William Finnegan, Letter From Mexico, “Silver or Lead,” The New Yorker, May 31, 2010, p. 39
ABSTRACT: LETTER FROM MEXICO about La Familia Michoacana and the pervasive power of drug traffickers in the country. Writer visits the hill town of
Zitácuaro in the Mexican state of Michoacán. On the morning before his arrival, the dismembered body of a young man was left in the middle of the main
intersection. It was an instance of what people call corpse messaging. Usually it involves a mutilated body and a handwritten sign. “Talked too much.”
“You get what you deserve.” The corpse’s message—terror—was clear enough and everybody knew who left it: La Familia Michoacana, a crime syndicate
whose depredations pervade the life of the region. Mexico’s president, Felipe Calerón declared war—his metaphor—on the country’s drug traffickers when
he took office, in December, 2006. It was a popular move. Although large-scale trafficking had been around for decades, the violence associated with
the drug trade had begun to spiral out of control. More than twenty-three thousand people have died since Calderón’s declaration. La Inseguridad, as
Mexicans call it, has become engulfing, with drugs sliding far down the list of public concerns, below kidnapping, extortion, torture, unemployment,
and simple fear of leaving the house. The big crime syndicates still earn billions from drugs, but they have also diversified profitably. In Michoacán
a recent estimate found eight-five per cent of legitimate businesses involved in some way with La Familia. Among Mexico’s drug trafficking
organizations, La Familia is the big new kid on the block. It first gained national attention in September, 2006, when five severed heads rolled onto
the dance floor at a night club in Uruapan, Michoacán. A senior American official in Mexico City told the writer, “La Familia is looking more and more
like an insurgency and less like a cartel.” Mentions one of La Familia’s leaders, Nazario Moreno González, who is also known as El Chayo, or El Más
Loco (the Craziest). Writer discusses La Familia’s activities with a local politician and relates how the cartel has, in some places, filled the
vacuum created by public distrust of the police and the courts. The overwhelming growth of organized crime in Mexico in the past decade is often
blamed on multiparty democracy. Until 2000, the country was basically a one-party state for seventy-one years under the Institutional Revolutionary
Party (PRI). Drug trafficking flourished, but its practitioners enjoyed stable relations with officialdom. Describes how the election of Vicente Fox
in 2000 changed the status quo between drug traffickers and government. Writer gives a survey of other significant Mexican drug cartels, including the
Sinaloa cartel, and the Zetas, who had previously occupied Michoacán. Tells about the rise of La Familia in 2006 and its expansion into nearby states.
Discusses U.S.-Mexico relations and the drug trade. Writer visits a drug-rehabilitation center in Zamora. Describes acts of kidnapping and extortion
perpetrated by La Familia.Bajahowodd - 5-30-2010 at 03:33 PM
Think there is little doubt that during the PRI oligarchy the cartels and the government had an understanding. However, if a group such as La Familia
truly has aspirations to control the country, it bodes poorly for US- Mexican relations. That said, history is rife with examples of revolutionaries
and insurgents who were once considered the worst of all criminals, who later became legitimate leaders. Whether it works or not, is primarily
dependent upon the actions and reactions of other nations.
I Edited My Comment
Gypsy Jan - 5-30-2010 at 03:42 PM
Because someone who is much smarter than me advised me to STFU.
[Edited on 5-30-2010 by Gypsy Jan]
[Edited on 5-30-2010 by Gypsy Jan]DavidE - 5-30-2010 at 06:45 PM
Distinction should be made whether a particular cartel targets citizens and tourists or only competition and law enforcement. La Familia is operated
differently than other cartels --- I commonly see posters hung up especially at the entoronque at Acalpican (until the cops or military come along and
tear them down). The messages are clear: "We do not advocate violence against the innocent / We will not tolerate others harming the innocent."
Eduardo a manguero told me that one morning two men approached him in his orchard. They were bearing firearms. "Is that your pickup truck with all the
mangos in the back?" Eduardo said he acknowdged to the afirmitive. "Are you the owner of this orchard?" Again a nod. "We are seeking poachers stealing
mangoes from the orchards".
I took note of this post because I live in the middle of la tierra de la familia. They certainly know after six years who I am, where I live and
probably have an excellent idea of my background, and habits. I would be one of the easiest rabbits to kill if they so desired. My nearest neighbor is
a quater mile distant. But I know as long as I do not take a stupid interest in doings that are way off the beaten path I am safe --- indeed several
villagers told me that I was walking and breathing proof that "There is no problem in this area".
Rural families to the north were terrorized by an armed bandit that stole petty amount of cash and roughed-up men and women. Las Marinas found a man
with his throat cut and a .25 caliber saturday night special stuffed into his mouth. His corpse lay on a beach with no roadway access. A scrawled note
lay nearby: "We mean what we say".
Before folks start jumping over one another to sea-lawyer their opinion, this post is meant as a report. It is not a judgement. Judgements are best
left to the individual. I thought it may be of more interest to some of you than expressing my opinion. But I will add that I am rather a prude.mtgoat666 - 5-30-2010 at 07:09 PM
that's the problem, they terrorize the community to maintain control, and they are a totalitarian govt unto themselves.
while they may do a few good things, they do many badtjBill - 5-31-2010 at 02:08 AM
I tried the read the article but it said I have to purchase it. toneart - 5-31-2010 at 04:54 AM
The article states: "La Inseguridad, as Mexicans call it, has become engulfing, with drugs sliding far down the list of public concerns, below
kidnapping, extortion, torture, unemployment, and simple fear of leaving the house."
I have been saying this in many of my posts. It is the cartel violence that is the big issue and it must end. Santiago - 5-31-2010 at 08:49 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by tjBill
I tried the read the article but it said I have to purchase it.
This week sometime check the New Yorker's website as the issue the article is in will not be the current issue and many, though not all, of the
articles are then available to read for free.
