The ATF's Fast and Furious Blunder

If we needed any more evidence that the war on drugs is a losing war, the ATF has alleviated any doubt we might have had resting in the back of our minds. If you are unfamiliar with what took place just Google “ATF fast and furious” and I challenge you not to become absolutely disgusted.  Where do I start with this one? Should I begin with how we are fighting the cartels the wrong way, treating them more like a gang when they behave more like a small army? Or should it be that we are targeting their weapons instead of their money or product which they use to fund the purchase these arms? Anyway you look at it you can’t deny that if we keep fighting the war on drugs the same way we have been for the past thirty years, then we aren’t going to make any progress. It’s time for a new strategy, one that gives more rights to the citizens of the United States while more effectively combats the cartels.

                This type of operation is not uncommon for the ATF or any other government or local law enforcement agency. There are many examples of how this strategy has worked to combat gangs in America. There is just one problem when using this strategy to combat the cartels. The cartels are not gangs they are small armies. Make no mistake about it these cartels behave more like an oppressive army than a gang. Just think about it for a minute, what gang do you know of carries out professional hits on government officials? What gang is responsible for so many mass graves like the ones found in Mexico? What gang uses grenades and other explosives in military style ambushes? This is unlike any gang in America which law enforcement is so used to combating. How can we expect our law enforcement to fight something that they have never seen the likes of before? The truth of the matter is we can’t, so we need to find a different and more effective way to address this problem.

We need to change our strategy when it comes to fighting the Mexican cartels. One of the simplest things we can do is to get marijuana legal. If marijuana was completely taken away from the cartels then that would have a significant impact on their operations. All at once they would have less money to work with and would become weaker than any gun or drug bust could ever leave them. Instead of focusing on guns we would focus on taking away their money. Money that, let’s face it, they can use to buy guns anywhere. We would focus on the root of the problem instead of the surface which is the violence that we are so used to seeing on the news. The cartels cannot function without money like any other organization so let’s hit them where it hurts most.

 We could fight the cartels’ gun trade forever if we wanted to. As long as they continue to sell drugs and make money they will always be able to buy more guns. No gun bust however big will ever be enough to effectively end the cartels’ operations, but if we go after their product and take it away from them then we have a chance. There is no simpler or more effective way to accomplish this than to decriminalize marijuana.