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[Guy Courchesne]

Newly elected president Calderon has some tough talk about cracking down on cartel in Mexico. Today they've announced a 'mission' to go and clean up Michoacan.

Under Fox, key arrests shook up the cartels but made things worse in a way, in that fighting for new territory in the north, Michoacan, and Acapulco resulted in several very public confrontations and violence.

Calderon is going to open it up more...recent pay raises to military reflect part of this move, to reduce the effect of corruption and bribery on those expected to battle the cartels.

Cartels in Mexico are powerful...I wonder how they will respond?

[delacosta]

Well if it were for real I'd say he's a fool and has no idea what he's getting into. Mexican drug dealers are completely connected at all levels of government, as are the police and especially the military.

There's too much money at stake to fight the narcos. They have always counted on protection from all of the fore mentioned forces.

A few years ago Fox suggested that perhaps the military not be involved in the war on drugs. The military responded, with due alarm that they could never leave Mexico alone in such an honorable battle.

Everyone's on the payroll, period.

If by some miracle the army could be convinced to take on the narcos head on, which would be highly unlikely, pay raise and all, then Mexico would face something akin to the Columbia situation-an un-winnable war (even with US aid) with large scale violence a fact of daily life.

So let's see: we have shorty offering the troops a few hundred pesos extra a week to take on professional killers armed to the teeth and ready to kill them and their families without mercy. The generals, the majority of whom are already on narco payroll with cash pouring in every month, will now have to betray their business associates and put them in jail-putting themselves and their families at risk and cutting off the cash flow.

Does anyone who knows Mexico at all think the above scenario is likely?
Does anyone think that Calderon, or any of his advisors, would also think the above scenario likely?

Right.

Obviously it's all yet another charade: so instead of saying he's a fool I'd have to say he's just a charlatan looking to manipulate public opinion any way he can.

I just read the report in which 5,000 police and military were deployed.
And oh my god! 13 people were arrested and 1,100 MARIJUANA plants discovered!
That should teach em....

I'm sure it'll all be dutifully reported on the news tonight.

Speaking of news and charades I don't know if any of you saw the investigative 'news reports' over the last 2 weeks about the excessively high prices Mexicans have to pay for pharmaceutical drugs. Every day, morning, noon and night, both national television channels reported on the thousands of poor Mexicans who die every year because they can't afford to buy the medicine they need. Heart wrenching interviews were repeated daily for two weeks, complete with melodramatic music in the background, with suffering people crying, I mean literally sobbing their eyes out, saying how they had no recourse but to die.

The reason for the high prices, the in-depth investigative report tells us, is because of a middle- man distribution monopoly by the Saba group.

Now a moderately enquiring mind would want to know why the television duopoly would suddenly (both!) be breathing down the neck of one of the many monopolies that dominate Mexican commerce, the same ones that bankrolled the current short -yet tough- guy who's calling himself president and carrying around a very big stick.

Turns out that the owner of Saba is also the owner of Telemundo, the American Spanish-speaking TV network that's desperately trying to get a foothold in Mexico.

Will el espurio take on the monopolies that have been sucking the life force out of Mexico for decades, as is demanded if the true free market economy that he and the IMF envision is implemented? The trickle down system that will bring untold wealth to the masses, theoretically to work counts on open markets and the elimination of monopolies.

Those very same monopolies who spent billions of pesos to get Calderon in office.

The farce goes on.

And closer to home, for educators in Mexico, 4.5 billion was cut from the education budget.

It's kind of baffling to me to see so many teachers on this forum say that they actually support this guy.

Repeat: forgive them for they know not what they do.
And repeat, and repeat�.

[Guy Courchesne]

So what happened with the Arellanos? They must've run afoul of someone to be knocked off (relocated to a secure area?) by the government, their employers as you say.

How about the Zetas in Acapulco? Who's pulling their strings? They've been knocking off local police, who dominated the trade in the city. Guerrero sate went from PRI to PRD governance right about the same time the Zetas showed up. Complicated indeed....

[delacosta]

The 4.5 billion figure is what was announced, any online news source will confirm this.

AMLO's strongest support came and comes from DF. The millions at the rallies were almost all DFe�os.

