It doesn’t get much more embarrassing than this.

The Mexican consulate is warning its citizens visiting Washington DC that crime has gotten so bad that they need to exercise special care.

That’s a pretty bad look if you think about it. It’s not like Mexico is renowned for being among the safest places in the world.

You might think that this is just Mexico getting a bit of its own back as the US has in recent years warned its citizens about crime in various parts of Mexico, but actually that is, at most, one of the motivations. It turns out that Washington DC’s murder rate is comparable to Mexico’s, which is among the highest in the world.

❗️Atención comunidad mexicana:

La ciudad de Washington, D.C. está presentando un aumento significativo de delitos en zonas antes consideradas como seguras.

Toma precauciones. En una emergencia, llama al 911. Para asistencia consular urgente, marca (202) 997-0560.#Cuidémonos

— Consulmex Washington (@ConsulMexWas) July 25, 2023

Washington DC is experiencing a serious crime wave, and in June the city council passed an emergency crime bill that needless to say doesn’t exactly look like it was written by Black Lives Matter. It has gotten so bad that the instinct to embrace every criminal, throw a parade for him, and hand over to him your wallet wasn’t strong enough to overcome the natural human desire not to get mugged.

Shocking, I know. It turns out that turning your criminal justice system into nothing more than a way to provide a hot meal and a portrait doesn’t make people safer.

Of course, it wasn’t until actual politicians started feeling the impact of crime personally that anybody in power decided to crack down, and it’s not clear how long it will take to start seeing results. It is much easier to keep crime under control than to get it back under control. It’s similar to retiring your debt while paying exorbitant interest rates–it turns out that not racking up all that 28% interest rate credit card debt would have been better, even if you had a few nice meals before reality hit.

If things don’t turn around soon Americans in our major cities are going to start hoping that the old-style mafia is reenergized. A lot of business owners would be happy to pay some protection money to ensure that criminals steer clear of their establishments. Back in the old days, protection money was a form of extortion, but at least the mob could scare the street criminals away.

Of course they also would burn down your business if you didn’t pay. In modern America,  politicians outsource arson to criminals when they decide to riot. Whether you pay your taxes or not.