The Mythical Shield of Ideological Incompatiblity (UPDATE by See-Dubya)
How many times have we heard those opposed to the Global War on Terror tell us that it was impossible for Saddam and Al Qaeda to work together because of their ideological differences? I'm not claiming here that their working relationship was significant at the time of the invasion, but I doubt that differences in ideology had much to do with it. Imagine the ideological differences between these groups, for example:
Islamic extremists embedded in the United States — posing as Hispanic nationals — are partnering with violent Mexican drug gangs to finance terror networks in the Middle East, according to a Drug Enforcement Administration report.I'm pretty sure that the principles of Islam are opposition to everything the Mexican drug cartels stand for, but that hasn't prevented the establishment of an expedient relationship between the two."Since drug traffickers and terrorists operate in a clandestine environment, both groups utilize similar methodologies to function ... all lend themselves to facilitation and are among the essential elements that may contribute to the successful conclusion of a catastrophic event by terrorists," said the confidential report, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Times.
So I draw little comfort from pundits' assurances that ideological differences will deter Islamic extremists from partnering with anybody. Even Saddam Hussein.
UPDATE by Seedub: Geoff beat me to the punch on this article, which you should really frickin' read because it's got drug dealers and terrorists and WMD's and illegal aliens running who knows what over the Mexican border. Every right wing blogger out there ought to be able to come up with something about this. I also notice it is by Sara A. Carter, understudy/sidekick/colleague of JYB Platonic Reporter-Crush Audrey Hudson.
Now, let me mock Geoff a little for his naivete. Islamist terrorists sell drugs all the time. The Taliban does it now and--although this isn't really part of the conventional wisdom--did it before September 11. Originally they tried to stop the opium harvest but the people threatened a revolt, so instead they justified taxing the trade by requiring that the drugs left the country to go poison the infidels. Allah ought to be fine with that, they thought.
Furthermore the Madrid bombers traded hash to Spanish miners for rent and stolen explosives.
I could list more--e.g. this guy--but the point is the connection between drug traffickers and terrorists isn't just some new iteration of the this-is-your-brain-on-drugs scare campaign. It's well-documented and it's serious, and our borders remain idiotically, inexcusably vulnerable to it.
MORE from See-dub in this post from May.