A cartel in business or economics terms is any agreement that is made between groups of competing firms to control the prices of goods or services to ensure that they are the ones who are on the top among other competitors. When such an agreement is made the prices are fixed or they try to reduce the production using various strategies that they come up with, cartels are illegal especially for private firms. Drug cartels are just like any other cartels, although this is normally one criminal organization that deals with the supply of drugs and just like any other cartels they are illegal. A drug cartel refers to any agreements that are made among various people who traffic drug whether it is a formalized or just a loose agreement and they all get the same sentences once they are arrested. This paper will look at how drug cartels operate and the dangers that they bring to the society. The paper will also evaluate the effectiveness of some of the policies that have been implemented by the US government to try and deal with the issue of Mexican drug cartels within the state. And the last part will give some recommendations that can be adopted to ensure that the policies work right and achieve the objectives.
Mexican Drug cartels
There is a common structure that is used by drug cartels to establish the individuals who are at the top of the ranks and those who are lowest levels and there are code names that have been established over the years . The individuals who are the highest ranks are known as the drug lords, this are the people who have the role of supervising the industry and they are the ones who appoint the other leaders and establish new links . The lieutenants are the ones who follow and they are the ones that are given the work of controlling the other people within the cartels for instance the hit men and they have their own territories where they manage . The other members of the cartels are the hit men; these are the people who are given the work of carrying out killings, kidnapping and ensuring that the cartel is safe . The last group of individuals in the cartels are known as the falcons, these are the people whose work is to keep track of what is happening in the streets and alert the lieutenant in-case there is incoming trouble for the cartel .
A drug cartels is not only involved with matters related to drugs as can be established from the structure given. The drug cartels have over the years come up with other illegal deals topped up with the drug trafficking and they include, assassinations, sale of weapons, sale of logistics and human trafficking among many others . The drug cartels have taken over the streets in the modern world, in Mexico for instance there are some streets that are only controlled by the drug cartels and the government has been powerless in this situations. The main aim of the Mexican government today is to try and stop the violence that is associated with drug cartels within the society but not to prevent the drug trafficking issue within the state . The government has also stated that they are concerned with reducing the powers that these drug cartels have in the society indicating that their concern is not the issue of drug trafficking but rather the issue of control within the cartels and the effect that they have in the society. Many businesses that are run within this state are controlled by the drug cartels because they are in most cases used to carry out the drug deals of the cartels. Big companies within the state have to comply with some of the policies that are put forward by the drug cartels that require them to pay a certain charge so that they can be allowed to trade within the state or even transport their goods within various zones in the state . The people who fail to comply with these conditions are in many cases murdered or their businesses are taken away from them. The law enforcement within the state is not of any help to the members of the public because many of the law enforcers happen to be part of the drug cartels and so people are scared to report any violent situations that involve drug cartels . The Mexican government seem to be powerless when it comes to the drug cartels because they are so many and they have too much power within them.
History of the drug war in the United States
The United States has been fighting the war on drug trafficking within the state for very many years, and their main concern is the Mexican drug cartels that are the main source of the drugs that is found in the United States. The geographical location of Mexico has made it a perfect transportation point for the drugs and other contrabands that are brought in the United States . Many other drug cartels in other states like Columbia use Mexico as the link for selling drugs within the United States and this has made the Mexican drug cartels to be the most known in the US. The various regimes that have ruled the United States have often implemented different policies in hope of cubing the drug trafficking issue within the United States. The first public declared war on drugs begin in the year 1971 with President Nixon, in his quest to fight marijuana use among the youths he reinforced and increased federal drug control agencies in the state . Nixon pushed for mandatory sentencing for the people who were found using marijuana and this drug was placed among the most restricted drugs in the state. A year after another policy was implemented by a commission of drugs decriminalizing marijuana use and distribution and though Nixon did not approve of this it was accepted and implemented in eleven states . The policy was however, rejected in the year 1977 during the reign of President Carter especially by parents who had many teenagers jailed for marijuana use.
During the reign of President Reagan so many people were in correctional facilities because of marijuana and his continued war on drugs saw many more people put in prison with drug charges. President Reagan and his wife used the help of the media to portray images of people who are addicted to drugs in a quest to try and enlighten the people on the dangers of drug use . They came up with the slogan ‘Just Say No’ that encouraged the zero tolerance policies implemented in the mid-1980s and the DARE drug education program was created and adopted around the states even though there was no proof that it was effective . This strategy was not effective and it instead led to increased HIV/AIDS infection since the programs that educated about the risks associated with use of the same syringe between people were blocked and no longer operational. Later the same period other policies such as the draconian policies were implemented that led to increased prison population .
In the year 1992 President Bush in his reign continued with the journey on the war on drugs that was set by other presidents that were before him. This did not in any way help reduce the cases of drug use within the states; instead it continued to increase the population of the prison population . The reign of President Bush saw the increased militarization of the domestic drug law enforcement and there were so many raids that were conducted during his term . He advocated that students be tested for drug use because of the increased overdose cause deaths among the young people although this did not change things. During the reign of Obama, there are many reforms that have been advocated such as reduction of the drug sentencing and removal of the ban on the syringe programs and the support of the medical marijuana laws . All the same, this has not reduced the impact that drug cartels have in the United States and there is need for reform. New drug policies need to be implemented especially ones that touch on the actions of the cartels.
