Gunman linked to drug traffickers in Mexico murdered an American consulate worker and her husband over the weekend. Gunman also murdered the husband of another American consulate worker and injured that workers two children. All of this violence took place in Ciudad Jaurez. The New York Times reports that the shootings took place only minutes apart and are believed to be the first deadly attacks on American officials by Mexican drug cartels.
This continues a string of drug related murders stretching back years in Mexico that have boiled over in the last two years. With the number of police officers and government officials murdered rising at a skyrocketing pace, in 2009 the US government labeled Mexico, along with Pakistan, as states primed for a "rapid and sudden collapse." So, now with American government officials being brutally slayed, what can the US do?
First off, the US has to immediately increase security at all of the consulates in Mexico. The consulates serve as key stops for American tourists and businessmen, and if the consulates cannot operate in safety, American interests are put at risk. Plus, if the consulates cannot be protected, how can Americans visiting be protected?
The State Department has already allowed consulate workers to evacuate their families back to the United States. Additionally, FBI agents are en route to the scene of the murders to assist Mexican officials in investigations and represent American law enforcement interests. Also, additional diplomats are en route to Mexico to meet with their Mexican counterparts.
The murders represent a long line killings in Mexico due to the overwhelming power of drug cartels that make money from the United States. The US has poured billions of dollars into Mexico to help combat the power of drug cartels, but the efforts appear to have been fruitless and the Mexican governments decision to fight cartels with the military has only led to even higher murder rates.
What can the US do about this? Well, besides issuing worthless travel alerts, the US government could shut down the border between the United States and Mexico. Yes, I said it. The US government should shut down the border between the US and Mexico. Cities right across the border from Texas, Arizona, California, and New Mexico have been brutalized and more and more Americans face grave threats every day by being in Mexico. While the Mexican government strategy may be working, results are slow and the tactics are violent. Only shutting down the border would protect the short and long term interests of the United States.
It would be a bold and controversial move, but nonetheless the right move. Deploying the military along the border and shutting down would not only greatly hinder the flow of drugs, but it send a message of empowerment to Mexican citizens who are terrorized every day. Cartels would now have to face the American military if they were to traffic drugs. The cartels would not be able to survive a fight against the combined military efforts of the US and Mexico. The fight would be long, bloody, and probably cost jobs as well as lives, but it is the only step left.
Without this action, drugs will continue to flow north, and guns and money will flow south into the coffers of terrorist criminals that harass and bully innocent, hard working Mexican citizens every day.
Filed under: Crime/Justice, Politics
Tags: cartel, consulate, consulate murders, crime, drug, drug cartels, drug killing, drug murder, international, international relations, justice, murder
