President Uribe's revived war against left and right wing rebels and drug gangs has been successful and popular. Thousands of local guards have been armed and trained. Combat troops now move civilians between towns and cities in large convoys (to prevent robbery or kidnapping by rebels). But there are still heavily armed rebels and drug gangsters out there, with lots of money and lots of incentive to keep the government on the defensive. The war will get worse before it gets a lot better.