Distant Neighbors

After spending more than 20 years in Mexico as an English teacher, I returned to the States and started reflecting on the enormous difference in cultures, way of life, daily habits, religion, politics, and, above all, public perception toward government, whether local or national. Mexico was, of course, settled by Spaniards who gave the country its language, but not its culture. The resulting mix of European and Indian blood, known in Mexico as mestizos, comprises more than 90% of today's population. The Catholic Church established the main religion for most Mexicans who revere the Virgin Mary as its beloved protector. Even drug traffickers, ironically, invoke her help to carry out their sinister trade.

To understand  Mexican cynicism toward government, one must remember that this proud country has been unable to find true democracy except for very short periods of time. Invaded by the French and by Americans, plagued by dictatorships from Porfirio Diaz to the political monopoly during 70 years under the Revolutionary Institutional Party (PRI), citizens of the Aztec country are naturally very skeptical as to their rulers' claims of democracy. Vast fortunes were made by corrupt politicians who acted with impunity and sacked state and national treasuries. No checks and balances existed to limit political excesses, no judicial system (controlled by cronies) dared interfere or ask for public accounting. The media, with rare exceptions soon quelled, reflected the government's point of view with nary an independent opinion.
Vicente Fox, First non-PRI President

Things changed on December 1, 2000, when Vicente Fox was sworn in as the first non-PRI President of Mexico. The nation exhaled with relief; now things would change. Democracy, finally, was taking over in Mexico! Alas, old habits die hard. The governing machine remained the same with firmly entrenched bureaucrats who still saw their poorly paid positions as an opportunity to supplement their salary through the famous mordida (bribe). Trying to open a business in Mexico is a via crucis that may take as much as 2 years, unless you know who to talk to. Intermediaries quickly saw their opportunity to fatten their purses by "negotiating" a deal with government officials. Popular Mexican wisdom says that there is no such thing as a poor politician, only a dumb one.

Because the people has suffered so much during more than two centuries since Mexico's independence in 1810, they regard any foreigner with suspicion and sometimes with outright hostility. Poverty is still rampant, especially in major cities. Public services are deficient and very expensive. Gasolines (all types) are sold at international prices to people who make less than half of what similar positions make in the U.S. Natural gas is abundant in the northern part of the country so most homes use it to cook and heat their homes. Unfortunately, it is in the hands of a Spanish company which won the bidding when Mexican politicians decided to privatize the business. The price of gas is simply too high for the majority of middle-class inhabitants and, of course, for the poor. The cost of electricity is also based in dollars, making it prohibitive for the ordinary family. So, many homes simply "steal" power through ingenious shenanigans, such as hiding the cables which bypass the meter.


Justice is severely biased in Mexico; if you are incarcerated, you have to prove your innocence or pay a mordida to get out of jail; judges can often be bought (they make very little money), and the police is not known for its humane treatment of prisoners. An accused person may spend years in prison before they appear in court and nobody is in a hurry to pass sentence. There is no jury; it's all up to the judge. Or course, people with high-placed compadres can often obtain their early release. A simple phone call to the court will take care of business. Favors are paid with favors.

Nowadays, the only institution Mexican citizens trust (more or less) is the army which has engaged the drug traffickers in a frontal assault. Thousands of local police and low level functionaries have been arrested and accused of collusion with cartels.Thousands of Mexican citizens have fled the country and settled in our country: the very rich and the very poor. The former because of fear, the latter because of hunger.

It is difficult to conceive how two neighboring countries can be so dissimilar. Even France and Germany, to cite an example of different neighboring cultures, have achieved a decent level of prosperity for their peoples. Mexican people often say:"So close to the U.S. and so far from God," to show their dissatisfaction with the present state of affairs. We send our retirees to the cheaper life in Mexico, while they send their poor and hungry. They send us their illicit drugs and we return the favor by sending back millions of dollars.

Some American hotheads have suggested invading Mexico to pursue and destroy the cartels: that would be the most foolish thing to do. It would unite all Mexicans against us; they still remember the Mexican-American war in which they lost half their territory. No, the solution is in the hands of Mexico itself; if they can establish firm democratic institutions and an honest judicial system to punish corruption, they have a chance to grow into the prosperous nation that every Mexican citizen aspires to see one day.

