Knights Templar Claim To Have Negotiated Drop in Food Prices

InSight Crime: "According to news service Agencia Esquema, one banner read, in part, "The Knights Templar are not narcos, much less a criminal cartel, the Knights Templar are are a brotherhood of citizens who respect the constitution... in the past few days our brotherhood has invited the meat and tortilla vendors to lower their prices. An invitation accepted by our friends the merchants and recognized by the neediest people of our state. Keeping clear that for said action to occur there existed no pressure, nor blackmail, much less charging fees."

"Narcomantas" were reported in the cities of Morelia, capital of Michoacan state, as well as Zitacuaro, Lazaro Cardenas, Uruapan, Apatzingan, Ocampo, and Tuxpan." read more

Mexico church divided over drug wars

BBC News: "Everything from incense and candles to huge portraits of the Pope are flying off the shelves. Unfortunately for Benedict XVI, they are pictures of his predecessor, John Paul II - a man still held in great affection by Mexicans. The Pope's Mexico visit is part of his inaugural Latin America tour.

Mexico has the largest Roman Catholic community in this part of the world. Inside the cool of the cathedral, the priest compares the street sellers with the moneylenders in the New Testament that Jesus drove from the Temple." read more