Yeah, that makes sense; I think we're more or less on the same page now. (Less: I am not making the claim that Mexico is bad, Canada is good, or that ordinary Mexicans are all that different from ordinary Canadians. Or that science journalism from Mexico should be approached with any more skepticism than science journalism from the rest of the world.)

> if instead youre only saying mexico is more violent in terms of per capita homicide, well that is trivially true so not subject to debate.

Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying :-). Per capita homicide, corruption, arming of the regular police; on all of these metrics Mexico stands out compared to affluent NATO countries. I thought that was kind of what this comment thread was debating; I misunderstood. Mea culpa. It can be hard to communicate clearly on the internet, especially on mobile. I appreciate you taking the time to help me understand your thoughts.