Miguel Hidalgo Father Manuel Hidalgo, was a priest who served in a church in Dolores, Mexico during Spain s colonial rule over Mexico. When he first moved to Dolores from Guanajuato, he was shocked by the poverty he found. He tried to help the poor by showing them how to grow olives and grapes, but in Mexico, growing these crops was discouraged or prohibited by the authorities because Spain imported those items and did not want competition from growers in Mexico. On September 16 th 1810 Hidalgo gave the famous speech, "The Cry of Dolores" also known as el grito, calling upon the people of Mexico to join him in a rebellion against the government. El grito de Dolores set off a flurry of revolutionary action by thousands of natives and mestizos, who joined together to capture Guanajuato and other major cities west of Mexico City from the Spanish authorities. Hidalgo marched across Mexico with his army of nearly 90,000 poor farmers and Mexican civilians who attacked and killed both Spain-born and New World-born Spanish elites. Hidalgo's troops lacked training and were poorly armed. Despite its initial success, the Hidalgo rebellion lost steam and was defeated quickly, and Hidalgo was captured and killed in the state of Chihuahua in 1811. His name lives on in the Mexican state of Hidalgo, however, and September 16, 1810, is still celebrated as Mexico s Independence Day. While he did not lead Mexico to independence by himself, the revolutionary movement that followed his grito was the beginning of the movement for Mexico s independence from Spain.
Santa Ana Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna Often known as Santa Anna he was a Mexican politician and general who greatly influenced early Mexican politics and government. Santa Anna fought first against Mexican independence from Spain, then in support of it. Though not the first caudillo (military leader) of modern Mexico, he was among the earliest. He was general and president multiple times over a turbulent 40- year career; he was president on eleven non-consecutive occasions over a period of 22 years. A wealthy landowner, he built a firm political base in the major port city of Veracruz. He was the hero of the Army; he sought glory for himself and his army, and repeatedly rebuilt it after major losses. However he also represents one of the many leaders of Mexico who failed the nation. His military failures resulted in Mexico losing just over half its territory, beginning with the Texas Revolution and culminating with the Mexican American War of 1848. In 1848 Santa Anna signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo which allowed the US to receive the northern third of what was then Mexico including California and the southwestern states. In 1855 a rebellion brought down Santa Anna and his government and he spent the rest of his life in exile in Cuba and New York.
Benito Juarez Benito Juarez Benito Juarez was a Mexican politician and statesman of the late nineteenth century. He was president for five terms in the turbulent years of 1858 to 1872. Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Juarez s life in politics is his background: he was a fullblooded native of Zapotec descent the only full-blooded native to ever serve as president of Mexico who did not even speak Spanish until he was in his teens. Former President Antonio López de Santa Anna had been driven from Mexico after the war with the United States. In 1853, however, he returned, and quickly set up a conservative government that exiled many liberals, including Juarez. Juarez spent time in Cuba and New Orleans, where he worked in a cigarette factory. While in New Orleans, he teamed with other exiles to plot Santa Anna s downfall. 1861, Juárez returned to Mexico City to assume the presidency of a Mexico and began to create rights for the poor. One of the first reforms that Juarez implemented was to refuse to pay any debt that Mexico owed to any European nations. This angered many European countries and the French invited Ferdinand Maximilian Joseph, a 31 year-old Austrian nobleman, to come to Mexico to rule until Mexico paid its debt. Maximilian and his wife Carlota arrived in 1864, where they became crowned emperor and empress of Mexico. Juárez continued to war with the French and conservative forces, eventually forcing the emperor to flee the capital. Maximilian was captured and beheaded in 1867, effectively ending the French occupation. Juarez was re-elected to the presidency in 1867 and 1871, but did not live to finish his last term. He was felled by a heart attack while working at his desk on July 18, 1872.
