...Mexican American War 1846-1848 Some wars fall between the cracks. That appears to be what happened with Polk’s War. James K. Polk was our eleventh president. He is often listed as the worst president we’ve ever had. Polk’s War was actually the Mexican War of 1846-48. Before and during that war, most Americans including congress were not in favor of a war with Mexico. The war was launched on questionable pretexts. Why invade a smaller, poorer neighbor just for land? Mexico’s border with the Republic of Texas was the Nueces River near Corpus Christi. New Mexico, Arizona, California along with other territory belonged to Mexico, having won them from Spain some 25 years earlier. There were debates in Congress that the invasion of Mexico was unconstitutional. America had never invaded others (except the American Indians). A young congressman, Abraham Lincoln, began his move into the national limelight as an avowed opponent to the war. Polk saw America as having a manifest destiny to control the entire continent. The great American attitude of “can do” was increasing in strength. Arrogance was never been in short supply in our brief history. President James K. Polk sent troops to Corpus Christi to move the border to the Rio Grande. This was not something the Mexicans wanted. They responded with some strength and were not the push-over Polk and the war hawks thought they would be. For such a...
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...The Mexican War was the first battle of the Civil War. There are varied opinions as to which battle was actually the first battle of the Civil War. The most popular choice is the attack on Fort Sumter; however, this paper will argue that this is not the case. My main argument will be that because of the events leading up to and during the war, the reasons for the war, and the outcome of the war, the Mexican War laid the groundwork for the Civil War and made it inevitable. Although the Mexicans had recognized Texas independence in 1845, they rejected the Lone Star Republic’s claim to the unsettled territory between the Nueces River and the Rio Grande. When the U.S. annexed Texas and assumed its claim to the disputed area, Mexico broke off diplomatic relations and prepared for armed conflict. Just before leaving office in early 1845 President John Tyler, a Virginian seeking to provide a new area into which slavery might expand, secured a joint resolution from Congress annexing Texas to the United States. Upon taking office, President Polk immediately turned to the acquisition of Mexico's northern territories. President Polk sent U.S. troops under the command of General Zachary Taylor to the Rio Grande River in January of 1846. Mexican officials believed that the Texas-Mexico frontier stood one hundred miles to the north, at the Nueces River, and interpreted Polk's move as a deliberate provocation. Mexican troops quickly arrived at the Rio Grande as well, and minor...
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...In this battle analysis, I will analyze the Mexican-American war, discuss when the battle occurred, where it took place, the principle adversaries, review the settings of the battle operationally, and discuss the different areas of operation, such as the weather and terrain. I will also describe and analyze the American and Mexican armies in leadership, size and composition, technology, logistical systems, command, control and communications, intelligence, tactical doctrine and morale, the battle chronologically, followed by the significance of the battle, addressing the effects of the war and how lessons learned from this war affect the way our military operates today. So first, lets start by discussing the Mexican-American war. During April 25, 1846 to February 2, 1848 the Mexican American War occurred. This conflict happened between the Centralist Republic or Mexico and the Unite States. The war consisted of four campaigns as follows, the Texas, California, Pacific Coast and Mexico campaigns. President James K. Polk, who was elected in 1844, believed the United States had a “manifest destiny” to spread across the continent to the Pacific Ocean (Frazier, 1998). At first, the United States declined to incorporate Texas into the union, because northern political interests were against the addition of a new slave state. The Mexican government encouraged border raids and warnings that if any attempt to annex Texas it would lead to a war. As time went by Polk had his eyes on the...
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...The Drug War: Will It Ever Stop? INTRODUCTION The United States and Mexico share a border that stretches 2,000 miles. The border is a product of the clash of the British and Spanish Empires. It is a place of lawlessness and violence. Drug cartels have used the border to smuggle illegal drugs into the United States for years. The United States market for drugs is a multibillion dollar a year industry. 90% of the illegal drugs that are smuggled into America come through our southern borders. As a nation we consume over 50% of the worlds illegal drugs, which exemplify the problem that America has with drug consumption. The demand for illegal drugs in the US allows drug cartels in Mexico to make billions of dollars by smuggling Marijuana, and Methamphetamines through the US/Mexican Border. Efforts to stop the flow of illegal drugs into the US have been unsuccessful. Drug Cartels use various methods in the transportation of their merchandise. Such methods include using underground tunnels, semi trucks, automobiles, and humans to transport these illegal drugs. Only 3 to 8 percent of the drugs that are smuggled from Latin America into the United States is confiscated, which is a very discouraging number. Our border patrol and DEA need to do a better job securing our borders and preventing the flow of such harmful drugs into America. There are a reported 7 cartels that operate in Mexico; the biggest players in the drug trade between Mexico and the US are the Tijuana, Juarez, Sinaloa...
