Drug Wars tooooo close to home!

[BrianR]

*I* think about moving all the time. Tho not because of Ciudad Juarez, because it's a DESERT and has no redeeming qualities. I keep trying to talk the wife into moving to Tennessee, which is beautiful, has trees, all four seasons, not just December, January, February and summer (natch!) and I even like the accent better. There needs to be a long vacation there. She will understand better when she sees the place. Knoxville, Chattanooga, anything east of the Smokies is ideal (I'm severely allergic to tornadoes). The best moonshine comes from there, too. Must be the water...

[Cloud]

Originally Posted by TheMercenary

Where did you get that notion. I lived in Hawaii for 3 years, I would hardly call it the model of low crime rates.

from the Newsweek article.

[Cloud]

I think it's pretty here, and I like the weather. It appears barren at first (okay, it is pretty barren) but the landscape grows on you.

It's pretty cheap and laid back and not too crowded, all of which are important to me.

note that I am a native of the San Francisco Bay Area, which is expensive, frenetic, and crowded. But pretty.

[footfootfoot]

I love it where I am. The severe, bitter cold, and seemingly interminable winter keeps a lot of the real losers uninterested in living here.

<--- The whiners on the other hand seem to thrive.

[Cloud]

EL PASO -- Sometimes controversial and always outspoken, former Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl Gates said Thursday that casual drug users in the U.S. are at the root of the violence in Juárez and should be shot.

excuse me? SHOT?
http://www.elpasotimes.com/news/ci_11142648

oh, I like the legalization idea much better!

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by Cloud

from the Newsweek article.

I was speaking from personal experience. The crime was bad, mostly theft, and stuff of that nature.

[skysidhe]

I was wondering if livng in a place like El Paso is as scary as the news reports it to be.

Or any other border town for that matter. I hear of kidnappings and decapitation. What is the Mexican government involvement?

@ brian. Why not move because of Ciudad Juarez?

[footfootfoot]

An interesting take on the economic benefits, realized by the US, of the "war on drugs." A three part article here:
http://www.drugwar.com/fittsnarco1.shtm

[xoxoxoBruce]

Sam & Dave would make the same money if one load weren't illegal.

[Cloud]

that Solari index was NEVER 100%--we're just more aware of problems to kids now. (slightly off topic, I know)

[xoxoxoBruce]

It was where I grew up.

[footfootfoot]

Yeah, I'd say the solari index where I was a kid was in the 90's easily. Around here it's in the 60s or 70s. But I think that is a function of the relatively small population. And a hyper vigilant police force, which I have no complaints about. 31mph and out of state plates = license and registration please.

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by footfootfoot

An interesting take on the economic benefits, realized by the US, of the "war on drugs." A three part article here:
http://www.drugwar.com/fittsnarco1.shtm

Filled with quite a bit of conspiracy theory. Not sure how much credibility it can have with insinuations like that.

[BrianR]

Originally Posted by skysidhe

I was wondering if livng in a place like El Paso is as scary as the news reports it to be.

Or any other border town for that matter. I hear of kidnappings and decapitation. What is the Mexican government involvement?

@ brian. Why not move because of Ciudad Juarez?

Not scary, really. Just the Mexico side is unsafe, IMO, but I'll take any excuse to move that convinces the wife to move.

[classicman]

Obama: Troop move to Mexican border under consideration

WASHINGTON — President Obama weighed in Wednesday on the escalating drug war on the U.S.-Mexico border, saying that he was looking at possibly deploying National Guard troops to contain the violence but ruled out any immediate military move.

Obama said during an interview:"I don't have a particular tipping point in mind," he said. "I think it's unacceptable if you've got drug gangs crossing our borders and killing U.S. citizens."

Already this year there have been 1,000 people killed in Mexico along the border, following 2008's death toll of 5,800, according to federal officials who credit Mexican President Felipe Calderon for a crackdown on drug cartels.

In a recent visit to El Paso, Texas Gov. Rick Perry called for 1,000 troops to protect the border.

Obama was cautious, however. "We've got a very big border with Mexico," he said. "I'm not interested in militarizing the border."

"It should be noted that over 200 U.S. citizens have been killed in this drug war, either because they were involved in the cartels or were innocent bystanders," she said. "With those concerns in mind, it is essential that the Department of Homeland Security, along with other relevant departments, continue to pursue a contingency plan to address 'spillover' violence along our border."

I think so too