Porfirio Diaz Porfirio Diaz Porfirio Diaz, like Juarez was a Native from Oaxaca. He rose to power through the army and became a noted general in the fight against France. Diaz expected to be rewarded with a government position for the part he played in the French defeat. President at the time Benito Juarez refused his request. After this Diaz never forgave Juarez. In 1876 Diaz took control of Mexico by overthrowing the president. He had the support of the military whose power had been reduced while Juarez was president. Indians and small landowners also supported him, because they thought he would work for more radical land rights for them. During the Diaz years, elections became meaningless. Diaz offered land, power, or political power to anyone who supported him. He terrorized many who refused to support him, ordering them to be beaten or put in jail. Using such violent methods, Diaz managed to remain in power until 1911. Over the years, Diaz adapted a rallying cry from Juarez which called for Liberty, order, and progress. Diaz, however, wanted merely Order and progress. Diaz s use of dictatorial powers ensured that there was order in Mexico. But the country saw progress under Diaz too. Railroads expanded, banks were built, the currency stabilized, and foreign investment grew. While Mexico seemed to be a stable country however, the wealthy were growing more rich and the poor farmers continued to grow poorer. Many working class people were worked to death under the Diaz dictatorship. Because Porfirio Diaz was such a corrupt and harsh dictator, many people in Mexico started to organize and call for reform. Eventually, in 1911, Diaz stepped down from power.
Francisco Madero Francisco Madero Born in 1873 into one of the wealthiest families in Mexico, he nevertheless had empathy with the poor. He studied agriculture at UC Berkeley and one of his heroes was the great Mexican revolutionary, Benito Juárez. So it is understandable that even very early on, Madero was frustrated with the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz. In the earliest years of the 20th century, Madero formed an organization to promote democracy and founded several newspapers that complained about the continued power of Díaz. As a result, he was arrested by Díaz s administration in 1910, but the influence of his father helped get him out of jail. He escaped across the border to Texas and when Madero returned to Mexico on November 20, 1910, he started a revolution. Shortly after, a peace treaty was signed and Porfirio Díaz agreed to resign and to go into exile. In November, 1911, elections were held for the first time in 30 years and Francisco Madero became the first new President of Mexico in almost 30 years. However, he kept most of the power structure created by Díaz intact, much to the dismay of those who had hoped for significant change. Very quickly, Madero alienated his former allies, such as Emiliano Zapata. In 1912, Zapata and others declared open rebellion against Madero. Madero sent General Victoriano Huerta to put down the revolt. Huerta, a ruthless fighter, handily eliminated those who opposed Madero. However, in early 1913, US president Wilson conspired with Huerta and others to overthrow Madero. What followed was a period known as the ten tragic days. Mexico City became a battleground, as Huerta fought to overtake the federal troops loyal to Madero. Huerta had successfully taken control of Mexico, and Madero was under arrest. Days later, Huerta had Madero assassinated, and declared himself President of Mexico.
Pancho Villa General Francisco Pancho Villa Pancho Villa was the most iconic and best-known personality of the Mexican revolution to end the dictatorship of Porfirio Diaz. As a young man he was a bandolero, a common bandit. The contacts he made during these early years would serve him well later, when he sought to put together a revolutionary army. Diaz. Uneducated, and considered by many to be too rough, Villa was nevertheless a military genius, and had a superb, instinctive understanding of the game of international politics. Villa fought in the revolution and was a crucial player in overthrowing In response to the coup by Victoriano Huerta, which overthrew Madero, Villa developed an extraordinary army, the División del Norte. During this time, Villa also became Governor of his then-home state of Chihuahua, and brought the politics and economy of the state under his control. In 1923, in an agreement with then-president Álvaro Obregón, Villa retired to a hacienda in Canutillo, near Parral, Chihuahua. He seemed to be living the quiet life of a rancher, surrounded by former comrades and friends, many of whom now served as his body guards. But Obregón wanted to take no chances that Villa might regain his strength. He established a conspiracy to assassinate him. On July 20, 1923, as Villa made his way back to his ranch from Parral, seven riflemen rained shots on his car.
