A terrible tragedy in Mexico comes to an official close, drawing skepticism from many of the victims families

Last fall 43 students from a teaching college were traveling through Iguala, a rural town in Mexico and disappeared after a confrontation with local police.  Today, the Mexican government officially declares the missing students dead, based on forensic evidence and confessions from the perpetrators.  Read the two linked articles in this post for more details. President Nieto's reaction has been largely criticized for being indecisive following the tragedy and also for corruption in the investigation. 

All I ask is for you to take a moment of silence for the student teachers and the countless Mexican people who have to live with this type of fear every day.  This is a terribly harrowing story that serves as an example of police and government corruption.  It also illustrates the hold the murderous drug cartels have on many towns in Mexico.  If you'd like to spread the word and try to help make a change via social media use #YoSoy132 and #Ayotzinapa with a link to the story.  You can also contact the Mexican Embassy here. 

Real world - concept connections

Post a link to the article you found in class below, with a brief explanation of the concept or concepts it helps to illustrate.

Should Nigerian elections be postponed amid security threats?

Read this article form BBC about the possibility of Nigeria pushing back their scheduled elections for next month because of the violence and turmoil recently embroiling the country.  What do you think they should do?  Does a delay in the elections just give Boko Haram what they want or should the legitimate security concerns be the priority? What concepts does this illustrate about the difficulty of institutionalizing a democracy?  What about state capacity and autonomy?  Do you think the corruption and violence will ever be rooted out in Nigeria?  Why or why not?  Did you learn anything new from this article?  Is there anything in particular you would like to discuss or study about Nigeria?  Respond to this article (or any others about the current state of Nigeria) and let me know.