I’m sure that many of us here in the United States hears what the major news media wishes to report about Mexico. The war between the drug cartels has escalated into insanity, and hundreds of innocent bystanders are murdered each month.
The graphic photos opportunities are enough to chill one to the bone, and make your heart ache that people must live in such a scary place.
What the news media fails to report is that these acts of violence take place in a very restricted area of the country. That Mexico is the 15th largest country in the world, three times the size of Texas, roughly the size of Alaska and about the size of Spain, the UK, France, Italy and Germany put together.
What the media fails to tell you is that the crime rate in most Mexican tourist cities such as Cabo or Puerto Vallarta, or even Mexico City is lower than in Tuscon, lower than Memphis, lower than Miami, lower than Little Rock.
I vacation frequently in Puerto Vallarta, and have no problems walking the streets of the old city after dark, alone. I would not do this in Denver, and certainly not in Miami or Detroit or Chicago.
The Mexican people I have met are hard-working, friendly and cheerful people who have a rich heritage and culture that is far older than ours, who want nothing for their families that we don’t want for ours, and it is simply unfair for the news media to focus on only the bad news.
But, as we have heard a thousand times before, good news doesn’t sell, and with the advent of all these 24-hour news channels, they must have something to fill the time, and gory pictures will certainly attract some people who would otherwise not tune in.