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I believe that, with a little thought and patience, much can be done. However, most people don't feel illegal immigration is a problem unless they are personally affected by it. And by "personally affected", I mean (1) their physical security is threatened, and/or (2) their financial security is threatened.

Personally, I view my job as being two-fold; first, lead by example by getting my own house in order (i.e. cut my own grass, clean my own house, avoid knowingly supporting companies and other that hire illegal aliens), and second, "educating" my neighbors and acquaintances about the effects of illegal immigration on their security.

The second part is real fun! I try to be subtle and avoid being in their face. For example, I cut my own grass, and I try to time it when the neighbors are out and about. I do a pretty good job, and I sometimes get asked why I don't hire it out. I take this as an opportunity to do some "educating". After explaining that I like the healthy outdoor exercise, I casually drop a comment about some "security concerns" I have about using non-bonded help around the house. This usually leads to a conversation along the lines of "I'm sure your maid Maria is very nice and wouldn't do anything wrong, but who knows who she talks to about what she sees in your home...to me, it's not worth the 50 bucks a month to have to worry about a break in". Gets some of the neighbors thinking - I've noticed they've either started to do the work themselves, or are using bonded services.

Won't bore you with how I operate at community meetings when topics touching on illegal immigration comes up - suffice to say, I like to make innocent comments as if the Reconquista was an accomplished fact. For example, after some particularly outrageous pandering by a couple of pols I asked a "procedural" question about when (not if) the local schools would be required to teach Spanish to all students, and what other subjects would be dropped to accommodate this. Got some dirty looks - and some surprised ones, too. It's obvious for some folks this was the first time they considered the negative ramifications of illegal immigration.

Bottom line to me? These "clashes of civilizations" have been going on since the first two groups of humans moved within spittin' distance of each other. Their will always be groups pushing their agendas - we will just have to learn how to effectively push back.