The Truth About the Border

Violence Down . . . but

2012-01-22T20:25:00.000-08:00

Major news outlets continue to report that the violence along the Mexican border is down. Even Juarez experienced a huge drop in the number of homicides last year. But, the media continues to convince us that the drug war is a failure. Every media report speculates that the violence is down because the cartels are now fighting in other areas. No media outlet even mentions the huge increase in military activity that we see in the border cities. The Mexican Marines, the Navy helicopters the inspection of vehicles entering and leaving major Mexican border cities are all unreported in the news! Can we 'speculate' that these efforts may be working?

The news media should be ashamed for giving comfort to the cartels and for empowering the cartels by these stories. The cartels are not omnipotent and the Mexican Government continues to win almost every single confrontation with the thugs and killers. Hundreds of cartel leaders have been jailed or killed.

Naysayers point out that the drug crimes continue so law enforcement is losing. Many suggest Mexico should stop this war on drugs. I suggest that if these people are right we must also stop arresting rapists, child molesters, bank robbers and car thieves because there will always be someone to take their place, too.

Shame on the media. There is no excuse for foreign journalists to ignore the truth. Mexican journalists have died for reporting the truth, but here is the USA our journalists remain safe. There is no excuse for not reporting the entire story.

Cartel Violence

2012-01-05T16:32:00.000-08:00

Much of the violence attributed to the drug cartels may be simple street gangs. Although the gangs may have a link to specific cartels, each violent act is not orchestrated by the cartels.

The real problem is the steady flow of weapons from the USA into Mexico. The Mexican authorities, like their American counterparts, cannot search every vehicle entering the country. Recent arrests for arms trafficking in Acuna involved women driving ordinary looking vehciles. How do you know who to stop and search?

The Mexicans could benefit from the use of trained K-9 and technology. Mexico would also benefit with stiff prison sentences for any bribe related to illegal importation of guns.

America could simply eliminate the huge loophole that govern the sale of guns at 'gun shows' where an individual can purchase a trunk load of guns without any background check or real record. America could also reduce the guns going to Mexico with very serious penalties for non-compliance with laws related to the sale of guns. We probably do not need to fill our prisons with violators. A few hundred-thousand dollar fines and the seizure of property should be enough to curtail the illegal sale of weapons. (Oh, don't forget to revoke all state and federal licenses - including hunting - upon conviction).

It has been estimated that 2,000 guns cross Mexico's border every day. The silly rhetoric about 'guns don't kill people' needs to stop and so does the illegal sale of guns in America.

Which Border

2011-12-04T20:20:00.000-08:00

Border security to protect us from terrorists is a frequently cited reason for a 100 percent completely secure border. Is it odd that the argument ignores the border we share with Canada?
Canadians (and those posing as Canadians) are not even required to have a U.S. Visa. The Great Lakes are hardly guarded and as boats arrive every day, security is lax. Of course, Mexico does not require a Visa when we enter Mexico. The United States, in the interest of protecting our border, requires a Visa from Mexicans. That Visa is very hard and expensive to obtain.

Somehow we are magically protected should a terrorist try to enter the United States from Canada. Even though the office of Homeland Security was temporarily confused when they said that the 9-11 and other terrorists entered through Canada, we should not be concerned.

The truth about the border is that if we fear terrorists entering our country from a land border, than we would be foolish to not secure our entire border as best as we can.

More on the Police Officer Killings

2011-11-23T11:23:00.000-08:00

It took many visits, e-mails and phone calls, but many people report that the three officers were kidnapped in the very early morning hours of Monday by a cartel, handcuffed tortured and then killed. Rumors abound that they worked for a cartel and were killed by another cartel. HOWEVER, because nobody knows which cartel was paying them it seems likely that the people are assuming this to be the case. It does seem likely, but where is the proof?

What is more telling about the situation in Acuna are the many friends that refuse to even talk about these murders. Teachers, medical personnel and clergy continue working and my inquiries are met with shrugs. Families avoid discussing the murder of the officers and only tell me to leave Acuna and to be very careful.

Many of the teenagers talk about the cartels as being cool and effective. Many admire the cartels.

It is impossible to point to police officers, detectives or a courageous reporter as a role model. The worldwide scandals involving clergy in the Catholic Church makes it difficult to use priests as role-models. Much of the music and soap operas on TV praise the drug dealers and the cartels.

