By Raoul Lowery Contreras
The Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico is in the news again. Its creator and former leader is the infamous shorter-than-normal Napoleon-like “El Chapo” now residing in America’s super prison in Colorado for the rest of his life. Joaquin Guzman Loera is his name. Today he goes by a number, an inmate number.
The government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is not pursuing any campaign against this cartel, an evil purveyor of death. In fact, this President even refuses to admit that labs run by the Sinaloa cartel even exist. They do.
The gigantic laboratories are producing deadly fentanyl from tons of precursor ingredients shipped to Mexico from Communist China. They exist only because this president has imposed a “hugs not bullets” policy that is so extreme that even though almost a hundred Mexicans-a-day are murdered in all parts of Mexico — the President brags that Mexico is safer than the United States.
Concurrently, Mexican-cartel manufactured fentanyl killed upwards of
70,000 weak-minded American druggies in 2022 — almost 14 times more than Americans annually killed during the 10-year long Vietnam War.
The Mexican President keeps the Mexican Army busy building a failed airport and laying railroad tracks for his dream train, the 1500 kilometer Maya Train. He also has diverted the Mexican Navy and it’s classy Marines from chasing down drug bigshots like the aforementioned “El Chapo” and manning ports to collect import duties like clerks.
The President has gone so far as to greet and hug “El Chapo’s” mother in public and to order the release of “Chapo” Junior after Marines had captured him. Reason, “Chapito’s (Little Chapo) sicarios” – killer followers — were mobilizing their dozens to try to free Little Chapo. The President of Mexico didn’t mobilize law enforcement and the Marines, he called them off and ordered the little jerk released so no one would be harmed.
Enough is enough. The Department of Justice convinced a U.S. federal grand jury to indict a gaggle of Cartel leaders – 24 to be exact. This was announced even as a top cartel leader and leading sicario – gunman and killer — Jorge Ivan Gastelum Avila, nicknamed “Cholo Ivan” was extradited to the U.S. for trial like his old boss, “El Chapo.”
Political freedom erupted in Mexico under Presidents Vicente Fox (2000-20060 and Felipe Calderon (2006-2012) when they defeated the old Stalinest PRI political party. Two legal factors improved: Extradition to the U.S. of criminals the U.S. wants to prosecute and prosecution and imprisonment of these criminals. The only reason left for Mexico denying extradition is the death penalty. That is the remaining reason most countries in Europe refuse to extradite to the U.S. because they have outlawed the death penalty.
Extradition is heavily supported in Mexico because in Mexico, justice doesn’t exist for over 90% of crimes; it’s called “impunity.” Many literate Mexicans point out that only 2% of all murders in Mexico are ever solved or ever prosecuted. 98% are never prosecuted.
NPR reports that DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) Administrator Anne Milgram said when the indictments were made public that, “The Chapitos pioneered the manufacture and trafficking of fentanyl…flooded it into the United States…and killed hundreds of thousands of Americans.”
Administrator Migram continued with: “Between 2019 and 2021, fatal overdoses increased by approximately 94%, with an estimated 196 Americans dying each day from fentanyl.”
Fentanyl is the leading cause of death for Americans under 40. It is 50 times more potent than heroin, experts say.
Stopping the fentanyl trade must be the priority of not only the U.S. but also of Mexico, for once the Cartels figure out they can make a fortune hooking the lower economic classes of Mexico, the majority, with fentanyl – Mexico will be done.
Stopping fentanyl can only be ended by both countries working together.
My suggestion is combining U.S. Special Forces with the Mexican Marines in joint operations in Mexico supported by airpower. Unfortunately, until Mexican President Lopez Obrador and his political party – MORENA- are gone, the plan might not be implemented. Why? It’s not “hugs,” it’s bullets.
If not, with almost 400 people a day murdered by guns or fentanyl in the U.S. and Mexico how long will it be before both countries are destroyed?
###
Contreras is a U.S. Marine veteran, author of 15 books and 1500 published articles; he hosts the CONTRERAS REPORT on YouTube and ROKU TV in the U.S. and Mexico
