Guillermo Paxton's Blog

How To Be Happy

Wow, it has been a long time since I've posted. I've been on a journey for the last several years and would love to share all of the amazing secrets to success and happiness that I have come across.

I wrote "How To Be Happy" to share with others some of the knowledge that I have accumulated and give back.

https://www.amazon.com/How-Be-Happy-B...

Disorder at the border

The constant influx of people illegally migrating to the US must be stopped. The cartels are gaining wealth and power like never before. No matter what your personal beliefs about immigration are, surely you must see the need for control of any countries border. Drugs and terrorists are easily sneaking through our porous and fragile border, Immigrants are being extorted and abused. The issue isn't racism or xenophobia; the issues are the security and sovereignism of the United States and the countries that surround us.

Good All Over and The Light of the Village

This story is too amazing for even a fiction writer to have made up. Four years ago, through our alumni connection in Facebook, John Eads, founder of the Light of the Village mission in Prichard, Alabama, read my book, The Plaza (about the drug war in Mexico, particularly in Juarez). He was inspired through the kids at the church to begin a mission in Juarez. Since then, every year they have gone to Juarez to build houses and do other missionary work. These kids are from an extremely violent and impoverished neighborhood where John and his wife, Dolores, have spent the last fifteen years working. Kids in these types of neighborhoods are taught to survive, not to be selfless. But the influence of good people doing selfless things for them has taught them to want to do that for others.
Several weeks ago I contacted John and Dolores because I was inspired (once again through our connection with Facebook) to write about the Light of the Village, and I made plans to travel to Alabama to begin interviewing the residents. A client of mine, Jeff Parkerson, (from my 9-5 job) invited me to a veteran's business networking meeting, which just happened to be a few days before my Alabama trip. It was there that I met with Daren Martin, a best-selling author as well, and we briefly discussed our prospective projects. He then connected me with his brother, Craig Martin, who just happened to be producing a pilot TV show called Good All Over. The show is about people who make significant sacrifices to do missionary work in remote and dangerous locations. John and I spoke with Craig Martin and Earl Bridges and the wheels began to turn. The following day, while interviewing a few of the kids from the church, a young man that had also been a part of the church off and on over the years was shot, and it was all recorded in my interview. Craig and Earl headed down to Alabama a few days later and have now made a video for their pilot program.
https://youtu.be/Js0RrapM25o

The Amazing Power of the Written Word

I could not ask for anything better to come out of my writing than this- John Eads of Light of the Village mission, was inspired to do take his missionary work to Juarez and build homes for the impoverished there. He told me that THE PLAZA inspired him to do this. What an honor it is to know that something so positive and good came out of my writing. I originally wrote The Plaza to help people to understand the horrors of living in the war zone that became Juarez during President Calderon's drug war. John and Dolores Eads took it to heart (huge hearts at that) and began taking his wonderful team of young people from his mission in Alabama all the way to the war-torn streets of Juarez to provide homes to people who otherwise would probably never be able to have one. Thank you, Light of the Village!Guillermo Paxton
The Plaza

The Death of a Mexican Twitter Activist for Her Posts

It seems unbelievable, but it happened. Her name was Doctor María del Rosario Fuentes Rubio. She reported, through Twitter, dangerous situations and violent events that were occurring in Tamaulipas. She was linked with Valor Por Tamaulipas as well, another Twitter account that reports disappearances, violence and dangerous occurrences there as well.

She recently received threats from the Golf Cartel, Cartel Del Golfo (CDG). A week later, on the 15th, her Twitter posted a message to her followers to not get involved and put themselves at risk, and their families, like she did, that her useless posts to Twitter ended up leading to her death. Pictures of her, before and after her presumed death, were posted. Her body has yet to be found. How cowardly they are, to kill a person for tweeting.

This is not a reason for anyone to stop posting in the social medias ideas, thoughts, and words that are against any of the drug cartels. Just the contrary, it is all the more reason we as the public should decry what we know to be the injustices of both the cartels and the governments. The drug war has caused more death and social upheaval than the drugs themselves ever have.

