Mexican Drug War

It looks like the consequences of drug prohibition -- in this case needless deaths and assorted violence -- are making Mexico react in a more logical way. Mexico's president, Felipe Calderón, said today he would consider a debate on legalising drugs, as his government announced that more than 28,000 people have been killed in prohibition violence since he launched a crackdown against cartels in December 2006.

Drug prohibition is responsible for a lot more deaths than drugs. Now, the Mexican government is reporting that 28,000 people have been killed since President Felipe Calderón initiated an offensive against the country’s drug cartels three years ago. The announcement, made by Mexico’s intelligence service director Guillermo Valdés, marks the second time in four months that the government has increased its estimate of the number of violent deaths caused by prohibition violence.

Drug prohibition violence continues in Ciudad Juarez where Mexican federal police officers were attacked with a grenade, nearly two weeks after Mexican federal police were attacked with a car bomb. 262 people were killed in Ciudad Juarez in July -- that's about 8 per day.

Reporters in Nuevo Laredo avoid coverage of drug prohibition violence due to death threats from drug gangs. It's a matter of self-preservation -- since December 2006, more than 30 journalists have been killed or have disappeared since President Felipe Calderon launched an ineffective war against drug trafficking organizations.

Now, for yet another lesson in futility from the class Economics of Drug Prohibition 101. The death of Ignacio "Nacho" Coronel, No. 3 of the gang led by Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, during an army operation will likely will mean more violence as factions fight for the cocaine and methamphetamine empire that he left behind.

Four journalists were kidnapped after publishing a story earlier this week about prison officials in northern Mexico who had allegedly let drug-gang assassins out repeatedly and supplied them with weapons and trucks to massacre 35 people. The gunmen who took the journalists demanded that videos they had made accusing the police of collaborating with another drug gang, the Zetas, be aired on TV networks. The videos were aired on a midday newscast, but the men were not released, and remain in captivity.