Cartel: The Coming Invasion of Mexico's Drug Wars [Hardcover]

Sylvia Longmire (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 27, 2011

Having followed Mexico's cartels for years, border security expert Sylvia Longmire takes us deep into the heart of their world to witness a dangerous underground that will do whatever it takes to deliver drugs to a willing audience of American consumers. The cartels have grown increasingly bold in recent years, building submarines to move up the coast of Central America and digging elaborate tunnels that both move drugs north and carry cash and U.S. high-powered assault weapons back to fuel the drug war. Channeling her long experience working on border issues, Longmire brings to life the very real threat of Mexican cartels operating not just along the southwest border, but deep inside every corner of the United States. She also offers real solutions to the critical problems facing Mexico and the United States, including programs to deter youth in Mexico from joining the cartels and changing drug laws on both sides of the border.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Longmire offers fresh insights into almost every facet of the war on drugs . . . One-stop shopping for basic knowledge about U.S.-Mexican narcotics diplomacy." -- Kirkus Reviews

"In Cartel  Sylvia Longmire furthers our understanding of a very complex health and national security issue south of the border and within the United States itself."--Malcolm Beith, author of The Last Narco

“Cartel is a well-balanced blend of organized crime 101 and thought-provoking analysis of the current violence in Mexico. It’s an important addition to the current body of work on the criminal underworld that continues to spread its presence and influence north of the border into the United States. Readers will find themselves on the front line of this decades-old drug war that has finally crossed our border--Samuel Logan, author of This is for Mara Salvatrucha

"There's a real need for an easy-to-read, one-stop-shopping overview of the myriad issues facing us from Mexico's cartels. Longmire allows people to finally have the context to make sense of the drug war."--Nicholas Stein, Series Producer, National Geographic’s Border Wars

"Longmire's hard hitting, law enforcement-centered view of the situation on our border with Mexico is valuable and timely. Her up-to-the-minute, fact based account provides a much needed perspective on a problem that has been hijacked by exaggeration, and hyperbole and outright misinformation. It should be required reading for all who care about making our borders more secure."--Terry Goddard, former Arizona Attorney General 2003-2011

“From an experienced cartel analyst and special agent, this is a powerful and very comprehensive look into the broad scope of Mexican drug violence and its impact on the security of our nation.  One of the best books I've seen to understand Mexican cartels, border violence, drug trafficking and the ramifications of spill-over crime into America.  I encourage you to read this book.”--Fred Burton, VP Intelligence, Stratfor, and author of Chasing Shadows

“The insights here are invaluable—and essential. Longmire's depth of knowledge and analysis come in well-crafted prose that’s as thrilling to read as any novel and compelling for even the most casual reader.”--David Silverberg, Editor, Homeland Security Today

About the Author

Sylvia Longmire was a Special Agent in the Air Force and a senior intelligence analyst for the state of California. She has been interviewed on Geraldo at Large, CNN and CNN International, BBC World Radio, and her writing is regularly featured in Homeland Security Today magazine. Currently, Longmire is an independent consultant, and testifies as an expert witness on U.S. asylum cases.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (September 27, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0230111378
• ISBN-13: 978-0230111370
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 0.9 x 9.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #67,496 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #6 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > Arms Control
  • #24 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > Caribbean & Latin American
  • #84 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > Security

More About the Author

Ms. Longmire is a [medically] retired Air Force captain and former Special Agent with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. During her eight years with AFOSI, she conducted numerous criminal investigations and worked extensively in the fields of counterintelligence, counterespionage, and force protection. During her last assignment, Ms. Longmire worked at HQ AFOSI as the Latin America desk officer, analyzing issues in the US Southern Command area of responsibility that might affect the security of deployed Air Force personnel. From Dec 2005-Jul 2009, Sylvia worked as a senior intelligence analyst for the California state fusion center and the California Emergency Management Agency's Situational Awareness Unit, focusing almost exclusively on Mexican drug trafficking organizations and southwest border violence issues. For the last six years, she has regularly lectured on terrorism in Latin America at the Air Force Special Operations School's Dynamics of International Terrorism course. She holds a Master of Arts degree from the University of South Florida in Latin American and Caribbean Studies, with a focus on the Cuban and Guatemalan revolutions.

