In Washington some damned fool Republican, actually Lindsey Graham, R-SC, suggests sending the US Army to Mexico, “to fight the drug trade,” this to be done “with Mexico’s permission,” which is Washington talk for “after buying Mexico’s President.”Whether this is luminous stupidity or malign intent isn’t clear. It is militarily absurd. Why?
First, the population would be united against it. Mexico, like most of the world, has bad memories of invasion by Euro-Americans. Mexico remembers, as historically illiterate gringos do not, losing half of their country to Washington in the Mexican-American war. They remember Pershing’s incursion, and the shelling of Veracruz. They, like most of the world, do not see America as benign. They fear that their country could be the next Iraq, Syria, Libya,or Afghanistan.
Next, imagine a company of GIs, tricked out in battle gear with all sorts of martial clutter attached to them, in Guadalajara, a huge city. They are conspicuous to say the least. The narcos look exactly like everybody else. What, prithee, do the GIs do to oppose them? Or to find them?Check IDs? Polygraph them?
Spanish-speaking GIs will be regarded as traitors and perhaps targeted by the cartels.
Next, the narcos, armed well, are not pushovers. They are accustomed to fighting the Mexican army. What do the GIs do when snipers begin killing them or ambushing groups? The narcos are good at this. Typically GIs, poorly trained,poorly disciplined,and of low quality to begin with, will start firing wildly, killing bystanders, intensifying hatred and uniting Mexico behind the cartels. The GIs can throw Mexico into chaos, likely the purpose of the thing, but they can do nothing against narcos in the cities.
The countryside? The Sierra Madre mountains, source of and home to many of the narcos, , are steep, heavily forested, with few roads. The narcos know these regions well, and Americans not at all. The villagers will protect the narcos as these often engage in charity in their regions of origin to buy good will. It works. There are musical groups, notably Los Tigres del Norte, famous for ballads lionizing the narcos.
An attempt to use drones against the cartels will result chiefly in killing the wrong people and will arouse fury. What are GIs going to do in such parts?
The deserts of northern Mexico arerocky, as inhospitable as anywhere on earth. Vehicles would be useless. So would infantry.
When the invasion doesn’t work, Washington will want to send more troops in its standard mssion creep. More soldiers will require bases, and then more bases. It will be discovered that helicopters are needed, and then fighter-bombers. Welcome to Mexighanistan.
So much for military aspects. But is Washington really concerned with the drug trade? No.
Consider. A (very) major factor in keeping the cartels in business is their possession of large quantities of military-grade weaponry, allowing them to outgun the police. where do these arms come from? The United States. In large quantities. Someone is making a bundle on the trade.
Washington knows this. If it wanted to oppose the narcos, it would stop the flow. It doesn’t. Whether this is due to electoral fear of the NRA or contentedness with a highly lucrative status quo can, perhaps, be argued.
Why end a good thing? The narco trade is the best racket going on the planet and the American public an invaluable resource to be bled from the high schools up. The business is said to involve some forty billion green ones a year. That much honey draws a lot of flies, including some big ones. So much money is not going primarily into the pockets of dirtball narcotraficantes in Sinaloa. Whoever is getting it–banks, hedge funds, intelligence agencies, and of course crooked pols–cannot possibly want the magic fountain to dry up.
So if Washinton does not really want to end the drug trade, and knows that the military cannot do it, why the idea of sending troops? Because the mere idea is intimidating to Mexico, suggesting the possibility of Mexico’s becoming a sort of Latin Iraq. Few here belive that Americans, once in, would ever leave.
Washington regards Latin America, as Mexicans know well, as its private realm of dominion and pillage. The State Department says openly that it wants Latin America’s resources. Among its standard techniques for getting what it wants are coups, embargos, color revolutions, sanctions, assassinations, and the sowing of chaos. Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela, and Brazil are current examples. Washington of course wants to control Venezuela’s vast reserves of oil and looks with equal covetousness at the lithium triad of Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile which has much of the world’s reserves of the metal.
Mexico has oil and, as recently discovered, lithium. It also, weiredly for Mexico, has a president who is not for sale. He, AMLO, has said clearly that Mexico’s resources are Mexico’s, and are going to stay that way. He has also refused to support Washington’s war in the Ukraine, calling for negotiations. He has further said that Mexico is not anAmerican colony and, most recently that it is not going to accept US troops. In short, he is a very bad person.
