As Mexico's Drug War Rages, Military Takes Over for Police

walkin' trails @ 12/11/2008 6:33 PM

A military solution to a miltary problem. The cartels have been allowed to flourish to the point that they challenge the soverignty of Mexico. While I feel that military experience is not a bad thing to have for any law enforcement supervisor, including a chief, I don't agree that a career military officer has the kind of experience to run a civilian law enforcement agency. On the other hand, the civilian law enforcement agencies in Mexico do not have the training, resources, or experience to deal with the current level of violence and corruption that the drug cartels are dishing out. The Mexican military has its own poor track record for corruptability. Ideally, the military would step in long enough to destroy the cartels and allow the police departments to reconstitute and retrain with vetted officers. Realistically, the Mexican military may not be as up to the task as they might wish everyone to think.