Everyone I know from DF gives AMLO great marks for his time running the city. Remember DF's budget was severely cut by the feds to inhibit as best they could AMLO from doing a good job.

Well almost everyone, I do know a family up in Santa Fe who didn't support el peje, but that's not really DF, is it?

[Guy Courchesne]

Try polling again...his numbers have fallen off the chart.

[delacosta]

Geez Guy, that's quite an accusation-making numbers up!
Why would I do that?

The numbers are those reported by many of the Mexican media, ranging from 1.1 million at the first rally to over 2 million at the next, back in July-numbers reported by the DF security apparatus.

Cumulatively his rallies in the zocalo have drawn millions, beggining way back with the desafuero.

[J Sevigny]

Every new Mexican president does this "get tough on drugs" thing. Fox did it when he sent the federal police to Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas. In the Zedillo administration, it used to be that everytime Mexico was up for drug certification from the US, they'd make a big bust, like a truck full of cocaine from which the driver "escaped."

Now Calderon's doing the same dance. Which isn't a bad thing. Maybe they can stop the beheadings and other crap in what is otherwise a lovely state. It's just kind of obvious that it's going to take more than 5,000 soldiers in Michoacan to stop a multi-gazillion dollar international business, that as de la costa says, has historically involved everyone from traffic cops to generals and presidents in more than one nation.

Calderon is in PR mode. Anything he does looks "forward leaning" and impressive after six years of Fox's do-nothing administration. But I think it's far too early to tell what kind of president he's going to be. The most alarming thing is this administrations proposed cuts to UNAM and AIDS prevention/treatment. The Panistas really are Mexico's Republicans.

[Guy Courchesne]

Would still like to see these links to education cuts, not so much because I'm too lazy to go and find them, but more because I'm interested in the source of info.

Delacosta, you say cumulatively he's drawn millions in DF...you're counting the same people over and over? Now I start to see where you come up with numbers on his supporters...count em twice, thrice, and again and again.

The Zocalo cannot hold one million people. Physically impossible, and every rally has been getting smaller and smaller. The largest number of people reported for any such march in DF was the Silent March for better security where people came down Reforma and into the Zocalo and then went back to their homes. That drew over a million people, protesting generally against the AMLO and federal governments, coming from many different walks of life.

[delacosta]

No, I don't make things up and I'm not counting cumulatively...sheesh!
Don't be so lazy, you're an internet addict who instantly poses links to the most obscure things imaginable.
My usual sources for basic Mexican news are La Jornada and El Universal. Beyond that I read a few blogs but the numbers I'm quoting are from main stream press. Of course not Reforma or Milenio or other right wing rags.

Next thing you'll be telling me that December 1st took place in a "very calm setting, amongst an atmosphere of tranquility in the building", as both television channels reported that morning with cameras zooming in on the stage to avoid showing the chaos taking place, and turning down the volume to eliminate the catcalls ,shouts and whistling that was drowning out Calderon's nervous 3 minute ceremony.

Followed by the smiling barby doll commentator saying that Calderon" has started off with the right foot forward and a strong hand (mano dura), as he should".

Exit Foxilandia, enter Felipemundo, with GC lapping it all up. I know Canadians are real trusting and all but wake up and smell the Tim Horton's.

[MELEE]

[Guy Courchesne]

Amusing, Delacosta. If I don't buy your propaganda, then I must be buying someone else's? If it's not us then it's them? If it's not you, then to hell with it? That's akin to an AMLO speech...all fluff, no substance.

Thanks for the links Melee. Will look em over now. Checking sources is far less a matter of trust and more of being able to read. Education might miss that, but we got it just fine in Journalism.

[Guy Courchesne]

Gee, AFI isn't fooling around in Michoacan. Looks like a police state, from the first piece of video I saw. Anyone there that can offer eyewitness views?

[M@tt]

what?! metro bus is gone? i have my card with 35 pesos left on it. does that mean it's useless?
metro bus is really gone?!?

[ls650]

If I could interrupt the squabble for a moment: http://www.mexiconews.com.mx/miami/22346.html

[MELEE]

There are several articles that I didn't link as I was trying to remain credible, that suggest Calderon slashed UNAM's budget out of spite, because he himself failed their entrance exam.