-
The View From the Other Side
May 17, 2013 | 23 comments
-
Cyprus Uber Alles
May 10, 2013 | 9 comments
-
After Hugo
May 3, 2013 | 16 comments
-
Theory and Practice of Terrorism
April 26, 2013 | 24 comments
-
Border Security Games
April 19, 2013 | 26 comments
At Large
Facing the Cruel Facts
Drug trafficking is illegal immigration’s Siamese twin, PC sensibilities notwithstanding.
There is a tendency for the media and academic analysts to attempt to separate consideration of the illegal immigration of Latin Americans (mostly Mexicans) into the United States from criminal cross-border drug and gun trafficking. Unfortunately this politically correct characterization obscures reality.
Human smuggling is a nice little side business for all ranks of drug traders. A good portion of the cash made by the “coyotes” is kicked upstairs to the sub-bosses of whatever organizational section commands a given region. But as any experienced old school mafioso will admit, that sort of business is strictly for the lower echelon of “street humps.” The real money, the serious action, is in what they call in Marseilles — la merde. It sounds better than the English or Spanish version of the same products.
What trafficking in humans does provide, however, is an excellent diversionary activity that offers not only local political protection on the U.S. side by committed and oft-times innocent immigrant activists, but, importantly, a ready supply of modestly compensated “mules” among the illegals themselves. And here is where the situation becomes very sensitive.
The Hispanic community is outraged at what ultimately is the “profiling” of their membership as a hand maiden of international criminal enterprise. But, unfortunately, that plays into the drug cartels’ hands. The continuing struggle to focus attention on the moral issue of illegal immigration provides a ready cover for the multi-billion dollar organization of narcotics smuggling. To not recognize this is an exercise in self-delusion.
The people who run the drug and arms smuggling cartels in Mexico and elsewhere in Central and South America can read newspapers as well as anyone. They see a message being sent that Hispanic immigrants will continue to “get a pass” whenever possible. From the cartels’ standpoint, the issue of so-called racial profiling must be set front and center whenever possible in order to take attention away from narcotics trafficking.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recently made a highly publicized sweep of “illegal immigrants with criminal records” in Arizona. The head of ICE, who just happened to be on a visit to that state, said that it was the largest ever conducted there. Sixty-three people were arrested. It was a 72-hour statewide operation aided by the U.S. Marshals Service. The question is what had held up these arrests before? Amazingly convenient timing coordinated with the visit of the ICE director, wasn’t it?
Equally interesting is that a major point was made of the international nature of the arrested criminals. The arrestees included citizens from nine countries: Canada, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Uzbekistan and, oh yes, Mexico. It doesn’t take an intelligence expert to wonder how this star cast of international actors could have been so miraculously available for arrest at that moment.
How very convenient for the Obama Administration that wants to downplay the “illegality” of illegal immigrants of primarily Mexican nationality. Clearly this type of high profile “roust” did not go unnoticed by the union that represents 7,000 rank and file ICE agency employees who unanimously passed a “vote-of-no-confidence” in ICE leadership for abandoning the agency’s basic mission of enforcing all immigration laws.
In a complex way the cracking down by local police on “drop houses’ and the arrest of low level “coyotes” adds to the statistics of federal authorities that the Obama Administration loves to quote. “We’ve deported more people in the last 18 months than the previous administration had done in four years,” is one of the typical White House statements. Of course, these increased deportees imply increased arrivals as well. But as Secretary Janet Napolitano is reported to have said, “We have no way of measuring that.”
What has been counted (by CBS News, hardly a conservative source) is that 14.8% of Arizona’s prison population is illegal immigrants. And this is after the ICE deportations. Twenty-four percent in prison on drug charges are illegals, as are 40% of those in prison for kidnapping. The DHS secretary might have noticed those percentages when she reviewed their relationship to the fact that 7% of the Arizona population is illegal. Some more measuring is in order.
The reality is that peaceful, productive illegals — and even some properly documented immigrants — are petrified to expose the Hispanic transnational prison gangs that make up the drug smuggling cadre who live among them. Illegals are totally vulnerable to criminal coercion of all types. For self-protection some illegals drift toward enlistment in the drug gangs. As one sheriff’s deputy wanting to remain anonymous said, “Shut down the flow of illegals and cull those already in place and you dry up the recruitment pool among the drug traffickers already in the U.S.”
It may not be politically correct, but there is no bright line separating the illegal population in the Southwest from the criminal element that exploits them. The criminals make sure of that. Anyone familiar with mob history in the U.S. knows how local fears and threats work. The main difference is that the mob chieftains of today live protected from the police in Mexico and use the structure of innocent illegals in the U.S. to provide an unwitting cover and recruitment base for their criminal distribution networks. And there is little American law enforcement can do about it.
Would amnesty in any form ever change this equation? Until that question is answered affirmatively, legalizing illegals will have little justification.
About the Author
George H. Wittman writes a weekly column on international affairs for The American Spectator online. He was the founding chairman of the National Institute for Public Policy.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (17) | Leave a comment
More Articles by George H. Wittman
More Articles From At Large
http://spectator.org/archives/2010/08/20/facing-the-cruel-facts
Follow us:
ADVERTISEMENT
SPONSORED LINKS
FLASHBACK TO: 1995
-
Pope Culture
A man of faith in a godless age is hitting Americans where it hurts.
