ABSTRACT
Mexico's railway transport system, linking Lazaro Cardenas, Veracruz, Tampico, and other seaports to connections on the US border, also requires greater scrutiny. In view of Kansas City Southern presence in the North and Central regions of Mexico, Washington must explore security procedures on this and other railroads hauling cargo throughout North America. Corruption so engulfs Mexico that the creation of an honest, professional national police— albeit a sound idea—shimmers like a mirage in the Sonoran desert. In addition, the US intelligence community estimates that some 450,000 people work in one or more facets of Mexico's drug sector. If lady luck smiles on Calderon and he managed to curb drug activities in Mexico, an international cucaracha effect—or displacement—will probably take place with Asian, Middle Eastern, and Russian suppliers replacing Mexican distributors in the American marketplace. It is pharisaic of Washington to assign the burden of blame on Mexico for an influx of drugs that satisfies America's proverbial big nose.