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...Simon Waltzer Intro to Speech Communication 11/28/2010 Mexican Drug Wars In the early part of 2003 I went to the state of Michoacán in Mexico to visit my grandparents, because it had been since 1994 since I was last there. It was an incredible experience for me to once again see my family who many of them I’ve never met before. Never did I know that this might have been the last time that I would go visit them, no not because I didn’t want to but because of the circumstances surrounding the area of where my parents lived in. The reality was that Mexican Drug Cartel who has existed since the 1980s had become stronger and dangerous since newly elected Mexican President Felipe Calderon was in assumed office in December of 2006. Calderon hailing from that very state of Michoacán ordered 6,500 federal troops to the state of Michoacán to end the drug violence there. Ever since then, the drug violence between drug cartels and the Mexican Government has escalated to the highest extent. Although drug violence has existed long before the war with cartels and the government began, it was generally not as bad during the 1990s and early 2000s. This action is regarded as the first major operation against organized crime, and is generally viewed as the starting point of the war between the government and the drug cartels. As time progressed, Calderón continued to escalate his anti-drug campaign, in which there are now about 45,000 troops involved in addition of state and federal police...
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...stroke of a pen, the Mexican-American War officially came to an end. The signing of the treaty ended the territorial disputes that caused the conflict between both countries. In the treaty, the United States government was obligated to pay Mexico fifteen-million dollars. In return for the compensation, The United States expanded its territory. The territory that was obtained via the treaty eventually became New Mexico, Nevada, Colorado, Arizona, and some of Utah.[1] This treaty, especially in the long run, benefited both the United States and Mexico, but there are many arguments about why the war started. Some argue that the United States was power hungry and was continuing its “bulling” of the continent to fulfill their belief that it was God’s will for the United States to control the land from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. This has now become to be known as Manifest Destiny.[2] Then there are the counter arguments that the dictatorship of Mexico sent troops to invade the United States and killed Americans. In a message to congress on May 11, 1846, President James Polk said, “Mexico invaded our territory and shed American blood upon the American soil.”[3] There are many arguments that say the United States is a racist nation and that this war, like many others, was because of white racism. Whether the battles were all racially motivated will never be known. It is impossible to know what was in the hearts of the Americans who fought in the war. What is know is...
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...can be changed by legalizing it and therefore taking away the drug cartels number one source of income. The U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy ... says that more than 60 percent of the profits reaped by Mexican drug lords are derived from the exportation and sale of cannabis to the American market (Armentano2). It is ridiculous to think that the United States can put out a statistic like this and ignore the fact that if they legalized the drug there would be less violence because there would be no point for Mexican drug cartels to try and smuggle the drug into the U.S. In the article “Blame Prohibition, Not Pot Smokers for Violence in Mexico”, published by AlterNet.org, Tony Newman tells us how the people who run the “Just Say No” campaign against drugs have a new scheme in which they plan to blame people who smoke pot for the violence in Mexico. They are hoping to stop younger people from smoking marijuana if they associate it with the murder of people by the drug cartels in Mexico. There are a few problems with these campaigns: They are inaccurate in some cases, and downright dishonest in others.Office of National Drug Control Policy It is disingenuous to connect the average American's marijuana consumption to the horrific violence of Mexico's drug war. The average pot smoker's growing and purchasing of marijuana has no relationship to the violence along the border that is the result of large-scale drug trafficking. It isn’t hard to understand that the legalization...
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...alone (Fitzgerald). This proves that the spreading speed of drug trafficking is increasing fast, and making more people suffer from the effect that is creates. The dealing of illegal drugs has existed for a very long time in Canada. People have been smuggling drugs in many different ways and there have been many popular drug busts that occurred as a result. Some of the most common illegal drugs being dealt are marijuana, cocaine, opium, and etc. Some of these drugs damage your body while others act as medicine and help people to overcome certain types of illnesses and diseases. The big debate these days is whether to legalize some of these illegal drugs, which provide benefits to people. Also, since many people are using them today this causes problems as these people are arrested and thrown in jail causing them to be overcrowded. In addition to that, a drug such as marijuana, which is illegal, is safer than legalized drugs such as tobacco and alcohol. Therefore should marijuana not be made legal also? Issues like this surround the whole drug scene and open up many debates. The purpose of this paper is to examine how easy it is to buy and sell drugs in Canada and also whether it is possible to do it over the Internet. An examination will also be made...
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...Chabat, Jorge. “Mexico's War on Drugs: No Margin for Maneuver.” The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, July 2002. Web. Jorge Chabat’s article may have been written well over 10 years ago and though he could not have predicted the harsh aspects of the Mexican clash regarding the drug business, several issues he indicated are still substantial to this day. Chabat begins his article by giving a brief summary of Mexico’s illegal drug trafficking trade. He points out that even though Mexico is not a large buyer in drugs for recreational purposes, it provided nearly 3/4 of marijuana and trafficked 60% of cocaine to the US by the 1980s. Due to huge success with the American market, the Mexican cartels were able to obtain money and along with violence, fight their way to the top. With the newly obtained supremacy, arose corruption within the government. Towards the end of 1990s, it was stated that numerous Mexican state governors were corrupted with reports of high profile cartel prisoners disappearing. Along with the help and pressure from the US, the Mexican government continued their efforts to diminish the illicit drug trade, resulting in arrests of high profile criminals, military and public officials but such efforts were futile. The President Fox continued the efforts after his appointment in 2000, in which resulted in the arrest of the entire staff of attorney general’s office in Chihuahua. Chabot stated several different alternatives for Mexico...
