Posted on 05/16/2008 7:26:49 AM PDT by SJackson
(CNSNews.com) - The U.S. State Department has issued an alert, warning travelers that the "equivalent to military small-unit combat" is taking place across the southern U.S. border in Mexico and that Americans are being kidnapped and murdered there.
"Recent Mexican army and police force conflicts with heavily-armed narcotics cartels have escalated to levels equivalent to military small-unit combat and have included use of machine guns and fragmentation grenades," said the State Department alert.
"Confrontations have taken place in numerous towns and cities in northern Mexico, including Tijuana in the Mexican state of Baja California, and Chihuahua City and Ciudad Juarez in the state of Chihuahua," reads the alert. "The situation in northern Mexico remains very fluid; the location and timing of future armed engagements there cannot be predicted."
The State Department particularly urged that Americans be wary when traveling in that part of Mexico closest to the United States. "U.S. citizens are urged to be especially alert to safety and security concerns when visiting the border region," said the alert.
Murder and kidnapping of Americans has become routine in Tijuana, which sits just across the border from San Diego, California, according to the State Department, and sometimes heavily armed attackers wear the uniforms of the Mexican police or military.
"Dozens of U.S. citizens were kidnapped and/or murdered in Tijuana in 2007," says the alert. "Public shootouts have occurred during daylight hours near shopping areas. Criminals are armed with a wide array of sophisticated weapons. In some cases, assailants have worn full or partial police or military uniforms and have used vehicles that resemble police vehicles."
The alert also warns Americans to avoid areas where drugs and prostitution are evident and to "refrain from displaying expensive-looking jewelry, large amounts of money and other valuable items."
In light of this alert, which was first issued on Apr. 14, and was listed as "current as of today, Thursday May 15 17:51:35 2008" on State's Web site on Wednesday, Cybercast News Service submitted a number of questions to the State Department via e-mail, and received non-responsive answers the next day. Cybercast News Service's questions were as follows:
-- "The alert says 'attacks are aimed primarily at members of drug trafficking organizations, Mexican police forces, criminal justice officials and journalists.' Can you provide more details about who has been attacked and the result of those attacks, including injuries, fatalities and legal ramifications?
-- "The alert says violence has 'escalated to levels equivalent to military small-unit combat and have included use of machine guns and fragmentation grenades.' Can you provide more information, including the number of incidents involving these kinds of weapons and the number of weapons confiscated?
-- "The alert says that violence not related to drug trafficking has increased in Tijuana and Ciudad Jarez, with 'dozens of U.S. citizens ... kidnapped and/or murdered in Tijuana in 2007.' How many people were kidnapped or murdered and how do those numbers compare with the numbers in prior years?"
-- "The alert recommends that Americans avoid areas where prostitution and drug dealing occurs. Where are those areas?"
-- "How many incidents in 2007 and other years are recorded that show U.S. citizens being followed or harassed in the border areas, including Nuevo Laredo, Matamoros and Tijuana?"
-- "How many kidnapping cases of U.S. citizens remain unsolved?"
-- "What actions is the state department taking to reduce the violence on the border?"
The State Department's written answer to those questions is as follows:
"The State Department's Office of American Citizens Services and Crisis Management (ACS) administers the Consular Information Program, which informs the public of conditions abroad that may affect their safety and security.
"Travel Alerts are issued to disseminate information about short-term conditions, generally within a particular country, that pose imminent risks to the security of U.S. citizens. Natural disasters, terrorist attacks, coups, anniversaries of terrorist events, election-related demonstrations or violence, and high-profile events such as international conferences or regional sports events are examples of conditions that might generate a Travel Alert.
"The travel alert is a collaborative effort based on media reports and other information released within a particular country. It is provided so that American travellers (sic) can make an informed decision about their plans to visit a particular location at a particular time.
"For various reasons, American citizens often choose not to report their involvement in activities while abroad.
"Your best source for detailed statistics and information about specific locations would be from sources within Mexico."
Paging General Black Jack Pershing and Lt. George Patton.
Forget a border fence — we need to plant 1,00 miles of landmines.
WTF - warnings hell, post a couple of predators and when they cross the border, bam.
Wait a minute...I thought Juan McCain said that the immigration problem was under control now.
NM Ping. If you want off this list or on let me know
He got his ass handed to him and he fled back over the border.
Pershing and patton spent eleven months hunting Villa in Mexico after that.
They never found him.
During that time Patton killed one of Villa's lieutenants and another one of his lieutenants was killed in a skirmish.
The US expeditionary force fought two engagements with the Mexican Army, losing one and drawing the other. This was because the carranza government of Mexico who were fighting Villa did not like US troops within their borders because they believed it won more popular support for Villa.
