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INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH PROMOTION RESEARCH
DRUG-CARTEL VIOLENCE
Suicide rates
Dramatic cut in US aid to Mexico
Study: South Texas has low suicide rate By YASMIN SHARIFF THE ZAPATA TIMES
Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the U.S., according to the Institute for Health Promotion Research. In Webb and surrounding counties, about 3 percent of the 250 deaths in 2012 were suicides, according to Webb County Medical Examiner Dr. Corinne Stern. “(The suicide rate) pretty consistently stays there year after year,” she said. Stern covers eight other counties, including Dimmit, Jim Hogg, La Salle, Zapata, Zavala and Brooks. She said one caveat is that counties may not perform an autopsy on every deceased body. Stern added that “suicide rates in Texas are lower than the average across the states.” According to The Institute for Health Promotion Research, South Texas has a lower suicide rate than the rest of Texas. This may
be due to the fact that suicide rates among Hispanics are lower than other groups. If someone has a loved one or family member
for those who have lost someone to a suicide are suggested ways to possibly lower national suicide rates. According to the Cen-
In Webb and surrounding counties, about 3 percent of the 250 deaths in 2012 were suicides, according to Webb County Medical Examiner Dr. Corinne Stern. commit suicide, they are more likely to do so themselves. Other risk factors for suicide include previous suicide attempts, a history of depression, having easy access to lethal methods, alcohol or drug abuse, physical illness and feelings of isolation. Prevention and support
ters for x Disease Control and Prevention, suicide rates among middle-aged Americans across the country have risen sharply in the past decade. A New York Times article by Tara Parker-Pope said this is surprising because statistically it has been teenagers and the el-
derly who are traditionally viewed as the individuals in the most danger of dying by suicide. “Suicide rates can be difficult to interpret because of the variations in the way local officials report causes of death,” the article states. The article further states that the number of suicides across the country is underreported and that CDC researchers are confident they have the data to document an actual increase in deaths by suicide. According to Julie Philips, an associate professor at Rutgers University who was quoted in the New York Times article, “(Suicide is) vastly underreported. We know that we’re not counting all the suicides.” Research from Rutgers University states that the risk for suicide is unlikely to decline for future generations as changes in marriage, increased social isolation and disintegrating family roles will continue.
Proposal: Less monetary help in narcotics control, law enforcement By DAVID MCCUMBER HEARST NEWSPAPERS
Even as Mexico’s federal government launches a campaign to reduce drugcartel violence in the border state of Tamaulipas, the State Department is proposing a dramatic cut in U.S. aid to Mexico — particularly for programs that fight the international narcotics trade. Last week, Mexico’s President Enrique Peña Nieto and Interior Minister Miguel Osorio Chong announced a federal initiative to fight drug violence, kidnappings, robberies and shootouts on the state’s highways. Within the past month, the war between the Zetas cartel, which originated in Tamaulipas, and the Gulf cartel is thought to be to blame for more than 70 murders in the state.
2014 SCRIPPS NATIONAL SPELLING BEE
Cutting back
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But the State Department’s 2015 budget calls for aid to Mexico for international narcotics control and law enforcement to be cut nearly in half — from 2014’s $148.1 million to $80 million. Rep. Henry Cuellar, DLaredo, believes Mexico is on the right track in fighting cartel violence, and he questions the wisdom of cutting back on a program he believes is just beginning to bear fruit. “A strong, prosperous Mexico is better for us.’’ Cuellar said. “What’s good for them is good for us.” Cuellar is vowing to fight the Obama administration’s proposed cuts, with the help of Rep. Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth. Granger chairs House Appropriations’ State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee, of which Cuellar is also a member.
Plan Merida
Photos by Victor Strife | Laredo Morning Times
From left, Orlando Patricio, Rolan Jay Patricio, Mary Joy Patricio, and Juliana Patrico pose for a photograph March 29 after Mary Joy Patricio’s victory in the 2014 Scripps Regional Final Spelling Bee, at the Laredo Community College De La Garza building.
Laredoan in DC to compete for top honor By JUDITH RAYO LAREDO MORNING TIMES
In March, United Middle School student Mary Joy Patricio, 13, won the Scripps Regional Spelling Bee. The grand prize was an all-expense paid trip to compete in the National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. In a phone interview with Laredo Morning Times, Patricio spoke about what she has been doing since winning the regional competition. “I have been studying and preparing for the National Spelling Bee,” Patricio said.
Patricio and her family are in Washington, D.C., for the national competition. She will be competing against 281 spellers for the grand prize of a $30,000 cash prize and an engraved trophy. “We are so excited for her success,” said Patricio’s father, Orlando Patricio. Mary Joy Patricio competed Tuesday morning in the preliminaries. The preliminaries, which comprised of a computer-based test, included a combination of 50 spelling words and vo-
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A State Department spokesman, speaking on background, said the cuts do not represent any diminishment of the United States’ commitment to Mexico, but rather reflect the reality that there is sufficient aid money in the pipeline from previous authorizations to continue the anti-cartel cooperation between the two countries that began back in 2008, with an agreement known as Plan Merida. “We maintain the level of funding needed to address U.S. objectives,” the spokesman said. Mexico has seen significantly more success in the war against the cartels since Peña Nieto took over the presidency from Felipe Calderón in late 2012.
Fighting back Sabastian Luna, right, listens as Mary Joy Patricio, left, spells the winning word March 29 during the 2014 Scripps Regional Final Spelling Bee, at the Laredo Comunity College De La Garza building.
In January of this year, federal troops rolled into the state of Michoacán, which had been racked by
drug violence, brazen kidnappings and widespread extortion. The government stepped in after local vigilantes had begun to fight back against the drug gangs. Then, in February, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera, kingpin of the Sinaloa Cartel, was arrested by Mexican Marines — with U.S. help — in Mazatlan. Within the past week, the announcement of the federal move into Tamaulipas was quickly punctuated by federal authorities killing a founding member of the Zetas in Reynosa and arresting two other key members of the gang — including Juan Fernando Alvarez Cortez, known as “El Ferrari,” the highest-ranking Zeta in the state’s capital, Ciudad Victoria. Mexico’s National Security Commissioner, Monte Alejandro Rubido García, announced on May 20 that “El Ferrari” had been captured in a much more prosaic vehicle, a public bus en route to Nuevo Laredo — apparently fleeing Ciudad Victoria after an assassination attempt by the Gulf cartel.
Call for help In recent years, Cuellar has leveraged his personal relationships with highranking officials in Mexico — including Peña Nieto, Osorio Chong and Mexico’s Customs Director, Alejandro Chacon — in longrunning shuttle diplomacy to discuss common interests between the countries. At the same time, he has campaigned consistently in Washington for more help for Mexico. “Mexico needs a friend here in the Congress, and I certainly want to play that role,” Cuellar said. Cuellar said that he spoke with Osorio Chong about lawlessness in Tamaulipas in a face-to-face meeting last year. He said the minister’s initial reaction was that the situation was a state responsibility. Cuellar said he pushed further, saying “I understand, Mr. Secretary, but the reason I’m here is there is no movement by the state.” He said that Osorio Chong responded that if Tamaulipas did not act, the federal government would reassess the situation. Cuellar sees the crackdown announced last week as the result of that reassessment. Osorio Chong said the federal government’s initiative in the sprawling state, which shares a border of almost 150 miles with Texas, would be divided into four zones — the border, which includes the cities of Reynosa and Matamoros, as well as Rio Bravo and Valle Hermoso; the coast, including Tampico; the center, including Ciudad Victoria; and the south, including Antiguo
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