Tag: Mexico

From the AP:

The number of homicides in Mexico rose by nearly a quarter in 2010 compared to the year before as the drug war intensified across the country, Mexican statisticians said Thursday.

The National Institute of Statistics and Geography recorded 24,374 homicides over the course of last year, a 23 percent increase from 19,803 in 2009. Last year’s figure represented 22 killings for every 100,000 residents in the country.

Another way to look at this: Mexico’s homicide rate is still about half of Baltimore’s.

I’m back from Mexico City, happy to have been there. No, I didn’t get sick (or mugged). Yes, I ate everything (including grasshopper quesadillas, which I can say are tasty, but it’s still best not to lift the tortilla and look at the critters melted in with the cheese). But I’m also happy to be back at low altitude. Seriously, it’s strange and disconcerting to feel out of breath while doing nothing. Also of note: it’s the first trip I’ve ever taken where I didn’t, not even once, hear “Hotel California.”

Back home, I’m greeting with this BBC headline: “Mexico poet Javier Sicilia leads anger at drug violence.” No, I’ve never heard of him, but he’s taken up the cause following his son’s murder:

His harsh criticism of what he calls President Felipe Calderon’s “stupid strategy” to fight drug cartels has resounded with large sections of Mexican society who are increasingly frustrated by the rising violence in many parts of the country.
…
More and more innocent civilians like his son are being killed as “collateral damage of the drugs war”, Mr Sicilia believes. So he focuses his criticism on President Calderon’s strategy.

“I think Felipe Calderon is responsible for launching a war in a stupid way,” he says, combining rage with frustration.

“What this war has done is allow the corruption of institutions which had been taking place for years to emerge, but leaving those institutions completely defenceless to face organised crime.”
…
President Calderon – who received Mr Sicilia at the presidential palace after the murders – made an overt reference to the issue in the wake of the demonstrations.

“Let us not be confused,” said Mr Calderon at a lunch with business leaders earlier this month.

“We should say ‘Enough!’ to the criminals who kidnap and murder. They are the enemy, not those who fight against them,” he added.

At what point do people in power ever admit: “Maybe, just maybe, what we’re doing isn’t working.” Remember, when Calderon took office, there were about two deaths each day related to the drug war. Now, after five years of “getting tough” and ramping up the drug war, there are more than 40drug-war deaths each day.

At least when it comes to our guns and demand for drugs. Calderon and Obama met, and seemed to accomplish nothing.

Of course the border can’t be sealed, not if we want free trade. So we’ll keep getting their drugs, because we want them and have money. And they’ll keep getting our guns, because they want them and have money. That’s the way the free market works.

In a show of confidence in Calderon’s efforts, the Obama administration said it would continue to send aid to support Mexico in the drug war. A senior administration official said the U.S. plans to speed up implementation of the $1.4 billion Merida Initiative, with $900 million to be doled out by the end of the year.

I didn’t realize that we haven’t actually honored our word to give them the money we promised to give, back in 2006. That was when we told then President Fox that we would give him billions if only he backed down from his rational idea to end the drug war. He did. We didn’t. “Here’s your money… Psych!” What a sucker. He believed us!

I imagine it went something like this. Let’s pretend Fox’s first name were Bob, and that he’s a fan of country andwestern music. The US “Good Ole Boys” of A are like The Blues Brothers. The location, naturally, is the Bunker Country de Bob:

Mexico: You know you boys owe me a lot over money for that war on drugs you want me to fight goddamnit.

US: We loved playing here. My brother’s writing out an American Express travellers cheque to cover the extensive tab.

Mexico: Well, I sure would appreciate it.

US: I’d better check up, see how he’s doing, see I have to sign it too. I usually sit in the car and write it out on the glove compartment lid. Okay?

[US walks towards the car and feels jacket pockets.]

US: Need a Pencil!

[US get in the car, quickly starts it and zooms off toward the border.]

Mexico: Them boys owe me 1.4 billion dollars!

US: Our lady of blessed acceleration don’t fail me now.

The drug war got ramped up and turned Northern Mexico into a killing zone.

Today’s article also says that current President Calderon has been worried that “politicians could be tempted to return to a tacit policy of tolerating the gangs.” Short of legalizing and ending the drug war, isn’t that we want? Then at least we might be able to turn back the clock to 2006 before all this deadly nonsense, when there were just a few hundred prohibition deaths each year.

In response, lawmakers in Mexico have called for the banning of… a video game.

Meanwhile, the NRA kills a law aimed at limiting gun running to Mexico.

If the rising death toll was a sign in 2009 that drug gangs were weakening, what does the rising death toll say about how weak the drug gangs must be in 2011? 40 deaths in one weekend in one city?! Victory must be very very near.

For the victory party, I’ve already got my cervesa, my “misión cumplida” banner, and my Chapo Guzmán piñata all ready to go. You just bring the guacamole and tell me when to cue the mariachi band. Because man, we’re going to have ourselves one craaazy fiesta loca!

Ay yi yi.