THE BORDER REPORT

You know, it's been about a dozen years since someone publicly tried to form a pact with the Mexican government; the question is did it work then and will it work now?

The leader of La Familia, Servano Goméz La Tuta, supposedly made the call yesterday, in to a Mexican show, Voz y Solucíon de Michoacán to ask for a peace-out with the Mexicans.

It's a little astonishing, whoever made the call; and myself, I doubt it was La Tuta. The caller said his problem isn't with Mexican Pres. Felipe Calderón but with the federal police who keep harassing the families of the cartel members. "Tell them to come for me," instead, the caller said.

The Mexican government officially dismissed the caller, saying this morning that it would have been stupid. Fair enough, except the reasons given for why it would be stupid are themselves suspect.

Felipe Gonzalez, president of the Senate's Public Security Committee, says he dismisses the legitimacy of the call because"it'd be impossible, it's like saying that there's going to be a state in which there is going to be relief for the trangressors of the law dedicated to narco-trafficking; that's why I don't believe the call was real."

A nice thought, except that such pacts are common throughout every level of the Mexican government.

The question is do these calls for cooperation work?

In January 1997, Amado Carrillo Fuentes went on the air, asking for peace with the Mexican government. He wanted help in dismantling the Arellano Felix brothers in Tijuana, half his seized cash back and in return he'd bring peace to the country and only sell his product to the gringos.

Seven months later, he umm ... died.

Now, a separate question.

As little as two years ago, Michoacán was abuzz with the Valencia brothers who were the latest up and comers. I haven't paid much attention to Michoacán but whatever happened to the brothers? I keep hearing that La Familia is mysterious, that nobody knows who the players are; did they drive out the Valencias?