Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Not an Addict

Well this is cheery news from Latin America:

For a 17-day period that ended last month, Guatemala seemed to be falling under the direct control of suspected mobsters. A lawyer leading a posse of unsavory characters became the attorney general and started dismantling the state's legal apparatus.

Central America's most populous country teetered on the edge of ``going narco.''

Although the appointment of Conrado Reyes as attorney general has now been annulled and Guatemala's fragile democracy survived the ordeal, it's still on a tightrope, advocates for democracy and human rights say.

Watch Guatemala as it's going down. They're not an addict (maybe that's a lie).

The way drug gangs and terrorists cooperate, Guatemala's choice is a serious bit of business. Especially since out southern border is so open and our federal government doesn't seem to really give a rip about the security implications of that failure.

UPDATE: Not that I'm not aware that one of our states might become a narco-state before Guatemala:

The city of Oakland, California on Tuesday legalized large-scale marijuana cultivation for medical use and will issue up to four permits for "industrial" cultivation starting next year.

Great. They're high above, but on the floor. No, they're not an addict.