Professor Elam

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Weekend Update

From the SA newspaper

Assasins have killed more than 11,000 people amid Mexico's 30 month campaign against organzied crime.

The this unbelievable comment about a 30 year old priest shot in the back this past week. 

This is the  beginning an indication that they (the gangsters) do not respect anything. Comment by another priest

The beginning, what about the 11,000? There is no real legal system in Mexico, judges are regularly bribed which is why the outlaws operate so brazenly, they know nothing will happen to them. Apparently the drug trade is everything it is touted to be in the movies, one gets filthy stinking rich if one lives thru the ordeal. 

Meanwhile in Afghan we have given up on whatever the last plan was to squash the opium trade, Let's see, you and I are Afghans, we can grow opium or pistachio nuts, what shall we do….

But I digress. We should be focused on Mexico.   Legalizing at least marijuana as FDR repealed Prohibition would be a start, unless one takes the money out of the drug trade, no telling how high the body count will rise. And of course that would be the real way to defeat the taliban in Afghan, take away the money.   Does anyone really think the Mexican govt will dissuade the murderers of 11,000- people?

The population of Mexico is expected to rise from the current 45 M to much higher levels. THere is not an existing economic structure to support almost any population increase. 

WE cannot hope to build an economy in a country brutalized by open warfare with no real legal system. 

OH, your tax dollars at work dept….
The governors of Tx, Az, CA NMx want help on the border
Gates at the Penatgon does not want a permanent military on the border.
Napolitano at Homeland Security requested Nat Guard when Gov of AZ and now she disagrees with Gates
Meanwhile Obama wants Congress to spend $250 M to send troops while saying he does not 'want to militarize the border.' Folks I am not making this stuff up, see page 16A in the paper today.

Anyway, the goal of NAFTA was a free trade zone in the Americas which if you look at Laredo has increased trade. But hard to see how things are going to work out at this rate, I am not planning any trips to Mexico, are you?  Would you locate a manufacturing business in Mexico, don't worry it is just the outlaws killing outlaws…..

I report, you decide. 

 
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21 responses to “Weekend Update”

  1. Harrison Belt Avatar
    Harrison Belt

    A few years ago my father was auditing a French company’s manufacturing plant based in Nuevo Laredo and had to be escorted every morning over the border by armed gaurds in bulletproof cars. When I asked my father why they would build a plant there he said it was because with enough bribes the Mexican government did not care what kind of ecological impact that the plant would have and that most countries would never let them in. What goes on south of us can be a real problem sometimes

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  2. vince Avatar
    vince

    I believe that the one way to put and end to the drug cartel and the drug wars is to bombard them with military force. But i guess that will not happen until something really trajic happens to an amercian official or someone of significant importance. I guess we would have helped Mexico out in putting an end to their drug problems if we had interest, just like we are doing now in the middle east(oil).

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  3. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    This is precisely why Gates wants no part of this. South American countries are notorious for mixing military with police matters giving the military control over the civilian population.
    Johnny Depp’latest movie is apparently an artistic take on the Dillinger story. I cannot imagine Dillinger conceiving of killing 11,000 people. Yet that is what has happened. Just how would this military force differentiate between the outlaws and the innocent. How indeed would this be enforced short of a total police state. Gates understands that.

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  4. Felix Duque Avatar
    Felix Duque

    I am very familiar with these things that are happening in Mexico. I used to live over there, and it is sad to know that the place that you grew up at, is now a war zone basically. I have family over there and I go visit them when I can, and let me tell you it is scary. The police cannot do anything, what can a police man do with old rusty gun, compared to the automatic weapons that the drug dealers carry, guns that they mainly got from Texas. That’s right from Texas, if you don’t believe me read the following article.
    http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/mexico/Texas_top_source_for_smugglers.html
    Anyways, about the corruption in Mexico, it has always been there, but I believe that before there was corruption because some of the police members did not care about ethics, they just wanted to get money, but I honestly believe that now it is more about life and death. If any local police officer shows any opposition, they will end up dead.
    This is sad….

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  5. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    Felix
    A good perspective. The guns are the derivative of the problem, any war zone be it Afghan, Iraq, Viet Nam spawns a black market in weapons. The problem is an unrealistic drug law and the inability to enforce it. I wrote a paper on drugs in 1968. Back then it was the Turkish and Greek police that were corrputed by the drug dealers as the stuff worked its way through the Mediterrean. It is the worst of both worlds for the rest of us here is why.
    On the one hand the police get more funding, larger departements, etc to ‘fight’ drugs. This never works. On the other hand the drug lords pay the police to look the other way while landing various small dealers to show they are doing something.

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  6. Felix Duque Avatar
    Felix Duque

    The problem is that the police in Mexico hardly make any money, their salary is ridiculous.
    So the question is what should a police man do..
    Let’s put it in perspective…
    Door # 1…. Live and get some decent money..
    Door # 2…. Oppose and Die
    Which door would you choose? I would choose door #1. I think that money is not the important part here, is the fact that I want to live, and I would not want anything bad to happen to my family..

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  7. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    Now the crooks have the sort of money that a Dillinger or Capone could not imagine in their wildest dreams. The solution then as now was to eliminate the way to generate that kind of money.

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  8. Maria C. Avatar
    Maria C.

    What is crazy is that even some of our so called border patrol who are being paid practically a free salary are also corrupted, there has been so many recent cases of bribery. They should be the ones stationed at the border and not just be driving around in areas that they are not even needed. When other law enforcement call them to come and pick up illegals they give them the run around and don’t want to come out for them so what is the use in having border patrol if they are not going to do their jobs.

