A Coder's Notebook:

Policia Federal Mexicano Secuestraron La Esposa de Mi Amigo

Rosarito Beach, Baja California, Mexico – A little while back when I called a friend he sounded upset. Later, he told me that a couple federales kidnapped his wife, and that he had to pay them $5,000 U.S.D. to release her. The ordeal lasted about two hours. Therefore, in addition to the $2,000/month he has to pay the Arrellano Felix gang, he also has to pay the Mexican federal police to live in peace. That’s business in Mexico, and in the United States.

I don’t want to be accused of just ragging on the Mexican police. Therefore, to be fair, I’ll mention how corruption works on both sides of the border. The FBI and DEA routinely arrest/kidnap the innocent spouses and girlfriends of wanted suspects to encourage them to surrender. The only difference between the Mexican police and the U.S. federal police is that the U.S. federal police don’t ask for a ransom. Instead, they ask their superiors for an upgrade in rank that translates into a raise in their paychecks.

Oakland, California – After 18 months of living at Rosarito Beach (really called Playas de Rosarito), Baja California Norte, Mexico, I’m now living in the San Francisco Bay area, and recovering from a 24/7 Springbreak lifestyle. Now it’s time to look for a job and lead a more normal life for awhile, at least until I get tired of leading a “normal” life.

I made my first trip to the Bay area when I was 19 years old. It was 1982 and I was consulting out of the Computerland of Glendale store when someone from the Doctor’s Hospital of Pinole called the store searching for a programmer to program a machine that punch prints on plastic cards. I drove from Glendale, a suburb of Los Angeles, to Pinole which is about 10 miles north of Berkeley, California, and I spent a few hours there writing a simple program to print patient information on plastic cards.

I’ll miss the constant 70 degree weather, and the many friends I made, the $100/pound weed, cheap cigarettes,  the young, pretty putas, and the ultra laidback lifestyle at Playas de Rosarito, B.C., Mexico. Maybe I’ll return to Rosarito in a year or two.