WANT TO LIVE DANGEROUSLY? VISIT MEXICO

March 17, 2010

By Al Doyle

The crime and murder rate in Mexico (where civilian gun ownership is virtually banned) has typically been higher than even the worst U.S. cities, but recent events make it very obvious that America's southern neighbor has turned into one of the unsafest places on earth.

Last weekend’s wholesale executions of 24 people in the state of Guerrero - with 13 of those murders taking place in Acapulco - is hardly the first incident of this kind in Mexico since 2007. Five of those slain in Acapulco were police officers shot in an ambush, and four of the remaining victims were beheaded.

Three employees of the U.S. Consulate located in the border city of Ciudad Juarez (which’s next to El Paso, Texas) were shot in cold blood after attending a party held at the home of a co-worker. For the most part, Americans have managed to avoid the constant crossfire (the number of American visitors has also declined substantially), but this could be changing as the ongoing battle between various drug lords, criminal factions and the Mexican government intensifies.

What makes the situation especially confusing is trying to determine the identity of the bad guys. Mexican police are notoriously corrupt, and elements of the Mexican military have also taken the lucrative mordidas (bribes) offered by drug cartels and human traffickers. In Mexico, calling the police to deal with crooks is usually considered to be oxymoronic, as it is often the "law" that engages in burglaries, extortion and other crimes.

Some of the effects of Mexico's chaos have spilled over to the U.S. side of the border. Incursions on American territory by the Mexican army and the constant parade of drug smugglers and illegal aliens have been met with total and deliberate passivity by federal lawmakers. Ranchers with hunting rifles and pistols are in no position to shoot it out with ruthless smugglers who are armed to the teeth with advanced weaponry.

Flush with cash, Mexican drug smuggling families are buying real estate and acreage in the southwest states. Kidnappings and other cartel-related crimes are on the rise in Phoenix and other towns within close proximity to Mexico. There is absolutely no reason to believe the situation in Mexico is going to improve in the future, which means the carnage is likely to spread to American soil.

Looking for the best destination for a sunny vacation? For now, Florida or one of the Caribbean islands looks like the better - and safer - choice.