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  9. Rick Avatar
    Rick

    Actually a couple of years back, one of my uncles got arrested and was jailed in Nuevo Laredo for about 6 months. I’m sure it has gotten worse and I’m glad he’s back with us.

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  10. Trevor Avatar
    Trevor

    with all that has been going on i am not sure that anyone is going to do anything right now, the U.S is to worried about whats going on over seas plus you have to think about what the border patrol is being faced with if these drug dealers are not afraid to kill a priest then what makes you think for a second that they are not going to kill a border patrol agent for getting in there way? im sure the border patrol is taking bribes there is no question about it but look at it this way would you rather get killed for getting in someones way or get paid to stay out of there way? now i am not saying that it is right but just think about it!

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  11. Mary Jane Chavarria Avatar
    Mary Jane Chavarria

    I have family that lives in Acuna and its the border town of Del Rio. I’ve heard from my uncle that the corrupted police officer take bribes from the gansters so they can spare their lifes. The laws in Mexico do not exist but as long as you have money to pay this is your survival security.

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  12. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    All of you have made constructive comments about this important issue, it is of concern to all of us, thanks.

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  13. Tammy Salinas Avatar
    Tammy Salinas

    Now that I think of it..I was in Del Rio about a month ago and I saw so many police officers just driving around the town. I wonder if any of them are corrupt since they are just right there. PLus for a town to be so small, I saw many many For Escalades and Cadillac cars on 24’s and big high off road trucks. Now I know why. And these were all brand new vehicles. Tons of them.
    Its sad , Im sure Washington wont really be worried about it until it gets closer to their border I’m sure.

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  14. Richard Delgado Jr Avatar
    Richard Delgado Jr

    This battle has been going on for years. I have family that lives in Mexico and this has been apart of our lives. You can stop it due to the fact that some of the elected officials, along with some of the police are involved. In Mexico, along with every other country money talks. If you have the right amount most people will do what you want. If you do not then the fear of being killed will surely change your mind.

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  15. Josefina Castillo Avatar
    Josefina Castillo

    I think the whole situation is horrific. 11,000 people DEAD….that is just crazy to think about, innocent men, women, and children slaughtered for what, money, drugs. This is just crazy to fathom, how many more people have to die before any change is made. My friend has most of her family in Juarez, and everyday she tells me of how a different family got slaughtered for no apparent reason. This is ridiculous, something needs to be done. They are our neighbors, and if this begins to spill over, it is definitely going to get out of hand, more than it already is. The reason, I think America should step in (I don’t usually agree with the US getting involved) is because we are the cause to the effect. Where do you think these Mexican cartel are purchasing these automatic weapons and who buys their drugs…US. I don’t mean to go off on a crazy rant, but it just hurts to think of all of those innocent people being massacred over nothing.

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  16. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    Again the solutino is to remove the motivation to be in illegal activity. Japan and Britain have teeated drug addiciton as a medical problem without the resultant crime sprees. Clearly this is a topioc that resonates with our students.

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  17. Tammy Salinas Avatar
    Tammy Salinas

    yes, but wont there always be something else these crooks will think of to try to make money in the black market? These crooks are very intelligent in how they figure out ways to not get caught. Im sure there will ALWAYS be something. It is horrible that so many innocent people die because of them wanting to cut corners and make money the cowardly way. Poor families that have no way out. These drug cartel individuals have no respect for life and its scary.

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  18. Dennis Elam Avatar
    Dennis Elam

    The drug cartels did not create this money making enterprise, the governments did. Only government can create a shortage and that is what the drug trade is, a shortage of legal drugs. Until the Harrison Act of 1914, drugs were no illegal in the US. If we could exist as a society for that long, why was it necessary to make them illegal and give the cartels a reason to exist?

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  19. Felix Duque Avatar
    Felix Duque

    I agree with you professor, making it legal will get rid of the problem. If we go back in time, we had the same problem with alcohol. It’s the same thing…
    I found this interesting article…
    http://www.cedro-uva.org/lib/levine.alcohol.html
    Also, I know presidents in Mexico have been trying to legalize drugs in Mexico, It’s on cnn…
    http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/05/13/mexico.fox.marijuana/index.html

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  20. Laura Avatar
    Laura

    Mexico is not what it used to be. My brother travels a lot to mexico today he was coming home from mexico he was about 30 minutes away when he heard the sirens. The mexican police pulled him over and told him that he was speeding, he told them no I’m not I’m going the speed limit. they pulled him off the truck and told him if you don’t give us $500 dollars we will take your truck. He told them I only have 300 but if you tell me how to get to a gas station I’ll give you the rest. These jerks gave him directions away from the border, but quick thinking he stop at a gas station and asked for direction to the border he found out he was going the wrong way. he was being led further in. He gave the mexican officers $500 dollars plus 1200 pesos.
    This is crazy how americans are being held up and the goverment is not doing a dam thing about it. The other day my brother’s friend who lives in mexico but has his business in
    Mc Allen got a visit by people of this mexican drug lord and was told that he had to pay up or end up dead. This is crazy.

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  21. Chris Sims Avatar
    Chris Sims

    Laura-
    That is insane! I can’t believe you guys experienced that. I heard of many stories like yours but didn’t believe it actually happens like that. Lucky when me and my family do travel to Mexico, we don’t experience anything like this dramatic. It is crazy like you say how the gov’t is not doing anything about it, and I believe that they should.

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