II. Main Point 1: The Sinaloa drug cartel was created when a previous powerful drug cartel failed due to the arrest of its leader. Subpoint 1: Tessa Vinson explains the origins of the cartel in the Spring 2009 issue of The Monitor. Chinese immigrants who worked on the railroads brought with them knowledge of how to grow poppies. The poppy is a plant that contains opium, the source of many other drugs. When demand for poppies increased, Sinaloens began exporting them via the Pacific Railroad to the United States. The United States and Mexico became increasingly aware of this and launched "Operation Condor" in November 1975, which airlifted most of the poppy fields. This forced many small cartels out of business, but also eliminated competition for the more established cartels. With the poppy supply depleted, most cartels shifted their attention to Colombian cocaine. In the mid-1970s drug lord Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo, head of the powerful Guadalajara cartel, began exporting cocaine. He became known as "El Padrino" as he eventually controlled almost the entire drug market. (Vinson, 2009, pp.