-
Why the GOP Does Not, Like, Totally Suck
Mr. and Mrs. American Spectator Reader, let P.J. O’Rourke talk sense to your kids.
-
Dames at Sea
-
In the Absence of Guns
In Britain, defending your property can get you life.
-
The Metaphysical Martini
-
Counting the Costs of Clintonism
The debacle of this president’s administration is both a cause and a symptom of the decline of American values. Unless Congress impeaches him, that decline will go on unchecked. An eminent jurist surveys the damage and assesses the chances for the recovery of our culture.
-
Chuck McHagel
It won’t take long for conservatives to scratch this presidential wannabe off their 2008 scorecard.
-
The Legacy of Old John and Mother Fresh-Roasted
-
It’s the Best Time of the Year
The American Christmas, like the songs that celebrate it, makes room for everybody under the rainbow. Is that why so many people seem to be hostile to it?
-
The Bush Crack-Up
Was the President done in by the economy, or by the politics of the economy?
Clip of the Day
ADVERTISEMENT
Melvin| 8.20.10 @ 8:19AM
The same thing of protecting felons, or gang members is the same many inner city Black communities.
If some one of Black or Brown descent cooperates with the law enforcement their labeled a, "Snitch" within the community, or in many cases physical harm comes to them or members of their family and from that point their lives are turned into a living hell.
“Stop Snitching” has ballooned to the point where we’ve had to cringingly watch our dear friend, rapper Cam’ron, explain to Anderson Cooper on 60 minutes that even if he lived next door to a serial killer, he’d move away before he’d tell the police." News One Blog.
Latino gangs routinely cleanse their neighborhoods by murder and intimidation.
I routinely had to go to San Bernardino in CA and from a first hand experience this once decent city has been turned into a Mexican style open sewer of degraded neighborhoods, burnt out cars, and homes.
I used to talk to first generation Mexican farmworkers who received their citizenship and they told me. "San Bernardino used to be a really nice place to live, to raise a family, until the young ones went bad."
I hate to say this about my own Country, but the Mexican City of Tijuana was cleaner and safer than San Bernardino.
Louis Jenkins| 8.20.10 @ 8:45AM
There is no doubt that Mexican immigration and drug smuggling go hand and hand. We look at the bright side of illegal immigration and say, "They want to come here to make a better life, etc." The reality is those people, at least a handful of them, are smuggling. Throw enough people into the mix and some of the product will get through regardless. That's the bottom line. Go ahead, build the wall, post the border patrol in great numbers, and get the National Guard down there. Some how or another the product will get through. Caldaron can say the sky is falling, and the US congress and senate will appauld him. Chances are many of hose people are on the take from the drug industry. Doesn't change a thing. We're in trouble as a nation, and until someone with some sense takes the reins we're headed down a dead end road.
Thomas| 8.20.10 @ 10:05AM
The United States is not facing a crisis due to illegal immigration, but rather due to the criminal enterprise of smuggling, of both narcotics and people. Narcotics are very bad, but human trafficking is just as bad.
It is a common misconception that Mexican nationals who illegally cross the border do so on their own. In reality, almost all are smuggled across the border by organized operations who use some or all to transport other contraband, such as illicit drugs. And the exploitation does not stop there. Though some illegal immigrants are sent on to family living in the US, many people are funneled into the illegal worker pipeline. They are provided with false social security numbers and sent to "labor agents" in various parts of the country who place them with employers, for a substantial cut of their salaries. Some of these workers remain with the "agency" even after they have become established with an employer. This is because the "agent" handles such things as sending money back to family in Mexico, handling transportation and legal matters and even arranging housing. And, though the current non-enforcement of Federal immigration policies has weakened it, many of these people are subjugated by others because of their illegal status. Most of these illegal immigrants are not entering the US, buying a house in the suburbs and settling down to raise a family. They are going into repressive labor pools where they are exploited by criminals and some of them become criminals themselves.
This is not new. In 1882, Congress acted to suspend the legal immigration of unskilled Chinese laborers for ten years. In 1892, the Congress passed the Geary Act, which severely curtained the legal immigration of unskilled Chinese laborers into the United States, but did re-instate limited immigration of Chinese nationals. In response, an organized smuggling ring began to operate from Mexico to California and New York. It continued to operate from approximately 1883 until the 1950's. The early illegal immigrants that traveled that route were all placed with companies, usually through "agents", for exorbitant fees that took years to pay off, if ever. These people were, essentially, a slave class working in the Land of the Free. Some also found their way into organized crime. Some willingly, some not. They too were victims of exploitation due to their illegal status. Deja Vu?
There is simply nothing good about illegal immigration, unless you are a criminal. Due to his illegal status, the immigrant lacks stability and is subject to the predation of criminals. The host country suffers a drain upon its resources, both social services and law enforcement/judicial/penal. Illegal immigration is a net loss, all the way around.
Kenneth Olsen | 8.20.10 @ 10:19AM
Boo hoo.
