Should Mexican Cartels Be Labeled Terrorist Organizations?

What's funny to me is, people want to label these cartels "Terrorists" when they are providing a product that millions of Americans want.

Oil companies do the same things, (though that isn't reported by FOX News), KBR/Haliburton does the same thing, (though that isn't reported by FOX News), De Beers does the same thing, (though that isn't reported by FOX News).

So no, in my opinion, drug cartels aren't terrorist groups. Just for the simple fact that terrorist groups don't provide a product to the American people.

reply to post by whatukno


That is silly.

When was the last time De Beers or Halliburton left a garbage bag with 14 heads in the parking lot of a grocery store in a resort or hung mutilated bodies from light poles? When did they tape and post videos on the internet of them torturing and beheading people?

reply to post by MikeboydUS


blood diamonds

KBR/Haliburton Rape Cover Up

There you go.

reply to post by MikeboydUS


DaBeers has done some evil things for diamonds, perhaps you should watch the movie Blood Diamond to get an idea of what the diamond trade is all about.

Haliburton has helped kill countless people in Iraq and Afghanistan in the name of the MIC.

reply to post by manta78


Hello Manta78-

I can't tell of all the information I know but I live in Southern California and have been dealing with "gangs" and "cartels" the last couple of months. The cartels have seeded themselves into all the infrastructure here in Southern California. They (and other gangs) have put themselves into police, FBI, hospitals, nursing homes, construction, political offices, and many many other jobs. They use the hospitals and nursing homes to suck money from the elderly and other people who come to the hospitals. The use the police and FBI to hide crimes against Americans and hide who really is behind the crime. just look at Arnold Schwarzenegger's decision to cut that kids crime of helping kill someone and you will see the corruption that lives here in Southern California. There is much more but I would be typing for a long time. So yes the cartels should be labeled as a terrorist organization and if something isn't done to stop it not only California but most of the states are lost and we will have a civil war and the collapse of our dollar within the next 2 years.

www.latimes.com...

reply to post by LightSource


When you say the cartels have "put themselves into the police, fbi, etc." do you mean influence by payment of money for information, or are you saying various law enforcement agencies, hospitals, etc. now have members who joined with the cartels or are employed by same in southern California?

Originally posted by PsykoOps
Why do you need to tag them as terrorist? What they're doing is already criminal. Does it really open up new venues for law enforcement to change their title? I dont understand that at all. Terrorist as term and definition should be only for those who actually do terror. These guys use violence and criminal acts as a business. Not for the sake of terrorizing.

Here's some more reading for you on why Mexican cartels should be labeled terrorist organizations:

"Redefining Terrorism: Why Mexican Drug Trafficking is More than Just Organized Crime"
Sylvia M. Longmire
John P. Longmire IV
Introduction

"Mexican drug traffickers are more than criminals. They are terrorists.
And that's not hyperbole. The tactics, strategy, organization, and even (to
a limited extent) the goals of the Mexican drug cartels are all perfectly
consistent with those of recognized terrorist organizations. Admittedly,
the cartels lack the motivating political or religious ideology most terrorist
groups display, and some argue this precludes the application of the "terrorist"
label. However, we will show this objection is inclusive at best.
Were the United States government to formally recognize the Mexican
cartels as the terrorists they are—or at least hybrid organizations that
employ terrorist tactics—a more effective range of options would become
available for combating the cartels and curtailing the violence that today
engulfs the US/Mexico borderlands."

Situation on the Ground
"Violence along the United States border with Mexico has been the focus of
political controversy for years. Killings spurred by turf wars and rivalries
between Mexican drug trafficking organizations (DTOs), as well as border
security concerns post—9/11, have put the US-Mexico border squarely in
the spotlight. The issues involved can be overwhelming—the trafficking of
billions of dollars worth of illicit narcotics; the illegal movement into
Mexico of assault weapons purchased in US border states; human smuggling
rings bringing special interest aliens1 into the United States; the
potential for terrorists to enter the United States via the southwest border;
and ultimately, the effect of DTO-related violence that has spilled
over into US border communities."

