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Mexico's Drug War airs tonight on CNBC at 10 EST


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There's also a Warden's Message out regarding drug violence closer to home. See below.

SUBJECT: SECURITY UPDATE

Date: January 20, 2011

Warden Message

This Warden Message is being issued due to an escalation in criminal activity in

Guadalajara and nearby Lake Chapala. In a chain of violent incidents that began

on the evening of Saturday, January 15th and continued through the early morning

of Sunday, January 16th, a Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO) carried out a

series of attacks largely directed at local law enforcement in both Guadalajara

and Chapala.

In addition to targeting law enforcement officials, their buildings, and

vehicles, members of the DTO set up a road blockade on the highway between

Guadalajara and Chapala near the Guadalajara airport on Saturday evening around

11 p.m. This was the first incident of this nature in the Guadalajara area.

Armed men opened fire on several vehicles, forcing the drivers to abandon the

vehicles on the road. They then lined up the cars to block the road and set fire

to them.

Since the weekend's surge in violence, local authorities have arrested and

detained several DTO members. Local law enforcement authorities assess that the

violence will not likely subside in the near future and are taking necessary

measures to prepare and defend against further acts of violence by organized

crime.

U.S. citizens should make every attempt to travel on main roads during daylight

hours, particularly the toll ("cuota") roads which generally are more secure.

Additional safety recommendations:

· Delay any travel if media reports road closures due to police or emergency

responder activity;

· If the road in front of you has been blocked due to a security incident or

natural disaster, attempt to return to your point of origin using available

alternate routes;

· If you are presented with an imminent threat on the road, do not hesitate to

run over any median (or similar obstacle) to make an emergency U-turn to get out

of harm's way;

· If physical barriers along the road prevent emergency evasive action in any

direction, locate a restaurant, shopping mall, hotel, or another business

establishment where you can temporarily remove your vehicle from the road and

take cover until the road is clear;

· If you are driving or walking and you hear or see gun fire and/or explosions,

take immediate evasive action, get down on the ground or behind a solid barrier

(engine block, tree planter, etc.) and evacuate the area as soon as it is safe

to move;

· Always call "066" (equivalent of 911 in the USA) immediately if you are

exposed to a life threatening situation requiring emergency police or fire

responders.

U.S. citizens resident or traveling in Mexico are urged to enroll with the U.S.

Embassy or nearest U.S. Consulate via the Department of State's on-line

registration service through the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP)

located at http://travel.state.gov. Travel registration allows the Department of

State to contact its citizens in the event of an emergency and to provide

up-to-date safety and security information. Registrants wishing to receive such

information must provide an e-mail address with their registration. All

registrants are urged to provide complete contact information and a departure

date when completing their registration on-line.

For the latest security information, U.S. citizens living and traveling abroad

should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs internet

web site at http://travel.state.gov, where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel

Alerts, Travel Warnings, and health-information resources can be found.

Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling

1-888-407-4747 toll free in the United States and Canada or, for callers in

other areas by calling a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444. These numbers are

available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday

(except U.S. federal holidays).

The U.S. Consulate General in Guadalajara is located at 175 Progreso Street;

Col. Americana, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. The U.S. Consulate General in

Guadalajara's telephone number is 011 52 33 3268 2100; the fax number is 011 52

33 3825 1951. For after-hours emergencies, please call 011 52 33 3268 2145.

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We watched the CNBC show on friday night and thought it lame. They attempted to be sensational and missed the truly sensational aspects of whats going on. Their fetish around El Chapo was misplaced and never mentioning the zetas as a force in the wars dynamics seemd ill informed. We'll stick to reading borderlandbeat.com and keep our eyes open.

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We watched the CNBC show on friday night and thought it lame. They attempted to be sensational and missed the truly sensational aspects of whats going on. Their fetish around El Chapo was misplaced and never mentioning the zetas as a force in the wars dynamics seemd ill informed. We'll stick to reading borderlandbeat.com and keep our eyes open.

Thanks for that tip on borderland beat.

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Sounds like the usual U.S. media coverage of Mexico. Everyone is conviced that we dodge bullets on our way to the store and cower in our walls at night.

BTW, everyone notice the pace of arresting and/or shooting (preferred) big narcos is definitely picking up?

I tell people that these guys have made the same mistake the Mafia did during prohibition, they have messed with the civilians and teed everyone off. Not smart.

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Sounds like the usual U.S. media coverage of Mexico. Everyone is conviced that we dodge bullets on our way to the store and cower in our walls at night.

BTW, everyone notice the pace of arresting and/or shooting (preferred) big narcos is definitely picking up?

I tell people that these guys have made the same mistake the Mafia did during prohibition, they have messed with the civilians and teed everyone off. Not smart.

I saw this same program about a year ago while in the UK, so it is a bit dated..... There was a 2nd part about the US side, but I doubt CNBC will broadcast that one.

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I tell people that these guys have made the same mistake the Mafia did during prohibition, they have messed with the civilians and teed everyone off. Not smart.

Charles Bowden.....a man who has covered and written about this topic since the early nineties doesn't agree with you. Or how about Don Winslow? Or Malcom Beith?

They all seems to disagree with your assessment.

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Thanks for the names willieboy - Just purchased books by 2 of them - and will do the third when I finish those.

No problem. The book to get by Winslow is "Power of the Dog". It's a work of fiction but the author spent almost 7 years researching the story. You'll recognize a lot of the events, such as the 1993 killing of Archbishop Juan Posadas at the Guadalajara Airport, and the involvement of the Salinas de Gotari administration in the drug trade. Great read.

