The Drug Cartel
Canyon Robins
J. Arbaugh
English 1 CP
11/10/12
The Mexican Drug War There has been a lot of hype surrounding the War on Terrorism overseas, but what if there was a similar war being waged close to home? The Mexican drug war is an ongoing, armed conflict between rival drug cartels fighting for regional control and against the Mexican government forces. It has claimed almost 50,000 lives since 2006, and accounts for over ninety percent of all illegal illicit drugs entering the United States. The Mexican drug war should be of concern to our country not only as a humanitarian disaster, but as a national security threat, and should be handled as such. Over the next few paragraphs you will be educated on some possible solutions to this catastrophe, and realize that while we are part of the solution, we are also a major part of the problem. Since Felipe Calderón took office in 2006, the Mexican government's focus has been to put down the drug-related violence that was raging between different drug cartels before any military intervention was made, and to dismantle the powerful drug lords. He took action immediately, deploying 50,000 soldiers in an effort to reclaim his country from the violent cartels that ran the streets. Since then, almost 50,000 soldiers, government employees, cartel members, and innocent citizens have died as a result of drug-related violence. This is mostly due to the cartels’ superior funding: experts believe that Mexican drug cartels make anywhere from 13.6 to 49.4 billion dollars annually, and employ roughly one hundred thousand foot soldiers (roughly the size of the Mexican army). This impressive income is due in part to Mexico’s geographic location: their northern neighbor is none other than the largest free market in the world. The U.S. narcotics market is worth roughly sixty billion dollars at any given time, up to 39 billion of which are Columbian and Mexican cartel sales (Kelley). As long as America remains
J. Arbaugh
English 1 CP
11/10/12
The Mexican Drug War There has been a lot of hype surrounding the War on Terrorism overseas, but what if there was a similar war being waged close to home? The Mexican drug war is an ongoing, armed conflict between rival drug cartels fighting for regional control and against the Mexican government forces. It has claimed almost 50,000 lives since 2006, and accounts for over ninety percent of all illegal illicit drugs entering the United States. The Mexican drug war should be of concern to our country not only as a humanitarian disaster, but as a national security threat, and should be handled as such. Over the next few paragraphs you will be educated on some possible solutions to this catastrophe, and realize that while we are part of the solution, we are also a major part of the problem. Since Felipe Calderón took office in 2006, the Mexican government's focus has been to put down the drug-related violence that was raging between different drug cartels before any military intervention was made, and to dismantle the powerful drug lords. He took action immediately, deploying 50,000 soldiers in an effort to reclaim his country from the violent cartels that ran the streets. Since then, almost 50,000 soldiers, government employees, cartel members, and innocent citizens have died as a result of drug-related violence. This is mostly due to the cartels’ superior funding: experts believe that Mexican drug cartels make anywhere from 13.6 to 49.4 billion dollars annually, and employ roughly one hundred thousand foot soldiers (roughly the size of the Mexican army). This impressive income is due in part to Mexico’s geographic location: their northern neighbor is none other than the largest free market in the world. The U.S. narcotics market is worth roughly sixty billion dollars at any given time, up to 39 billion of which are Columbian and Mexican cartel sales (Kelley). As long as America remains