Despite President Calderon’s efforts to end this war on drugs, the drug traffickers are inventing new ways to transport their illegal products across borders, continuously undermining the authority of the government. The United States and Mexican police recently discovered a tunnel used to smuggle drugs across the California-Mexico border. Police seized about 25 tonnes (equivalent to 1,000 kg) of marijuana. This was a highly sophisticated tunnel equipped with ventilation, lighting and a pulley-system, and happened to be 1,800 feet long and only waist high. The tunnel connected a warehouse in the United States to Tijuana, the main entry for the majority of drugs that are imported to California. The police believe that the tunnel had been in operation for less than a month. The Mexican police have been cracking down on the export of marijuana in Tijuana, seizing about 134 tonnes. This is not the first tunnel to be discovered and used to import drugs. In the past four years, about 75 tunnels have been discovered. This should have been deemed a sign of success. Mexican and United States authorities in coordinating their efforts seized the illegal drug and closed the tunnel; however, in the large scope of the problem this is such a minimal success as compared to the paramount problem that has been occurring for the past four years.

Ever since December 2006, President Calderon called for a “war on drugs,” launching a crackdown on the cartels that control the routes for trafficking drugs into the US market.  Despite the fact that Calderon has deployed the police and federal army to the borders to fight off the cartels on the major drug routes, the body count keeps on adding up. The evidence of 28,000 deaths in the past four years due to the cartels is proving that the government is not able to protect its citizens. Essentially, the power of the cartels remains the same. The consequences of this “war” put Mexico on the verge of becoming a failed state. Calderon has failed for numerous reasons. This is a multibillion dollar industry and there are huge profits to be made. Mexico is next door to their largest consumer: the United States. As long as the demand is high, there will be a supply. Another failure is Mexico’s inability to contain the violence within the state because the cartels have disregarded the authority of the government. The cartels are willing to use violence to prevent people from challenging them. Corruption has inundated the federal police force and Mexican army. Poverty and unemployment are major social factors that have demised the power of Mexico.  “Assassins are paid $45 a week by the local drug gangs … ‘not to become rich, simply to put food on the table.’”  Cartels move to new areas and find new ways, like tunnels to smuggle their products across borders, to keep the business growing. There is also a lack of confidence among the citizens in the Mexican government.  Ironically, in the United States this past Tuesday, November 2, California denied the legalization of marijuana. If this had been passed, maybe the illegal drug dealers would have little or no business. Even in the United States, when Americans are worrying about kidnappings, murders, and drugs penetrating the border, the guns are supplied by the States.

Tijuana's Location

A 600 yard underground tunnel fromTijuana, Mexico to Otay Mesa (in San Diego) was being used to smuggle Marijuana under the Mexico-California border; authorities intercepted this act while in progress on Tuesday. Authorities were watching the Otay Mesa warehouse on Tuesday, and noticed a trailer leave and authorities immediately followed. Authorities searched the truck at Border Patrol; 26 tons of Marijuana was found in America and 4 tons were found in Mexico. This is not the first time Marijuana has been intercepted. Authorities have cracked down since the 1990s, and have gained strength to the point where these drug cartels can only transport drugs through underground tunnels. Since the 1990s authorities have started to count the number of tunnels found, and it comes out to a whopping total of 125 tunnels. These tunnels are usually abandoned when found, but in this case the criminals were busted while in the act of transporting the drug. Even though Mexican and U.S. authorities were able to intercept this action, they were not able to pin point exactly which cartel was behind it. Cartels are getting busted more and more lately; Mexican authorities found 105 tons of Marijuana in Tijuana last month. These cartels have led to a growing relationship between Mexican and U.S. authorities; the two share information with each other which makes their job that much easier.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dC6LyJk6E78
[]
As authorities start to crack down on drug cartels, multiple topics could begin to shape Mexico: collective consensus might occur once these cartels lose power, the freedom of the drug market, and the special relationship that is being created between the U.S. and Mexico. Now that authorities have been able to gain some power with these drug cartels and smugglers, Mexico will have to start to think of its people. Even though there is not a civil war in Mexico right now, these cartels have caused vast amounts of violence, which always leaves devastation. Once these cartels are completely shut down for good, will there be a movement by the Mexican government similar to the Collectivist consensus movement that occurred in Great Britain in the late 40’s – 70’s? It’s not easy to give a simple yes or not to this question, but I believe this will help the Mexican people come together. The people need goods and services; many of the cartels have ruined these services for the citizens. Not only are the Mexican people in need of basic goods and services, the cartels have essentially formed a laissez faire market which makes it difficult for the Mexican government to provide for the people. It is ironic since laissez faire involves little government as possible because the Mexican government is trying to get involved with this drug market. The government wants this free market to end. Through this market that has caused such uproar in Mexico and the U.S., (especially California) a special relationship has formed. These two countries have joined forces to stop these cartels; they share information, and help each other as much as possible. There is a possibility this special relationship could carry on after the drug cartels lose power.

This week Work and Pensions Secretary, Iain Duncan Smith will be announcing a new program to implement cuts in welfare, a program which should be expecting about 7 billion pounds in cuts under the new spending review.  This program is being issued in an attempt to streamline welfare by creating a single universal payment to replace the several separate benefits in the current system.  To begin, Duncan Smith and other Conservatives working on the program want to require those receiving Jobseekers Allowance to do up to 30 hours of manual labor a week.  Those who refuse or show up late to their duties would be barred from the allowance for at least three months.  Duncan Smith is hopeful that this would get rid of those who are choosing to live on welfare and are not being proactive about finding a job.  Chief Secretary to the Treasury and Liberal Democrat, Danny Alexander says that this community service work will get people in the routine of a normal work day and prepare them to enter the work force.  As number two to Chancellor George Osborne he has had a lot to do with recent cuts.  But many people have spoken out against this new program.  The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams is worried that this will be a source of despair for welfare claimants across the country.  Many criticize the Tories for making the 5 million people on welfare out to be villains when in fact they are the victims.  For every 5 people seeking work, there is one job in the UK and it is clear that jobs need to be created to fix problems of unemployment.  This is considered to be one of the biggest reforms on welfare in 70 years and it is no wonder that it is causing debate among political leaders.

This new program highlights the enormous amount of power that Ministers have to create and pass legislation.  Because of parliamentary sovereignty, Ministers are able to implement such programs without dissent from a judiciary branch or directly from the people.  In America, a program like this could be stopped or heavily delayed, but in the UK it looks as if it will be put in place very soon.  This streamlining of welfare is certainly characteristic of the Conservative Party.  Like former Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, it seems that David Cameron and his government are attempting to decrease the welfare state as shown by the various spending cuts and the addition of these requirements for receiving Jobseekers Allowance.  It will be interesting to see the result of these and other welfare cuts and what they will do for Cameron’s popularity.  As of June 30^th, Cameron was at a respectable approval rating of 54%, but if he angers the 5 million people receiving welfare, this could take a dive.  The next few months will be telling of Cameron’s success as new programs are announced to satisfy the recent spending review.

Recently, the current Nigerian President, Umaru Yar’Adua has died. This leaves the current vice president, Goodluck Johnson, to be risen to power of Presidency. Johnson is currently running for the position of president in the election, but because of the death of the president he was moved to presidency. However, the major dispute going on in Nigeria is the legitimacy of the agreement that every two terms the presidency should rotate from the south to the north. It has been previously viewed as an unwritten agreement from the two religious groups, the Islam in the north and then Christianity in the south . The new information present in this article says there was an official vote where it was decided that this rotation would continue. Some say that this vote took place and that the rule should be followed, others say that this was simply an unofficial agreement and it should not be enforced. Mr. Abubakar said that he was present the day the late president assured the northerners that the presidency would swing back to the north in the terms after his. The major problem is that this system began in 1999 with the return of the civilian rule and the power of the People’s Democratic Party . Because this is a very new system of government, with just one southern president, there is no past support for the northerners for the rotation. The accession of Johnson to presidency recently was not argued by the public, but what is being argued is Johnson’s run for presidency for the next term. The ideal government of the country would be a perfect blend of religions, brought forth by the rotation of presidency. However, obviously it is hard for anything to be perfect and the fact that this is such a problem in Nigeria shows that everywhere, even in Nigeria, being the best candidate is not always good enough to earn a victory.

The noun repeatedly used in this article is “zoning”. This refers to the agreement that the presidency should rotate from north to south. An interesting part of this article to note is the view point of the women on this issue. Most women, when interviewed, thought that the presidency’s religious whereabouts should not be considered when voting in the election. Most women said that as long as the president is a good candidate, intellectual and gives the people enough power. Not all people agree that zoning is the best way to determine the presidency. Some believe that zoning “is not democratic. It’s manipulative”, says a woman. What is not stated in the article is if these women are from either the north or the south. These women could be from the north and truly believe that the best candidate should win and religion should not be involved in the politics. However, they could be from the south and defending their choice for Johnson as the president by going against the zoning of Nigeria. The fear after reading this article is, how far will the northerners go to get what they want in the elections? This shows the strength of ethnicity triumphing over the idea of national identity. Ethnicity is what sets a group of people apart from another. National identity is what binds people together through a strong sense of common political, aspirations. In this case, it is clear that people are slowly grouping back towards their ethnic groups because of the fight going on and the dispute over where the presidency should be from. Nigeria has over one hundred and fifty billion residences and each is divided in the religious differences between north and south, making it extremely difficult for democracy to grow.

To read the article that this is based off of, click here. Also, to read more information on the zoning in Nigeria and the religions, click here.

“Nigeria: Election equipment contracts signed”

by Jon Gambrell

Click here to read the article!

As stated in previous blog posts, the Independent National Electoral Commission in Nigeria is up against many challenges to make an election happen. Initially, the Commission sought to have this massive feat completed by December to hold elections in January. However, they realized that would be impossible in September, and pushed back the election date to April. The biggest challenge the Commission faces is the creation of a new voter’s registration list that includes around 70 million people. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been busy cleaning out the corrupted, old, greatly criticized, voter’s lists, and spending $230 million to do so.

This weekend, they caught a major break by signing contracts with major technology companies to supply Nigeria with the equipment they need to perform this big of a registration drive. Avante International Technology Inc., Haier Electrical Appliances Ltd., and Zinox Technologies Ltd. are the said companies supplying the INEC with the equipment they need within 35 days. Laptops and other technology will help them obtain a clean voter’s list, and take photographs and fingerprints of all the eligible voters (70 million). With Nigeria’s history of voter intimidation, vote-rigged elections, and this election being “ethnically and religiously charged” means the INEC has more pressure than ever to hold, for the first time, an election with credibility and plausible results. The signing of these contracts means they are one step closer to the completion of a fraud-free voter’s registration list.

Nigeria is known for being practically a “failed state” in transitional democracy, but this article shows the progression of efforts to gain legitimacy and a true democracy. Jenga, the president of the electoral commission, is holding true to his word that he will produce a clean election. Being the most populous country in Africa makes Jenga and the INEC’s job harder, but here we see them get a break. This is one step closer to a clean democratic election! With any luck, this election will instill nationalism, end corruption at all levels, and create a more happy, stable Nigeria. In months to come, it will be exciting to see how much this hopefully clean election will evolve the country away from a corrupt transitional democracy.

Read here to learn more about the initial challenges this election was up against and the technology/ money needed to pull it off.

This video explains the importance of this 2011 election and the crucial role technology and the media play in it.

More interesting reads on related topics…

Same subject: http://www.timeslive.co.za/africa/article749935.ece/Nigeria–Election-equipment-contracts-signed

A blog: http://www.nigeriahealthwatch.com/2010/08/voter-registration-vs-immunization.html

http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/j4/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4341:how-i-got-my-inec-card&catid=30:mobolaji-aluko&Itemid=183

Gorbachev Says Putin Obstructs Democracy

One of Putin’s predecessors, Mikahil Gorbachev, is now openly voicing his opinion of Russia’s current leader, saying that Putin has had a negative effect on Russia’s road to democracy. While in office, Gorbchev, the last leader of the Communist party in the Soviet Union and last president of the USSR, introduced many economic, political, and social reforms. He feels that his reforms advanced the state and that he led Russia into the right direction toward becoming an efficient democracy, but that Putin has prevented this from happening. Gorbachev believes that Medvedev and Putin rely on authoritarianism, referring to Russia as an “unmanageable” country. “He thinks that democracy stands in his way.” He also said that Putin has weakened opposition. In 2004, Putin abolished elections for the mayors of St. Petersburg and Moscow. Instead, Kremlin appointees were selected to fill these positions. Last month, Medvedev dismissed Moscow’s mayor, a position now held by a Putin supporter. Dmitri Pesko, Putin’s spokesman, responded to Gorbachev’s criticisms by saying that unpopular leaders and unappealing policies are to blame for the lack of power of opposition parties in Russia.

“He [Putin] thinks that democracy stands in his way.”

“”I just don’t think my voice makes a difference…What can I say? This is Russia.”

This is just another example of Russia’s tough path to democracy and brings the question to mind: is Russia even headed towards democracy? The elimination of several elections, only to have those positions filled by Kremlin and Putin supporters eradicates all governmental opposition. If Russia is not on the path toward democracy, are they on the path toward becoming a failed state or authoritarian democracy? Recent actions taken by the government and Gorbachev’s criticism of Russia’s leaders certainly point in this direction. Putin’s respective party, United Russia, has immense power in Russia, which worries many people. Some were even blacklisted for not agreeing with United Russia, such as Viacheslav Trofimov. The majority of articles published about Russia today are harsh criticisms of its government and leaders. In previous current events, Putin and Medvedev were blamed for their late response to the forest fires; Putin’s leading party was rumored to have rigged elections; and Russia illegally used Microsoft to suppress opposition. More and more evidence points to Russia as a failed state, or in the direction toward becoming one. Alcohol is a major problem in Russia, and nearly one third of all deaths are alcohol related. Russia has one of the highest alcohol consumption rates in the world. Russia also has a very high number of orphans, whose state-funded care expires at age 16, leaving these children on the street with nowhere to go. 40% of these now homeless orphans will become drug users, another 40% will commit crimes of some sort, and 10% will commit suicide. In the early 2000s, Russia’ population was decreasing by 700,000 a year. There have been countless terrorist attacks in recent years, killing innocent civilians. Russia also has a major taxing problem, always failing to collect taxes from all citizens. A government cannot exist without this major source of revenue. These many examples, along with Gorbachev’s criticisms, demonstrate a powerful government when it comes to eliminating opposition, but a weak state when it comes to securing and providing for the people. A state will cease to exist if they fail to provide for their people.

Watch at 3:02

Ed Milliband, younger brother of David Milliband, succeeds in winning the Labour Party leader position and speaks about looking forward to the future. 

David Milliband was picked by all of the major campaign predictors to win the Labour Party election, but it was a big surprise when instead, his younger brother, Ed Milliband, won. With Gordon Brown, one of the many famous predecessors of the Labour Party Leader position, as Ed’s personal mentor, he was able to have an extra leg up over his bother. Although there is much reason for celebration for Ed Milliband, he states in the article, that he is remaining focused on the next few weeks, as he has a lot of work to do and a lot of trust to gain. As you know from reading previous articles, the Labour Party is going through a rough patch right now. Not only does the Labour Party have to prove its worth to England, but it also has a lot of trust to gain from its constituents. The skilled working class is especially the largest deficit in the statistics showing which support group dropped in most in approval ratings. Ed Milliband is focusing very hard to fight accusations that he will side with whatever is the most “left” thing to do. Ed argues back to the accusations claiming that he will vote for whatever is best and most accurately represents what is in favor of the party, but he will remain diligently cognizant of how it will affect both today and tomorrow. Ed has only a few short weeks to prepare for his first big event which will be challenging current Prime Minister David Cameron on the way to handle the deficit. Although he is not sure exactly how, Ed states that he will be very cautious but decisive in planning these next few weeks.

The unexpected outcome of Ed ahead of David Milliband goes to show that just because someone is expected to win in the polls, does not necessarily mean that they will win in the actual election. It was an unforeseen surprise for England that Ed Milliband won the Labour Party Election because all of the polls indicated that David would come ahead by a respectable distance. This unexpected outcome goes to show that polls can be misleading; meaning that just because a specific outcome is predicted does not mean that it will necessarily come true. Another aspect of this election was how the winner was going to gain the trust of the party members again. After the problems that arose during Gordon Brown’s term, the Labour Party is struggling to keep its approval rating high. Ed Milliband sticks by his words when he states that he is going to make decisions based off of how it will affect the present and future. The world will continue to watch as Ed Milliband gears up for his upcoming event against David Cameron when they debate on how they are going to get rid of the deficit in England.

One Woman Dies Every Hour from Domestic Violence

In Russia an estimated one woman dies every hour from domestic abuse, that’s roughly 14,000 women a year, which is around the same number of Russian soldiers that died in the Afghan War. Yet as astonishing as these figures are, some argue that it is a “gross underestimate.”
Typically the story goes as this: man drinks excessively and upon returning home beats his wife or partner. However, most researchers believe that domestic violence in Russia has less to do with alcohol and more to do with culture.
In Russia most consider domestic violence to be a norm of life. Men are taught that control is to be demonstrated by force and that such actions represent love and passion for a woman. Women think this too, while also believing that they are to blame for any violence that is brought upon them. These ideas are instilled in men and women at a very young age with almost 90% of respondents citing that they had witnessed domestic violence between parents or adults when they were young.
Domestic abuse is not only culturally supported in Russia, but is governmentally supported too. The state does not recognize such acts as being criminal and declines to establish centers or housing that may aid women who face violence at the hands of their partner.
Many women, living in a culture that has long supported domestic violence and living under a Government that believes such private matters don’t concern the state, are left to defend for themselves.

Domestic violence is a societal institution in Russia that has plagued women for decades, but what can explain its steadily increasing figures over the past few years and what does it suggest about Russia? A long-standing goal of Prime Minister and once President Vladimir Putin has been to re-instate traditionalist principles in Russia. Putin’s eerily communist-like regime combined with little sense of national identity has  led many Russians, perhaps subconsciously, to refer back to “Old Russia’s” mindset in an almost reactionary-like movement.

Government’s claim that their un-involvement stems from a respect for citizens “private issues,” is immensely hypocritical. As recent events have shown, the Russian Government is reminiscent of communism in that individuals are granted little freedoms. Their alibi for their indifference to domestic violence is inconsistent with their governing style and system of beliefs. This begs the question: Why? Why doesn’t the Government seem to care? How can they let these women suffer?

Such a concept is almost unfathomable to places like the U.S. or Britain. To think that a Government would sit back and allow the continuation of such pain seems so remote. However, many don’t realize that domestic violence isn’t a new phenomenon in Russia but has been institutionalized over years and years.

This is not to say that because it’s institutionalized domestic violence is acceptable. But rather is important to show the extent to which this practice is engrained in Russian society.

When Americans think of a cultural institution, Baseball almost always comes to mind. Now imagine if the U.S. was a rapidly weakening and unraveling state, thousands of Americans would seek out American institutions like Baseball to give them hope and a sense of nation and unity. As crazy as it may seem, traditional “old Russian” ways like keeping your wife in line and demonstrating your love and passion through physical displays gives some Russians a sense of national identity. An overwhelming majority of Russians have witnessed such treatment of women for most of their lives, thus believing it to be the normal relationship between male and female.

With their state continuing to decline, many Russians desperately cling to traditionalist values, from which they are able to derive a sense of national identity. One can only hope that as the world continues to modernize, dissent from domestic violence in Russia will strengthen. However, such advances seem unlikely to occur in the near future as the state becomes increasingly adamant in re-instating Russian traditionalism.

Learn more:

<object width=”480″ height=”385″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/ZEsp9ZwOuEQ?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US”></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/ZEsp9ZwOuEQ?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”480″ height=”385″></embed></object>

How you can help:

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/vaw/reports.htm

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92621334

www.unfpa.org/gender/docs/fact…/domestic_violence_russia.doc

The United Russia party remained triumphant in elections on October 10 in Russia, proving Russian’s confidence in Putin, although some question the legality of their win. Out of Russia’s 140 million population, about 30 million voted in the elections. Based on the results of the election, the harsh criticisms that the Kremlin and the Russian government have received in the past few months seemed to be of no concern to the people. For example, the major heat wave and forest fires resulted in the increase of grains and meat. As one of Merrill’s Hawks Eye’s stated, in such harsh times Putin and Medvedev did not remain focused on their people, but instead on their personal lives. Opposing parties focused on Novosibirsk, Russia’s third largest city, to get ahead in the polls. They believe that that the Novosibirsk population may be tiring of Putin and his parties’ ideals. Even though neither the Communists nor A Just Russia defeated United Russia in the Novosibirsk polls, the margin was much smaller than in other cities. Communists and A Just Russia, the opposing parties, claim that the elections filled with fraud and that the government stifled opposition. They believe that United Russia officials suppressed dissent using the law enforcement and governmental agencies. A member of A Just Russia said, “United Russia knows its real rating, which is why it has staked everything on monstrous violations. It can obtain the desired results only with the help of deception and forgery.” United Russia retaliated by saying the opposing parties were sour because of their loss, and that they violated the law in order to gain more votes. Parliamentary and presidential elections are expected to take place in the next 18 months, and although Putin has not said whether he plans to run for president, this election proved his parties’ standing in Russia. It is expected that if Putin does not run for president, Medvedev will seek reelection.

After the elections, speculation arose that United Russia rigged the votes. The head of the central election committee in the Chuvashia province then resigned, stating, “In 15 years of working in this election system I have always been certain that in Chuvashia the election commission system does not fall under someone’s influence . . . These last elections have made me doubt this.”

The elections demonstrate the people’s faith and confidence in Putin and his respective party. Whether United Russia really did violate the law, the Russian people will never know because of the media censorship. Most television networks, newspapers, radio channels, etc. are governmentally owned, therefore the government can choose what is and what is not published or said.
This speculation goes hand in hand with the definition of an illiberal democracy. As Fareed Zakaria stated, elections in an illiberal democracy are regularly held, yet are filled with fraud and little opposition. In the elections on October 10, although there were two opposition parties, many claim that the elections were rigged and filled with fraud. United Russia used tactics to undermine their opponents. The most recent elections are not the only time that there has been speculation about fraud and rigging. Just a year ago, about 130 members of the Russian government walked out in an act of protest. They believed that the elections were not fair and ordered to speak with President Medvedev (see video below). With Parliamentary elections scheduled for December 2011 and Presidential elections for March 2012, it can only be expected that there will be speculation of fraud and rigging.

“Nigeria Suspended by FIFA for Government Interference”

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/football/10/04/football.fifa.nigeria.ban/index.html

The Nigerian Super Eagles

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan decided to suspend their national soccer team on all levels for two years, after they played poorlyat the FIFA world cup. The team was knocked out in the first round after loosing to South Africa. FIFA then suspended the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) for government interference, which is not allowed. FIFA threatened to keep the eight million dollars due to the NFF for qualifying to go to the World Cup, and threatened to banish Nigeria all together. FIFA will not allow Nigeria to compete in any international games, club level games, or friendly matches until they are sure that the NFF is free of all governmental control.

This article shows how far the government over steps their boundaries in Nigeria. FIFA has clear rules that the running of national associations must be government free. Nigeria’s government has chosen to disregard this all because they were embarrassed! It looks like Nigeria is becoming a communist country. National sports teams bring nations pride and nationalism. Goodluck Jonathan is choosing to throw away something that could bring happiness to  his failing country. The question that lingers is, why? All because they didn’t come out on top? There has to be more to this story. Hopefully in the coming weeks the real reasons behind this decision will be revealed.

Further reading (highly recommended):

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/football/07/05/nigeria.fifa.jonathan.goodluck/index.html

http://www.b2news.com/suspended-nigerian-team-get-no-sympathy/567/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/worldcup2010/article-1291524/WORLD-CUP-2010-FIFA-issue-ultimatum-Nigeria–end-Presidents-interference-Monday-face-blanket-ban.html