Pershing withdrew his forces and fortified the US border to prevent further raids.
Pershing told reporters that his mission was a failure.
Are you saying that Pershing and Patton were in the habit of lying to their superiors?
Really?
Our very own Gaza-on-the-Rio Grande. Maybe we should send Condi Rice to start a “roadmap to peace” there?
?sarc?
You can include the little border town of Palomas, Mexico on the list.
http://www.lcsun-news.com/ci_9228865?source=most_emailed
Your clear implication is that Ramos and Campeon lied to their superiors.
What did they say to their superiors that was a lie, and what would the truth have been?
The border is such a cluster at this point, it needs to be job one. In the truest sense of the word, it is a major national security problem and criminal security problem to the common citizen.
I expect we will see people fleeing the violence and refugee camps. The Mexican police are major targets (many of those killed are LEOs) and right now they are much more concerned with staying alive than protecting the citizens, they are literally fleeing to the US for protection:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/article/20080515/NATION/11974982/1002
They deliberately concealed evidence from their superiors by not filing an incident report.
and what would the truth have been?
Filing an accurate report.
The way I heard it, they told their supervisors what happened on the scene, in person, immediately after the incident.
At worst, they committed an administrative paperwork violation.
Palomas is pretty horrible right now but not much worse than it has been for years, they are just reporting on it now. In 1985 we had a guy who worked for us (legally) but lived in Palomas, there were murders every weekend.
It has always been an unsavory town, the rumor was that the “muy rico” family got it’s money by rolling and murdering tourists and that was in the ‘50s. Their son was being targeted by the Mexican Mafia so he came across the border with drugs and made it obvious so that Customs caught him, he pled guilty, went to prison, got a college degree. The heat was off when he got out and he became mayor.
So you would have no problem, then, if your local police were exempted from having to fill out any incident reports detailing their activity?
A recordless honor system?
From what I’ve read all they needed was to tell their immediate superiors in the field what happened since they did not believe they hit the perp with any shots.
And they did tell their immediate superiors.
So your left wing propaganda is a lie.
I didn’t say my local police should be exempted from having to fill out incident reports detailing their activity.
But I wouldn’t send them to prison for over a decade if they failed to do so.
You apparently forgot that General Winfield Scott, assisted by Capitan Robert E Lee, conquered Mexico in a combined arms invasion. They landed at Vera Cruz and marched inland to Mexico City where they soundly defeated General Santa Anna. Part of the campaign involved US Marines at the Halls of Montezuma.
As usual, you didn’t listen to what he actully said.
In the speech delivered in 2013, he said the governors of the border states declared the borders secure
You are right that Palomas has always been bad, but I have lived in the area for over 25 years and it really is worse. There are still the regular weekend murders that are not reported- what is being reported is the murders related to the overall new little drug war that is going on in Mexico. The Mexican government used to have the ultimate control over the drug leaders, and for years were actually at the top of the drug chain, receiving the biggest profit. The difference now is the drug lords have cut the government out of the chain, and the government no longer has control of them. The government is trying to get control back- on the pretext of trying to stop the drug trade- though I don’t swallow that. Mexico now is like Colombia was a few years back.
That part of Mexico, my eye. They're here already, well infiltrated, on a rampaging crime spree, raping and murdering people all over the country. If the State Department had an ounce of integrity, it would urge Americans to be wary of Mexican criminals when traveling anywhere in Mexico or the US.
Delicias in particular, was very friendly to Americans. Lots of girls at the plant I was working at made it a point to talk to me. I was flattered until my "guide" told me that they just wanted a chance to practice their English. lol!
Coming soon to a barrio near you, thanks to the open border traitors.
And if the open-borders crowd has their way, we can expect the same violence to migrate north.
We have enemies of every stripe gearing up to take us down, and our elected officials sit and do nothing. They’re too busy wringing their hands over “global warming” & trying to destroy what freedoms we still have left.
America is in for a world of hurt if we don’t wake up.
How about Zachery Taylor and Winfield Scott. We need some rereconquistadors.
Every time a peace officer fires a weapon he is required to make a report.
And they did tell their immediate superiors.
They told their immediate superiors an edited version verbally. Yet they did not commit this edited version to paper. Interesting.
So your left wing propaganda is a lie.
If I had any left-wing propaganda, I'm sure that would be true. Unfortunately for your man of straw, I have legally established facts instead.
The US side of the border should have been included in the warning as well. There are areas that haven’t been safe for years.
Murder and kidnapping of Americans has become routine in Tijuana,.....
And why isn’t this headline on the front page of any newspaper?....(I conclude it’s not P.C.)
Strange how the MSM has never seen fit to report on any of these cases, isn't it?
