
The Cartel Next Door - drpgq
https://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/the-cartel-next-door/
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wazoox
Notice that in the US, more than 50% of murders go unresolved (for comparison,
in France 9% of murders are unresolved).

[https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/investigations/...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/investigations/unsolved-
homicide-database/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.4dfdbdb7e98a)

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blattimwind
Wow, that's a spectacularly bad solve rate. I'm used to ~95 % of murders
getting solved.

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walterbell
_> Instead, he explained the concept of plomo o plata. Literally translated as
“lead or silver,” it’s a tactic employed by all manner of criminal
organizations. It implies a choice, though the options are stark: accept a
bribe or be killed._

There's a couple of github repos of alleged iOS vulnerabilities with the same
name.

[https://github.com/MTJailed/plataoplomo](https://github.com/MTJailed/plataoplomo)

[https://github.com/userlandkernel/plataoplomo](https://github.com/userlandkernel/plataoplomo)

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shady-lady
An upvote alone doesn't do that story justice. Absolutely fantastic piece.

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chiph
Texas Monthly is really full of such writing.

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dtornabene
It really is, going back decades.

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johntiger1
Fantastically written. Couldn't stop reading til the end, although admittedly
I always find the brutality of Mexican gangs fascinating to say the least

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dddddaviddddd
Organized crime tends toward brutality regardless of the country of origin.

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mc32
I think that depends on their strength vis a vis the state. The less powerful
the state they operate in, the more brutal they can be. If you compare gangs
in lawless lands vs gangs operating in lands with stronger gov, the ones
operating in weaker states tend to be more violent because there are fewer
resources to supress them.

Where can you expect gangs more violent, Japan or Philipinnes? Brazil or
Chile?

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x220
I would expect gangs to be more violent in the places where they are punished
the same for nonviolent and violent crimes. If I'm in a gang and will go to
jail for 40 years if I get caught distributing cocaine, I might as well murder
if I think it will improve my position.

~~~
mc32
In the less governed areas there is not a "jail to go to" it's basically gang
rivalry, gang ascension, descension, internal struggle for control, expanding
into rival territory, etc., etc. The gangs are in full control. There is
little state presence and the one that could be is often corrupted by gangs...

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x220
Yes, and in America, things are still bad and gang violence accounts for a
huge proportion of murders. Strong governments do not and cannot solve the
problem alone.

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cinquemb
Well maybe now cartels will need to launch their own satellites, and make
their own hardware that computes the time it takes a signal to propagate.
Wouldn't make it impossible to intercept, but would raise the costs more than
calling up Google or the GPS provider and asking them to hand over the data.

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_RPM
Reading this makes me sick. Mexico is embedded with corruption and it will
never change. Murder is culture there. What a horrible horrible place with
horrible terrorists. I hope el gato gets arrested soon and goes to prison here
in America to pay for his actions.

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amrx431
Captivating read.

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dirtylowprofile
Narcos real life.