Emiliano Zapata Emiliano Zapata was born in the Mexican state of Morelos, just south of Mexico City. Zapata lost his father when he was 17 years old (in 1896), and thus his education was cut short. He took up work as a horse trainer to support his family, his mother and nine siblings. Zapata s main goal in life was to return land stolen from Mexican peasants by Spain to its rightful owners. The Spanish owners had taken over the land to build money-making haciendas, which used the labor of those who truly owned the land, to harvest and manufacture sugar cane and other crops for export. The sugar-producing haciendas of Morelos were notorious for bad working conditions and the workers were virtual slaves under the whips of the Spanish land owners. Zapata initially supported the movements of Francisco Madero to overthrow Porfirio Diaz, and formed the Liberation Army of the South to fight for the revolt against the dictator. But once Madero became president, Zapata quickly became frustrated. He realized that Madero would not institute true change. In fact, Madero was from a family of rich land-owners, and while in many ways his heart was in the right place, he was not about to share the lands of members of his own class. Therefore, just around the time Madero was sworn in as president, Zapata and his men issued the Plan de Ayala (1911), in which Zapata broke with the president and planned to overthrow him. After Madero was overthrown by his own general Huerta, Venustiano Carranza took power with the support of Zapata who he then backstabbed, literally, and murdered. Soon after being murdered by the president, signs containing one of Zapata s mottos began appearing around Morelos, as both a memorial and an inspiration for his men to continue the fight: It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees.
Timeline: Negatives in Mexican Political History 1. Medero: In the earliest years of the 20th century, Madero formed an organization to promote democracy and founded several newspapers that complained about the continued power of Díaz. Madero returned to Mexico on November 20, 1910, he started a revolution. In November, 1911, elections were held for the first time in 30 years and Francisco Madero became the first new President of Mexico in almost 30 years. However, he kept most of the power structure created by Díaz intact, much to the dismay of those who had hoped for significant change. Very quickly, Madero alienated his former allies, such as Emiliano Zapata. 2. Huerta and Carranza After Madero was overthrown by his own general Huerta, Venustiano Carranza took power with the support of Zapata In his efforts to maintain power, however, Carranza grows increasingly reactionary, ordering the ambush and murder of Zapata in 1919. Some of Zapata s followers refuse to believe their hero is dead, and his legend lives on to inspire many generations of social reformers. 3. Alvaro Obregon 1920 Carranza was overthrown by one of his generals, Alvaro Obregon. Carranza is later mysteriously assassinated 4. REBUILDING THE NATION: Lázaro Cárdenas In his Political Testament, written the year before his death and published posthumously, he acknowledged that his regime had failed to make the changes in distribution of political power and corruption that were the basis for his presidency and the revolution. He expressed his dismay in the fact that some people and groups were making themselves rich to the detriment of the mainly poor majority. 5. Miguel Alemán To promote growth without generating high inflation, the government acted through the PRI- affiliated unions to suppress the wage demands of labor. Further straying from the ideals of the Revolution, Alemán's administration became noted for its tolerance of official corruption. The government's growing involvement in the economy provided ample opportunities for kickbacks and other forms of illicit enrichment, and several senior government officials became wealthy while in office.
6. PRI IN POWER: 1960s and 1970s Over the course of the year of the Olympic games in Mexico, student protesters stage a number of demonstrations in an attempt to draw international attention to what they see as a lack of social justice and democracy in Mexico under the PRI government and its current president, Gustavo Díaz Ordaz. On October 2, ten days before the Games were to open, Mexican security forces and military troops surround a demonstration at the historic Tlatelolco Plaza and open fire. Though the resulting death and injury toll is concealed by the Mexican government (and their allies in Washington), at least 100 people are killed and many others wounded. The Games go ahead as planned. 7. 1980s and 1990s By the mid- 1980s, Mexico is in financial crisis. On September 19, 1985, an earthquake in Mexico City kills nearly 10,000 people and causes heavy damage. The country s problems are exacerbated by continuing accusations of electoral fraud against the PRI and the devastation caused in the Yucatán by a massive hurricane in 1988. Salinas pushes it through NAFTA over the opposition of the media and the academic communities and of the leftist Partido Revolucionario Democrático (PRD), which begins to win growing support among the electorate. Salinas government is plagued by accusations of corruption, and in 1995 the former president is forced into exile. Timeline: Positives in Mexican History 1. November 20, 1910 The Mexican Revolution begins when Madero issues the Plan of San Luis Potosí, promising democracy, federalism, agrarian reform and worker s rights and declaring war on the Díaz regime. By 1911, Díaz is forced to step aside and Madero is elected president, but conflict and violence continue for the better part of the next decade. Popular leaders like Emiliano Zapata in southern Mexico and Pancho Villa in the north emerge as the champions of the peasant and working class, refusing to submit to presidential authority. 