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Mexican Army takes over customs on US border

celticlord

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Mexican Army takes over customs on US border

Mexico's Army took control of customs Sunday on the busy US border, as federal authorities pulled agents off the job in a massive anti-corruption shakeup, officials told AFP.

An Interior Ministry official said the dismissals were being carried out at all Mexican border facilities, and that the customs agents were being replaced.
While I'm glad that Calderon is continuing to push his war against the drug lords, it's a little disquieting to know that active duty forces are now deployed just south of the border.
 
I like it; I'm hoping that the Mexican Army can be greatly weakened so that the Magonistas and the Zapatistas can coordinate a violent military strike. :rofl
 
While I'm glad that Calderon is continuing to push his war against the drug lords, it's a little disquieting to know that active duty forces are now deployed just south of the border.

They've got no "official" territorial ambitions at this time, and diplomatic relations are warm enough. Might as well let them do the heavy lifting for once.
 
So now the drug cartels will just pay off military units near the border. Not sure how this matters much. Part of the "corruption" issue is that the Mexican military has been infiltrated by drug lords. So how exactly does replacing one corrupt group with another solve the problem?
 
So now the drug cartels will just pay off military units near the border. Not sure how this matters much. Part of the "corruption" issue is that the Mexican military has been infiltrated by drug lords. So how exactly does replacing one corrupt group with another solve the problem?

Considering the recent case down in Texas, I daresay that our own house is a little too fragile for us to be throwing stones.
 
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Considering the recent case down in Texas, I daresay that our own house is a little too fragile for us to be throwing stones.

The fact is, America is the world's largest consumer of illegal drugs. That's what's driving the violence and corruption in Mexico. So, yes, throwing stones is a bit hard.
 
The fact is, America is the world's largest consumer of illegal drugs. That's what's driving the violence and corruption in Mexico. So, yes, throwing stones is a bit hard.
How's about we throw the stoned, instead? At the very least it would offer some cheap entertainment?
 
How's about we throw the stoned, instead? At the very least it would offer some cheap entertainment?

This is true. And it's about time we finally faced the fact that you cannot fight a war against an industry by attacking the supply.
 
This is true. And it's about time we finally faced the fact that you cannot fight a war against an industry by attacking the supply.

Hasn't really been shown to work, has it?
 
Works great.....if you're wanting to support the black markets! ;)

I support all markets! Of course, ones that pay taxes are preferred for obvious reasons.
 
Considering the recent case down in Texas, I daresay that our own house is a little too fragile for us to be throwing stones.

I think it's a matter of degree. The Mexican military has been co-opted, almost wholesale, by the Mexican drug syndicates. They say that the offer is silver or lead. "Join us, or die." That's hard to resist, when they have the means to hurt you and your family. That level of influence isn't felt here. YET.
 
I think it's a matter of degree. The Mexican military has been co-opted, almost wholesale, by the Mexican drug syndicates. They say that the offer is silver or lead. "Join us, or die." That's hard to resist, when they have the means to hurt you and your family. That level of influence isn't felt here. YET.

Sadly I agree. I think it is only a matter of time before we are in a similar situation, hopefully it wont happen in my lifetime.
 
Legalizing drugs would simultaneously undercut objectionable groups around the world from Afghanistan to Peru.

The bottom would fall out of the markets. Of course we would then be financing intl pharma companies. But at least they are more susceptible to regulation and taxes.

But the $bil if not $tril that got to violent groups around the world via drug trade is not a good thing.
 
But the $bil if not $tril that got to violent groups around the world via drug trade is not a good thing.

You know, people always say this, but that hasn't happened in Amsterdam. There will always be something illegal to sell and someone illegal to sell to.
 
You know, people always say this, but that hasn't happened in Amsterdam. There will always be something illegal to sell and someone illegal to sell to.

