Losing the drug war 11 1 07.doc

When will we learn?   Seven policemen and two civilians kidnapped; outside of the town, they shot and killed four of the policemen.   The remaining police of the town deserted their posts.   In other words, the town was left to the criminals and their cronies to do with as they pleased.   

Is this report “just” another episode in the mess that is Iraq or Afghanistan?   No.   This terrible incident occurred in the town of Cananea.   Where is Cananea?   It is in the Mexican state of Sonora.   The nearest larger town is Nogales -- ARIZONA!   The next largest city is Tucson.   

Who are the criminals doing the dirty work here?   They are the Mexican drug cartels vying for the control of the best drug smuggling routes into the U.S.   And, according to the GAO (Government Accountability Office), "Mexico is the conduit for most of the cocaine reaching the United States, the source for much of the heroin consumed in the United States and the largest foreign supplier of marijuana and methamphetamine to the U.S. market."   This testimony was given to the House Foreign Relations Committee only a couple of weeks ago.

“In 2005 alone, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, people using cocaine visited emergency rooms 448,481 times, while people using heroin visited emergency rooms 164,572 times. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy estimates that in 2002, Americans paid $180.9 billion to cover the negative consequences of drug use, which includes health costs, criminal justice costs, disability and death-related costs, and the cost of lost productivity.”   Source: CNSNews.com, 10/31/07.

So, when the U.S. sends our precious military to fight the “terrorists” in Iraq and Afghanistan (with military presence in over 100 other countries), the Congress, Senate, and, most importantly, the President (Obama) do not see the REAL threat to our beloved country: south of the border.  

Yet when we attempt to build a border fence, or attempt to round up the criminal aliens for prosecution for some of the most heinous crimes -- many against women, or when we attempt to deport the illegals, we are called “racists”, “bigots”, or worse.

So be it.   But the total cost of the war in Iraq alone is over $464 billion so far, with this president “asking” for another $200 billion, this does not include the most important cost of all: the human cost.   Our military has lost nearly 3,900 dead (that’s the official tally), not to mention those wounded, as well as the civilian Iraqi population decimated and displaced from their homes and livelihoods.  

Just think what could have been done with a mere fraction of the $465 billion used instead, to secure our southern (and northern) borders!   

Isn’t it always true that we get what we deserve?   Is the next president going to give us more of the same -- whether Republican or Democrat?   

If we read the Declaration of Independence, we the people have the right to throw the bums out and start over again.   The time to do so is long overdue.  

E. DeLalla