UnCivil War

I live close to the border with Mexico and I have very close and very dear family in Monterrey, a city approximately 4 hours from the United States. Every time a serious incident is reported in the media, I shudder to think that my loved ones have been innocent victims. I find it incredible that a murderous crime spree fought with modern weapons takes place so close to us, the most powerful nation on Earth, still. What do we do to help? Covert agents from the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) work closely with Mexican law enforcement, trusting their lives to agencies known for their frequent corrupt ties to criminal groups. We give Mexico modern helicopters equipped with the latest weaponry and surveillance gadgets. We even use drones on the borders to help the Border Patrol. Whether we use them to kill an occasional cartel member is unknown.



During a recent visit by Mexican friends, one of them related a daily occurrence in Monterrey: A friend of his was setting up a carpentry business on a rented piece of land when two sinister-looking men showed up in his office and introduced themselves, very politely, as members of a local Zeta group. They offered to protect his new business if he agreed to a certain monthly payment; Al Capone would have been proud. The friend, knowing that if he paid such amount his business could not survive, tried to negotiate... in vain. The two thugs mentioned what would happen if he didn't agree. During the following night, the budding entrepreneur grabbed his equipment and set up shop in another part of the city, hoping that the area was clear of bandits and extortion.

Needless to say, such actions deter many would be entrepreneurs from starting a new business. Calling the cops, as we would in the U.S., never entered their mind. They know quite well that law enforcement is often on the payroll of armed gangs. Even successful Mexican businessmen, able to hire private bodyguards, are starting to give up and move to a more hospitable climate such as the United States. A very famous restaurant that my wife and I used to visit at least once a month in a nearby Mexican border town has already established a business on our side of the border, desperate to regain customers lost to the climate of senseless violence in the Aztec country.

The recent tragic events in a casino in Monterrey, where 52 clients of gambling machines lost their lives after the criminals set fire to the establishment, is a clear message that even politicians in Mexico are starting to heed. The situation cannot continue and drastic measures are needed,  from both Washington and Mexico City. After all, even the cartels admit that the killing of civilians is bad for their business and the presence of the Mexican army, seen as an occupying force by many, only exacerbates the violence. The United States, mired in endless squabbling on Capitol Hill, doesn't appear willing to do more in the middle of a serious economic downturn. And yet, without American customers, the drug trade would simply wither and practically disappear. Every day, tons of illicit drugs cross the border in spite of the heroic efforts of our law enforcement agents. Where do these products end up? Where are the centers of distribution? How do the millions of dollars obtained by dealers disappear and end up as licit money?



We cannot let Mexico descend into chaos; they are our most important partner in trade, in culture, and in historical ties. Millions of Mexican immigrants live in the U.S. and contribute heavily to our GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Mexico is indelibly joined at the hip with us. We must do more, much more, to help them recuperate control of their country and of their peace.

The Latin America Affair

President Obama briefly mentioned a much needed free trade agreement with a couple of Latin American countries in his forceful message to Congress about jobs; such a deal with Colombia and Panama has not yet been approved by our legislature. This light reference to what used to be our primary backyard under the infamous Monroe doctrine has become a forgotten part of the world under both Bush and Obama. Yet, our exports to the countries with which we have a free trade agreement have grown faster than with other nations and with all know that exports mean more jobs here in the U.S.

After spending more than 20 years in Mexico, I can state with total certainty that life in the Aztec country revolves mostly around its relation with us. The U.S. Census bureau reports that in July 2011 we exported goods worth $16 billion to Mexico, $3 billion more than last year for the same month. True, we also bought around $20 billion, thus creating a trade deficit. In comparison, we only exported $8 billion to China in July 2011 while importing more than $35 billion, an enormous trade deficit that created a lot of jobs in the land of Confucius. Mexico imports twice as much from us than China, and yet we dedicate much more attention to Beijing than we do to our southern border allies.

 The Mexican Flag

Why the neglect? And what are the consequences of such attitude from our State Department?

