Thursday, Mar 3, 2011

Mexican President Felipe Calderon and Barack Obama seem to have worked out a deal to allow cross border trucking between the United States and Mexico. The deal is said to resolve the 20 year dispute over the lack of implementation of the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that has been blocked by Teamsters Union lobbyists as well as Independent Truckers across America. The White house claims the agreement (if passed) would lift tariffs on $20 billion worth of  U.S. goods and create jobs on both sides of the border. Oh, really.

Evidently, Obama hasn’t been paying much attention to what has been happening throughout Mexico or he is intent on taking down another vital industry, here in our own country. Since Felipe Calderon declared war on the Drug Cartels, in Mexico, over 33,000 people have died, either, at the hands of the Cartels or have been caught in the crossfire between the Mexican Government and the drug gangs. And far too often, the drug gangs have hijacked trucks to use as barricades, and many of these truck drivers have died as a result of these gang wars.

The hijacking of trucks, to steal loads, is becoming more and more common as the Drug Cartels diversify into other areas of organized crime. Fuel trucks are the main target of Mexico’s criminal organizations at present, but freight haulers are not exempt and will be moved higher up the priority list as the criminal gangs continue to branch out. The Cartels have, already, found a lucrative business in kidnapping and when they put American trucks  together with American truck drivers, there will be a whole new and profitable enterprise, for them to delve into.

Mexico’s Drug Wars and cross border trucking sets up an interesting, if not disgusting, dichotomy. On the one hand, it would be a fantastic respite for a Mexican Trucker to haul into the U.S. and not have to constantly worry about being decapitated by a drug lord’s assasins. But, on the other, what sane American trucker would risk hauling freight into Mexico, when there is a good chance of not coming back alive? Obviously, Obama hasn’t given this much thought. Or, has he.

The trucking aspect of NAFTA has been blocked because of the financial inequities and the perceived job losses and safety issues resulting from Mexican trucks operating freely, in America. Now NAFTA must be blocked for the loss of jobs due to the extremely high risk for American truckers to haul frieght into Mexico; the playing field couldn’t be more uneven. Besides, trucks are not the only way to move freight from country to country. There is Containerized Shipping. We must demand that the cross border trucking aspect of NAFTA remain on hold until Mexico’s Drug Wars are ended. Then we need to start the talks over, from the beginning.

Barack Obama’s performance as President of The United States of America has led me to believe, he very well could be childishly kissing Calderon’s ass or making a deal with Mexico’s Drug Cartels, to allow drugs and\or illegal immigrants into our country.

Either way, this is a bad deal for America and must be stopped.

by: Backwards boB