Factors that have influenced increased drug cartels in the US
Chicago is the third largest state in the US and it is therefore one of the states that have the largest population. Chicago also happens to be the transportation hub of America; the state has about six interstate highways that connect all the other states. The state also happens to have six railroads not forgetting the port of Chicago which the largest cargo ports is making Chicago the third largest handler of containers in the world . With all these qualities, the Mexican cartels have taken advantage made Chicago their main inlet for drug trafficking in the United States. Chicago also happens to have the largest population of immigrants mostly Hispanics and this makes it very easy for the drug operatives in their cartels to blend in easily without any suspicions . The fact that the immigrants are very poor and they are always looking for jobs makes it very easy for the cartels to easily recruit members and the largest cartel groups like the Sinaloa is based here in Chicago . One of the drugs that are in high supply in Chicago is Methamphetamine and the main suppliers of this drug are Mexico. In recent years however, Mexican drug cartels based in California have started producing this drug locally and this has made it to take up most of the drug market in the United States . Methamphetamine is a drug that is very easy to produce because the ingredients can easily be purchased from the local stores and so even the locals are able to blend their own and supply to the other members of the society thus increasing the drug use within the United States .
Drug cartels have now advanced their dealings, drugs are no longer their main priority but only a means that have enabled them to grow and advance. Sale of logistics is the main business deal for the cartels today . They are acting as the main suppliers of immigrants in the US that in turn provide cheap labour to the state. Most of these immigrants do not come to the US willingly; they are kidnapped and trafficked through the major tunnels that have been created to help with this business . Once the immigrants are brought in, they are used as sex workers or drug traffickers for these cartels and this increases the wealth of the cartels. The best strategy with dealing with the issue of drugs is to work with the source of the drugs. Mexico as earlier indicated is the main source of the drugs that are circulated in the United States and so the United States government need to work with Mexican government to fight the issue of drug trafficking. The Mexican government may not have enough power to fight drug trafficking within the state and so with the help of the United States, the two will work together towards achieving the same goal. If the two states work together, they will be able to find the main root of the drug trafficking in Mexico and when the supply of the drugs to the cartels in Mexico is cut then there will be no drugs to be supplied to the United States. The important thing to understand when dealing with the issue of drug cartels is that the most important asset is the drugs and without the drugs, the other activities are not likely to be successful for the cartels.
Proposal
The issue of drug use in the United States has been prevalent for very many years, as has been established, every president during his regime has implemented some policies to deal with the issue but it has not worked out. Most of the policies that have previously been established all deal with drug users but not the drug suppliers. It is important to understand that without first dealing with the suppliers of the drugs them it is very difficult to eradicate drug use in the society. Most of the implemented policies have seen may people get jailed for using the drug use, but jailing these people is not the solution to eradicating drug use in the society. Drug supply in the correctional facilities is very high and the cartels understand this fact and so they have their suppliers in prisons and this includes even the prison staff that help pass the drugs to the inmates . There are some cases where the criminal justice have had the chance to imprison some of the high ranked cartel leaders and though this is perceived to be an achievement, it is not a solution to the issue of drug use . These leaders are still able to run their cartels even from prisons and they continue to supply the drugs and get rich in the process while in their prison cells.
The best solution to the issue of drug use is to target the main objective of the cartels which is the urge to make money and get wealthy. The government should target the money that is acquired from this drug supply ordeals by the cartels, the cartels cannot run without the money. The greatest cartel leaders are already known by the government and the society at large both in Mexico and United States. The government should implement a policy that affects the finances of the drug cartels members and most especially the leaders of the cartels. The cartels are able to advance their influence in the society because they have enough money to create other illegal businesses like human trafficking that has led to very many illegal immigrants in the United States. Cartel leaders are intelligent people who understand that the government can easily track their financial resources and so they rely on the private sectors to store their wealth. The government this same strategy that is employed by the cartels and work with the private sectors to track bank accounts and find enough evidence to freeze them. Without enough financial resources the cartels will not manage to keep their social status and they are likely to fall within a short period of time. Without the cartels, the issue of drug trafficking and use in the United States will be resolved and the society will be free from drugs.
Conclusion
Drug trafficking is a major issue that has affected the world and mostly the United States which is one of the states that has a large population of people using drugs. The drug cartels in the US have over years dominated among the streets and some of the states like in Chicago where they take advantage of the diverse transportation system. Many of the policies that have been implemented to deal with the issue of drug use in the United States in the past deal with the drug users, rather than the cartels and so they have not been effective in dealing with the issue of drug use. The state needs to come up with a policy that touches on the cartels and especially their leaders on matters of their finances. If the government is able to hold their finances by suing the private sectors, then it will be a good strategy in eradicating the issue of drug use in the society and also other illegal activities that the cartels have advanced to in recent years. Money is power to the drug cartels and without money, very little progress can take place and these cartels will end up crashing.