So ten years in prison for a paperwork infraction???????
We should not have even heard of this.
That's not the crime they were sentenced for.
And covering up your actions while you are supposed to be engaging in public business is not a "paperwork infraction."
It's a breach of the public trust.
I'm afraid that will be the next giant loophole for the illegals. They won't be "economic" refugees, but "political refuges fleeing the violence" or some such. Other immigrants have used the "I will be killed if I go back" defense in order to stay here, so those in authority who want open borders will jump all over this and open the floodgate (wider).
I know they were sentenced for using a firearm in the commision of a crime.
The crime was what? Protecting the border and going after drug smugglers?
Any idiot American gets what he /she deserves crossing that border going south!....It’s no man’s land and our damn government should say so!
Agreed.
However what would happen to the cartels if drugs were legalized? They would be out of business and most of this crime would stop.
I don’t use any drugs and don’t approve of them but the crime associated affects everyone just as it did during prohibition.
Shooting someone who was not threatening them.
And yes, I know they claim that their lives were in danger.
Of course, if their lives were in danger and the shooting was eminently justified one must ask: why tamper with evidence at the scene? Why fail to fire a full report?
That's the question the court had to consider.
A fleeing drug smuggler is certainly a danger to them when they claim they saw him turn around with something in his hand. Even if it was later found to be a rock, rocks can kill.
Add to that the prosecutor suppressing evidence at the trial and this whole thing looked much worse than it was.
If the jury had known that the perp was a drug smuggler and that the agents were at least part right they would not have gotten such long sentences.
Probably no jail time just some punishment for the reporting problems.
Sounds like a great time for a Soldiers of Fortune reunion.. or two or three or four at different spots along the border. ;-)
In other words, the defense should have been able to make an emotional appeal to the jury - hoping that the fact that the complaining witness was a dirtbag would convince the jury to ignore all the rest.
I reiterate: if it was a clean shoot - as they claim now it was - then they would have been zealous in making sure the scene of the incident was kept pristine and they would have been eager to set down every last detail of what they saw and did in writing so that they wouldn't forget any facts that would help exonerate them.
Instead, they tampered with the scene and they avoided their obligation to file a report.
“The way I heard it, they told their supervisors what happened on the scene, in person, immediately after the incident.”
Well, someone lied to you. When asked what happened at the scene by a Supervisor they said “nothing”. When asked again back at the station they again said “nothing”. This was of course after Compean picked up and disposed of some of his shell casings and after he asked another agent to get the ones he missed...but to wait until everyone else had left the scene so he wouldn’t be seen.
Yes, these are the actions of innocent law enforcement officers who have nothing to hide.
“From what I’ve read all they needed was to tell their immediate superiors in the field what happened since they did not believe they hit the perp with any shots.
And they did tell their immediate superiors.
So your left wing propaganda is a lie.”
I see you’ve been reading World Nut Daily and/or underground “border security” memos. They told no one, someone has been lying TO YOU.
“But I wouldn’t send them to prison for over a decade if they failed to do so.”
They weren’t sent to prison for not filling out paperwork, they got the 1 and 2 years for attempted cover up, destruction of evidence and obstruction of justice. The ten years was a mandatory sentence after the jury convicted them of assault with a deadly weapon when they found no justifiable reason for the officers to draw their weapons and trying to kill the perp.
The 10 year mandatory is where the conflict lies. Personally I do not think it should be used against LEO’s who make an honest mistake during the course of their duties...but should be used in the case of a dirty cop.
Of course, but the jury didn't buy it and frankly neither did I after I read the trial transcripts. They just made it up.
"Add to that the prosecutor suppressing evidence at the trial and this whole thing looked much worse than it was."
The prosecutor didn't suppress any evidence, it was brought up by the defense and the judge ruled it inadmissible because one it was only a statement by another drug smuggler and had nothing to do with whether the shoot that day was good.
"If the jury had known that the perp was a drug smuggler and that the agents were at least part right they would not have gotten such long sentences."
The perp admitted in court he knew he was smuggling drugs that day so the jury knew he was a drug smuggler. No matter how many times he smuggled drugs it had nothing to do with whether Ramos and Compean engaged in a cover up, tampered with evidence or whether they had justifiable cause that day to shoot him.
"Probably no jail time just some punishment for the reporting problems."
They were convicted of engaging in a cover up, tampering with evidence and trying to kill a fleeing suspect without justifiable cause. It had nothing to do with a reporting problem.
Do you consider the National Border Patrol Council’s writeup on Congressman Rohrabacher’s website to be an “underground ‘border security’ memo”?
Well, I don’t know. Got a link to that article so we can determine if they were telling the truth or whether it was another case of a labor union “spinning” for a couple of their members?
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