The United States of America and Mexico have a second chance to get it right.

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In 1991, President George W. Bush and President Vicente Fox were newcomers to their nation’s helms. The two men came with visions of stemming the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs north and the southward caravans of weapons and cash.

Then came Sept. 11. All bets were off. During the next eight years, Mr. Fox’s star diminished and President Bush was embroiled in war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Mexican government’s hope of regaining control of its borders and halting the drug violence was lost in the politics of our neighbor to the south. Then came a new president, Felipe Calderon. He has attacked the drug dealers and their illicit trade. The result has been near genocide along the border as drug dealers battle each other and the Mexican military.

President Bush’s attentions were elsewhere and the problems along our southern border festered and erupted into a bleeding wound demanding our attention as it spread north and south.

The pressure led to yesterday’s meeting between President Calderon and President Barack Obama in Mexico City. They agreed on many points, disagreed on others.

Weapons smuggled from the U.S. are the hardware fueling the drug wars. Mexico would like a ban on assault rifles renewed. President Obama has rejected that idea and again vowed to increase this nation’s efforts to end the illegal exportation of weaponry to Mexico.

The two men agreed on one central policy — the need to end the flow of drugs, money and weaponry. This is a problem for both nations.

America needs to solve the problem for our own sake and the safeguarding of our borders. A strong, economically sound neighbor to the south would go a long way toward enhancing homeland security.

Mexico is still a fledgling democracy shaking off decades of one-party rule, rich in natural and human resources but awash in poverty and systemic corruption. It is imperative the United  States nurture democratic efforts in Los Estados Unidos Mexicano and encourage economic development to complement our own fiscal resurgence.

It is the desire for illegal drugs on America’s streets, in our homes feeding the demand and it is American dollars satiating the greed of Mexican drug lords.

This impacts every corner of America from the streets of the big cities to the peaceful avenues and corners of Halifax and Northampton counties. It is a problem for all of us.

We slipped after 9/11. Hopefully, this time the United States and Mexico will get it right. There is much at stake. Both nation’s security and the fate of future generations may hang in the balance. Like many other problems facing our nation, this demands our attention and concern — now.