2. Huerta and Carranza In the wake of a series of bloody riots in the streets of Mexico City in February 1913, Madero is overthrown by a coup led by his own military chief, General Victoriano
Huerta. Huerta declares himself dictator and has Madero murdered, but opposition from the supporters of Villa, Zapata and the former Díaz ally (but political moderate) Venustiano Carranza drive Huerta to resign by 1914. Carranza takes power. He revised Mexico s constitution which was made official in 1917. This is the same document that exists in Mexico today. The constitution is actually very revolutionary; it promotes education, land reform, and workers rights. Mexico remains neutral throughout World War I, despite efforts by Germany to enlist the country as an ally. Despite the warring factions in Mexico, Carranza is able to oversee the creation of a new liberal Mexican constitution in 1917. 3. Alvaro Obregon Although he seized power violently, he did not remain dictator. He supported the reforms of the new constitution and started to provide free public education for everyone. After three years, the U.S. recognizes the Obregón government, only after the Mexican leader promises not to seize the holdings of American oil companies in Mexico. In domestic affairs, Obregón puts into place a serious of agrarian reforms, and gave official sanction to organizations of peasants and laborers. He also institutes a sweeping educational reform led by Jose Vasconcelos, enabling the Mexican cultural revolution that begins during this period including astonishing work by such artists as Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, the photographer Tina Modotti, the composer Carlos Chávez and the writers Martín Luis Guzmán and Juan Rulfo to extend from the richest to the poorest segments of the population. After stepping down in 1924 to make way for another former general, Plutarco Calles, Obregón is reelected in 1928, but is killed this same year by a religious fanatic. He was assassinated in 1928. Álvaro Obregón s assassination led to the founding in 1929 of the "National Revolutionary Party" (Spanish: Partido Nacional Revolucionario, PNR) by Plutarco Elías Calles, Mexico's president from 1924 to 1928. The intent was to make the constitution that was a result of the Mexican Revolution permanent. 4. REBUILDING THE NATION 1934; Lázaro Cárdenas, another former revolutionary general, is elected president. He revives the revolutionary- era social revolution and carries out an extensive series of agrarian reforms, distributing nearly twice as much land to peasants as had all of his predecessors combined. In 1938, Cárdenas nationalizes the country s oil industry, expropriating the extensive properties of foreign- own companies and creating a government agency to administer the oil industry. He remains an influential figure in government throughout the next three decades. 5. Miguel Alemán becomes the first civilian president of Mexico since Francisco Madero in 1911. In the post- World War II years, Mexico undergoes great industrial and economic growth, even as the gap continues to grow between the richest and poorest segments of the population. The ruling government party, founded in 1929,
is renamed the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI), and will continue its dominance for the next 50 years. 6. PRI IN POWER: 1960s and 1970s As a symbol of its growing international status, Mexico City is chosen to host the Olympic Games. Huge oil reserves are discovered in the Bay of Campeche, off the shores of the states of Campeche, Tabasco and Veracruz, at the southernmost end of the Gulf of Mexico. The Cantarell oil field established there becomes one of the largest in the world, producing more than 1 million barrels per day by 1981. Jose López Portillo, elected in 1976, promises to use the oil money to fund a campaign of industrial expansion, social welfare and high- yield agriculture. To do this, his government borrows huge sums of foreign money at high interest rates, only to discover that the oil is generally of low grade. These policies leave Mexico with the world s largest foreign debt. 7. 1980s and 1990s 1985: Displaced Earthquake residents, dissatisfied with the government s response to their situation, form grassroots organizations that will blossom into a full- fledged human rights and civic action movement during the late 1980s and 1990s. President Carlos Salinas joins George H.W. Bush of the U.S. and Prime Minister Brian Mulroney of Canada in signing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which goes into effect January 1, 1994. The agreement calls for a phasing out of the longstanding trade barriers between the three nations.
