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Why Fentanyl Kills in the United States but Not in Mexico
What Mexico’s near-zero overdose rates reveal about the real causes of America’s opioid epidemic
Feb 5
33
12
Tycoon Pays Up, Record Exports, & New Mexican Aid to Cuba
Mexico Decoded’s weekly briefing makes sense of the news that matters.
Feb 3
7
1
2
Why Young Mexicans Are Drinking Less
The data behind Mexico’s quiet shift away from alcohol —and the stereotype that refuses to die
Jan 29
16
5
Most Popular
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Why Do Mexicans "Hate" Dishwashers?
Sep 7, 2025
62
6
12
The Battle for Mexico’s Water Is a Warning to the World
Nov 27, 2025
•
Luis León
40
1
8
After Venezuela, Is Mexico Next?
Jan 8
36
1
7
The Tragedy of the Michelin Star in Mexico
Oct 8, 2025
38
8
Is Mexico a Narco-State?
Jul 18, 2025
37
1
9
Why Sexless Men Are Increasing in Mexico
Oct 16, 2025
30
1
4
Mexican Economy
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Mexico's Role in the U.S.-China Trade War
A fact about trade that Washington can’t afford to ignore
Nov 6, 2025
•
Cesar A Hidalgo
28
1
3
Trump’s Ghastly Playbook for Mexico
America’s quiet plan to turn nearshoring into a hierarchy of obedience.
Oct 31, 2025
15
3
5
How Mexican Billionaries are Made
A case study in how economies fail when power and privilege replace competition.
Sep 22, 2025
27
7
7
Trumponomics, the Mexican Way
Prompted by the U.S. Mexico is embracing a new pro-business model not seen in decades.
Sep 11, 2025
12
3
What the World Can Learn from Mexico’s Historic Drop in Poverty
How Mexico lifted 13 million people out of poverty without an economic boom.
Aug 14, 2025
19
4
5
How Mexicans Get Rich
The Mexican dream exists—but it is narrow, selective, and generally involves only two paths.
Jul 28, 2025
25
6
2
Is Mexico a Middle Class Country?
A visual and data-driven guide to class in Mexico
Jul 12, 2025
24
5
Are Gringos to Blame for Mexico City's Housing Crisis?
Everyone’s talking about digital nomads — but not about what matters.
Jul 1, 2025
28
1
7
Mexico 101
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Mexico’s Gen Z Is Breaking Global Political Patterns — Here’s How
The recent protests claimed to represent them. The data tells a very different story.
Nov 20, 2025
27
7
The Tragedy of the Michelin Star in Mexico
How global fame collided with local reality in the story of a taco stand that became a world-class irony.
Oct 8, 2025
38
8
Sheinbaum’s First Year as President: The Good and the Bad
Claudia Sheinbaum’s first year in power is reshaping her country — and what it means to be a leftist politician.
Oct 2, 2025
16
2
5
Why Do Mexicans "Hate" Dishwashers?
My answer to a viral Substack that tried to explain it — and got Mexico all wrong.
Sep 7, 2025
62
6
12
The Future of Government May Already Be Happening in Mexico
What a secret army of 30,000 social workers reveal about how democracies can get closer to their citizens.
Aug 28, 2025
10
5
4
The Mexican Chernobyl Nobody Knows About
What President Sheinbaum’s flagship housing program can teach us about policy-made disasters.
Aug 22, 2025
4
4
Is Mexico Giving Away Free Money? Not Quite
Behind the myths about Mexico’s welfare system.
Jul 4, 2025
13
1
2
Decoding Sheinbaum’s Unprecedented Popularity
What Sheinbaum’s approval reveals about power, perception, and the changing political landscape in Mexico.
Jun 24, 2025
11
7
Insights
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After Venezuela, Is Mexico Next?