Everyone waits for more violent acts. Within a 30-day period we've seen a gun-battle between the military and a truckload of gangsters end in front of the Maria Braulia elementary school and three police officers kidnapped and murdered. Everyone waits to see what will happen next.

3 Police Officers Killed in Acuna

2011-11-22T00:26:00.000-08:00

Gunmen kidnapped and murdered three Acuna Police Officers on Monday morning. The three officers were in the same vehicle when kidnapped. Their bodies were found in a colonia.

Information is scarce. Reporters in Acuna, like most of Mexico, are cautious about stories involving the cartels. Their fear is well founded. Reporters in other areas of Mexico have been killed. However, the lack of reliable information is well beyond the media intimidation. For the past three years the people in Acuna fear talking about the cartels. Even close friends will only speak in whispers about the drug cartels. Rumors abound and are exaggerated. A single gunshot quickly becomes a story about a large gun-battle. It is difficult to assess the situation in Acuna.

The Mexican Marines established check points at every entrance to Acuna. They inspected vehicles entering and leaving. Four Mexican Navy helicopters patrolled the city. The helicopters landed in various locations throughout the city and squads of Marines jumped out and patrolled neighborhoods. However, the military issued no statements or explanations. Now there were three police officers killed and we do not know if the Marines were sent to Acuna because there was advance information of the cartel war heating up in Acuna or if it is only coincidental.

I walk the streets of the colonies where a few weeks ago a gunfight involving the military and unknown gunmen ended a little after noon. There is still no explanation from the military and nobody knows the whole story - after weeks have passed. The secrecy leaves the people with nothing but fear and rumors.

As schools consider canceling Christmas celebrations and mission groups from America cancel visits and help to the poor in Acuna, the fear seems to cover the colonies like a rainstorm.

On the surface, things seem normal. People go to work and children go to school. However everyone has the same fear. Sudden and unpredictable violence can happen at any time and at any place. Many parents worry about the safety of their children. Maria expressed it this way: "I go to work and the children are at school. Will there be another gunfight near the school? Will there be a gun-battle on the street when the children return from school? Are they safe?"

In our world of cell-phones, we can always call or text our children or neighbors. They can call or text us. This is not the situation in the colonies. I have yet to see a child with a cell phone. Most parents do not have cell phones. What they have is fear.

Violence Arrived in Acuna

2011-10-08T14:50:00.000-07:00

October 4, 2011

Four Injured - Gun Battle in Acuña near one of our School Cafeterias

Since 2006, the media hammered the border with stories that implied every border-city was filled with murders. The media destroyed the tourist industry in Acuna long before a state police commander, allegedly involved with a cartel, was murdered in May of 2010. Since that murder, we’ve not seen violence in Acuña until today.

At least four people, including two women, were injured Tuesday in a shootout between gunmen and Mexican authorities in Evaristo Perez colonia in Ciudad Acuña.

The confrontation began shortly before noon today when a convoy of troops and state police encountered a Dodge Durango with armed cartel gunmen. Authorities chased the Durango through the streets and a gunfight ensued. The chase ended near the Maria Braulia Garcia Primary School, one of the schools where we feed children at our cafeteria.

None of the students at the school were injured.

At least four people were injured, including two women that were struck in the legs by bullets.

The newspaper Zocalo identified the four victims as: Graciela Moreno Rosales, 30; Veronica Herrera, 32; Andres Orenelas Lozano, 41; and Carlos Ledesma Carrillo, 29.

Acuña residents, who didn't want to be identified, said that confrontations between the authorities and the Zeta cartel will probably continue. Mexican marines have been deployed in Acuña during the past three weeks.

This is the third week that the Mexican Marines have manned checkpoints and conducted vehicle inspections at the entrance and exit at the International Bridge and at every highway into and out of Acuña. Last week a gun-smuggler was apprehended entering Acuña and automatic weapons were confiscated.

Paper Houses continues to walk the streets, visit the schools and meet with the families of the poor in Acuña. Although we’ve curtailed mission trips, we’ve increased the number of times we will walk the streets of the poor.

The poor in the colonias need us, especially now. As the world continues in an economic slump and as the people in Acuña are living and working in midst of this violence, we know that this is the time when we must step up. Church-led mission groups and charities are likely to focus their resources to help other places. We are needed.

Acuna - Where is the Violence?

