Recent Publications

The Evolution of Los Zetas in Mexico and Central America: Sadism as an Instrument of Cartel Warfare
April 1, 2014 — Author: Dr George W Grayson View the Executive SummaryThe United States has diplomatic relations with 194 independent nations. Of these, none is more important to America than Mexico in terms of trade, investment, tourism, natural resources, migration, energy, and security. In recent years, narco-violence has afflicted Mexico with more than 50,000... MORE

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The Impact of President Felipe Calderón’s War on Drugs on the Armed Forces: The Prospects for Mexico’s “Militarization” and Bilateral Relations
December 1, 2012 — Author: Dr George W Grayson View the Executive SummaryIn the absence of honest, professional civilian law-enforcement agencies, President Felipe Calderón assigned the military the lead role in his nation’s version of the “War on Drugs” that he launched in 2006. While the armed forces have spearheaded the capture and/or death of several dozen cartel... MORE

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Threat Posed by Mounting Vigilantism in Mexico
September 1, 2011 — Author: Dr George W Grayson Until the 1980s, Mexico enjoyed relative freedom from violence. Ruthless drug cartels existed, but they usually abided by informal rules of conduct hammered out between several capos and representatives of the dominant Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which ruled the country until the 1990s. Relying on bribes,... MORE

La Familia Drug Cartel: Implications for U.S.-Mexican Security
December 1, 2010 — Author: Dr George W Grayson La Familia Michoacana burst onto the national stage on September 6, 2006, when ruffians crashed into the seedy Sol y Sombra nightclub in Uruapan, Michoacán, and fired shots into the air. They screamed at the revelers to lie down, ripped open a plastic bag, and lobbed five human heads onto the beer-stained black and white... MORE

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