Drug “War” Coming To Dallas?

Dallas law enforcement is concerned about border/Phoenix levels of drug cartel violence coming to the Metroplex. I’m usually one to knock law enforcement fear mongering, especially when it comes to drugs. However, the rash of kidnappings in Phoenix shows that Mexican drug cartels will fight for turf in the US.

From DMN-

So far, the only thing that has kept the Gulf cartel from using its brazen tactics in Texas is a fear of attracting too much attention, said James Capra, special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration office in Dallas.

“The propensity for violence in dealing with these trafficking groups is huge,” he said. “We hear daily about things like beheadings, heinous torture, that we are not used to seeing domestically. Are we going to start seeing that here? That’s the fear.”

Also of concern was the November discovery of the largest cache of drug cartel weaponry ever seized in Mexico – just south of the border. In Reynosa, across the river from McAllen and Pharr, Mexican authorities found 540 assault rifles, more than 500,000 rounds of ammunition, 14 cartridges of dynamite, 98 fragmentation grenades, 67 bullet-proof vests, seven .50-caliber sniper rifles and an anti-tank rocket.

I’m hoping the DMN editorial board reads this story. For too long they have engaged in knee jerk Prohibition apologetics, and a Pollyannish quest to shame each user into giving up drugs (how’s that working?). I would implore DMN to consider a new approach.

Mexican drug cartels can only afford to wage a bloody turf war because our government has given them a multi billion dollar monopoly to fight with, and to fight over. It’s time to quit blaming drug users for the problems caused by drug suppliers. Instead, we should accept that our government has chosen the wrong supplier.

Only three entities can provide the drugs Americans want- government, business, or organized crime. We’ve stuck with the third option for nearly 100 years now.Instead of admitting failure and rectifying a policy mistake, we have watched Mexico become a narco state.

Albert Einstein opined that insanity was “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

You don’t have to be Einstein to realize our government’s drug war is a grand delusion perpetuated by histrionics, vested interests, and wanton hubris. If this is really the time for Change, let’s start by changing suppliers.

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