The arms war that is the drug war
By The Editorial Board | Wednesday, May 14, 2008, 03:13 PM

Last week’s killing of Mexico’s top drug enforcement officer is yet another graphic illustration of the escalating stakes involved in that country’s effort to rein in the drug cartels.

The illicit drug trade in Mexico is worth billions, according to a variety of binational government estimates - enough money for the traffickers to buy the best in weapons, enough to bribe or intimidate police and politicians and certainly enough to murder anyone who is a threat to the continued flow of illegal drugs through Mexico and into its principal market, the United States.

In commenting on the killing of Edgar Eusebio Millán Gómez, the Mexico City daily El Universal declared, “We are at War.â€