As I am watching the Mexican National Team play against France in the World Cup, I can't help but think that Mexico seems a country of lost opportunities. In its first match, Mexico tied against South Africa 1-1 but lost several chances to make a goal. In the first half of the second game, there also were a few “almost theres.”

The same can be said for President Felipe Calderon's efforts to eradicate the violence stemming from the drug war. Calderon declared war against drug cartels when he began his presidency four years ago. He put all his military might behind the war, sending soldiers and federal agents to three or four hot spots where the drug cartels were known to operate. Four years later, the violence has spread across the country, and almost 23,000 people have lost their lives.

He obviously realized that the government cannot win this war on its own, even with the help of its neighbor and ally the United States. So President Calderon, in a televised speech, asked the people of Mexico to help by denouncing the criminals and providing information that can lead to their arrest. “It is a battle that all Mexicans have to fight, because criminals do not distinguish; they hurt all society as a whole,” he said.

Of course, asking people to snitch on drug criminals and become informants is a risky situation. While everyone might want to help, no one wants to risk his or her life doing so. And believe me, these criminals will stop at nothing to eliminate anyone who comes between them and their goal.

Only halfway into June, it already was being billed as the bloodiest month since Calderon's war against drugs began. Here are some of the deadliest incidents. In a 24-hour period between June 10 and 11, 77 people died in drug-related violence in different parts of the country. Nineteen of them were patients in a drug-rehab center in the northern state of Chihuahua. Gunmen entered the center, hand-picked the patients, put them in a line and killed them execution-style. Earlier in the month, in Juarez, where an average of 10 people are killed each day, according to media accounts, 17 people also were executed in a drug-rehab center.

On Monday, June 14, 10 federal police agents were killed in an ambush by armed civilians in the state of Michoacan. The same day, 17 people died in what is believed to be a drug-related fight in a jail in the state of Sinaloa, and three federal agents were killed in the northern state of Chihuahua.

The following day, 15 gunmen were killed in a shootout with soldiers in the picturesque tourist town of Taxco, famous for the elaboration of silver.

Amid the growing violence in the state of Nayarit, on the Pacific Coast, the governor ordered that the school year end three weeks early for the safety of the children. Thirty people were killed there, among them six innocent bystanders, during the weekend of June 12. Nayarit has seen an increase in violence in the past few months: 100 have died so far this year, compared with 20 last year.

It gets confusing after a while. It's hard to keep count and figure out which deaths occurred where, and which drug cartel was involved. It's almost certain that by the time this column is published, the numbers of casualties will have increased.

Besides asking civilians to help in the war on drugs, President Calderon announced that his government has hired the best advertising and public relations agencies in the world to change the image of Mexico. He wants people around the world to know what his government is doing to fight organized crime and deal with poverty, and how they are creating jobs through investing in infrastructure. And first and foremost, that Mexico has much to offer new and returning tourists.

At the end of their second game at the World Cup in South Africa, Mexicans had a lot to celebrate. Their national team finally beat France 2-0. Let's hope President Calderon also can start making some “goals” and claim victory in his war against organized crime.

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(Maria Elena Salinas is the author of “I AM MY FATHER'S DAUGHTER: LIVING A LIFE WITHOUT SECRETS.” Reach her at www .mariaesalinas.com)

© 2010 by Maria Elena Salinas

Distributed by King Features Syndicate