Mexico murders

[Pleasant Travels]

Travelling in Mexico used to be lovely before the Columbian cartel pipelines were disrupted in the early 90s. After that, the balance of power shifted to Mexico's overland routes and who controlled them, creating the warfare as we currently know it.

As a native Arizonan who's family homesteaded within rifle shot of the border since before statehood,...none of that bothered me for a long time...until U.S. border guards started searching Americans on the way INTO Mexico. Prior to 2000, I used to be able to covertly carry my pistol through the Naco or Douglas gates. Never had a problem. Used to get all my meds and leather goods and custom tailered suits down there because it was affordable. But once they started looking for weapons, the savings weren't worth dying for, so I haven't been back.

But that's border territory. Its an entirely different aninal from most of the rest of the country. Yes, we have all heard of crime and killings going on elsewhere southward,...but unless you follow Mexican media closely, you'd never realize as an American from our biased perspectives that the frequency of all that is many magnitudes less the further south you go. The problem is that to get there, you have to transit bandit country. For boat people, this is not as big a problem; just sail on south past midway to the Yucatan and nearly anywhere you anchor will be friendly and safe (by Mexican standards, anyway). But we drivers who go by land,...well,...as I said,...I no longer go there.

 

[Gypsy Freedom]

travelling in Mexico used to be lovely before the Columbian cartel pipelines were disrupted in the early 90s. After that, the balance of power shifted to Mexico's overland routes and who controlled them, creating the warfare as we currently know it.

As a native Arizonan who's family homesteaded within rifle shot of the border since before statehood,...none of that bothered me for a long time...until U.S. border guards started searching Americans on the way INTO Mexico. Prior to 2000, I used to be able to covertly carry my pistol through the Naco or Douglas gates. Never had a problem. Used to get all my meds and leather goods and custom tailered suits down there because it was affordable. But once they started looking for weapons, the savings weren't worth dying for, so I haven't been back.

wow, smuggling a gun into a foreign country that has draconian laws against foreigners with guns just to save some on meds? just wow. i am glad it didnt come back to bite you in the butt.

i am curious, with how bad it was then (pre 200). how many times did you have to use your gun to protect yourself after smuggling it into mex?

 

[Cammalu]

That was in the olden days when you could get away with anything probably.

 

[LERCA]

Pleasant Travels
I too grew up and still live near the border. I also spent a year in Morelia which has become one of the top narco cities in a narco state ( Michoacán) and I no longer cross the border. Government corruption, kidnapping, drug cartels etc. Not worth it. I also lived in Colombia and Paraguay and have traveled through South America. No more. Too old to be victimized or rot in prison. People who don’t know the area have a lot of opinions. Can you go to a border city and survive? Of course but why? The quality of medical/dental care is poor and there have been many studies of their fake pharmaceuticals.

 

[maki2]

Even the USA has its share of bad dentist and doctors as well as bad pharmaceuticals plus lots of bad vitamin and mineral supplements.

Things can go wrong in any dental clinic in any location.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

But the US has robust malpractice redress.  Not sure about Mexico.

 

[maki2]

The community that was attacked has left Mexico and gone to Arizona.

 

[Cammalu]

We have had great success with dental in Algodones. Heart meds for my mom are $300 a month with her insurance. (That’s one pill a day). In Algodones I get her a years supply at a time for about $9 a month. It’s made a big difference for her. I also pick up various antibiotics to have on me.

 

[crofter]

Things can go wrong in any dental clinic in any location.

I have heard good reports from dental patients about services received in Algodones. Also docs in Yuma are good at taking care of old people, and caring.  -crofter

 

[Pleasant Travels]

wow, smuggling a gun into a foreign country that has draconian laws against foreigners with guns just to save some on meds? just wow. i am glad it didnt come back to bite you in the butt.

i am curious, with how bad it was then (pre 200). how many times did you have to use your gun to protect yourself after smuggling it into mex?

Its always been bad. But it also has always been slowly ratcheting up bit by bit. Locals (and I consider myself one, because I've spent enough time there) always knew where the trouble was and stayed away from those areas. But sometimes trouble finds you anyway. While I never had to "use" my pistol in Mexico in a traditional sense, that was because I knew better than most visiting Americans where not to be. 

However, of all the trade items you could ever have with you in Mexico, only gold and silver beat out having a spare pistola to barter with. One old farmer tried to give me his daughter's hand in marriage for it. No exageration! Back in 1992, travelling with some friends, we blew the engine on Kyle's Jeep. We would have had to pay waaaaaaaay too much in cash for a new motor down there,...but for an old .45 I only had $350 invested in,...bingo bango,...back on the road in 24 hrs! Kyle bought me a brand spanking new one to replace it and was still way ahead, as was I.

 

[Cammalu]

Ha! I sold my Glock 17 down in Peru in the early 90s. along with everything else I had. I was offered about twice what I paid. I sure didn’t want to fly iback with it at that price!