Interestingly, AMLO has said that if the Republicans keep pushing for an invasion, he will urge all Latinos in the US to vote Democrat. Now, that’s a hoot. The meddlers get meddled. Question: what is the margin of victory in Presidental elections in the US, and how many registered Latino voters are there? Just asking.
Let’s Invade Mexico!
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They don’t have to remember back to the US-Mexican War. The US under Wilson invaded Mexico.
A short video the the American invasion of Mexico in 1914.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZQGt83w28Q
Fred, at our age there are lots of things to worry about but an invasion of Mexico is not one of them. You could worry about the CIA, not to stop the drug trade but to partake in the profits. You are right the drug trade supports too many incomes from Government lawlessness enforcers to lawyers to judges to prisons to thousands of politicians taking bribes in Mexico and here. The laundering of the money is also big business….. and anti inflationary. Nobody’s crossing the Rio Grande from North to South, but cartels have operating locations in every town in the USA. There is one thing that can be done and that is to name these killer doses whether fentanyl or whatever new chemical comes along as “a chemical weapon” which means WMD category. Since interdiction is impossible as long as there is a market and a strong demand, we need a deterrent or a change in demand. Personal fear and profit denial. Go to the source. Retaliate. It can be done but we won’t. When has Lindsey Graham not liked a war. He especially likes unwinnable ones. He would have loved Vietnam.
Technical nit-to-pick: Please… insert a blank line between paragraphs — doing so will make it mucho¹ easier to read and “digest”.
The rest? Clearly-written and spot-on. As an ex-Infantryman (Vietnam-era) and ex-Artilleryman (IDF), I/we know full well that fighting in built-up areas sucks, and that there are always too many “losers” for there to be any “winners” (and, viz. Iraq and Afghanistan, the “home team” always wins).
¹ I’ve been trying to use “mucho” more often with my Spanish-speaking friends; it means a lot to them.
The graham test. If he’s fer it I’M agin it. The time for u. s. soldiers dying on foreign soil is long past.
Graham is an idiot. He was an Air Force JAG officer who never fulfilled his obligations to the reserves either. USAF simply rewarded him because he was in Congress and wanted him on their side in the budget fights between the services.
Well said, sir. As a mid-century youth, the charm of war seemed like a patriotic duty. I served as a pilot and quickly lost respect for the military and Congress. The idea of the U.S. starting with another Black Hawk Down incursion and growing from there is appalling and, of course, unwinnable as has been every war since the big one. Finally, Russia and China might notice, allowing them to validate their incursions into Ukraine et al and Taiwan. Stupid idea.
I have a difficult time believing any sane person would support a military intervention in Mexico. Not after Vietnam, Panama, Grenada, Syria, Iraq, et al.
The pool of volunteers for the military would run dry. Hell. Even the AF didn’t make its requirement last year.
The Draft is political suicide.
Your President concurs: https://www.theepochtimes.com/mexican-president-threatens-republicans-calling-for-us-military-to-target-drug-cartels_5114105.html?utm_source=morningbriefnoe&src_src=morningbriefnoe&utm_campaign=mb-2023-03-12&src_cmp=mb-2023-03-12&utm_medium=email&est=%2Bb4VrQygEAwdewtvbKPCnNgNMt0Nla7ZV2xWRpO5vVchqvy6N3oME%2FaSYbzQWX2h
Hey Fred, you forgot a) Mexican Silver and b) US paper Futures “markets”. The combination of these have ripped Mexico off for Hundreds of Billions over the decades.
Hmmm, .. seems to me that I’m missing something here. What about the invasion of the United States by 62 million citizens of Mexico and other Latin America countries? Latin Americans ignore the border, so why shouldn’t they expect the U.S. to ignore it?
Fred, the Ukrainians would concur with Mexico’s views regarding the USA, since their situation is like that of Mexico but on steroids. However, the Ukrainians will undoubtedly think that El President should STFU when it comes to the Russian-Ukrainian war, as calls for negotiations from outsiders are not welcome at all. The USA is only involved in the war as a supplier, not a combatant, and the Ukraine does not want a negotiated “end” to the war that is in fact a delaying tactic to allow Russia to earn from its mistakes and build up again until it is ready for round two. The Ukraine sees no chance of achieving any lasting settlement until Russia recognizes that it has been defeated and returns to the pre-2014 borders, which Russia had guaranteed back in 1991. This is not likely to happen unless things change, such as when Putin stands too near to an open window.
