize marijuana which I would be in favor of for all the reasons you have suggested.
But there is no point in adding cocaine to your argument at this point even if valid. It just would not fly.
One thing at a time. If marijuana were legalized and once that works out then maybe they would look at something like cocaine.
Any time there fast sums of money, however, there is corruption and I would not be surprised to see the drug cartels use their influence and power to prevent any legalization.
I agree 100% until we take the profit out of the drug trade by legalizing and controling the use of drugs in the US, this problem will never go away. We cannot solve a peoblem by hiding our heads in the sand.
When you consider that the majority of property crimes and a large portion of the crimes against persons are caused by the addict who needs his or her
drugs, the problem cannot be ignored much longer.
These comments are by a former narcotics enforcement
officer who has worked at the federal and local level.
I have seen it all and realize that a solution needs to be found, quickly!
BLK
The legalizing of drugs is absolutely one of the first steps necessary to solve the violence problem we have with Mexico, not to mention the fact that no State has the right to dictate morality (not that they can, anyway, but they sure try hard and create a lot of misery in the process). It is true that American demand, and American guns, create the problem, yet all the demonization is toward those terrible Mexicans (or formerly, Colombians)! We could probably reduce our prison population by 30-40% if we released all the drug-related non-victim offenders. Of course, at the heart of all the real problems are the fact we have an immoral Federal Reserve (owned by the Rothschild Klan) and a bloated federal state (that only knows how to coerce, steal, and lie), so all we get are politicians (whores, really) who just seize power and try to force their agenda on others. Liberty is the answer, and liberty comes from getting the State out of the way, and letting people run their own lives. We only need to deal with those that infringe on the rights of others to pursue their own dreams. Legalizing all drugs and putting them into the real economy is an excellent idea. . . . and yes, Big Pharma creates more havoc for MORE PEOPLE with the filth that they dispense on a regular basis – and all with the blessings of the Food and Death Administration!
We tried prohibition with alcohol. It did not work. When will we learn from history and legalize and tax drugs. Then maybe we can help people not get on drugs. But what we do is try to get people to stop smoking and to stop eating the wrong (in some peoples minds) the wrong foods. Why don’t we recognize the real problems instead of the ones tha sound good and don’t hurt a persons image.
It is funny just how many times recently these sorts of articles about legalising (or at least decriminalising) drugs of various types have started popping up again.
As you correctly say Michael, this issue is, and has been for a very long time, a complete no-brainer. The War on Drugs has demonstrably FAILED. So what’s next?
Continuing this phoney “WAR” serves only to increase prison populations, enrich weapons manufacturers, increase murders and mayhem, decrease drug quality/integrity, and increase the prices of said poor-quality material to ridiculous levels, which in turn keep motivating and sustaining the cartels and dealers in general to continue playing “the game.”
The irony is that it is now far too big a deal for these politicians to just admit the War on Drugs is a complete and utter misguided policy failure which has no hope of ever working (much like prohibition didn’t work, with the Mafia rapidly becoming wealthier than the US Govt back in the 20′s). Into the bargain this WAR criminalises an entire group of people (users) for what is in effect, a personal choice, and a victimless crime.
I even wrote a satirical article in Australia more than seven years ago for a street press magazine pointing out the ridiculousness of the War on Drugs … especially in light of the fact that by far the two most dangerous and societally damaging drugs (alcohol and tobacco) are legal.
I am not a great fan of cocaine and other damaging drugs such as crystal-meth, crack etc. They can be fun, but the average person does not have either the willpower or the ability to responsibly limit their usage, and therefore cannot limit the damage they will then cause to that person’s life-work-relationship balances etc.
I am however, a great believer in the Entheogenic range of “drugs” such as MDMA, LSD and their more organic cousins Peyote, San-Pedro, Ayahuasca, Salvia-Divinorum, DMT etc. Entheogens, when properly prepared and used are a sacred means by which humanity can spiritually re-appraise itself from a less cluttered perspective. They strip away all of the socially-contrived and essentially unimportant bullshit we have created, and leave us with a sense of the divine both within ourselves and around us within nature. From this perspective we are often able to more clearly see not only what ails us, but what ails our planet.
