US Blames Mexico for Cartels While Ignoring Its Own Role in Arming and Funding the Crisis
📰 THE STORY: An opinion piece in The Hill argues that the US should focus on cooperation with Mexico to combat drug cartels, rather than threatening intervention, and acknowledges the US role in drug demand and gun supply. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: The US has a long history of covert actions and interventions in Latin America that destabilized governments and created
power vacuums, which in turn enabled criminal organizations. Operation Condor (1970s-80s) saw US-backed right-wing dictatorships systematically eliminate political dissidents across South America, fundamentally weakening state capacities. More directly, Operation Fast and Furious (2009-2011) was a US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) program that intentionally allowed
approximately 2,000 firearms to be smuggled into Mexico, with many later found at crime scenes, directly arming cartels. Double Standard: When drug-related violence plagues US cities, the narrative focuses on public health crises, poverty, and systemic issues. When it's Mexico, the focus shifts to internal corruption, failed states, and a need for US 'assistance' or even 'intervention,' ignoring
the massive flow of US-made weapons across the border (over 70% of firearms traced from Mexican crime scenes originate in the US) and the insatiable US demand for illicit drugs that fuels the cartel economy. The US 'war on terror' received trillions; the 'war on drugs' in Latin America gets arms and calls for more crackdowns, not investment in socio-economic development. Follow the Money: The US