To the Editor:
The drug war marches on in Mexico. The cartels are outgunning the
state, government officials are bought off in bulk, institutions
essential to an open society are collapsing and people are dying by the
thousands each year.
Two recent front-page articles—“Drug
Killings Go Unreported Inside Mexico” (March 14) and “Drug
Slayings in Mexico Rock U.S. Consulate” (March 15)—bring us more
bad news: death threats are silencing journalists, and now the cartels
are turning their guns on Americans.
Many people are paying attention to this escalating humanitarian
crisis, but not so many are talking about the root of the problem: drug
prohibition and the distorted profit margins it creates.
There will always be a demand for drugs, and in the absence of a
regulated market, there will always be people willing to use any means
necessary to protect their source of staggering revenues.
No amount of troops, tanks and bombs can change the fundamentals of
the marketplace. If we really want to put an end to the murders and
mayhem, we need to face this reality and be brave and creative in
finding new solutions.
David Glowka
Manager, Foundation Relations
Drug Policy Alliance
New York, March 15, 2010
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 