Thesis / Introduction If it seriously intends to combat these aforementioned illicit activities, Mexico must launch a massive intervention and interdiction campaign, targeting the flow of drugs (cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamines, among others) on land, on sea, and Mexico must begin paying special attention of the movement of drugs and bulk currency through the use of illicit aviation. How bad is it? Heroin Abuse is Spreading into the Heartland An article in The New York Times ("In Heartland Death, Traces of Heroin's Spread") published May 31, 2009, points to the fact that Mexican drug cartels have "pushed heroin sales beyond major cities into American's suburban and rural byways" (Archibold, 2009)
" Indeed, he asserted that from January 1, 2005, to September 30, 2005, there were 26 "High-Confidence Suspect Air Tracks" (flights documented by air traffic monitors) confirmed. Of those, the joint task force interdicted two, which resulted in the seizure of 1,700 kilos of cocaine and the arrest of five smugglers (Braun, 2005)
This was the third prison "break" in Zacatecas in the past few years, the article pointed out. How bad is it? National Weakness in Mexico Nationwide, over 11,000 people have been killed since 2006 in Mexico's drug war, and in 2006 alone some 6,200 drug-related killings have been reported, which is up more than 100% from 2007, according to The New York Times (Lacey, 2009)
S. where cartels buy their AK-47 assault rifles and easily smuggle them into Mexico (Lawson, 2009)
Once having landed in this remote region, traffickers then use vehicles over dusty, non-monitored roadways to bring the drugs into Mexico. How bad is it? Mayors & Other Mexican Officials Arrested May 26, 2009 How deep has corruption reached into the community when it comes to local political activities in Mexico? The answer is of course that no one knows for certain, but on Tuesday May 26, 2009, Mexican security forces arrested 10 mayors and 17 other government officials (Wilkinson, 2009)
Once having landed in this remote region, traffickers then use vehicles over dusty, non-monitored roadways to bring the drugs into Mexico. How bad is it? Mayors & Other Mexican Officials Arrested May 26, 2009 How deep has corruption reached into the community when it comes to local political activities in Mexico? The answer is of course that no one knows for certain, but on Tuesday May 26, 2009, Mexican security forces arrested 10 mayors and 17 other government officials (Wilkinson, 2009)
It can place restrictions on how the information gathered can be used, how long the police can listen to conversations, and what types of conversations the police are allowed to listen to. The court order can place many other restrictions, including who can listen to the conversations and what records the police must keep" (LaMance, 2013)
no longer wages a war against drug trafficking and abuse, the War on Drugs continues. No matter the label that the DEA attributes to its operations, its basic enforcement strategies ("investigate, arrest, seize assets, prosecute, incarcerate -- repeat" (Cooke, ¶ 5) appear resolute
The temptation for those engaged in drug trafficking to expand their drug business realm; anticipating even more amounts of untraceable cash, still has ultimately corrupted more individuals, including drug cops, and destroyed lives; literally and figuratively (Goodman, 2009). Two years ago, the newspaper article, "DEA, ICE mend fences; agree to share information on drug trafficking" (2009) reports that for years in the past, Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) officers complained that the dearth of cooperation with other federal law enforcement agencies contributed to a myriad of missed opportunities s as well as complex challenges when trying to obtain information they needed to arrest drug traffickers in the U
Drug Trafficking In The United States drug trafficking in the united states "Drag trafficking is an activity that involves the importation, manufacturing, cultivation, distribution, and/or sale of illicit drags. In this hierarchical system, narcotics are moved from smugglers, growers, or manufacturers to wholesalers who pass the product down through the chain of distribution to retailers and eventually to the consumer or drug user" (Desroches, 2007, ¶ 1)
government estimates that Mexican traffickers receive more than $13.8 billion in revenue from illicit drug sales to the United States" (Ganster & Lorey, 2008, p
Violence associated with black markets has continued to claim thousands of lives. The temptation for those engaged in drug trafficking to expand their drug business realm; anticipating even more amounts of untraceable cash, still has ultimately corrupted more individuals, including drug cops, and destroyed lives; literally and figuratively (Goodman, 2009)
A year earlier, the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 had become the basis for all later drug policy in the United States. In addition to the act categorizing drugs into five groups, based on their abuse pattern and medicinal usefulness, the Controlled Substance Act also formed new Federal agencies to battle drug use and trafficking (Harris, 2009)
However, softening the laws may make drug use seem more socially acceptable and lead to increased drug use. (Sherman, 2010, p
Dispersion and Fragmentations of Criminal Drug Trafficking Organizations (The Cockroach Effect) There are many countries involved in the production of illegal drugs, usually beginning with an economically disadvantaged, or peasant, grower. The Bolivian associations of coca growers work together to deter criminal organizations, with the help of the military as well (Bagley, 2012)
Furthermore, if true, these funds from sale of illicit drugs also enable planning and execution of even more attacks. Advantages of the illicit drug market to terrorists might include ease of entry into the drug trade, minimal infrastructure investment needed, and insignificant transportation costs relative to immense profit (Ballentine 2003; Cornell 2005)
The list of terrorists believed to be involved in the illegal drug trade is large, and includes many countries around the globe. These include: Hezbollah; the Filipino Abu Sayyaf movement; the Indian separatist United Liberation Front of Assam; IS or ISIL/ISIL, presently in Iran and Syria; the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK); the Peruvian Sendero Luminoso; Protestant para-military organizations in Northern Ireland; the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC; the Real Irish Republican Army (RIRA) dissidents in Northern Ireland; and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan (Baruah 1994; Bibes 2001; Filler 2002; Makarenko 2004; Roth and Sever 2007; West 2014)
Based on this idea that drugs equal cash, and cash equals increased terrorism, approaches to decrease terrorism have begun to specifically focus on the drug aspect. Steps involved have included destruction of drug crops, destruction of drug production sites, and interdiction of drug products to stop the cash flow; this is now common counter-terrorism policy for many countries (Biersteker and Eckert 2007; Kleiman 2004; Steinitz 2002; Winer and Roule, 2002)
Advantages of the illicit drug market to terrorists might include ease of entry into the drug trade, minimal infrastructure investment needed, and insignificant transportation costs relative to immense profit (Ballentine 2003; Cornell 2005). Other factors may include the fact that increased monitoring of terrorist groups following the 9/11 terrorist event in the United States has removed many of their former support systems, inducing a shift towards income that is less easy to trace (Dolar and Shughart 2007; Lipitz 2007; Ortiz 2002; Sanderson 2004)
One aspect of counter-terrorism policy is based upon the presumption of a connection between terrorism and the illegal drug trade. 'Fighting terrorism' has increasingly become a rationale for policies that are counter-narcotics by the United Nations via its Office for Drugs and Crime (UNDOC) as well as within Western Europe and the United States (Felbab-Brown 2009)