Mexico is facing a crime epidemic that is out of control. Police corruption is rampant. Drug gangs commit violence against each other, innocent people and police.

This year alone, at least 2,500 people have been killed in drug-related violence. People are regularly kidnapped so criminals can extort money out of wealthy families: a 14-year-old boy was the latest victim who was abducted and killed.

President Felipe Calderon has called for new measures to fight rising crime: anti-abduction squads, high-security prisons with separate areas for kidnappers, better tracking of cell phones and more money for local authorities.

Mr. Calderon proposed his measures at a meeting of governors and police officials from across Mexico in an attempt to get a handle on the problem. Government officials from all three main political parties and activists met in the National Palace at Mexico City last week in a gathering called the National Public Safety Council.

President Calderon said a "cancer of criminality" evolved in Mexico over decades of uneven punishment, official corruption and societal neglect.

"This is not about looking to the past to find those to blame for our current ills," he said. "The reality is we are all to blame."

Activists plan a candlelight march to protest rising crime throughout Mexico's cities this week. Polls show wide support for tougher criminal sentences.

Although Mr. Calderon has led a crackdown on drug traffickers and organized crime, sending 40,000 troops and 5,000 federal agents into the streets, it has been a real war. Drug gangs have battled police and each other.

The best hope for success in Mexico's war against crime is the support of its people for the government's efforts. But the violence is appalling. Mexico has a long way to go.