Yeah, I hate to insult people or come off like an asshole but Colombia was chaos in the 80s, I think I read in kings of cocaine Escobar killed something like a cop every 2 days, or something crazy.
These guys had the parts of the military on their payroll, shit, I think they had a Couple of militaries on the payroll (Nicaragua, Panama)..
And the above post are accurate, don't look at this violence as evidence of an organization working well, the ndrangheta are much more quiet, and it was estimated that they equaled the profits of the biggest cartels combined in 2014? 2013? I forget, but remember, this is a shell game. Like I mentioned the Fast and the Furious thing, the climate of violence was encouraged, and then the carnage generates the backlash and outrage, that creates the political climate for reform, which leads to the crackdowns that weaken the organizations that were built up in the first place.
Look at how Lucky was a top dope man, in league with the CIA, yet pursued by the FBN, because he makes the perfect scapegoat. And as he's being pursued by the FBN, they are continuously disrupted by the CiA, so they get Lucky to run their trade off books, but then at the same time use him as a scapegoat in the press. It's like a way of controlling him by squeezing him in between both sides...
You think Colombia isn't like Mexico? Look at Pablo's jail deal, and tell me something similar wasn't worked out with Chapo.
You gotta be naive to think otherwise...