Marijuana & Mexico's Drug War

The topic of Mexico's drug war is something that has interested me for a couple years now, and has recently been getting more attention in connection with Prop 19 in California - legislation that would legalize marijuana in the state. Many people focus on the personal or economic appeals of whether marijuana sould be legalized or not, but in my research I'd like to explore the international implications of the possible actions that could be taken in regards to marijuana (de-regulation, de-criminalization, ect). My first source argues that legalizing marijuana would not end Mexico's drug war. Zach Behren's article points out that even if America legalized marijuana, Mexico's drug cartels would still be selling methamphetamine and cocaine to customers in the US (para. 3). Because these drugs have severe health repercussions, they will never be considered for legalization, and therefore the cartels will always have a customer base and won't be put out of business. So maybe legalization isn't the answer, but we still need to be apart of the solution to our joint problem.

Work Cited
Behrens, Zach. "Will Legalizing Marijuana End Mexico's Drug War? Well, 'Maybe Not' - LAist." LAist: Los Angeles News, Food, Arts & Events. 13 Sept. 2010. Web. 10 Oct. 2010. .