Pubdate: Sun, 18 Jan 2009 Source: Monitor, The (McAllen, TX) Copyright: 2009 The Monitor Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/qsOVHygd Website: http://www.themonitor.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1250 Author: Andy Comer WHAT IF MEXICO REALLY DID IMPLODE? I remember being worried about living so close to Mexico when I first moved to the Rio Grande Valley. Mexico seemed like an untamed, violent and dangerous place to a guy from Ohio who considered Taco Bell to be Mexican food. In the northern part of the United States, it always seemed to me like anything made in Mexico or even associated with Mexico was looked down upon. There were maybe one or two Latino families among the sea of white faces in my suburban Ohio town, and no one spoke fluent Spanish outside of Spanish class. Needless to say, my exposure to anything Hispanic before I moved to the Valley was extremely limited. As I spent more time in the Valley, I grew accustomed to being the only guero in a restaurant or hearing more Spanish being spoken than English. After meeting many Mexicans and actually visiting the place, Mexico didn't seem so bad after all. Of course, visiting somewhere and actually living there are two different things. The front page of The Monitor's Saturday, Jan. 17 edition told readers of a U.S. military report warning of the Mexican government's possible collapse due to the constant violence and influence of the nation's notorious drug cartels. The notion of the federal government imploding does seem a bit far-fetched, but I will admit that reading the story brought back some of my original worries. I can't help but wonder: What if Mexico's national government really did fall apart? How would Valley residents be affected? Since I've only been in the Valley for a couple of years, I never experienced life before the North American Free Trade Agreement. From what I understand, places like McAllen were little more than dusty border towns mostly forgotten by the rest of Texas. The passage of NAFTA in 1993 by the Clinton administration turned the Rio Grande Valley into what it is today - a growing, increasingly vital - yet still repeatedly ignored part of the state. In other words, if it weren't for Mexico and its cheap labor, the Valley would still likely only be a mere footnote (literally) of Texas. If Mexico's government did fall apart, it's fragile (legal) economy would disintegrate, and so would the Valley's, as if things weren't bad enough already. Once the Valley economy falls apart, I could imagine that people would be scrambling to leave the area. Businesses might relocate, and the precious few young professionals McAllen seems to covet would disappear to San Antonio. Winter Texans would probably think twice about vacationing in the Valley, and Spring Breakers might find somewhere else besides South Padre Island to party. Even the birdwatchers might seek another place to see their beloved chachalacas. If the cartels did somehow take over Mexico, the nation's federal troops would be likely powerless to stop drug lords from butchering each other in border towns like Progreso or Reynosa. Violence would inevitably spill over into the Valley, putting innocent American lives at risk. The aforementioned report states that a "surge" of possible U.S. military enforcement might be sent to border regions to protect us, but I doubt their effectiveness. If our own government neglects the very citizens that give it power - just ask a Hurricane Katrina survivor - then how could we depend on Uncle Sam to save us? The feds are too inept and seemingly more interested lining their own pockets to truly help Katrina victims and the city of New Orleans itself more than three years after the storm. Hell, we can't even get decent levees built here. Why would we expect the government to bail us out when they're too busy bailing out failing banks, fighting two wars and fighting a! mong themselves? The Valley and Mexico are linked by family ties unlike any other place I've ever visited. Should anarchy rule Mexico, would all non-United States citizens be allowed to stay in America for their own safety, or would they still be forced to return to Mexico? Would Mexicans traveling or working outside of their country be able to go home, or even want to? America could be faced with an overwhelming number of refugees fleeing for their lives, which would make the current immigration problem seem minor. Cartel violence will only subside when America's prohibition of drugs is loosened or ended altogether. People will always want drugs, and dealers will always find ways to supply users. Anyone who reads The Monitor even on a casual basis is likely to see stories about drug seizures involving marijuana - as in several hundred pounds of the stuff - confiscated almost daily. Some Libertarians suggest that the legalization of marijuana would reduce crime in both the United States and especially Mexico. Perhaps the governments of both countries could create new jobs and make billions of dollars off of taxes or tariffs on legalized, strictly controlled marijuana, which would do nothing but help in a time of economic distress. Anarchy in Mexico hasn't happened yet, and it most likely won't - I hope. I can't help but think that if Mexico's federal government does collapse, the United States and its insatiable appetite for drugs is at least partially to blame. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom