Violence = Less Tourism

Some of the information in the posting is from a CNN article. For the full article, please go to http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/03/19/Tijuana.mexico.tourism/index.html?hpt=Sbin

There was an unfortunate act of violence this last weekend in the border town of Juarez. It is very sad that consulate employees and their families were targeted by drug cartels. Unfortunately, it is not surprising. Embassy and Consulate workers know the danger they encounter when they choose to work for those places. I teach some embassy workers' children; we had a state department employee visit our class. Anyone in known danger is regularly or constantly supervised by bodyguards. Some of them have 24-hour security at their house. It seems that the incident last weekend specifically targeted the employees who were careless - they were in a residential area of Juarez without protection on a weekend evening. I would never do this.

Tourists need to know that they are generally NOT in danger in Mexico. Tourists who are in tourist areas during the daytime are not targeted by violent drug cartels. Just like anyone visiting Manhattan or Chicago or Miami, innocent people are sometimes injured, but that is not limited to Mexico.

Please consider visiting Mexico. If you are too nervous to drive across the border, fly into Mexico. Visit the beach towns or central Mexico, where there is almost no drug cartel presence. Spend money at locally owned restaurants and hotels, tip everyone who helps you, buy cheap stuff in the market, donate to charities, and do volunteer work. Also, ask your government representatives for comprehensive immigration reform and additional gun regulations. (The guns used in the attack last weekend were legally purchased in Texas and then illegally transported across the border.)
Mexico is our neighbor; we cannot ignore them.