The only way to dry up the drug trade is to attack the users. More education of our population, and kids, is required. It also won’t hurt the cause if a ‘few’ narcotics dealers end up dead in local sewers either.
Any chance of knowing which Chinese ships are loaded with Fentenyl and sinking the suckers (anonymously, of course!)? Fred, one thing I don’t pretend to know is what what % of the population supports the cartels now. Many Mexicans have been slaughtered by the cartels, on the one hand, but the cartels contribute beaucoup bucks to the towns, which serves as an offset.
I do suspect, if the US invaded Mexico to fight the cartels, however, that would mostly serve to unite the country against the gringo invaders.
Can’t help but perversely think that if AMLO asked for Mexicans in US to vote D that more than half of them would vote R! After all, they are not moving back whilst he’s in the driver’s seat and there are numerous stories (as there are with all leaders always) that’s he’s a phony who’s on the take given how rich his family has been getting since he became Presidente.
The cartels exist because they provide a product for which there is a market.
Who uses cocaine? People like Hunter Biden and Batak Obama. They carry a dangerous and contagious disease and should be isolated in quarantine. Plenty of space in the desert for a large camp to hold them.
And then of course Singapore’s method of handling drug dealers. Bang !
Fred, you put the hay down where the goats can get it relative to attacking the drug cartels in Mexico.
Until reading this essay, I have been generally in favor of attacking the cartels and eliminating them much as we did ISIS. You have convinced me that an invasion of Mexico is not a good idea besides the US cannot afford another war against an enemy fading into the population while we are spending maga-bucks in the Ukraine. However, I am for attacking the cartels with great force and perusing them into Mexico if they engage in US attacks along our border or killing US visitors. Moreover, I am for attacking their satellite cells growing in most US large cites with prison sentences or deportation.
Several other readers have pointed out that it is the thirst for drugs in the US that keep the cartels in business. I agree and that is definitely a US problem that has gotten out of hand as have many other aspects with our pervasive society. I hope Mexican citizens are not drug crazy as it seems many US citizens are – we never hear of Mexican drug problems an drug use here.
While slowing or stopping the flow of drugs from Mexico would be a significant help, as long as a market in Los Estados Unitos exists, they will flow and continue to flow.
The problem is a three part problem – one in Mexico with the cartels actually controlling much of the government and two in the US with the deaths of over 100,000 individuals a year from Fentanyl use and our failure to police our own cities. I realize all this “stuff” does not come in by illegal aliens as a large part comes in from legal ports of entry. And three immigration — The US is actually being invaded by millions of illegals coming through Mexico as well as Canada and probably hiding in containers coming on ships to the US west coast. And again, the US failure to police our own cities.
The problem seems to be exacerbated by our two governments who either don’t care about the flow of drugs and illegal aliens or they are being paid by the cartels to look the other way. The latter may be a strong reality? Lots of money does strange things to people.
IMHO, the problem is solvable if both the Mexican and the US government are serious in finding a solution.
First, complete the Trump wall. Close the doors and lock them tight. Enter the US only through legal immigration channels. Second, the US clamp down hard with police on drug users and sellers in the US to help dry up the demand. That may be a hard one for the US as our current craze for the disregard for law and order seems to be a driving force in the US today. How long that will last is anyone’s idea. Third, the Mexican government clamp down hard on the cartel leaders and their sources of drugs. That may be a hard one also as the cartels offer so much aid to the local communities. They also control and offer intense intimidation to the local communities.
The problem is both political and economic. With the right leadership on both sides of the border the problem could be significantly reduced and the tourist trade to both countries be open to flourish again. It all starts at the top……..
PS The Singapore method of handling drugs and drug dealers as pointed out by David Davies
offers great insight to fixing the problem.
The problem with the cartels is they are essentially street gangs, with one exception. They are not centralized with strong hierarchical structures.
New Jalisco is a much different kettle of fish. It is much like a government and could be fought like we fought ISIS. The others would be like sending Marine regiment after the crips or bloods.