STATION 1: Introduction to the cartels in Mexico Currently there are two cartels controlling the 80% of the drug market in Mexico: The Sinaloa cartel, and Los Zetas. Violence in Mexico has increased exponentially in the past 10 years, and the business now is not just about drugs. Extortion, kidnapping, stealing natural resources, controlling commercial routes and human trafficking are all part of the business for these cartels. The cartels have become a significant source of income to the towns they operate; since hardly any businesses can survive in those towns the only way to get work is to work for the cartels. The cartels have also been able to corrupt most of the local authorities of their regions. A famous example is when El Chapo Guzmán, ex- leader of the Sinaloa cartel, escaped from prison in 2001 with the help of the prison guards. Since then many state politicians have been involved in everything from laundering money for cartels to assisting in murder. One recent example of this was Ayotzinapa where the governor hired a cartel to kidnap and kill 43 college students that were protesting the poor school system in Guerrero Mexico. Because of the huge amount of violence and corruption, citizens have started to organize in different movements to change the situation. Poet Javier Sicilia began a movement for peace after his son and many of his friends were killed at a party. Sicilia organized thousands of people who gathered to march from Cuernavaca to Mexico City. All of the people who joined to march in Mexico city then marched all the way to border of El Paso, TX and Ciudad Juárez; the most violent city in Mexico. The other big movement started developing in Michoacan. After most of the women of the towns were raped by members of Los Caballeros Templarios, people decided to arm themselves and fight them in groups called vigilantes. Later towns from Guerrero started doing the same. They ve created their own police and justice systems with some success. 60,000 people have been killed as casualties of the cartels in the past 6 years. The majority of the weapons come from the United States. Because the US has so little gun control laws it s very easy for cartels to cross the border and buy guns that would be illegal or difficult to find in Mexico. The majority of the money that cartels make as a profit from drug sales comes from the United States as well as we are their biggest consumers of the drugs they produce.
STATION 3: THE BEGINNING:1970 S SINALOA Ernesto Fonseca: Nickname DON NETO RAFA QUINTERO PALMA MIGUEL FELIX GALLARDO EL GUERO All of the cartels today grew out of one small farmer s pot growing operation. Ernesto Fonseca was a poor farmer who started growing pot to make more money to sustain the farm. The operation grew and he eventually asked for the help of Rafa Quintero, Miguel Felix Gallardo and El Guero Palma. Not much is known about Don Neto because he was not a major capo or cartel head. He was arrested in 1982 for money laundering and then linked to the torture and murder of DEA agent Enrique Camarena. His three protégées, or the 3 people that he mentored, split off. One was imprisoned and the other two started their own cartels. While Don Neto s pot smuggling and money laundering operation are considered by some to be the first cartel, after he was in prison the operation died. Don Neto s nephew Amado Carrillo Fuentes went on to start the Juarez Cartel.
THE BUSINESS MOVES TO GUADALAJARA Operation Condor, started by President José López Portillo in the 70 s, was meant to clean the area of Sinaloa from illegal drug traffic. Instead of Operation Condor destroying the cartel, they moved the business to Guadalajara, Jalisco. RAFA QUINTERO: He was the head of the business branch of the cartel. He bought a lot of important business to launder the drug money. He was captured in Costa Rica in 1985. 16 years after that, in 2001 he was interviewed inside of prison: - What do you think about the narco? - After 16 years, I wouldn t know what to tell you, I think it s bad because there s so many vices on the youth. Back in the day we weren t like that. We didn t use drugs, and it was not like the mess that exists today between the cartels. - Did you think you were innocent? - I m not going to say I was innocent. I had no education and I was extremely poor. - What did you want all that money for? - I helped a lot of people with a big need. What happened was that it became scandalous and political. - How are you now? - Bad, this is a very strong prison; it affects your mind, your vision, all of your body little by little. They gave me some medicine in the beginning, psychotropic; but I got too depressed. Being here has brought me a kind of sadness that I could never wish on anyone. I try to exercise and I try to run everyday. - Is running boring? - I m sick of everything, when they brought me to Almoloya prison, my lawyer did some research, and it turned out that in prisons like this one, 60% of the people kill themselves and the other 40% goes crazy. MIGUEL ÁNGEL FÉLIX GALLARDO: He had been in the business since the 70s, and was an apprentice from Don Neto. He introduced a lot of the capos to important politicians and businessmen. He started moving amounts of cocaine that previously only the Colombian cartels were able to move. He chose cocaine because it made more money than marijuana and is harder to detect. When