The Mexican Drug Cartels Are A National Security Issue

[oktec60]

I would have to agree in general with this article. Any thoughts?

http://www.businessinsider.com/why-t...cartels-2011-6

[GJZ]

Maybe those who don't see or want to see it depend on those drugs and will sell their sole and everything else to have them.

obama is a con-artist and has done nothing to address the problem. This administration will put NO blame on criminals or illegals. His law suit and personal attacks against the state of Arizona say it all....

[Ralph]

I'm of two minds about the drug issue. I wouldn't use that crap if it was given away free on every street corner but if an adult wishes to screw themselves by doing so I think they have a perfect right to do so - just don't ask me to pay for the result. One way to deal with the problem is to distribute 100% pure stuff, then send the meat wagon out to pick up the now-deceased users.

Alcohol prohibition gave small criminal organizations a revenue source and an opportunity to organize and control considerable wealth. Prohibition of drugs has had the same effect. I don't know if it's still true but I have heard that a single dose of heroin actually costs about 10 cents. If pharmacies were allowed to sell the stuff to adults at cost plus a reasonable markup who would buy it illegally? The drug cartels are in it for the money and only for the money. Take the money out of the picture and they would do something else, probably returning to more easily controlled petty crime. (Selling drugs to kids should be a capital offense and executions should NOT take years to complete.)

I have expressed this view to several ADAs of my aquaintance. To a man they said that drug use really tears up families and I'm sure it does. When I inquired how throwing drug users in prison improves the family situation the silence was deafening.

On the other hand, the "drug war" allows government to expand and employs thousands, probably tens or hundreds of thousands of police, lawyers, prison guards, administrators etc. and justifies draconian government actions with little protest. There is probably as much money, or more, spent on this legal drug industry as on the illegal side. What is it, 80% of the prison population is drug related? Seems to me we could save a lot of money if we could close down 80% of the prisons and get those employed therin real jobs - preferably in the private sector.

[GJZ]

It's definitely costing US drastically. When you add up everything that is going on these days we are definitely setting ourselves as a nation for some serious trouble if we don't address the problem(s) soon. We're giving everything away and losing control in many ways which is a perfect recipe for disaster.

[oktec60]

My opinion about this problem has changed in the last few years. It is obvious we're not winning this 'war on drugs' the way things are going. The cartels are getting bigger, stronger, and more blood thirsty and nothing we have done seems to slow down the flow of drugs to the streets. Maybe it's time to change tactics.

[P_R]

War on drugs = war on poverty = war on terror = just a big excuse for the government to grow and expand its sphere of control. There's so much bribe money in it for the police chiefs, politicians, etc that it'll never be legalized.

[GJZ]

Another view:

http://www.nraila.org/News/Read/InTheNews.aspx?ID=15225

[GJZ]

Update:

http://www.nraila.org/News/Read/InTheNews.aspx?ID=15228

[oktec60]

I get the feeling that operation 'fast and furious' was intended to make the problem much larger to make it easier to push new legislation. I know, it sounds conspiratorial, but how else can you make any logical since out of thousands of weapons flowing south, literally with government assistance?

[GJZ]

That is true, obama, hillary and holder were all telling (campaigning/working) the public "that 90 % of the guns were coming from the U.S." but refused to let anyone see them (serial numbers) when the NRA requested to produce the evidence so we could examine where they originated from and verify the facts. They intensionally eluded multiple request and refused to present any proof until things went bad and they got caught. Unfortunately after a U.S. Border Patrol Agent his life in December 2010.