More from the source here:

scholarcommons.usf.edu...

reply to post by manta78


Yes, they kill at will, they behead at will, the use ied`s at will, they terrorize mexico and americas border they are out of control. The kidnap to us for smuggle drugs or to kill. They are useless crumb that need to be taken out. I have a home in a border town. When i am at this home I do not go out after dark. I am an american citizen who is afraid of her own land, yes take them out. list them as terrorist. invade theri country seek them out and end them...

reply to post by whatukno


we dont need their product, their product is basically legal know. we dont need them they are ruthless scum

According to common sense as well as the proper Law of the Land, yes, no question, they are terrorists.

According to the skewed minds of the government and their agencies, these people are criminals, therefore they are not terrorists. It is those who are honest and tell the truth who, in their insane system, are the terrorists.

They are certainly as organized, funded, and as well led as a terror group. Observe this organized assassination in March 2010 in Chihuahua. The cartel comes into town, and nobody can do a damn thing to stop them from doing whatever they want. That day it seemed they needed to kill somebody in this home.
Short Version

Full

The farce of the "insecure border" is just a scam as well, and having "Mexican drug cartels" threatening the US is part of it. Boeing is making huge amounts of money to do nothing as far as their "virtual fence" goes.

One billion dollars spent to secure 53 miles of an Arizona stretch of desert. W.T.F.!!!!

Homeland Security Cancels ‘Virtual Fence’ After $1 Billion Is Spent

In a pilot program in Arizona, it cost about $1 billion to build the system across 53 miles of the state’s border.

You're telling me that one billion dollars couldn't build a fence between Mexico and the US? Of course it could! Boeing is just playing along "it's too hard, wah" so the project gets canceled, the cartels/CIA keep the drugs running, fearmongering remains in place, everyone wins except the law-abiding American taxpayer. We must be the biggest suckers on the planet right now!

One mans terrorist is another mans freedom fighter.

I did some more digging to find out just who qualifies for a listing as a foreign terrorist organization by our government, and found this list from the state department composed as of 11-24-2010:

Abu Nidal Organization (ANO)
Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG)
Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade (AAMS)
Al-Shabaab
Ansar al-Islam (AAI)
Asbat al-Ansar
Aum Shinrikyo (AUM)
Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA)
Communist Party of the Philippines/New People's Army (CPP/NPA)
Continuity Irish Republican Army (CIRA)
Gama’a al-Islamiyya (Islamic Group)
HAMAS (Islamic Resistance Movement)
Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami/Bangladesh (HUJI-B)
Harakat ul-Mujahidin (HUM)
Hizballah (Party of God)
Islamic Jihad Union (IJU)
Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU)
Jaish-e-Mohammed (JEM) (Army of Mohammed)
Jemaah Islamiya organization (JI)
Kahane Chai (Kach)
Kata'ib Hizballah (KH)
Kongra-Gel (KGK, formerly Kurdistan Workers' Party, PKK, KADEK)
Lashkar-e Tayyiba (LT) (Army of the Righteous)
Lashkar i Jhangvi (LJ)
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG)
Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group (GICM)
Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK)
National Liberation Army (ELN)
Palestine Liberation Front (PLF)
Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP)
PFLP-General Command (PFLP-GC)
al-Qaida in Iraq (AQI)
al-Qa’ida (AQ)
al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)
al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (formerly GSPC)
Real IRA (RIRA)
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC)
Revolutionary Organization 17 November (17N)
Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C)
Revolutionary Struggle (RS)
Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso, SL)
United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC)
Harakat-ul Jihad Islami (HUJI)
Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP)
Jundallah

and then the legal criteria for such a designation:

"Legal Criteria for Designation under Section 219 of the INA as amended"

"It must be a foreign organization. The organization must engage in terrorist activity, as defined in section 212 (a)(3)(B) of the INA (8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(3)(B)),* or terrorism, as defined in section 140(d)(2) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1988 and 1989 (22 U.S.C. § 2656f(d)(2)),** or retain the capability and intent to engage in terrorist activity or terrorism. The organization’s terrorist activity or terrorism must threaten the security of U.S. nationals or the national security (national defense, foreign relations, or the economic interests) of the United States."