Ms. Longmire has been published in Henley-Putnam University's Journal of Strategic Security, as well as in the Journal of Energy Security. Her writing has also been featured in Homeland Security Today magazine, which includes "Creativity in a Bad Cause" (March 2011), "Hitting the Narcos at Home" (October 2010) and "Al Capone's Lessons for Today's Cartels" (December 2009). Ms. Longmire has been interviewed extensively by national, international, local, and Internet news outlets, including "Geraldo at Large" on Fox News Channel, CNN International, CNN México, AOL News, BBC Radio, the Miami Herald, and the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Ms. Longmire is currently an independent consultant and freelance writer, and is a correspondent for Homeland Security Today magazine and website. Her first book, Cartel: The Coming Invasion of Mexico's Drug Wars(Palgrave Macmillan), is hitting the shelves in September 2011. She also provides services as an expert witness for Mexican immigration and asylum request cases. Ms. Longmire is available for public speaking engagements and interviews.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars There are much better books on the Mexico drug war than this. December 10, 2011

By C. Yang

Format:Hardcover

Although the book does provide some information, it comes off more as an Wikipedia entry than a thoughtful analysis. As other reviews have pointed out, it lacks the on-the-ground perspective that other better books such as "El Narco" by Ioun Grillo have. The author herself states that her view of the Mexican drug war was largely shaped through working as an analyst pouring over government reports, satellite imagery, etc. While all of this info is valid, there is a limit to what one can see without actually being there, and this flawed book is evidence of that.

46 of 58 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars One-sided public relations October 29, 2011

By Michael J. Snyder

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

After all the hype this book received it turned out to be a major disappointment, an insult to anyone at all familiar with Mexican politics. As I read I scribbled notes and scratched my head in disbelief. Longmire makes statements that are more than debatable, they are dead wrong ("Mexico has been a democracy with relatively transparent elections for quite some time.") and absolute nonsense like "Tourism is rebounding..." despite cruise ships refusing to make vacant Acapulco a port of call, and the border towns all but closed down and borded up.
It's almost hilarious, but when she writes with admiration about the Mexican government it seems the only adjective she uses is "bold." She never questions the nation's leaders when it comes to honesty, making the president appear to be a mixture of Lincoln, Juarez, and Gandhi. But when it comes to the biggest cause of the violent warfare (supply and demand fueled by the U.S. prohibition of marijuana) she blithely dismisses it as the United States "greedy love of drugs." One can't help but wonder if she is aware that alcohol is a drug, and that Mexico was a source of the banned substance during the bloody turf wars caused by the Volstead Act. Wasn't Capone the head of a nasty cartel?

Yes, Longmire got to interview President Calderon and she was apparently overwhelmed (whereas more intelligent people such as Javier Sicilia are underwhelmed) because she gushes ".. he gets a steely look in his eyes and speaks with quiet fire. It quickly becomes obvious that this is a man who is committed...")

Her knowledge of Mexican history is a bit lacking, or her interpretations of events strangely warped because she writes off a few "isolated incidents" of human rights abused by the Mexican Army, and the allegations are being "appropriately investigated." Sure, Sylvia they might be quickly "investigated", but only by the accused perpetrators - the Mexican Army! I think groups such as Amnesty International would forcefully disagree with Longmire's public relations project. She goes on to claim that the purpose of the Mexican Army is "...not to be a fighting army but to participate in rescue efforts when a natural disaster strikes the country." Apparently she hasn't spent much time in Mexico or else she would have seen caravans of well-armed, masked soldiers cruising city streets with high-caliber automatic weapons mounted on the back of pickup trucks. They scare the hell out of everyone because they will engage in a firefight regardless where - in school zones, in traffic, neighborhoods - anywhere there appears to be some bad guys.

I could go on and on, but one final point about the army: they were the cold-blooded murderers that mowed down hundreds of unarmed college students in the Tlatelolco Massacre of 1968. She must have forgotten about that...

This just scratches the surface of a really bad pro drug war book written by what appears to be a narrow-minded, gullible Tea Party admirer, and it has absolutely nothing to offer anyone seriously interested in a balanced, insightful, accurate and unbiased appraisal of an enormously important situation. We have supported our own drug war, a 40-year-old failure that cost hundreds of billions of dollars and
continues unabated. Our anti-marijuana laws go back to Harry Anslinger, who had even less credibility than Sylvia Longmire.

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A well-written & seriously needed wake-up call to a real threat! October 2, 2011

By Alana Casanova

Format:Hardcover

CARTEL certainly opened my eyes to the pervasive and dangerous drug threat facing all U.S. residents, not just those near our national borders, large cities and major urban areas. This book was a seriously needed wake-up call for a small-town girl from the Midwest. These threats have managed to creep into America's "heartland" -- areas I previously thought were "safe" from, or even immune to, powerful, manipulative and bloody Mexican cartels. The things depicted in movies like "BLOW" and "Traffic" are actually happening in every stitch of America's fabric. While I am glad to be enlightened, I pray for all those who fight every day to keep that fabric from unraveling. An excellent, must-read!