Since the 1960’s Colombia, our closest alley in South America, has had its national security threatened by the FARC. And to this day the group still partakes in the same evil activities that have made them who they are for the past 40 years. The rebel group is about half the size as it once was, due to the efforts of the Colombian military, which has experienced no relief from the United States.
Our politicians have not spent adequate time developing a strategy to help the Colombians defeat these guerrillas. Instead their solution, which is often the solution of our lawmakers, has been to throw money at it. The United States has invested money in Plan Colombia, which is supposed to help the Colombians in areas that will improve their national security, including countering FARC drug trade. This plan has done virtually nothing. The FARC still controls over half of the world’s cocaine, holds over 700 hostages, and threatens the stability in the Colombian government. So when are our politicians going to get serious about this matter? It seems to me all that’s been on their agenda lately is whether or not they should ruin our system of Laizze Faire capitalism, by bailing out corporations that have made irresponsible decisions. But that’s another topic. As Americans we need to understand how FARC activities affect us as well as our relationship with Colombia, and why it is important for our leaders to find solutions to this issue.
Much of the cocaine supplied by the FARC makes its way into the United States through Mexican cartels who buy from the rebels. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that the Mexican cartels have to cross the border to supply these drugs to American cities. So is border security, an issue that pertains to this subject? Absolutely, controlling our border can have a substantial effect on the power of FARC. Almost all of FARC financing comes from their drug trade. Securing the border and policing drug trade in our own cities can stop the Mexican cartels and cut off FARC financing. These two things can also promote the safety of our own citizens. But it may be hard to focus on these tasks when our leaders have decided to occupy our military and dwindle away billions of dollars against a group that was not connected with the attacks on 9/11, does not posses WMDs, and does not supply drugs to those who smuggle them into America. We cannot continue to throw this kind of money away, attempting to create peace in a place where peace has never existed. As I said previously, I don’t believe that throwing money at a problem is always the best solution, however there is no doubt that securing the border and securing our cities will take some financing. And we can finance this, along with various other things when we end the war in Iraq.
We do not have control over the money we give away to Plan Colombia, and we cannot force the Colombians to use the money we give them in exactly the way we want them to. This is why I believe that developing a plan that we can take care of at home is a much better solution than Plan Colombia. And I believe that if we had used the money we gave away to Plan Colombia, on the things I just mentioned, border security and policing drugs, we would be in much better shape in terms of helping the Colombians defeat the FARC, and protecting our own citizens.