The drug war is a corrupt, immoral enterprise.
See "Our Right to Drugs" and "Ceremonial Chemistry" by Dr. Thomas Szasz.
As for nothing good about illegal immigration, that's also wrong.
My grandfather was an illegal from Norway.
The government's drug war and welfare state, both of which increase state power while diminishing personal responsibility, are the real problems.
Purple Lips| 8.20.10 @ 11:37AM
Kenneth,
You really need to visit Amsterdam sometime. Drugs were amply available in that once beautiful city. The citizens there were so medicated that they needed to import tens of thousands of Muslims to do the work. And now, 40 years later the Muslims have begun to run the city.
Like I said, visit Amsterdam while you still can enjoy their poppy products. Soon, along with their Ladies of the Night, it will be all gone. For those who wish to live a bong induced coma, all roads lead to Amsterdam and eventual servitude.
Kenneth Olsen | 8.20.10 @ 1:25PM
Dear Lips,
You really need to understand that legal and illegal drugs are amply available in every beautiful city in the world. The citizens of the U.S. are pretty well medicated by the nation's authorized drug dealers.
Enjoy your anti-depressants and try to understand that advocating the repeal of the corrupting immoral drug laws is not an endorsement of taking drugs.
Obamacare is built on the foundation of the paternalistic and profoundly anti-liberty federal drug laws.
scotchieaguy| 8.22.10 @ 2:13PM
Purple, the reason Muslims are in Amsterdam is because the Dutch no longer have enough babies to sustain their top-heavy entitlement culture. You can blame that on the drug culture, but how do you explaing the huge importation of Muslims throughout the rest of Europe, where drugs are not legal? They, too, are not having enough babies to sustain their entitlement culture. Acc. to Mark Steyn, author of "America Alone," a society needs to have around 1.8 babies/family to sustain itself...most european countries are closer to 1.2/family.
JmsA| 8.20.10 @ 12:33PM
Spoken like a true clueless Nordic. Guess what, my ex brother-in-law's name is Olsen. Maybe you're related, because you sound just like him, and some of his ancestor immigrants were also illegals.
JmsA| 8.20.10 @ 12:34PM
Sorry, meant to write: immigrant ancestors...
Margie| 8.20.10 @ 1:20PM
This is where the Lefty Libertarians come in to defend the legalization of drugs because it interferes with their "freedoms." Where's Barry Goldwater when ya need him, eh?
JimH| 8.21.10 @ 1:35PM
Next you will be saying that Bill Buckley was a libertarian? He supported drug legalization, not because he liked drugs, but because he recognized the costs of enforcement were worse them the problem they were supposedly addressing.
Vern Crisler| 8.20.10 @ 2:16PM
"Innocent illegals"?
ABNCP| 8.20.10 @ 4:03PM
We have a very large problem that this country. I believe that problem is going to get much bigger and much more serious. A large percentage of Hispanics are allowing their ethnicty overcome their commen sense. And when we see outrageous actions like the United States
Yosemeti Sam| 8.21.10 @ 1:10AM
Um, where will the returning victorious soldiers from Iraq - be stationed?
In further service to America.
Calor Enlada| 8.21.10 @ 10:12AM
To get an insight on the thought process, read Vicente Fox book "Revolution of Hope". Though only a few years released, one wonders how the former CEO of Cocacola could be so wrong. His blurred vision and understanding of the illegal immigration issue, combined with the denial of core cultural corruption in Mexico (along with his admiration of minds like Jimmy Carter and Ted Kennedy) give an insight into the liberals delusional idea of U.S.-Mexico transborder relations. Insisting that violent criminal activity is not related to the "poor immigrant who only wants to make a better life for his family" is to deny the violence and bloodshed happening in Mexico as we speak. Mexican culture if rife with bigotry, and to complain about U.S. enforcement of immigration law is hypocritical to the point of stupidity or outright deceitfulness.
The corruption of Mexican officials is now matched by corruption of U.S. officials in the upper levels of I.C.E.
Fox, and his successor, Calderon, are both hopelessly naive idealists. The question for U.S. voters is: Are the Obama administration members naive as well, or complicit?
As Mexico continues on the road of disorder, we will see the election of another corrupt government, one which will be tied much closer to Hugo Chavez than most U.S. citizens will find comfortable. The flood of immigrants will indeed become a flood of refugees.
Marc Jeric| 8.21.10 @ 6:39PM
They are called "Hispanics" - the 95% of illegal aliens residing here, a large majority from Mexico. To clarify: in Mexico itself 50% of population are Indians (Toltecas, Aztecas, Olmecas, Mayas, etc.); 45% are mestizos - mixed Indian and white Spanish; and 5% are white. Some 80% of illegals are Indians who are largely illiterate, speak pidgeon Spanish with a lot of native words; the rest are mestizos; no whites there. It is the mestizos who form the large majority of criminals - they are coyotes, drug transporters, drug lords' enforcers, gang members. Their main victims are Indians. Those Indians have had almost 500 years to assimilate into the Spanish culture - almost 100% unsuccessfully; therefore their assimilation into the American culture is perfectly "mission impossible" for perhaps 50 generations if ever.