What you want, however, is a small market of illegal things being sold. Far easier to control. One of the issues with the drug war is that it's literally a war on EVERY drug, save alcohol and tobacco. Even legal by prescription ones a part of it. We can't win that. Hell, we can't even contain it (see current situation in Mexico). We are literally flushing billions down the toilet while making billions for the cartels. The fact is, the biggest imported illegal drugs are pot and cocaine. Make those two legal and it changes the game. There is simply not enough demand for other drugs to sustain huge, violent cartels. You cannot exactly just turn to another drug. There's not enough demand. Once the money is gone, the cartels are gone. That's not to say crime goes away or some won't move to other illegal acts. No doubt they will. But the beast gets far smaller and easier to control.
 
Little paranoid are we not?
Hardly. If my neighbor takes to toting a gun around after he's been robbed, I quite understand his desire for toting a gun....but I still am going to play closer attention to what he's doing. If and when that gun starts sending rounds down range I do not want to be down range.

Troops + border + mistake == war is an all too easy equation to fathom.

Also, if the military gets co-opted by the cartels to the degree that the police have been, then there is real cause for concern when it comes to interdicting the flow of drugs into the country. That's a scenario that leads to the War on Drugs becoming a shooting war with Mexico in a big hurry.

When Pancho Villa was tearing up the Mexican countryside in the 1910s, the US finally said enough to his occasional incursions into the US and sent a force under Pershing into Mexico to put a stop to it. I have no desire to see that bit of history repeat itself.
 
You know, people always say this, but that hasn't happened in Amsterdam. There will always be something illegal to sell and someone illegal to sell to.
I don't think we're communicating well.

AFAICT, there's still $bil going to crime lords in Afghanistan and South America despite whatever Amsterdam has done.
So, I am not sure what you think I am saying.
 
Also, if the military gets co-opted by the cartels to the degree that the police have been, then there is real cause for concern when it comes to interdicting the flow of drugs into the country. That's a scenario that leads to the War on Drugs becoming a shooting war with Mexico in a big hurry.

Hadn't considered that. We've already had one incident. And a shooting war with Mexico would lead to all sort of complications, both within our military and our civilian population. If the military gets co-opted by the cartels, whose side are they really going to be on when the fighting breaks out? There's also the matter of what all the anti-war and anti-military protesters would do about active military operation in their hometowns. And just think about the number of "Americans" that fly a Mexican flag every year on May 5th...

Hell of an ugly thing.
 
What you want, however, is a small market of illegal things being sold. Far easier to control. One of the issues with the drug war is that it's literally a war on EVERY drug, save alcohol and tobacco. Even legal by prescription ones a part of it. We can't win that. Hell, we can't even contain it (see current situation in Mexico). We are literally flushing billions down the toilet while making billions for the cartels. The fact is, the biggest imported illegal drugs are pot and cocaine. Make those two legal and it changes the game. There is simply not enough demand for other drugs to sustain huge, violent cartels. You cannot exactly just turn to another drug. There's not enough demand. Once the money is gone, the cartels are gone. That's not to say crime goes away or some won't move to other illegal acts. No doubt they will. But the beast gets far smaller and easier to control.

I used to think along similar lines a while back looking at places like Amsterdam. Problem is that that theory took a major hit in recent years with the growing prescription drug problem. Vicodin, Oxycotin (waiting for a lib to go off topic and make a Rush joke), Xanax, etc are all legal but controlled due to their detrimental effects. Amsterdam still has pretty hard laws on anything other than hash/marijuana especially cocaine.

Supply based attacks have worked in the past (although Canibis being a single process plant drug is almost impossible to stop). See the history and demise of Quaaludes. However, our unique problem deals more with a double whammy. Our border is porous which makes the supply chain virtually unbreakable. Tight border control is a no-go due to the immigration lobby.

With the Mexican military taking over there is a decent chance we might see a reduction in drug supply. But that is of course speculation as I have no idea how well the Mexican military will enforce this on their own people trying to cross the border.
 
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