Another idiotic Chattanooga Times editorial

[tng27]

www.timesfreepress.com/news/2009/mar/01/crisis-mexico/?opiniontimes

"Many Americans believe our nation’s most troublesome issue with Mexico is illegal immigration. In reality, it’s something far more sinister: a war on Mexico’s government by the country’s increasingly powerful and deadly violent drug cartels. The cartels, ironically, are armed chiefly by American gun stores operating under our disastrously lax regulation. But while gun sales here could easily be tightened, and should be, Mexico’s war with its narco-state gangs is a far more difficult problem — one that threatens spill-over effects and critical foreign policy issues in the United States.

Last year more than 6,000 Mexicans were killed — some first cruelly tortured and maimed, others beheaded — in drug-related violence. To put than number in perspective, contrast it with the 4,251 American soldiers killed in six years of war in Iraq.

Mexican drug gangs now use rocket-propelled grenades, rapid-fire assault rifles and bombs. They’ve infiltrated municipal and state police forces and the army to get intelligence. They attack heavily armed convoys guarding the travel of regional governors, and they boldly assassinate high-ranking military officials and the top staff of the country’s drug czars.

Just as they have grown and expanded their wars from turf fights with rival cartels into full-scale battles with government troops, they’ve also expanded their criminal reach into extortion of businesses and citizens, and the establishment of Mafia-style tax systems on their frightened subjects.

Just across the border from El Paso, Texas, teachers in Ciudad Juarez, for instance, were threatened with death at Christmas if they didn’t surrender their annual holiday bonuses. A General Motors distributorship in one mid-size city reportedly paid extortion for months at a time.

A municipal police chief was warned last week that policemen under his charge would be systematically killed every day until he resigned. He immediately resigned. That was hardly surprising given the seemingly irrepressible level of violence.

Though it is spreading, most of the violence presently occurs in three of the biggest Mexican states along the 2,000 mile border with the United States. Mexico’s three biggest drug cartels focus their control there to guard their trafficking routes. That traffic flows both ways: 90 percent of the cocaine in the U.S. comes through Mexico, and 90 percent of the firearms those gangs use to control their turf, terrorize citizens and fight federal forces flows back across the border from the United States.

The growing threat from Mexico’s drug war has understandably become a serious concern for America’s foreign and domestic policy experts. Retired general Barry McCaffrey wrote recently that Mexico could become a failed state, and a narco-state, within a decade. CIA director Michael Hayden has classified Mexico as a challenge for the Unites States equal in significance to Iran.

Much more than drug use, criminal activity and spill-over violence is at stake for the United States. Mexico is America’s third largest trading partner, third largest source of oil, and a huge supplier of natural gas. Mexico’s failure would threaten business ties. It also would spur a wave of refugees across our southern border.

Mexico, in fact, must now be counted as one of President Obama’s largest and most immediate foreign policy and domestic issues. Like all the other large problems now on his plate, it has reached a crisis point at least partly through the neglect of the prior administration. Still, it can’t be ignored any longer."

Yes it's bad in Mexico but will somebody please let me know the next time Sportsman's Warehouse has a sale on RPG's?

[Guest bkelm18]

I guess the Knoxville area dealers just suck. I've never seen an RPG at any of them.

[Guest nraforlife]

I guess the Knoxville area dealers just suck. I've never seen an RPG at any of them.

Come to the Gun Show on the 15th as EVERY ANT-GUN liberal knows that you can buy anything there and no questions asked. I bought a couple of cases of hand grenades, a full auto UZI, 10k rds of 9mm, Gen IV night vision goggles, so new even the Army doesn't have them yet just Isreal, a fully functional and brand new WW2 flame thrower and some beef jerky there last month. Dude that sold them to me looked like Plaxico Burris and his partner was Mexican looking. Unfortunately I ran out of money or I would have bought the crate load of Russian Army full auto AK's they had on the counter.

[Superman]

Great now one of those government employees are going to show this thread to Holder and say "Look what there selling at the Tennessee gunshows, Mr. Holder. We really need to get these things shut down."

[oldogy]

So we tighten our gun laws because Mexico has a problem? Isn't that like opening the door to the hen house when the fox is just outside Typical liberal drivel. See signature line below.

oldogy

[dralarms]

I sent the idiot president (of the paper) an email. I'm not believing this crap. The only thing I would use that paper for is to start a fire, or maybe to wipe my rear if I ran out of TP.

[Superman]

It seems the US government and media are going by what the mexican police and government are saying. They are the ones saying that most of the weapons confiscated are from American manufacturers, so it must be true. Seeing as it is so easy to buy missile luanchers here. Maybe it's just me, but I don't see mexican drug dealers going down to Hero Gear to buy AR-15s. Didn't the government loose some firearms not long ago. Let me put my hat on So the government lost some firearms and now the mexicans have a bunch of US firearms. So they gave the drug cartels these guns to use that as an excuse to ban them. That's pretty smart.

[Guest jackdog]

Just more bulls**t

[Guest nraforlife]

Guess the Taliban are getting theirs the same way

[mousegunner]

SShhhhhh! Don't anyone tell the Times Free Press that they have a terrific classified ads gun section EVERY DAY!

http://www.mouseguns.com/class/classads.htm

[Farman]

SShhhhhh! Don't anyone tell the Times Free Press that they have a terrific classified ads gun section EVERY DAY!

http://www.mouseguns.com/class/classads.htm

[Almond27]

A liberal in Chattanooga hmm must be one of those Starbuck Hippie's. Just kidding, I can't believe the paper would allow an article like this to be published since it seems very stupid. But opinions are like a$$holes everybody's got one. I honestly don't believe we are supplying a majority of the weapons to Mexico and why doesn't Mexico step up their weapon laws.

[Garufa]

I honestly don't believe we are supplying a majority of the weapons to Mexico and why doesn't Mexico step up their weapon laws.

Mexican gun laws are severe. While Wiki is by no means authoritative, this might give you a good idea of what average citizens may legally do south of the border: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics_in_Mexico

Many of the guns are coming from the US, except for the RPG's, fully's and other "ordinance". Enough that gun dealers near the border are being prosecuted for knowingly selling fireams to these people.

[Guest nraforlife]

Mexican gun laws are severe. While Wiki is by no means authoritative, this might give you a good idea of what average citizens may legally do south of the border: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics_in_Mexico

Many of the guns are coming from the US, except for the RPG's, fully's and other "ordinance". Enough that gun dealers near the border are being prosecuted for knowingly selling fireams to these people.

BUT in todays PC climate how is a gun dealer to know if the buyer is legal or not?

[Guest justme]

And here I thought that reporters were supposed to be educated..