

Mexico and the Failed State Revisited - garply
http://www.realclearworld.com/articles/2010/04/06/mexico_and_the_failed_state_revisited_98903.html

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eplanit
I welcome a dialog about Mexico; however, I'll be the first to admit that, as
a topic, it's a stretch for HN. Relevant it is, though, so here goes.

The author lost me quickly though by simply echoing the new, trendy "root
cause" of Mexico's problems. No, it's not America's drug appetite. A little
too convenient, and recent, to be a root cause.

The questions should be: why has Mexico _always_ been a failed state? They've
never been able to erect a functional and thriving economy. With all their
natural resources, why have they been so mismanaged and squandered? Why have
their citizens, for decades now, sought the U.S. for livelihood and
opportunity? Show me the list of technological, medical, agricultural -- any
invention or advancement that has come from Mexico. Anyone? Tell me then, why
is this list so empty?

If anyone thinks that Mexico's problems are recent, and/or caused solely via
the drug trade -- they have not been observing and analyzing. Go back 40
years...no drug problem to point to then, yet these same facts held true then,
just like they do now.

I don't know the answers to the above questions. They have bothered me for
years, for I don't believe there is anything inherently wrong with the Mexican
people. They've been led poorly, and governed poorly, for sure. It's just
painfully clear that their problems are not as recent as the Drug Years of the
past 2-3 decades.

~~~
garply
I don't feel like it's a stretch for HN because it actually discusses in
detail what's going on in Mexico. Previously all I could understand from
various major media sources was that there was a lot of drug-related violence
in Mexico and that the gov't was having trouble keeping it under control.

Similar articles about geopolitical events are occasionally successful on HN -
for example, the Atlantic's 6 or 7 page long article on health care, and also
the article PG submitted on how JP Morgan provided one of the first major
financial bailouts in the US. The issue, I believe, is not subject matter but
quality of content.