Source: www.state.gov...

I think the Mexican cartels can and should be added to the list......just saying.... and here are their
names and locations if anyone is curious:

"According to the Mexican government there are seven drug cartels1 operating
in Mexico. The Mexican government reports that the major cartels – Gulf, Sinaloa,
and Juárez -- are present in much of Mexico. The Juárez cartel has been found in
21 Mexican states and its principle bases are: Culiacán, Sinaloa; Monterrey, Nuevo
León; the cities of Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, and Ojinaga, Chihuahua; Mexico City;
Guadalajara, Jalisco; Cuernavaca, Morelos; and Cancún, Quintana Roo. The Sinaloa
cartel has a presence in 17 states, with important centers in Mexico City; Tepic,
Nayarit; Toluca and Cuautitlán, Mexico State; and most of the state of Sinaloa. The
Gulf cartel is present in 13 states with important areas of operation in the cities of
Nuevo Laredo, Miguel Alemán, Reynosa, and Matamoros in the northern state of
Tamaulipas. The Gulf cartel also has important operations in Monterrey in Nuevo
León; and Morelia in Michoacán. In addition, the Tijuana cartel is present in at least
15 states with important areas of operation in Tijuana, Mexicali, Tecate, and
Ensenada in Baja California and in parts of Sinaloa.2 (See Figure 1 for map of
Mexican states.)"

Source: www.fas.org...

reply to post by prexparte


They produce and import more than just that one product. The main other one they produce and import is still quite illegal. The US Government makes a lot of money off of these products, keeping them illegal produces a lot of revenue for the federal and state governments, not only on the supply side, but by busting the end user side.

Terrorist organization? Why? Because they do what other legitimate companies do? Yea, well, I guess it's all a point of view isn't it? I am sure that if you are in the west bank or gaza, Hamas or the PLO doesn't seem like a terrorist organization.

Here's another viewpoint in a blog/website in 2010 discussing this same topic:

...."People armed with automatic weapons that massacre people daily, assassinate journalists, post threats on bridges of police officers they will kill, that leave piles of heads of the police officers they kill on the side of the road, and use vast quantities of money gained from selling illegal drugs to corrupt the Mexican society sounds like…terrorists?

The drug gangs in Mexico are terrorist organizations.

They are doing to Mexico what the Taliban did to Afghanistan. The only difference is the Taliban claim some twisted religious justification for their murder and mayhem, while the drug gangs are in it just for the money and power."

Source: tucsoncitizen.com...

Here are a couple of interesting newly posted videos from youtube.com: (pic quality poor, but audio is ok)

"The Rise of the Mexican Drug Cartels and U.S. National Security (Part 2)"



"The Rise of the Mexican Drug Cartels and U.S. National Security (Part 1)"

reply to post by manta78


Yes I know they use terror as a weapon. Same would be the case for any organized crime. Pimps, gangs etc. use terror as a weapon. Real terrorist however dont just use it as a weapon. For real terrorist the terror is the goal. To organized crime the goal is money. Big difference. My point still stands.

reply to post by LightSource


Wow. Found more info on the problem you are referring to in southern California as shown in this major indictment (with lots of details on the SOP, players involved, their dates of birth, addresses, etc.) here:

www.scribd.com...

Interesting to note that the corruption went all the way up to the Baja Attorney General's office, Marquez, who used his position as one of the primary Mexican liasons responsible for sharing information with U S law enforcement agents, to obtain confidential law enforcement information for the use of the "enterprise" as noted on page 16, paragraph 17 of the indictment.

The rabbit hole just gets deeper every day........

By the following definition I found. I'd say they qualify beyond a doubt to be classified as a terrorist activity/group/org.

terrorism - the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear

Here are two EXTREMELY graphic videos showing the horrors committed by the Mexican cartels; You will NOT see these pictures on American television news channels, and are only being shown to demonstrate that the threat by the cartels is very real, and should not be taken lightly. They are terrorists, and should be deemed as such by the U.S. government.