AK-47 Law Rules as Cartels Fight Over US Drug Route

[beetbox]

AK-47 law rules as cartels fight over US drug route

A Mexican border town is brought to its knees as 117th murder recorded

Dan Glaister in Nuevo Laredo
Saturday August 27, 2005
The Guardian


Normal is a relative term. Nuevo Laredo has been assailed by the struggle between two drug cartels for control of the route across the border. As well as being the crossing for 38% of bilateral trade, the city of 400,000 is now the main entry point for narcotics into the US.

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Nobody blames the police for not coming sooner. For one thing, the shoot-out was between the gangs. And for another, the gangs' weaponry is far superior to that of the authorities. "The federal troops are scared," says Raymundo Ramos, president of the city's human rights committee and a journalist with La Tarde. "They only have AR-15s . The gangs have got AK-47s, grenade launchers, bazookas. That's why it took them 20 minutes to get to the house."

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The latest shoot-out also persuaded the US ambassador, Tony Garza, to shut the consulate in the city, noting the "unusually advanced weaponry" involved. That the arsenal most probably came from the US was not mentioned. On Monday three US citizens were arrested in Nuevo Laredo in possession of arms they claimed were for a hunting trip.

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Suneson argues that the US should be embarrassed. "The insatiable demand for drugs in the US is driving this," he points out. Fixing the problem of how to check every one of the 8,000 trucks that cross the border each day is a question of political will. But if the traffic in drugs is not stopped, he says, many people are looking for a simpler solution. "They hope that someone wins and things return to normal," he says. "If the government doesn't do anything, just let someone win."

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1557425,00.html

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

1. The Guardian knows about this drug route yet "we" don't.

$5B a year and we don't know shit.

Brooklyn Bridge, meet Buyer.

[beetbox]

2. It's the media doing its job well

Not being sarcastic. Silence is the most effective form of propaganda.

Limiting the range of discussion the most effective method of censorship.

The issue of narcotics is simply tabu in almost all forums, political or otherwise. Following the money should lead us to see how this is of import and how necessary it is to discuss and uncover these dirty truths. Just doesn't see the light of day.

Narcotics: Second to Oil and the Arms Trade

The IMF estimated global money laundering to be between 590 billion and 1.5 trillion dollars a year, representing 2-5 percent of global GDP. (Asian Banker, 15 August 2003). A large share of global money laundering as estimated by the IMF is linked to the trade in narcotics.http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=HAS20050809&articleId=822

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

3. #1 Global Drug Dealer Alert!

The U.S. Govt.


Shock level= Zero.

[wli]

4. the US government is the biggest dope dealer out there anyway n/t

[lostnfound]

10. kick nt

[teryang]

5. This will be the Iraq solution- just let someone win...

...by withdrawing now.

[DemInDistress]

6. This Bush Crime Family couldn't part hands with

an estimated 212 billion barrels of oil plus vast unexplored ares inside iraq..their not leaving without oil guarantees,these guys are like the tv show Dallas,rich back-stabbing cut throat oilmen..

[beetbox]

7. Iraq has now become a major

drug route for opium. before the invasion this narcotics trade was virtually non-existent in Iraq.

Not an accident.

[Jack_DeLeon]

8. Prohibition doesnt work, the War on drugs and always will be a failure...

All Prohibition does is that it makes crime more profitable.

[benEzra]

9. If they had actual AK-47's, then the arms didn't come from the U.S....

"They only have AR-15s . The gangs have got AK-47s, grenade launchers, bazookas. That's why it took them 20 minutes to get to the house."

The latest shoot-out also persuaded the US ambassador, Tony Garza, to shut the consulate in the city, noting the "unusually advanced weaponry" involved. That the arsenal most probably came from the US was not mentioned. On Monday three US citizens were arrested in Nuevo Laredo in possession of arms they claimed were for a hunting trip.

If they had actual AK-47's (not to mention grenade launchers and shoulder-fired rockets), then the arms didn't come from the U.S. I would imagine they probably came from Central America, I'd guess (plenty of military AK's floating around in the hands of drug lords in Columbia and such).

In the U.S., actual AK-47's, grenade launchers, and "bazookas" are VERY tightly controlled Title 2/Class III weapons under the National Firearms Act; a non-fake AK requires a six to eight month background check to own (similar in scope to getting a Secret level government security clearance), costs upwards of $15,000 EACH, your local chief law enforcement officer has to sign off on your application, and the U.S. BATFE gets to inspect your home once a year to make sure it's safe and sound. I doubt any drug smuggler would bother with that when military AK's probably run around $100 U.S. on the international arms black market.