Is it just me or is anyone else getting tired of the same old liberal cop-out that every crime that involves a firearm becomes the cause célèbre for increased gun control? Never mind the poor guy got shot with a .38 caliber revolver. We’re going after assault weapons this week or high capacity magazines or grenade launchers. I’m not making that one up.  

Earlier this month, Bearing Arms reported that an illegal immigrant from Mexico was charged in Texas with attempting to purchase an M-203 grenade launcher and three AK-47s. Given a grenade launcher – even by the most violent gang standards – is a bit of overkill when you’re sticking up the corner liquor store, it’s probably not a stretch to suggest those weapons were destined for Mexico. To be candid, I have no doubt others make their way across the border, too. Enter Mexico’s President Enrique Pena Nieto.  

Nieto basks in the warmth of blaming the U.S. for his violent crime problem. He loves to wax eloquently on about how violent it is in the U.S., and how we’re exporting our violence into Mexico. I wonder if he’s ever considered putting up a wall to stop the trafficking? Common sense notwithstanding, Nieto admonishes the U.S., saying that we should get our act under control with, of course, stricter gun control.  

At the risk of being pedantic, I’ll point out a few facts. The Mexican Army reports there are 15 firearms for every 100 citizens as compared to the U.S. where the best estimate indicates there are 112.6 per 100. A study conducted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime concluded there are 3.2 firearm-related homicides per 100,000 people in the U.S., while Mexico has three times that at 9.97 per 100,000. But there’s a bit of a hitch in the statistics.

Mexico ain’t no gun virgin country. Believe it or not, Mexico’s constitution also includes the right to bear arms; however, their army oversees the sale of all firearms, ammunition and explosives. The army so tightly controls sales to the point that they’re not even allowed to advertise their existence and all firearms must be registered. So Draconian is the control that, in 2015, only 10,115 firearms were sold in a country of over 122 million people. Compare that to an estimated 15.2 million sold to the 319 million U.S. citizens.  

You’ll be shocked to learn that the Mexican Army estimates less than one percent of the firearms in Mexico are legally registered, and 90 percent of all firearms are used for criminal purposes. No, really? In Mexico?

ATF estimates that from 2009 to 2014, more than 73,000 guns that were seized in Mexico were traced to the U.S. ATF further states that number represents about 70 percent of the almost 105,000 firearms seized by Mexican authorities that were also submitted to the U.S. for tracing. You know, that same ATF that the Obama Administration used for their little pet Fast and Furious experiment? What could possibly be wrong with those numbers? But let’s assume that the most transparent administration in history – a fact I would point out that is dripping with irony – is correct on those numbers.  

The concern of how many guns are illegally crossing the border into Mexico is a canard. To the extent that it actually happens is an undesirable situation, but that’s not the point. The U.S. Department of State gets the point and warns U.S. citizens about the risk of traveling to certain parts of Mexico, due to the activities of criminal organizations in those areas. U.S. citizens have been the victims of violent crimes, including homicide, kidnapping, carjacking, and robbery in various Mexican states.

The point is the unbridled drug industry is stuffing the pockets of the very people that are supposed to be stopping the illegal drug industry. The astounding power of the drug cartels over virtually every facet of life in Mexico exists, because there is little motivation to actually shut down the cartels. And what would be in the best interest of the drug lords?

That’s simple – a total lack of firearms available to Juan Q. Publico, because at some point the good citizens of Mexico are going to have their fill of being slaughtered in their own streets. At some point they’re going to want to take matters into their own hands to do what the government can’t or won’t do – and that’s not good for business. So Mexico has become the self-appointed moral arbiter of U.S. gun laws not because stopping gun trafficking is good for Juan Q. No, he wants nothing more than to be able to own a firearm to protect his family. Stopping gun trafficking is good for the cartels who want absolute control of the country, because that’s just good for business.

You can listen to this and David’s future “Rant of the Week” every Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. CT on YouTube – On Target Radio.