How much more power do we as a society and global economy have to give to the cartels before significant changes to drug policies are made? How many more good people, like María del Rosario Fuentes Rubio have to die? Money and weapons have not stopped the cartels yet. What makes anyone think that more money and weapons will stop them ever? But if we stop their flow of money, their power will fade.

Gulf Cartel provides relief for hurricane Ingrid victims as Mexican government fails miserably

In an attempt to gain popularity with the public, the Gulf Cartel took advantage of the lack of action by the Mexican government and provided tons of food and water to victims of hurricane Ingrid.
Their video on youtube boasts that the politicians and the government have no interest in helping but that the Cartel does, that they are regular people just like "you and me".
While the action itself did help Aldama and several municipalities in the southern state of Tamaulipas, it most certainly was propaganda.
The Cartel members, "regular people" drove to the affected areas in their new pickups, each worth more than what most of the regular people make in a decade in Tampico.
They probably wouldn't care for another of their videos, like the ones where they behead their enemies, to show up boasting also how great of people they are, just like you and me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaFqh2...

Two years after the exodus…

We are coming upon the second year anniversary since we left Juarez, Mexico. The situation has changed a lot since then; murders are down about eighty percent. I look at the news everyday and wonder about my old neighborhood and the wonderful people that lived close to me.
We now live in a small town just west of Fort Worth. We can leave things on the porch all night and they are still there in the morning. Our house doesn’t have bars on the windows. Haven’t heard about or seen any carjackings (in Juarez, three of my neighbors had been carjacked). No explosions, no executions, and my wife and I have been able to go dancing more than we had in ages.
Still, I miss Juarez. I miss my neighbors, even the guy that would always show up when I was making carne asada in the grill on the porch. My thoughts and prayers go out to Juarez, Mexico, where a piece of my soul still resides.

Kidnapping? Or did they want this author dead?

I received an email from an editor at Televisa, a major media company and television station in Mexico, regarding a possible contract for rights for THE PLAZA. I was skeptical, but like any author, elated at the idea that my break may had come, finally.
I called the office number in the email and after a lengthy discussion with the editor, Angel Villascar, I was convinced that this was the real deal. We had even set a date for me to fly to Mexico City at their expense to meet and discuss the details of the possible acquisition. A ticket to fly to Mexico City appeared in my inbox.
A few days passed and I still had not received a return ticket. I emailed the editor and several hours later another ticket appeared in my inbox. I was now suspicious because the email was not the same, so I called the airline.
Apparently the ticket to Mexico City had been purchased at a convenience store in Mexico City (something people can do when they do not have credit cards) and there was no actual return ticket.
I called and questioned the man who called himself Villascar and the phone call became choppy. I emailed him and the email bounced back. I called again and the number was no longer good. I contacted Televisa, just to be sure, and of course, they did not know of such a person. The original email sent to me also- disappeared.
What was the purpose of this man? Their rather elaborate scheme to get me to Mexico City was well thought and obviously he had invested into this. I think it is easy to determine that I am by no means a rich man, so I have to believe that perhaps the purpose was far more sinister. The Plaza, while fictional, is based on true events, and is by far more truth than fiction. I have since contacted the federal authorities and am awaiting a response from them.

Juarez violence susbsided, more work needed

Now that the violence has diminished greatly, it is time for the people of Juarez and of Mexico to demand protection from the bands of extortionists and from the police. Police abuse became more widespread than ever before under President Calderon and is one of the biggest reasons that Mexicans are requesting asylum in the United States. Now that the focus no longer has to be on the thousands of murders a month it is time to focus the world’s attention on the government’s abuse of its citizens and demand real change.

Why the violence has subsided in Juarez

The Mexican government did not “clean up” the state of Chihuahua and Juarez like they would have everyone believe. There is no treaty between the Sinaloa Cartel and the Juarez/Zeta alliance. The constant fighting with no real definitive winner led to a kind of stalemate. The result is a divided Juarez, and Chihuahua, parts belonging to one or the other cartel, and occasionally someone crosses the line. The police force is also sharply divided, the Juarez Cartel still largely in control of the traffic police and part of the municipal force, the Sinaloa Cartel owning the Federales and part of the state police. Within Chihuahua there are several smaller municipalities where the territories are still unclear and they continue to have skirmishes between the two cartels. We have yet to see the end to the violence.