As I looked at Edgar Valdez Villarreal’s smiling, smug photo in the newspaper this morning, I wondered what his photo might look like a decade from now after he serves his first ten years of what will no doubt be a very long sentence in prison. I suspect the American born drug lord called “the Barbie” by the Mexicans because of his fair complexion and green eyes will not be smiling smugly in future photos.

Villarreal is the third major Mexican drug lord killed or captured in less than a year. Mexican President Felipe Calderon has been roundly criticized for pursuing an aggressive war against organized crime and the cartels in the face of escalating violence that has claimed an estimated 28,000 lives. But what, I ask, is the alternative?

Calderon could just ignore the cartels and the massive flow of drugs into the U.S. Before he decided enough was enough, Mexico was well on its way to becoming the next Somalia, a country controlled by warring, well-armed gangs and corrupt government officials. Earlier this week, 72 immigrants were murdered on their way to the U.S. by the Zeta drug cartel. Human trafficking has become an additional source of income for the drug cartels, as they grow more desperate for money to fund their operation. Yesterday, a firebomb killed eight people in a bar in Cancun. The owner of the bar had refused to pay extortion money to the Zetas. If the violence continues to expand into tourist areas such as Cancun, Mexico’s economy could suffer a devastating blow.

Colombia, under the leadership of former President Alvaro Uribe and newly elected President Juan Manuel Santos, has pursued a similar strategy against the FARC and the Colombian cartels. As a result of these security policies, Marxist guerrillas are on the run, kidnappings have been reduced, and the economy is on the rebound.

Rather than ignoring or aggressively pursuing the cartels, Former Mexican President Vicente Fox has joined with those urging Calderon to legalize drugs in Mexico, saying that could break the economic power of the country’s brutal drug cartels. Calderon has agreed to open the door to discussions about the legalization of drugs, even though he remains opposed to the idea.

The Mexican government spends about $8.2 billion annually on law enforcement. It’s estimated that it would save between 5 percent and 15 percent of GDP if narcotics were legal in all countries. But those savings fall to as low as 1 percent if drugs were legalized only in Mexico. Ultimately, all countries, including the U.S., would have to legalize and regulate the drug trade. It’s extremely unlikely that will happen.

And so Calderon is left with little choice but to aggressively challenge and pursue men like Villarreal. The violence and deaths will continue, but my guess is, the drug lords who have managed to avoid killing or capture are not smiling now.