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...results of the Mexican-American war of 1846, and will remain to be a topic of hostility between Mexican American relations till the end of time. The war is a historical event that has a shadow of suspicion cast over it. It seems to be misunderstood by all sides and it seems like the more that one looks into and researches...
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...The international drug trade from Latin American states is having an impact on a global scale. The trafficking of drugs along with corruptness and murder is an international conflict that is being fought daily. There are many aspects of the drug war from Mexico and other Latin American states which have effects on United States policy as well as policies from other countries that participate in the global suppression of illegal drugs. It can be hard to differentiate between conflict and issue in regards to Latin America’s drug war and International Relations. The Mexican drug war is a global issue because it interferes with the states ability to collaborate and form policy in order to address the issues between international borders. Conflict arises because certain states want to resolve the situation and are willing to do what is necessary to do so. While drug-related violence in Mexico receives considerable attention, the Northern Triangle of Latin America is far worse. Venezuela has emerged as a major departure point for cocaine trafficked to Europe. Between 2006 and 2008 over half of all detected maritime shipments of cocaine to Europe came from Venezuela. (Crime 2010) These ports in Latin America have had an impact on the cities in the Bahamas as well with the drug cartels exporting their drugs quicker to the surrounding countries; they use the ports of the Caribbean to refuel while on the way to America. The waters of the Caribbean islands are patrolled by navies from...
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...Mexican-American War Just or Unjust The territory that started a war. “Two times over the next nine years, Texas applied to the United States Congress for annexation.” Was the United States justified by going to war? Where the Mexican-American War could be viewed as just by some, and unjust by others, the war was ultimately just. The U.S. was just, in going to war with Mexico, because Texas wanted to be in the United States territory and their leader did not care. “The treaty signed between Texas and the United States” (Document C). Which means Texas wanted to be part of the U.S. Also, Manifest Destiny “Polk was a strong supporter of Manifest Destiny. He believed it was God’s plan, that America extent its territory all the way to the pacific...
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...A Flag in Disguise It is estimated that around 60,000 people have deceased in the Mexican drug war since 2006-2012(CNN). This is due largely to the steady flow of illicit narcotics in to the United States, the cache of weapons and ammunition that the United States is supplying Mexico, as well as the corruption on both sides of the border. The Mexican Drug War initially began about 2006 during the Felipe Calderon administration, with a short, but gruesome history to include death, drugs, weapons, trafficking and corruption. Police corruption often categorized as any form of misconduct, inappropriate or illegal action resulting in goods or favors exchanged. The amount of money that is involved in drug trade embellishes the corruption making...
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...DRUGS ACROSS BORDERS 1 Drug Trafficking At The US/Mexican Border Adrian Bryant ENG 122 Terri Hennessey August 29, 2011 DRUGS ACROSS BORDERS 2 Sections along the border between the United States and Mexico have become so dangerous, due to drug trafficking, that both governments appear to be helpless in their cause to defend themselves against the movement of drugs and the violence that this movement has caused. Mexico's President Felipe Calderon's actions are being challenged by its citizens. In May of 2011 the U.S. State Department advised U.S. travelers to steer clear of 10 Mexican states, including most of the border region and popular vacation sites such as Acapulco and Monterrey (Hsu, 2011). It is the opinion of the researcher that drug trafficking has become so intertwined into drug cartel related issues, that the U.S. and the Mexican government have completely loss the ability to control the flow of drugs or contain the violence's associated with drug trafficking. Both governments appear to be helpless in their plight to defeat the drug cartels leaders or their mission to sell and transport drugs into the United States. The security of the people living on both side of the borders is upmost. Businesses, large and small, need to be...
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...Tania Trevino English 1302 Johanna Hunt Nov 1, 2011 Mexican Drug War In 2006 Mexico’s current president Felipe Calderon declared war against drug cartels, since that day Mexico has not been the same. This declaration created a storm of violence throughout the country, and has left Mexican people hopeless and desperate to find a solution to this problem. Mexico has become a vulnerable country that fear drug cartels, and that lives surrounded by violence. It is essential to comprehend how this situation started, what effects it has had on Mexican society and what actions is the Mexican government taking to overcome this problem. It’s no surprise to say that the drug cartels have been around for many years, there has always been a great demand for drugs and Mexico following the Colombian steps has been up to date with selling drugs and transporting them to other countries. Its’ location has been very convenient and has created a connection between the southern countries and the Unites States. Everything started to deteriorate when Mexico’s president decided to declare war against them, the many arrests and deaths of cartel leaders lead to bloody conflicts between the Mexican Federal Police and the drug cartels. There are several main cartels that domain the country these are separated into alliances that are composed of two groups: The first group is formed by Juarez cartel, Tijuana cartel, Beltran-Leyva cartel and the Zetas, the second group is composed by Gulf cartel...
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