The Mexican drug war is a threat to the United States. Mexican cartels are warring with one another for dominance over smuggling routes along the border. Bordering states are facing a ominous threat of being caught the cross hair of drug violence. Neither the United States nor Mexico authorities have been able to stop the bloodshed and prevent the import of illegal drugs. The outdated drug polices of the United States have failed to successfully stop the usage of illegal substances among its citizens. Mexico is precariously close to being completely paralyzed by the almighty cartels who threaten to create a permanent criminal state. The US government needs to reevaluate its current drug polices and current out dated solution.
The United States will not win the drug war. Mexico is a current state of turmoil and bloodshed between authorities and drug cartels. There have been thousands of lives lost over turf battles and control over the lucrative drug routes along the border. The threat is eminent that its only time before blood shed spills over to American Soil. Mexican cartels have shown to be as ruthless as any terrorist organization that currently exists today. The illegal drug trade has turned one time peasants into multi-millionaires. For instance Joaquin “ El Chapo” Guzman leader of the Sinaloa Cartel made Fortune magazine billionaire list .Mexican drug cartels have used traditional business models to increase profits, distribution and supply consumers like a legitimate organization. The American public however seem to be oblivious to the emerging threat. All eyes are focused on the Middle East and the global threat of terrorism.
“If Mexico became a failed state, millions would flee across the northern border and organised crime gangs would have a secure base from which to penetrate America. This could leave Washington with little choice but to intervene, possibly by military means."Any descent by Mexico into chaos would demand an American response based on the serious implications for homeland security alone," says the report.Mexico's crime gangs have retaliated for Mr Calderon's offensive by targeting members of the security forces for murder. Dozens of soldiers have been beheaded. Many ordinary police officers and security officials accept bribes from the drug rings. This corruption, which may reach into the highest levels of the government itself, is a crucial factor obstructing Mr Calderon's campaign. Ultimately, it may also have the effect of destroying the state itself.”(The Telegraph, March 2, 2009) The United States is partially to blame for Mexico’s current state of turmoil. After all it is Americans that have a healthy appetite for illegal drug consumption. The government has tried to crush illegal consumption drugs through the threat of legal prosecution. This has led to record number of American’s being placed incarceration. The threat of prison is simply not enough of a deterrence to keep Americans from getting high. The question becomes how do we protect are border from turning into a war zone? When does the United States starts mounting more resources to adequately sure the border?
“This is a threat. This is one that we have been warning about for years. This makes it that much more imperative that the border is secure,” said Congressman Michael McCaul (R-TX), who chaired Friday’s hearing, and demonstrated Iran’s connections to the Western Hemisphere. “In 2008 the… Sinaloa drug cartel was sending elite assassins to train on weapons and explosives with Islamic radicals in Iran. We know there is heavy presence of Hezbollah in the western hemisphere. Here we have the Iranian operative who thinks hes contracting with these drug cartels.”
“As we get better at detecting and tracking terrorists from these named countries, the terrorists get more committed at coming to America through our unprotected borders,” testified General Robert Scales, who co-authored the report. “If a guy from Iran shows up, and has a million and a half dollars to smuggle him across the border, they are more than happy to do it. Our great concern is how many have we missed?”
“It’s hard to imagine us protecting America from a terrorism threat if we don’t have a unified federal law enforcement strategy to protect America’s borders,” said General Barry McCaffrey, the report’s lead author.”(US House of Representative Website) This is not an issue that can brushed aside. Political gridlock in Washington should jeopardize our citizens living along the border. Adequate funding should not be questioned or compromised when dealing with domestic security. The United States has been global policing throughout decades. How does it look if it suddenly cannot protect its own borders from the threat of violence? What then does it say to countries around the world that might be audacious enough to start their own conflict? It is not implausible to think that a relationship could not form between a cartel and terrorist group. A group like Al-Queda could fund a terrorist mission with the help of a cartel. The cartels have created the path s to ship drug illegally into the United States without being caught. Therefore why not assist in smuggling a group of terrorist into the states for an attack? It’s a win – win situation for both illegal entities. Our law enforcement agencies cannot identify individual threats if they are unaware of their location. These types of scenarios are not worth risking due to flawed decision making. We fund and properly train our law enforcement personnel. We pay our border patrol agents and other law enforcement adequately to avoid potential corruption. We take advantage of our use of modern technology such as pilotless drones should be in the skies 24/7. The ability to capture movements and send them to ground patrol units- in real time. Communication among large agencies and small police departments should be encouraged. Information should be shared with one another know matter how trivial it may seem. National security is not a states responsibility but rather a federal one. Therefore there should be a reduction in red tape for states to be able to provide the necessary resources. State budgets for homeland security should be considered for the geographical region. These small steps will be improve communication and cooperation that will make everyone s job easier. Mexico can’t fall. The United States literately can’t afford it. The drug war will not expire in the years to come. People will continue to use drugs therefore there will always be an market. We can’t ignore the growing threat that the nation is currently facing. Its time to re think how we look at the drug cartels and respond to them.