Thread: Mexico drug crime out of control says president

Sun Jan 21, 9:19 AM ET

MADRID (Reuters) - Organized crime is running out of control in Mexico, Mexican President Felipe Calderon told the Spanish newspaper El Pais in an interview published on Sunday.

"Organized crime is getting out of control and is causing serious worries in some regions of the country, like Michoacan," Calderon said. "Murder rates were exceeding those of Colombia at one point."

On Friday Mexico extradited four drug kingpins to the United States, striking a blow against warring cartels that killed 2,000 people last year and have turned large areas into lawless badlands.

President Calderon took office in December and has sent troops and elite police units to tackle drug gangs and halt a surge in violence as rival cartels fight over smuggling routes and drug fields.

Killings linked to drug trafficking in the province of Michoacan have fallen nearly 70 percent from appallingly high figures last month, he said, but he told the newspaper there was a lot more work to do.

Continued collaboration with the United States to fight drug crime was essential, he said.

"The United States, unfortunately, is the biggest consumer of drugs in the world. That fosters this extreme drug-trafficking phenomenon in Mexico," he said.

"It's a very simple equation -- you can't get a significant reduction in drug supply if there's not a significant reduction in demand."

On a surge in the price of staple tortillas, Calderon said he would increase imports in order to discourage speculation and hoarding by traders.

"The complexity of this situation goes far beyond what the Mexican government can do, and I dare say, any government," he said. "Corn has moved from $81 a ton, to nearly $160 in a couple of months.

"We will be severe, firm and relentless in cases of speculative abuse," he said.

The recent price increases in the flat corn bread, driven by soaring U.S. demand for ethanol fuel made from corn, have pushed up inflation and hurt millions of Mexican households that serve tortillas with nearly every meal.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070121/wl_ ... esident_dc

So build the fence.


and now we Americans are causing starvation in Mexico
"The recent price increases in the flat corn bread, driven by soaring U.S. demand for ethanol fuel made from corn, have pushed up inflation and hurt millions of Mexican households that serve tortillas with nearly every meal."

Calderon quote:

"The United States, unfortunately, is the biggest consumer of drugs in the world. That fosters this extreme drug-trafficking phenomenon in Mexico," he said.

Don't blame your drug cartel problem on the US. Try offering more education, job opportunities to the people of Mexico. You can't have it both ways Mr. Mexican Prez.. You can't keep people dirt poor to keep you and your rich friends in power and not see repercussions in you country!! You don't even offer social services to your people!!! You should be ashamed to even make that argument. Build the fence and force Mexico to face the MUSIC!

We Americans are (not) causing starvation in Mexico
"The recent price increases in the flat corn bread, driven by soaring U.S. demand ( caused by illegal immigration ) have pushed up inflation and hurt millions of (still not able to swim the Rio Grande need YMCA training classes) Mexican that serve tortillas with nearly every meal."

Oh my gawd, everytime I think we have been acused of everything something else comes up, this is unreal, you know we must be the most heartless people on this earth. I think we should stop aid to every country that says anything mean about us and I bet before you know it we will be able to pay off the national debt.

"The United States, unfortunately, is the biggest consumer of drugs in the world. That fosters this extreme drug-trafficking phenomenon in Mexico," he said.

I blame a big part of the drug problem in America on the government's "Just Say No To Drugs Program". I would not allow my children to be a part of it. I had a 2nd grader, a 7 year old who didn't even know anything about drugs all of a sudden coming home talking about drugs at the dinner table because the cops were coming to school and bringing cocaine, pot, etc and talking to the little kids about it. Stories came home from school of small children bringing asprin to school and saying, hey man, look at my cocaine. It was having a negative effect on the children and causing an interest in drugs at a very young age that, otherwise, would not have been there. I took my child out of the just say no to drugs program almost immediately and I watched the children grow up and enter high school and paid attention to see which ones ended up on drugs, sure enough it was the ones that had been allowed to stay in the just say no to drugs program, I was right. Young minds should not be exposed to certain information. I feel that the government is responsible for the drug problem because of this program and introducing drugs to children at a young age in school and not securing the border and allowing so many drugs to enter the country.