In this way, it would APPEAR the politicians from the sixties onwards have thrown the baby out with the bathwater. But just wait one moment. There could be another, altogether more sinister reason for the Entheogens particularly, to have been so quickly banned by “the powers that be” whenever they raised their heads. I certainly believe this to be the case. To illustrate this point, let’s go back to the late sixties when the counter-culture was at its peak and when Richard Nixon once described Timothy Leary as “the most dangerous man in America.” At the time, not many people really questioned the WHY of a statement like that, other than to assume that it was because “LSD is evil, and that Timothy Leary being its champion in the day, must also be evil.” The truth, as ever, is a little more complex.
Now, as it was then, our industrialised and hierarchical society which sustains the elites at the top of the pyramid, relies on its “worker drones” to get up early each day and put in their time in the factory/cubicle or whatever to keep the big societal/industrial machine running smoothly. And now, as was the case then, the vast majority of the public believe in this system, primarily because they do not have a frame of reference which can admit any alternatives to that system exist, or could exist.
The remarkable and beautiful truth however, is that Entheogens can open that perception-gap, and ALLOW their users to see other more fulfilling alternatives to their current “reality.” During Tim Leary’s era, after experiencing LSD for the first time and having an absolutely ecstatic experience, many folks literally “woke-up” and realised that they had effectively wasted thirty years of their lives in a factory, when originally they had wanted to be a singer, or an artist, or live simply in the forest (or whatever). They then immediately QUIT their boring soul-destroying job and started exploring other creative alternatives to bring them fulfilment in their lives.
It is critical to understand that these people simply would not have broken free of the Machine, WITHOUT the assistance of, and confidence provided by, the Entheogenic experience. It is also important to note that if enough people were to ”turn-on” in this way, and then throw their day jobs away and focus on other things, the Machine immediately begins to break down as a result of all its little “cogs” misbehaving or disappearing. I believe THIS is the possibility which so frightened Nixon and other government officials back in Leary’s day. They could see only anarchy … a massive threat to the established order. I believe that is why Entheogens (and drugs per-se, with the exception of alcohol and tobacco) have been unjustly vilified since then. And I believe that is why our governments of today, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, cannot bring themselves to reverse the incredibly damaging “war on drugs” and start legitimising some of these substances. They are simply too scared of the spiritual revolution which will, by and of its very nature, destabilise the foundations of worker-drones upon which our industrialised economies and their elite vested are currently dependent.
So there’s the depressing reality. I don’t expect half the readers here will necessarily understand or appreciate the intricacies of this argument, nor do I expect them to necessarily understand that it is critically important to distinguish between the benefits of some classes of drug (such as the Entheogens) versus the negatives of some of the others (stimulants such as speed or cocaine or depressants such as alcohol).
What is undeniable however, is that governments are running out of excuses for legitimising many of these substances. The general public (hopefully) cannot be fooled forever, and (hopefully) will refuse to be treated like kindergarten children forever. So, in closing we can only hope that good sense will eventually prevail (probably not in my lifetime however), and that humanity ultimately moves through a sort of evolutionary leap with the help of Entheogens. Such an Entheogen-assisted leap of consciousness might just help save us (and the planet) from ourselves.
Interesting concept. This artical was just published on Yahoo today….
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/high-level-commission-calls-drug-war-failure-recommends-112019770.html
I like your website, keep up the good work!
Thank you. Excellent. This is a no-brainer. (And I don’t use drugs.)
I live in Mexico and had for many years. I love it! The north of Mexico is in shambles and the madness is spreading. I agree that the ONLY solution is legalization. I watch the Sopranos on DVD and can’t help not see the incredible similarities to the cartels. By legalizing drugs, those who financially benefit will have to be exposed or loose their incomes. I’m talking about US banks, politicians, police, FBI, etc. But the new money flow could be used to get the US solvent, something I’m not sure is possible at this point.
I’ll stay in Mexico where I, at least, know who the bad guys are.
I suspect it would also significantly reduce the growing problem of drug usage in Central American countries, as this problem seems to be worst in those areas where these drugs are en route to the US.
Amen!
Legalize Cocaine? Are you Nuts or just a Raving Lunatic? Your article was right on point until you say legalize Cocaine.
Agreed: Legalize Drugs and Tax. The problem is too many groups in American society are against this idea and will block any legislation: Conservative churches and the religous right, minority leaders fearful drugs will drown their communities, socially conservative Republicans etc.
Too true. The united States is bankrupting it self policing the world and neglects the close to home problems. I am not a drug user, but see the problem all around.