For a long time the fear of the so-called 'Bronco Mexico,' where the tiger symbolized chaos, the breakdown of social balance and a concrete danger for everyone, was a constant that frightened all Mexicans. In fact, just six years ago, before Andrés Manuel López Obrador – or after if you consider the more than 18 years of uninterrupted campaign of the current President of the country – this figure of the tiger instilled fear and signaled an imminent danger in the population. Nowadays, however, it seems that the tiger is domesticated, it could even give the impression that it is relegated and contained in the basements of the National Palace. No one fears his resentment or his actions anymore. No one takes out the tiger except its tamer. Everyone has stopped fearing the tiger. Instead, politics, not only in Mexico but in many countries, has been transformed not into the fear of what the tiger can do, but into the threat of outbursts and the fire that dragons launch.
These signs of destruction are manifested not only in attacks between politicians, but also in electoral campaigns, where rhetorical explosions have replaced the tiger's claws. It is as if we are becoming dragons, breathing and living in an increasingly incendiary world. I do not intend to emulate the analytical capacity of a professional, although something tells me that we have gone from trying to avoid the attacks of the tiger to conforming and beginning to get used to the alarming screams and snorts full of contained fire of the dragon that we are becoming. societies.
It is true that, in our society, politics is being affected by the great empire of the north. We have already seen it in the past when we were belittled as a mere gang of “rapists and drug addicts” who only seek to cross the border to steal jobs originally intended for Americans, but who are not willing to do them. Today a new threat emerges, but now it is not only against our compatriots who daily devise how to avoid the threatening border patrols, but it is a danger that is already beginning to be felt within the United States society itself. And the most reliable proof of this is Donald Trump's repetitive speech announcing that a “bloodbath” will be unleashed if he does not win the elections. Although there is no direct history of leaders like Hitler, Trump, who refused to accept his defeat in the 2020 election, continues to threaten to use violence if his victory in the upcoming elections is questioned.
Donald Trump is a character who, since what happened in 2020, has always said that he has been a victim of conspiracies against him to prevent him from leading his country from the Oval Office, and his political rhetoric always seems to be impregnated with references bloody and divisions. But Trump is not an isolated fact or character. Beyond the borders, political violence is also present, just look at the politicians murdered in the first weeks of the electoral campaigns in different parts of the world, although mainly in our country. In Mexico, it is no longer a real danger to be a journalist or defender of the truth, but also to aspire to a public position from which the lives of citizens can be improved has become a threat. Although a critical point has not yet been reached like the one that the American candidate of the Republican Party intends to trigger, there is concern about how the defeat of the candidates will be handled and what actions their supporters will take.
In Mexico we should not be so surprised by how things are developing. Not even a month has passed since the start of the campaigns and there are already victims among the candidates for public positions in our country. It is true that – so far – there has not yet been an attack against any of the candidates who could have a greater impact or repercussion on society, although it is also true that unfortunately the issue of murders of political candidates who have modestly serious aspirations is not It's something new and it doesn't seem like it will stop happening. Without entering into conspiracies or preconceived ideas, we cannot forget that these types of events have been happening for decades; It is enough to remember characters like Luis Donaldo Colosio, or more recently the murder of the Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, or many other candidates who have been victims of political violence. It's an explosion urbi et orbi that is not contained in a geographical delimitation or conditioned to a specific social situation.
We have reached a point where it is not about canceling or preventing the next elections from taking place, but what is truly in question is what the still president López Obrador will do to avoid the least amount of blood spilled in his country. already very violent six-year period. It also remains to be seen how the leader of the fourth transformation and his most faithful followers would react in the event that – although unlikely – he could lose his candidate and his most solid candidates for the long-awaited majority. in Congress. And since 2006, with his complete blockade of Reform and his different reactions to a reform, modification or bill or any other type, it is also clear that – like any other politician with interests and ambitions – our President He doesn't like to lose anything.
What would happen if the partners decide to lighten the list of President López Obrador's problems? In any case, we are facing a dragon, a symbol of danger and political destruction and the order we knew until now. It is acceptable to use various political strategies such as rhetoric and continued persuasion through offering everything the people need, but what is unacceptable is resorting to violence and the destruction of the established order. At this time when everything revolves around the polls and the candidates, we must be very clear about what is at stake and be aware that the polls and projections are just shadows that do not reflect reality and the only definitive thing is what to be announced on June 2 in the official minutes. Meanwhile, it has been a long time since the author of The Art of WarSun Tzu wrote that the first thing to do with enemies is to take away any possibility or hope of achieving victory.
In the midst of this political pre-parade and within this dragon walk, today more than ever we need leaders capable of building, not destroying. It is advisable not to believe and to be a very jealous critic of the campaign promises and the true desires of the parties involved regarding the future of societies. Our priority must be to prevent the dragon from achieving its mission, learning from history and preventing the earth from being razed, just as Hitler tried to do in his time with Russia. The German leader always said that the mistake and lesson of Napoleon's campaign in Russian territory was not having devastated everything and leaving alive an enemy who later prepared the coup de grace to the largest army of the time, which was the French.
In this time when the slashes of tigers have been replaced by the incendiary puffs of dragons, it is time to prepare and work together to ensure a future free of destruction and excessive political violence.