2011-03-29T06:34:00.001-07:00

The violence is against the people of Acuña. There are rumors about businesses being forced to pay protection money to the cartel. There are rumors of kidnappings and ransoms. Businesses continue to close and relocate in Del Rio. (Many of the wealthy have dual citizenship).

Some mission groups continue to arrive and there has never been a report of violence against Americans on a mission trip. There are no gunfights in the streets.

The last (and only) shooting occurred over a year ago when a state police lieutenant that was allegedly in the pay of a cartel was shot dead. A cardboard sign was laid on his body that warned other police officials not to do business with the Zeta cartel. As disturbing as this is, it was one killing over a year ago. Nobody recalls any murder in Acuña prior to that single instance.

The real 'violence' is the damage caused by the over-reported news about violence in 'border cities' that include a 2,000 mile border. Almost every new story includes at least five references to other stories about violence in Mexico. These are often rehashes of old news and some of that old news is about violence near Mexico city or the Pacific Ocean! The end result of this form of reporting is that the entire tourist industry along a 2,000 mile border was destroyed. Even in a peaceful city like Acuña.

We Just Keep Doing

2010-11-05T19:00:00.000-07:00

As violence continues to surge across Mexico I am certain that I have no solution. I am also certain that we will continue to help one child at a time and not become discouraged because we can't immediately solve the big picture.

When we began, we never envisioned a 'war on poverty' or providing medical help to every child in need. Instead, we walked down the dusty streets gave away sacks of groceries.

People from all walks of life continue to send money and we continue to pay for life changing medical treatments; we continue to support shelters for children and we continue to help in the best ways that we can. It seems that every week we see another miracle.

We can all become discouraged when we focus on what we cannot fix. However, when we focus on little Ambar and Juan Pedro receiving prosthetic limbs, or when we sit with the children as they eat the lunches we provide - there is great satisfaction.

I do not know how long the drug violence will last and we've had to curtail mission trips for the time being. But, I return to the border every few weeks to bring a few more children to the hospital, to help a few more families over a rough spot and to make sure that the people know we are still with them.

We fix the things we can fix and we do it right now!

Nowhere Near the Truth

2010-10-07T12:31:00.000-07:00

Blogs, editorials, news accounts, and editorials pretending to be news accounts are nowhere near the truth about the real situation on the border.

Today doctors and other health care practitioners in Acuna are preparing for tomorrow's Second Annual Health Fair. Kick off was held this morning with a proclamation at the Mexican Consulate. Oh, I forgot to mention the location: the Second Annual Health Fair will be held Friday, Oct. 8, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Plaza del Sol Mall in Del Rio, Texas.

Doctors, nurses and other volunteers from Acuna, Mexico will come to the United States to help the people of Del Rio, Texas provide health care services.

In a way it makes sense that this news will go largely unreported in the United States. Border cities typically provide help to each-other. Also, it is a very small act. It is not something important like an American being robbed in Mexico. THAT would be a national news story.

Let's hope that the good doctors, nurses and aids are not arrested and detained until their papers can be checked.

I will not be able to attend the health fair. I am waiting at my mailbox for a big tax refund now that the total number of 'illegals' has decreased by a half million per year since 2008. Certainly we will all see reduced medical costs, lower taxes, and lower crime. We will see those things about the same time we see good stories about our good neighbors to the south.

Where Will It All End?

2010-08-29T23:39:00.000-07:00

Reading the news tonight about another Mexican Mayor's assassination and the fact that his 4-year old daughter was also shot was the start of the bad news day. Four devices exploded separately in Tamaulipas in just 24 hours , injuring at least 17 people.The top prosecutor in Mexico is reported to be missing. "Where will it all end?" popped into my mind.

It does not matter. Our work with the poor will not end. What began as a cop giving away a few sacks of food evolved into a sacred trust. God entrusted the poor in these colonias to us and many of us accepted that trust. We till treat the violence in the same way that we treat bad weather or the death of a little child. It is all sad and disturbing, but we will continue.Will the violence in Mexico end? Yes. Will our commitment to the poor in the colonias end? No, not really. Our work with these people makes us better people and we will continue to be worthy of their example of faith, hope and hard work.

Many Have Given Up in Acuna

2010-08-25T14:46:00.000-07:00

Several recent news articles about the impact of the cartels on local businesses included two that mentioned the tourist area of Acuna. While I am glad that someone is writing about the impact on Acuna business owners, I remain disappointed that nobody writes a word about the impact on the average worker.

