Mexican cartels target bloggers

Mexican drug cartels have a new target: Bloggers. Two people, a man and a woman, both believed to be in their early 20's, were murdered and hung from a bridge as a warning to social media users who denounce the cartels. 

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO (Catholic Online) - The grisly scene was intended as a warning and accompanied by a note. The note said, "This is going to happen to everyone posting funny things on the internet. You'd better (expletive) pay attention, I'm going to get you."

The two victims were horribly abused and murdered. Their bodies were mangled and hung from their feet. The woman was hung topless and partially disemboweled.

The Mexican drug cartels, long infamous for their violence, have managed to intimidate police, the news media, and even teachers into paralysis about their activities. The population of Mexico lives in terror. However, bloggers and the users of social media have tried to make up the difference by being as vocal as possible about cartel violence.

While social media users have been threatened previously, Mexican authorities say this is the first time they know such people have been targeted. 

Fortunately, social media users have been defiant in their response. Various social media sites such as Twitter boomed with the news and many posted defiant tweets. Many social media users emphasized that their online identities were anonymous and that the cartels could not identify users personally. 

Several anonymous bloggers who routinely report on the rampant drug violence encouraged others to continue speaking out and vowed they would not be intimidated. 

The drug violence has accelerated since 2006 when President Filipe Calderon initiated a crackdown against them. Since that time, approximately 35,000 people have been killed in the violence. Countless more have been abducted or injured in some way. The entire population is terrorized. 

With such acts occurring almost daily, there can be little doubt left that Mexico is in a state of civil war and there appears to be little the authorities can do.  

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