Fred and Everyone: A film you should see is Bardo, by Alejandro Inarritu, a study of a man, Mexico, America and life. I was impressed with his showing the bonds and barriers between Americans and Mexicans, and a metaphorical view of human life as well. Why don’t you, your wife, and Natalia watch the film and give us a review? It’s a wonderful view of how Mexico sees us.
Inarritu also did Birdman, and there is a lot of that in this film. It seems foreigners are better able to depict America than we are.
Oh man, russia and china would love to pump guns into the hands of the narco as US does with ukraine and Taiwan. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Dear Fred and All:
A concept that I see absent in all mentions of this madness, is how would the Mexican government and nation rispond to an USA invasion,
I will tell you, it would be WAR, so your marines will not only face the Cartels, but also the Mexican Army which although very small (circa 200,000 strong) does have a hefty Mexican fighting spitit (thing of the Mexican boxing style for starters).
So short of nuking us, you would have a war of attrition in the Sierras and a lot of spit in your faces: also think of the over two million “gringos” living happily in Mexico.
I would take Graham and that other idiot with a patch in his eye to the psichiatrist for a long stay in the “Casa de la risa” (mental hospital) before they cause more damage.
We have come a long way since Chapultepec 1847 , Pershing in Chihuahua and the Marines in Veracruz in 1914, so we rather have the kind of invasion that Tesla is currently implementing in Monterrey with its new factory,
By the way, Elon mentioned that one of the main reasons for this was that over half of the engineers currently working at Tesla world wide are Mexico educated, not all Mexican, but eather that they had studied in Mexican universities, and with the wpke academic standards in the US dropping like a rock, Tesla will not be the last.
As a side note, Mexico graduates over 110, 000 engineers per year.
Check this article:
In the race for tech talent, the US should look to Mexico
https://techcrunch.com/2021/05/20/in-the-race-for-tech-talent-the-us-should-look-to-mexico/?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9kdWNrZHVja2dvLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAABvMdkYLHCA0uExt8vz6ZQd0YhiUw32Pfc5pYxkm5kMNRiXSUSwqVx6IP-r_HGK9vM2-XKVod_YGwBZPU5N2ru_XWXV-z5ELjvvIEkMhiP9gKdycGDeMNzO2wmRaRZqlawhH2torb_d328NJRVJPTzHnJ_UkfsWE9WuOGfrQt6ts
Mexican students win eight medals at Robochallenge – Mexico News Daily
https://mexiconewsdaily.com › news › mexican-students-win-eight-robotics-medals
So maybe, while US academy commits suicide and American youth goes dumb with woke irrelevancies, the invasion might come the other direction with brains, not guns.
Just my two cwntavos.
I always say, “if you diss the plan, then propose a better one.” Saying you don’t like a proposed solution takes little creativity. The hard work goes towards actually solving problems.
A better plan is NOT to continue allowing 100K American kids to die because of one youth goofy mistake while at a party in high school or college. So let’s go ahead and rule OUT allowing this fentanyl attack on America to continue. If youthful goofy mistakes were all lethal, then I would already be dead. And so would you.
Yes, no doubt politicians, and probably bureaucrats at DEA, get dollars on the backend from allowing this madness to continue. I call it treason. And also keep in mind that Graham has little capacity to actually follow through on his threat, because he can’t get the votes from those non-caring sold out others in both parties.
Therefore this discussion is moot pertaining to an invasion. But if we did invade and slaughter the cartels, it would be justified.
And, it would have all kinds of issues because a large percentage of our troops are mexicans who “earned” a citizenship by joining the USA military. Hence, many of them would refuse to fight against Mehico. But I think you probably have no realistic idea how quickly we could end this with Mexico.
Use the banking system. All those mexicans in America sends BILLIONS of dollars a month to Mexico. Just tell them straight: we will wreck your economy by cutting off money transfers, and will also have Dept of State rescind all travel to Mehico. In about 2 months, Mexico will be resolving this issue internally.
So what else does it leave us, realistically? To me it is simple: execute drug distributors. After the first round of trials and executions of people who sell drugs to children, then the other would-be perps will consider getting a real job instead of risking their lives to sell drugs.
What say you?
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