Many of the waiters, waitresses, busboys, dishwashers and many of the sales-people have been without work for so long that they've abandoned Acuna and returned to their former homes. "We can grow some vegetables and get some help from our family." explained one man as he packed the family belongings. He continued, "The saddest thing is that our children will not receive the kind of education that they can receive in Acuna. Our town is very small and the school does not have very much. We saw a better life for our children in Acuna. Now we must go home. I have to feed my family and I can no longer feed them in Acuna."

As I walk the dirt streets I see another abandoned home. This was the home of Javier, a little boy with an eye disease. I speak with the neighbors and learn that his mother, sister and extended family all returned to their former home 'on the other side of Monterrey'. The ophthalmologist was preparing to operate on Javier in the hope of restoring some sight in his right eye. I don't know what will become of him now.

So many of these people traveled hundreds of miles to reach Acuna in search of work. They were not crossing into the United States illegally. They were working hard to succeed in Mexico. Hundreds of these people began their lives in Acuna by building a cardboard shack. They worked hard and many built or began to build cinder-block houses. Families with a weekly income of $60 sacrificed to purchase $70 of school supplies and another $70 of school uniforms for each child - so the children would have a good education. Many of these children ran to show me their report cards! They were so proud! Many received 'straight 10's and 9's' on their report cards. (The highest grade on a report card is a 10. The lowest is a zero. Nothing is curved and the children receive what they earn. None seem stigmatized and would never expect a teacher to 'only put a '4' on the report card to save someone's feelings).

After all of the sacrifice and hard work they return home with nothing.

The drug cartels destroyed the tourist economy in Acuna. The U.S. news media helped the cartels by exaggerating the violence and by often calling murders hundreds of miles from the border - "Border Violence".

Careful What You Blog For

2010-08-04T07:24:00.000-07:00

Let us deal with facts and not fantasy. When ICE receives 5,000 requests from police agencies across the nation to pick up and deport suspected illegal aliens and they only have suffieicent staff to pick up 2,000 of these cases - do you really want evey case treated equally? Do you want ICE to process the first 2,000 requests, regardless of the fact that request number 2001 is to pick up a convicted drug dealer or murderer?

I know: you want enough ICE personnel to pick up every single person accused of being in the country illegally. Even the 67 year old lady who is from England and overstayed her visa by 2-days needs to be deported. Right. Well, a police officer on every corner would also be nice. So would radar cameras on every street so that everyone driving even 1-mile over the limit would pay. (Thing of the huge reduction of accidents, injuries and death!)

In the real world, we want freedom and we don't want every technical violation to result in an arrest or even a fine. In the real world there are not enough ICE agents to arrest every person in violation of immigration rules.

Only a few years ago the official policy of the Border Patrol was to deport Mexicans and to issue citations to illegals that were not from Mexico. (See: you should educate yourself about the facts). The policy was known as OTM (other than Mexican). Radio stations in Latin America acutally told listeners that if they are 'going north' and stopped by the Border Patrol to declare that they are from any country except Mexico and that they will only be issued a ticket that orders them to appear before a judge.

Many listeners telephoned the radio station because they were certain this was a joke. However, once in the United States the listeners found that the joke got even funnier. The citation process included being detained while a computer check was made to make certain that they were not on a watch list, wanted or from a country that was on a watch list (i.e. Iran). This was a bit inconvenient but here is the punch-line. Once issed a citation and set free, the citation served as a sort of protection from other federal agents. If they were ever stopped again, the immigrants learned that they could hand the agent their previous citation and the agent would immediately let them go about their business and not detain them for another background check.

How does such a ridiculous policy get in place? Constant reports from the media, blogs, etc. pushed the agency to do something about 'all these Mexicans' and there are simply not enouth resources to process everyone in the United States without the proper papers.

Today, the cry is to round them all up. So while we spend limited resources to process the little old lady from England who overstayed her visa, we do not focus on the drug dealers because we only have a certain number of agents.

In fact, the screaming about 'more arrests' led to the policy of checking immigration status of people leaving the United States. This is purly a numbers game that is forced on the officers at the border. They would prefer focusing on dope dealers coming into the country, but instead they question Mexicans leaving the United States.

