Best locations for expat family?

Frank Siclari wrote:

My wife and i are nearing retirement and have been considering possibly renting in Aguascalientes for 6 months. If all goes well we’d settle there. My youngest daughter will be finishing her teaching degree here in the US and has expressed interest in coming with us for a year, at least, and teaching there at an International school. I love the idea but i am concerned about recent crime incidents that i have been following online. The narco-tards are now apparently infiltrating the city, which i understand has for some time (10+ years) was seeing steadily decreasing crime rates. Now, from what i can gather, there are two rival narco syndicates vying for control of territory throughout a lot of the country and they are apparently entering areas that were previously peaceful and causing a lot of caos. Homicides and kidnappings have double according to something i read, and this is directly related to the narco scum. My wife and i and our daughter all speak spanish and love the Mexican people, culture, food etc, and really like the fact that Aguascalientes has a moderate, dry climate. The fact that it is not a typical expat destination did not deter us. And up until recently, it was looking like the best fit for our needs. Now, we are not so certain. Is anyone on this site familiar with the situation there on the ground? Does anyone, perhaps, know someone who may have some insight into the safety situation there? Could our American accents and appearance put us at considerably more risk considering recent events? Is there any evidence that this trend of increasing violence may subside? Am i making too much of what i am reading in the news? I appreciate your all responses.

So Frank,

Where are you getting this information? Given that you indicate you speak Spanish it should be a Mexican source.   My friend has an aunt and cousins there and he says they live well, but it is not "really" safe. Yet unlike the U.S., your daughter would be unlikely to be killed in one of the many school shootings in the U.S.

As for the people, I would advise that you not call people "narco-tards". The drug issues like even Chapo said are fully funded and supported by the U.S. cartels.
The opioid crisis was initiated by drug corporations. Oxy was not developed by Mexico. They just supply drugs to feed the U.S. addiction problem. Oxy becomes too expensive and people turn to Mexico for a cheaper drug.

Also, the drug conflict involves natives for the most part, not tourists. Tourists who are not flaunting money or buying drugs should be fairly safe.

Thank you,
Frank

Frank Siclari wrote:

Oh, and my sources are the Spanish language newspapers, La Jornada and El Sol del Centro, Aguascalientes.

This is what concerns me, Frank, you have made judgments about me, and you don't even know me or my background.  You filtered your opinion through what I had to say. Making judgments with no evidence or data is not going to help anyone or make anyone want to help you.  At no point did I defend the drug trade or drug users, I just stated the facts.

It so happens that I have a long extensive background in medicine and I know a great deal about the drug issues.  I am very familiar with how they developed and who was involved.  I'm familiar with the laws and regulation. Plus my son is a cop, so I know what's happening on that end.

I suggested that you not use demeaning language because it does not help with communication.

Given your anger and general opinion perhaps you might want to reconsider your choices and investigate other options like Canada.