Costco

US cops are only bold when they outnumber AND outgun their adversary.

2 cops vs 20 protestors, those cops will run. 200 cops vs 20k protestors, again, the cops will run or lose everything.

The strategy used by the cartel is to create an asymmetric warfare environment by creating so many individual crises that the cops can't respond to them all en-force, and by disrupting and degrading movement, communications, logistics, and intelligence.

The fires are very visible yes, but it wouldn't surprise me if the cartels were also targeting telecom infrastructure, attempting to jam radio, targeting police infra, electrical infra, and airspace.

When you're outgunned by the adversary, your best bet is to disperse them thin, so you can pick and choose where you concentrate your force.