I see this at several U.S. Border Crossings into Mexico. A man is walking across the International Bridge and is stopped by the four ICE Officers working this check-point. He is patted down and asked about his citizenship. The man explains he is going back to Mexico and was in the United States without papers, looking for work. He is arrested, processed and then volunteers to return home. A complete waste of time and a waste of the limited resources and the sole purpose is to increase the number of illegal aliens being arrested.

While this nonsense is going on, the overworked and understaffed officers assigned to check people entering the United States can't possible search as many vehicles as they could with the staff that is required to waste their time checking immigration status of those leaving the U.S.

A valid reason to stop people leaving the United States and returning to Mexico is to stem the flow of illegal cash and weapons that are shipped to Mexico for the cartels. This effort I applaud, even as my own vehicle is searched. However, this would not require the arrest of every illegal immigrant that is simply leaving. I would really prefer that the ICE report their arrest statistics with a breakdown that shows the number of felons, people in direct possession of narcotics, people and organizations smuggling people, and the number of people leaving the United States. Perhaps we the people would then demand a proper use of resources.

Instead, in response to the public outcry, we just grab whatever we can and pretend we are all safer.

Where is the Media???

2010-07-12T18:33:00.000-07:00

FLASH FLASH FLASH

San Antonio is only 155 miles from Acuna, Mexico. This must be news to the media outlets in San Antonio because of the almost complete lack of news coverage about last week's floods and the loss of lives. The dramatic photos that we never saw: the cardboard houses washed away, the thousands of people left homeless and the damage caused by the storms to the thousands of families living on the river were not newsworthy.

The heart-wrenching stories of children unable to get their treatments for cancer, families without food, water, electricity and many without homes went unreported. Yes, there were very general stories about the flooding where some cities were mentioned, but where were the stories and photos about the victims.

I am deeply disappointed by this lack of coverage. Many of these stories would have been picked up by the national press if reported properly and with compassion by the San Antonio media.

Our churches pray and meet about the gulf oil spill. Yet, not a word about our neighbors to the south. Does Mexico simply not matter?

The Politics

2010-07-03T16:24:00.000-07:00

Mexico was often described as the perfect dictatorship. For 70-years the PRI (pronounced pree) party held power. Presidents literally hand-picked their successors. For 70-years the people were offered bribes for votes.

"The process is simple. They hand the first person in line to vote a (stolen) ballot that is already completed. Each box on that ballot is already marked with an 'x'. The election official gives you a blank ballot. You deposit the one that was already filled in and return the blank ballot to the guy paying the bribe. He marks that ballot and gives it to the next person in line."

Sometimes a family receives a washing-machine. Often, a few weeks before the election, the politicians in power send money, groceries, and other things to a community. More is promised (and often delivered) when that politician is re-elected.

The party system in Mexico has intense loyalty. The governor first helps those cities where mayors are from his party. Charities are often managed by wives and relatives of politicians. For example, a city food bank may be managed by a relative of the mayor. Food is distributed to those in need - but party members and people who can 'get out the vote' come first.

The common people believe that all politicians are corrupt and that most provide help to the drug cartels. In fairness to the politicians, those that refuse the cartels are threatened and their children are threatened. Every once in a while, the cartels kill and kidnap to drive home their point.

Welcome

2010-07-03T16:11:00.000-07:00

I am in a Mexican border city at least twice a month and walk the dirt streets of the colonias while running an NPO. Although sympathetic to the Mexican people, I am a conservative American and my country comes first.

This blog exists to share what I see, hear, read and believe to be the honest situation along the border of Mexico and Texas. What happens in Mexico profoundly impacts the United States.

For 35-years I served as a law enforcement officer, first in Baltimore, Maryland and then in Houston, Texas. I've also developed database analysis applications that pinpointed and predicted patterns of criminal behavior. I've developed analysis programs, managed large and small scale criminal investigations and have five years of experience as an instructor in various analysis techniques and programs.

Since 2002, I've created and managed Paper Houses Across the Border, Inc., a nonprofit corporation originally funded by the Police Officer's Patrolman's Union. Since that time, I've walked the streets of the colonias in several Mexican border-cities and met with clergy, business people, administrators, school teachers, children, and spent thousands of hours in the homes of ordinary, hard-working, Mexicans that live and work in the colonias of Mexico.

My hope is that this blog will provide honest insight into the problems in Mexico that directly impact the United States.