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No problem. The book to get by Winslow is "Power of the Dog". It's a work of fiction but the author spent almost 7 years researching the story. You'll recognize a lot of the events, such as the 1993 killing of Archbishop Juan Posadas at the Guadalajara Airport, and the involvement of the Salinas de Gotari administration in the drug trade. Great read.

okay - so I got that one just now - so now have 1 from each of them - and my kindle budget is shot for the month - but the above was only $8.77 - so guess it won't bankrupt me. Thanks !

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Would you care to tell us just how Bowden disagrees with the point I made? It's not an assessment BTW, just an observation from history. Do you think that the big escalation in civilian collateral damage has helped the Narcos? Do you see the possibility that the people in power and the general population were more likely to let this thing slide as long as it was largely limited to selling dope to the Americans and Canadians and the killing was much more "in house" and below the radar?

If you don't agree with my premise that there is a historical parallel, no problema. I'd be interested in your argument for that, not just a rant without substance about what some others have written. Cite some stuff from your references and show us how the public violence and killing of civilians has had absolutely nothing to do with the obviously stepped up response of the government to the narcos.

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Here's an interesting capsule on Bowden's views. Very little here I disagree with. But I didn't see anything here that negates my premise that the narcos made a big mistake when they went public with their internal wars and started killing a bunch of innocent people in the process. So I look forward to Willie's explanation with citations of how that reality has had nothing at all to do with the increasing willingness of the government and population to fight back against the Narcos.

Over to you, Willie.

http://www.hcn.org/issues/42.4/the-war-next-door/article_view?b_start:int=2&-C=

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"Almost certainly, the drug industry and illegal migration are the two most successful anti-poverty initiatives in the history of the world. The drug industry has poured tens of billions of dollars annually into the hands of ill-educated and largely poor people. Illegal migration has taken people who were lucky to earn $5 a day and instantly given them jobs that pay 10 or 20 times that much. It has also financed the remittances, over $20 billion dollars shipped from immigrants in the U.S. back into the homes of Mexico's poor each year. No government can match these achievements. And tens of thousands of people in the U.S. agencies are earning far better salaries fighting drugs and the Mexican poor than they could ever make in the private sector. After, say, five years, the average Border Patrol agent is knocking down 75 grand a year, plus generous benefits and serious job security. DEA is infested with agents earning six figures. And these industries are literally failure-proof -- the more Mexicans that migrate, and the more drugs that arrive, the more agents that are hired." (Charles Bowden March 2010)

Anyone who thinks the Mexican government really wants to eradicate the drug money in this country is naive. Oh yeah, once in a while they'll put on a little show for their handlers up north of the border, and kill and/or arrest a few big fish. But it's in everyone's interest on a political and economic level to let this game play out. As Bowden points out above, even the US has huge vested interests in the status quo. Everyone's interest except for the bystanders being cut down in the crossfire.

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I don't disagree Willie and I didn't suggest that my historical parallel is an exclusive or even primary reason for the stepped up action against the Narcos. But I also don't agree with lumping all officials of the government in the group that really doesn't want to stop what is going on. There's a tremendous amount of personal courage being exhibited by some officials, police and military and far too often they pay for it with their lives.

You've lived here much longer than me so I'll ask you to confirm or deny this impression of mine: That there is a considerably higher level of popular reaction in the form of citizen demonstrations and action against Narco crime since the public violence and collateral damage increased exponentially. In previous times, when the narcos pretty much went about their business much more quietly, did you see this?

I've made no secret of my very strong belief that the new prohibition is no more successful than the old one and far more bloody and brutal. I think Bowden is hitting the nail squarely on the head when he points out, in effect, that government has a huge vested interest in keeping this thing going. As a Libertarian, I see this as just another example of government's reach overextending its abilities (on both sides of the border) and trying to legislate it's view of morality.

BTW, the people "I tell" are my friends, family and acquaintances NOB who almost invariably want to believe only the worst about this country. I try and explain to them that the picture they are receiving from the media is exaggerated and prejudicial in many respects and this is a much better place than they are led to believe.

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I won't argue that previous administrations and many state and local officials have supported the drug business as it evolved in Mexico however to say it is good for a country or it's long term economy to make the most violent and immoral people in the country rich and powerful seems illogical. The drug business has been 'allowed' only because has been a 'fuente de mordida' (a fountain of bribes) not on the theory that it is an anti poverty program. Since a few of the by products of having the drug business run out of control has been a disastrous couple of years in tourism, sabotage of the oil production and distribution in Mexico and a chilling effect of foreign investment I'd say on balance real leaders looking to make the country a better place to live for it's citizens and residents would not be to tolerate the cartels....

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There's no question that is true and no question that Willie's comments that many in government make money off of the narco trade is also true. However, there are also many who agree with your sentiments, including Calderon. I suspect, though have no proof of it, that it was pretty easy to take the money when the whole business was underground and the narcos mainly killed each other. It is ironic in a way that their present behavior might be really shifting the balance towards those who share your vision and away from the narcos.

Also, I don't remember who it was, but some one of prominence suggested in El Informador that Mexico should seek to have the international community formal designate the cartels as terrorist organizations, which would bring a lot of outside pressure from organizations like Interpol to bear on the cartels and their finances. Apparently this is being resisted by the government out of a sense of pride. Bringing the international community more into the fight sure sounds like a good idea to me.

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