1. Mexico Señor Schuett Y Señor Small

2. American Officials to Visit Mexico The U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Mexico on Wednesday to ease the straining tensions between the U.S. and Mexico. The main issue between the two countries is the drug trade. American drug addicts are turning the country into a “drug superhighway”. Clinton kicks off the arrival of a series of major American political officials in Mexico, including President Obama later this month. President Obama, like Bush, is finding the issues of drug trade, illegal immigration, and gun control as some of the toughest domestic policy issues to address in his country. The Obama Administration sent a series of conflicting and confusing signals to the Mexican government during his first few weeks in office, and are trying to right the ship in terms of foreign relations towards Mexico.

3. Mexico & US Foreign Relations (Continued) The Mexican and North Carolina Police formulated a plan to capture the shooter of Officer Brett Brown, shot while policing a traffic stop by a Mexican immigrant. http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo. com/up/player/popup/?rn =4226712&cl=16493541&s rc=news http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo. com/up/player/popup/?rn =4226712&cl=16493541&s rc=news This speaks to Mexico and US foreign relations, and their commitment to cooperating and capturing those who violate the law. US Navy SEALS on a mission in an unknown location. The Special Forces of both countries played a crucial role in finding and capturing Officer Brown’s shooter.

4. Gunmen Ambush and Kill Union Leader Gunmen ambushed and killed Peasant Union Leader Margarito Montes Parra, 56 years old, as he left his ranch in the state of Sonora in the north. He and 14 of his associates were gunned down in an ambush that was trademark of a drug cartel “hit”. One of the three survivors said that the gunmen opened fire with AK-47s as the convoy of three trucks left the ranch. Parra had built up a strong organization to demand land rights and also press the government for support of the peasants. His group, the Worker, Peasant and Popular General Union, is located in the southern state of Oaxaca. Though the hit was trademark of a drug cartel hit, one official inside Parra’s organization said that his murder might have been related to his work.

5. Calderon Calls for the Eradication of Poverty President Felipe Calderon called for Mexican Legislators to stop the expansion of poverty. Although there are insufficient resources at this time (with the economic downturn), Calderon says “We have to halt extreme poverty from expanding and accelerate the steps to revert it.“ He wants all legislators to combine, regardless of party, and allocate the necessary funds. If funds are too scarce, then what money is given to the project will be given to companies who have proven to work in the past, such as Oportunidades, a program built to stave off extreme poverty. Felipe Calderon (left) walking with Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the President of Brazil. He is flanked by soldiers of the Mexican Army.

6. Presidential Candidate Re-Emerges Andrés Manuel López Obrador has re-emerged as a potential front-runner for the Presidential Election in 2012, after narrowly losing the 2006 Election to current President Felipe Calderon. He had disappeared from the political scene since his loss to Calderon 3 years ago. A crowd of tens of thousands of supporters gathered in Mexico City’s town square to hear Obrador speak. His platform is centered upon lower consumer prices and taxes, cutting wasteful spending, and doing more for Mexico’s poor. Obrador was the former President of the Party of the Democratic Revolution (DRP) from 1996-1999, and narrowly lost the 2006 Presidential Election.

7. Mexico’s Declining Oil Reserves Mexico’s main industry, the oil industry, is in serious recession. 23 of their 32 biggest oil fields are in a decline. If this trend continues, then the country will be forced to start importing oil as soon as 2017. Though Mexico’s oil industry is the 7 th largest in the world, they have one of the weakest tax regimes in Latin America. Permex, one of Mexico’s largest oil companies, has recently been dominated by the trade unions and the worker’s unions, as opposed to working for the good of the people. The chart shows that Mexico’s crude oil production (blue bars) and proven oil reserves (red line) have declined in recently.

8. FIESTA!!! Mexican citizen in a celebratory sombrero.

9. Termino Gracias Amigos!