Why the question misses the real power dynamics shaping U.S.–Mexico relations
Jan 8
36
1
7
U.S.–Mexico Water War Explained
What a little-known water treaty between Mexico and the U.S. reveals about a new era of climate politics
Dec 26, 2025
12
4
The Mexico Edition of the Tradwife Is Nothing Like the One You Know
Social media sells the fantasy of the luxurious stay-at-home wife. National data tells a different story.
Dec 11, 2025
15
1
4
Mexico’s Motorcycle Revolution
What Mexico’s motorcycle explosion reveals about inequality, aspiration, and the future of mobility.
Dec 4, 2025
14
2
3
The Battle for Mexico’s Water Is a Warning to the World
Why Mexico’s rural protests are about dismantling one of the most powerful —and least understood— economic coalitions in the country.
Nov 27, 2025
•
Luis León
40
1
8
Inside Mexico’s Conservatives’ Flirt with the Far Right
Mexico long resisted the radical right. Now its conservative party is testing what happens when they don't.
Oct 23, 2025
17
7
3
Why Sexless Men Are Increasing in Mexico
A paradox of ambition and loneliness is rewriting the story of the global incel.
Oct 16, 2025
30
1
4
The Tragedy of the Michelin Star in Mexico
How global fame collided with local reality in the story of a taco stand that became a world-class irony.
Oct 8, 2025
38
8
Podcast
View all
1:00:35
How Mexicans Consume Their Drugs
Today, on Mexico Decoded Podcast, we will dive into the groundbreaking ways Mexico is rethinking drug consumption.
Oct 10, 2025
•
Viri Rios
13
3
2
44:02
How Drug Cartels Recruit Their Members
Hollywood tells us people join drug cartels for money, power, and glamour. What’s really happening is far more chilling.
Sep 26, 2025
•
Viri Rios
12
3
51:15
What 20+ Years of Research Reveal About Mexico's Organized Crime
In this episode of the Mexico Decoded podcast, I speak with Omar García Ponce, Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at…
Sep 13, 2025
•
Viri Rios
and
Omar García-Ponce
8
1
3
56:56
What We Get Wrong About Mexico’s Cartels
In this episode of the Mexico Decoded podcast, I speak with Ioan Grillo, one of the world’s leading journalists on Mexico’s drug war, to examine the…
Aug 25, 2025
•
Viri Rios
and
Ioan Grillo
7
2
1
Organized Crime 101
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Mexico’s 25-Year War Against Cartels Explained
A deep look at how security policies have evolved — and what Mexico has learned in the process.
Dec 18, 2025
20
1
8
How Mexico Sweeps Murders Under The Rug
A quiet bureaucratic trick is reshaping the country’s homicide data
Nov 14, 2025
18
2
1
44:02
How Drug Cartels Recruit Their Members
Hollywood tells us people join drug cartels for money, power, and glamour. What’s really happening is far more chilling.
Sep 26, 2025
•
Viri Rios
12
3
51:15
What 20+ Years of Research Reveal About Mexico's Organized Crime
In this episode of the Mexico Decoded podcast, I speak with Omar García Ponce, Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at…
Sep 13, 2025
•
Viri Rios
and
Omar García-Ponce
8
1
3
Weekly Newsletter
View all
Health Trickery, Ambassador Scandal, and Colonialism Apology
Mexico Decoded’s weekly briefing makes sense of the news that matters.
Jan 20
19
2
A New Chapo, Mexico–Cuba Kiss Cam & Electronic Music Paradise
Mexico Decoded’s weekly briefing makes sense of the news that matters.
Jan 13
14
4
Trump Points South, Deadly Train, Tariff Windfall
Mexico Decoded’s weekly briefing makes sense of the news that matters
Jan 6
21
5
Mexico Decoded
Unpacking Mexico’s politics, economy, and power —straight from the source.
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About
What is "Mexico Decoded"?
A quick note on what this Substack is about —and why you should subscribe to understand Mexico beyond the clichés, from the ground up.
Jun 22, 2025
•
Viri Rios
35
2
6
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