Mayor of Mexican town shot dead after death threats

Mayor of Mexican town shot dead after death threats ​

Gunmen have killed the mayor of a Mexican town on the border with the United States.

Manuel Lara Rodriguez, 48, was shot dead in Ciudad Juarez, where he had fled to a month ago after receiving death threats.

He was the mayor of Guadalupe Distrito Bravos in Chihuahua state.
Guadalupe is at the centre of a wave of violence involving rival gangs smuggling drugs to the US.

Hundreds of its residents have been killed and it is listed among the most dangerous towns in the country.

The gunmen attacked Mr Lara at the house where he had been staying in the Santa Teresa neighbourhood of Ciudad Juarez at around midday on Saturday (1630 GMT).

Police said Mr Lara was shot in front of his family, adding that they had found 11 bullet shells in his driveway.

Border trouble
Mexican security forces say towns along the country's US border have become the main battle ground for drug cartels fighting over the lucrative smuggling routes to the United States.

President Felipe Calderon has deployed thousands of troops to the worst-affected regions along the border as part of his "war on drugs".

This week, he made a televised address appealing to the nation to help combat the escalation of violent drug battles that have rocked the country.
Last month, he asked a joint session of the US Congress for support.

He said it was crucial that the flow of weapons from the US to Mexico was curbed.

Despite his appeals, June is likely to be the deadliest month in his battle against the cartels since he took office almost four years ago.

Around 23,000 people have been killed since he took over as president.

BBC News - Mayor of Mexican town shot dead after death threats

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Here's another example of how those wonderful people will ASSIMILATE right into the American melting pot!

 

Legalize it.

End of a whole host of problems these stupid laws create.

 

Mayor of Mexican town shot dead after death threats

Update: They are no longer threats

 

What else is new? On a daily basis 20 or more people somewhere in Mexico are being assassinated. Who in heck is paying for all these killings??? NOBODY!

 

Legalize killing?

 

Obviously not.

But since the USA is unwilling to legalize hemp, and since that market is generating the money that the drug cartels are using against the Mexican government, Mexico ought to legalize the drugs, and tax them, too.

Then let the USA deal with this problem while Mexicans get rich.

Prohibition of drugs and alcohol is a plan destined to fail.

 

Ya think...

 

It would be absolutely crazy to think that the cartels would switch to a different form of smuggling or crime.

 

The solution is to deport the drug gangs back to Mexico on planes flown by people taking those wonderful drugs!!! Happy landings!!

 

What's going on in Mexico is a tragedy that stems from a very complex set of factors. Read in the newspaper here that there were 200 murders in the past WEEK there. That's nuts! Its almost like a civil war is going on there and its very fucked up. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like anyone knows what to do about it. "Manu dura" (strong hand) tactics haven't worked under Calderon - police and judiciary are too corrupt in Mexico to effectively handle the issue, and the government just does not have the tools (especially in this recession) to offer a suitable alternative (it only has sticks and no carrots). There just isn't the will to solve the heart of the matter - the huge inequality of wealth that distorts the country's institutions and causes discontent from the poor majority. Mexico's poor do not see the police and the state as the "good guys," but just like another big gang, meaning that they are subdued to whichever faction they fear more (in many cases, the cartels). In short, Mexico basically has to win the "hearts and minds" of its own population if it wants to succeed against the Cartels, and to do so it needs to clean house and redistribute the wealth.

Of course the other side of the problem that fuels the cartels (other than government incompetence) is the plain fact that Mexico shares a giant border with the biggest drug market in the world. That's why Mexico also needs US assistance, and it needs the US to implement sensible drug policy. You people might think that, you know, "fuck 'em forrrnrrrss" but the fact is that as the hegemon of this hemisphere, most domestic US policies have giant ripple effects on the rest of our relatively small countries - though by the same token, these effects often come back to the US indirectly and unintendedly (i.e. mass economic migration). Until the US realizes this as well, there won't be much progress either. Everything is connected and demagoguic, misguided short-term solutions (like building a giant wall) will ultimately always fail.