Félix Gallardo was still controlling the flow of drugs from Mexico to the US, he killed the family of Luis El Guero Palma; another apprentice from Don Neto. He became the most powerful drug dealer, not only in Mexico, but in the whole continent. He was shipping around 2 tons of cocaine each month. He became the most wanted man in the world by the DEA and Interpol (the feds of England). He was apprehended on April 8th, 1989, in Guadalajara, where he was running his empire. LUIS EL GUERO PALMA: Palma swore revenge, and on 1992, once Félix Gallardo was in prison, he got it. El Guero killed 9 relatives of Félix Gallardo; and partnered with Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán. They started building their empire in Sinaloa. They were both from the region of Mocorito, Sinaloa, a rural and poor area, with a big percentage of people who wouldn t know how to read or write. Knowing this region pretty well, they started to employ people from the towns in huge weed and cocaine fields. They bought off some people from the government and the police and they started expanding. After Palma s big enemy: Félix Gallardo was captured and imprisoned, two of his nephews took the control of his business, creating a new cartel: the Arellano- Félix (Tijuana). Soon the fight for territory between these 2 groups started, and violence started increasing in Sinaloa. At first it was mostly members of cartels who were causalities of the territorial disputes but increasingly innocent people caught in the crossfire became victims as well. Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán, was captured for the 1st time on 1993 in Guatemala. He went to jail on Mexico where he would escape 8 years after. El Guero was captured the summer of 1995, accidentally, after the airplane he was flying crashed. He and his crew were treating their wounds and trying to escape with help from the local and federal police, but the military got to them and arrested them.
Stations 2 1. How did the founder of the Juarez cartel die? 2. What United States city is Juarez closest to? 3. What other cartel borders the United States? 4. Which cartel consists of many ex-federal, state and local police? 5. Which cartel did the Zeta s split off from? 6. What percentage of murders from cartels has been execution style? 7. Which states have had the highest amount of murders? 8. Which states have had the least amount of murders? 9. Which cartel is the biggest trafficker of cocaine? What I found interesting STATION 2 TASK Questions I have
Station 1 1. Where are the cartels getting most of their weapons from? 2. Where are the cartels selling most of their drugs to? 3. Why do you think there so much fighting of the cartels on the border of Mexico and the US? 4. Which cartels are the biggest? 5. Which areas are disputed? 6. Which cartels are the closest to the US? 7. Which area of Mexico would you want to live in according to this map and why? 8. Why do you think a lot of cartels want to be so close to the United States? 9. Why do you think so many cartels want to be close to the water? STATION 1 TASK Discuss You are the president of Mexico and you have charged with the task of solving the problems of the cartels. What would you do? Record what you and your partner discuss in at least 4 sentences.
Station 3 1. Who is considered to be the godfather of all the cartels? 2. What happened after Don Neto was arrested? 3. Why was Don Neto arrested? 4. Which cartels control 80% of the drug market in Mexico? 5. Why are cartels the primary source of income for many who live in towns with cartels? 6. What other businesses are cartels involved in now besides drugs? 7. Where did Don Neto s drug business move after Operation Condor was started? 8. Which of Don Neto s protégé s partnered with El Chapo? STATION 3 TASK Discuss If you were living in Mexico and lost a loved one/loved ones would you support Javier Sicilia s style of protest by marching and organizing people to demand help from the government? Or would you support the Michoacán style of resistance by creating your own armed police and justice system? Explain your answer in at least 4 sentences.
Station 4 1. Read the title of the article: What is the main idea expressed here (in you own words? 2. What do you predict the reasons given for this claim/ main idea will be? 3. What is shocking about the recent drug arrests described in the article? 4. Has the phenomenon, described in the article, always existed? Supply two pieces of evidence that this is a recent change. 5. Why has this phenomenon come about? 6. Who does Diana Carbajosa Martínez blame for this? What s her evidence? 7. What was president Calderon s main focus at this time? What argument did he make for not acting to deal with the problem? 8. Review the 3 maps. Describing the general information presented, and then analyze the specific data. 9. What is the strongest piece of evidence from the maps, which backs up the assertions made in the article? Why? STATION 4 TASK Discuss What could be done to address the underlying problems behind this phenomenon? Is there a realistic solution? Why or why not? If you were president Calderon (or president Nieto) would this phenomenon be a main focus for you, or would you focus on the Cartel leaders? Why? What would be the advantages and disadvantages of either decision? Record what you and your partner discuss in at least 4 sentences.