BigPicture: Mexico’s Drug War
March 26th, 2009Via: Boston Globe:
In December of 2006, Mexico’s new President Felipe Calderón declared war on the drug cartels, reversing earlier government passiveness. Since then, the government has made some gains, but at a heavy price – gun battles, assasinations, kidnappings, fights between rival cartels, and reprisals have resulted in over 9,500 deaths since December 2006 – over 5,300 killed last year alone. President Barack Obama recently announced extra agents were being deployed to the border and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton heads to Mexico today to pursue a broad diplomatic agenda – overshadowed now by spiraling drug violence and fears of greater cross-border spillover. Officials on both sides of the border are committed to stopping the violence, and stemming the flow of drugs heading north and guns and cash heading south.
I heard Hillary was blaming Americans drugg appetite for all the trouble with Mexico. Decriminalization would kill the profit motive, which is the only reason anyone deals druggs; anyone.
It’s a bit late, I know, but I’d like to share this Link nevertheless. It’s a letter from the Mexican Ambassador to Russia to the Pravda on the “mexican drug war” media hype.
http://english.pravda.ru/opinion/feedback/107298-0/