Cartel Wars

The drug wars are not limited to Mexico; their tentacles reach into Guatemala, El Salvador, and Panama. The citizens of these nations suffer the daily violence and uncertainty caused by rival gangs which fight for the enormously profitable sale of drugs to... the United States. If by some miracle our country stopped buying these illicit substances from local dealers, these armed conflicts in Mexico would gradually cease, just as land stops being productive when rains disappear. It would take a few years of course to recover, but by then these Latin American countries would only have to deal with small groups of bandits ill-equipped and bereft of financial resources.

As things stand nowadays, the government in Mexico City is simply overwhelmed as if a powerful army had invaded that country. The Mexican military makes a valiant effort to root out the "cabecillas" or leaders of the cartels, but as soon as one is arrested and jailed, another takes his place. Why? Because the temptation to become rich and powerful is irresistible to many lower class citizens. Corruption is endemic among politicians, among policemen, and among soldiers who receive a pittance in exchange for risking their lives. It's a lot easier to turn a blind eye as the heavily armed convoy passes by than engaging in a risky firefight. It's a lot easier and much more profitable for a powerful politician to add a few million dollars to his offshore account than to openly defy the drug trade.

Do we have a drug policy in place in the present federal administration? Aside from giving a few helicopters and tips to the Mexican military, what do we do to seriously make a dent in the drug wars?

The simple answer is very little; an all out effort to help Mexico fight its way out of this growing conflict is needed in order to save one of our principal trade partners from falling into anarchy and thus killing thousands of jobs in our nation. And I haven't mentioned the need for an immigration policy...

BORDER LIFE

Living on the border with Mexico is a study in contrasts. As you cross into Matamoros, the nearest Mexican town to Brownsville, Texas, your senses are hit with a huge variety of sights, smells and sounds unlike anything you have experienced before. It is a combination of  joie de vivre and sadness. The Mexican spirit is not easily broken, not even by the monstrous cartels who destroy innocent lives with complete indifference. People fill the hot streets with their bustling business, whether it is peddling goods to the evermore scarce tourists or fighting traffic on very narrow avenues. Mexicans want to enjoy life to the fullest while they can; who knows what mañana will bring.

On the U.S. side, a relative order prevails; traffic is much easier to navigate (unless the town elders decide to initiate urban renovations in several key locations at once), and people even let you slide in the line of cars with a graceful gesture. The pace of living in the resaca (lakes) town is rather boring; very few people go out at night (except for teens sneaking out without parental consent) and businesses tend to close early. We go to the mall on week-ends or to the nearby beach on Padre Island. Saturday night is usually reserved for the carne asada (barbecue) with family during the long summer. There are of course some unpleasant indications that we are a border town: Drug trafficking is common as witnessed by the numerous arrests for possession and intent to sell. Occasionally, shots are fired by intoxicated individuals who have a score to settle. But otherwise, one can say that we trade the excitement found in a Mexican border town for a quieter and more peaceful style of living.

The two municipalities, Brownsville and Matamoros, are inextricably joined at the hip (if I may use this metaphor), as sister cities. Many families have members on both sides; several Mexican businesses, especially restaurants, have fled the violence to settle on the U.S. side. Spanish of course is spoken in both locations and most service businesses require bilingual employees. Going or coming to either city is an annoying but necessary process. It can easily take two hours to cross the bridges and be thoroughly checked by ICE personnel. American custom agents have the difficult task of detecting drug traffickers who usually are "mules", that is ordinary people who are paid a few dollars to carry the dope to the U.S. side. Dogs have proven to be invaluable in this process.



Winter Texans, as the "refugees" from the cold are called, return every year not only for the weather, but also for the opportunity to cross into Mexico and get much, much cheaper medical drugs. Mexican dentists and doctors are also favored by the older generation as they have found them to be excellent professionals with very reasonable fees. It is actually quite safe to cross into Matamoros (most of the time anyway) as the Mexican military are a constant presence. There is of course the risk of being at the wrong place at the wrong time, but that could happen in any U.S. city as well.

Our daily lives on the border enjoy many attributes of the Mexican culture with few negative factors. If one decides to retire in this area, the Rio Grand Valley or RGV, as many older citizens have done, a very pleasant life may be ensue, far away from the frenetic hustle of large urban areas. Just make sure you bring your anti-solar lotion and start dancing with the Mariachi band.