Sixty Miles of Border
An American Lawman Battles Drugs on the Mexican Border
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4.2 • 30 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
The border between the United States and Mexico is a no-man’s land. Drugs, guns, and human beings are the cargo of choice in a multi-billion dollar illegal empire dominated by powerful cartels, murderous street gangs, and corrupt government officials.
Against them stand the Special Agents of the United States Customs Service—men and women who fight to uphold the law and protect the U.S. on both sides of the border.
Terry Kirkpatrick worked one of the toughest jobs in America: a U.S. Customs agent on the border between Arizona and Mexico. He’s seen it all and done more for over twenty years in a job that many officers quit before they make it six months.
These are the gritty and graphic true stories of Terry and his fellow “Border Rats” as they patrol America’s modern badlands, where bullets are currency and blood is taken as payment. From the inhuman conditions people suffer under to get onto American soil, to working with blatantly crooked military leaders, to some of the most insane and unbelievable situations ever survived, readers will experience the chaos that has engulfed the U.S. border in the words of a man who has been there.
60 Miles of Border sheds an unsparing light into the life of customs agents, their dealings on the border, the effect on their daily lives—and an unsparing look at one of the most hotly debated and controversial topics in modern America.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Kirkpatrick's memoir about his 25-year career as a customs agent on the Mexican border (based at Nogales, Ariz.) is ripe with potential for revealing an insider's frustration with the drug war. Unfortunately, Kirkpatrick's multitude of anecdotes from life on the border drug smuggling, corrupt officers, departmental feuds are randomly strung together like a bunch of bad bar stories. Readers learn of the importance of confidential informants and the history of some of the dominant cartels, but these few merits are buried under the book's juvenile writing style. Kirkpatrick pulls no punches with his prejudicial views and destructive behavior: he objectifies women; drinks while working (and driving); has sex while on a surveillance mission; throws rocks across the border at Mexican kids; and makes gay jokes about his colleagues, among other egregious offenses. Kirkpatrick is an unlikable narrator, a guy who thinks anyone who disagrees with him is an "asshole" or an "idiot." According to his depiction, all the agents are drunk, sexist, homophobic, racist, lazy, and petty. Though the topic holds potential for a meaningful, introspective memoir on the challenges of pursuing America's drug policy, this book is not it.
Customer Reviews
Pretty Good
Pretty good read although dragged a bit in the middle. There are only so many 1000lb marijuana seizure stories one can handle. Good read with great insight.
Fantastic Rad
The are not many books written about the brave men and women that work tireless hours on the front lines of the drug war. This is a great read! I tip my hat to Mr. Kirkpatrick. Thank you for telling your stories...