Take Action against illegal alien solicitation: We can convince 7-Eleven to do the right thing in Lewisville

(Feel free to skip straight to the action plan.)
Dick Cheney has been making the news lately because he's not afraid to talk about the things that so many Americans are concerned about. He's no longer an elected official, but it's important to him that American citizens are aware of decisions made by the current administration that, in his opinion, make our country less safe. He seems to be the leader of what some call a shadow government, and I think the administration will think twice about making some decisions because they know Cheney will call them out on those decisions.

I was highly entertained, and at the same time honored, when I read a recent email from a Lewisville voter who asked if she could refer to me as Lewisville's Shadow Mayor. "It's better than telling my friends that I want them to meet Winston, the guy that just ran for mayor," she explained. That's fine. She can call me the Shadow Mayor if she wants to.
**UPDATE** I got an email less than 30 minutes after I put this article online asking if there really was such a thing as a shadow mayor, and if not, I must be very arrogant, and why would I compare myself to Cheney, a war criminal? Wow. I was just sharing something that a citizen said to me that I thought was funny. There is no such thing as a shadow mayor. And Dick Cheney is not a war criminal. **/end UPDATE**

So does the Shadow Mayor have any power? What can a Shadow Mayor accomplish? I'm a proud Lewisville citizen. With your help, what can't we accomplish? Who knows when the Lewisville city attorney, Ron Neiman, will see the light and start giving some of the legal solutions that are available to the city a thumbs up. Are we going to sit around and wait? The city council members all live here in Lewisville. They see what our illegal alien problem is doing to the city. I have to believe that at least a few of them want to step up and do the right thing by taking this tough issue head on. It's not easy to step out of the comfort of the majority and the status quo, believe me, I know. Maybe I'm too optimistic, but I feel that it's only a matter of time before somebody on the council takes that courageous first step, and I'm hopeful that it will happen sooner rather than later. When it does happen, please join me in expressing how appreciative and grateful we are as a community for his willingness to be the first elected official to show us that "he gets it", and that he's ready to work.

In the meantime, we're going to have to be the shadow government and take responsibility for our community. I'm ready to take on all the illegal alien solicitation that I see around town. How about you? 7-Eleven, a company that prides itself in being a good neighbor and corporate citizen, allows illegal aliens to solicit themselves at the Mill St. location. We have a great opportunity to solve this problem because they are already on Step 4 of the legal & non controversial 5 Step Solution that I proposed during the campaign. (Since we're in action mode, maybe we should also email the city and ask why they oppose enforcing our zoning regulations at Huffines Plaza.) As you can see in the image at the top of this page, 7-Eleven already has a no trespassing sign posted. The store manager or clerk simply needs to call the police anytime anybody is in violation. Soliciting yourself all day in the parking lot is trespassing. Once they make the call, our police, who already patrol the area, will come out and make them leave. It won't take long for these law breakers to realize that they're no longer welcome, and repeat violators could be prosecuted. According to Amin, the manager at 7-Eleven, he was told by his corporate office not to call the police. Ignore the illegal activity happening right outside their doors? That doesn't sound like something a good neighbor and corporate citizen would encourage, does it?

Try this perspective:
How would you like it if some strangers rolled into town and setup a makeshift auto mechanic shop in the front yard of your neighbor's house? They're doing oil changes right there in the grass, they have spare parts all over the yard and they're making all kinds of noise. You wouldn't appreciate your neighbor if he said, "I don't really want them here, but I hate drama and conflict. Plus I've been selling them Cream Sodas when they get thirsty." What if you took it to the city council and they responded by shrugging their shoulders and saying, "We understand that your community is being negatively impacted, but they're doing it on private property. Our hands are tied." You're at your wits end and you want answers, so you send an email to our city attorney Ron Neiman. He responds with a very courteous email and amongst all the legal jargon, you find his legal analysis which says, "Although the mechanic shop, hereby referred to as SHOP, that operates in the front lawn of your neighbor's house, hereby referred to as SHOP GROUNDS, is a clear violation of our zoning policy, it would not be prudent for the city to take action against SHOP or SHOP GROUNDS. Either or both parties may dislike our decision to enforce our laws and file a lawsuit. This would be an unacceptable outcome and I'm not willing to take that risk."
While this scenario seems pretty outlandish, there is no legal difference between that and the situation at Huffines Plaza and 7-Eleven that we've been forced to live with for so many years.

Like I said, until our elected leaders get it together, we're going to have to take care of this situation as a community. Here is the Shadow Government Action Plan:

1) Call Amin, manager of the Mill Street 7-Eleven, at 972-221-1333. Tell him, or whoever is on duty, that you're a legal citizen of Lewisville and you want that store to live up to 7-Eleven's pledge of being a responsible partner in the community. That means when they see illegal solicitation, or blatant loitering on 7-Eleven premises, which is a violation of their policy according to the posted sign, it is their responsibility to call the non emergency line for the Lewisville police at 972-219-3600 and report it. If they continue to be irresponsible, you will not do business with any 7-Eleven, and you'll encourage your friends and neighbors to boycott them as well.

2) Next, make a quick call to the 7-Eleven customer support line at 800-255-0711 and report store #25268 for supporting and encouraging illegal solicitation in the parking lot by providing a picnic bench and ignoring their responsibility to report the illegal activities that are taking place on 7-Eleven property.

3) Email Dan Eakin with the Lewisville Leader and Bob Weir with the Lewisville News and let them know that you're not going to stand for blatant illegal activity in our community any longer. Let them know what you're doing and why. Tell them what you think about the stance that our city attorney and elected officials have taken on this issue.

4) Email or call our elected leaders and tell them that you resent having to do their jobs for them. Please remember that some of those guys know it's the right thing to do. I think they're close to crossing the chasm and coming over to our side. Let's not change their minds or turn them off by being rude or vulgar. They need to understand that we've had it with their inaction, but that all will be forgiven as soon as they decide to truly represent us. We need to be talking to the city attorney, the mayor, and the city council members. In my opinion, we have one hell of a city manager in Claude King. He really is a sharp guy and I believe that if the decision was entirely up to him, he would side with the citizens and help us take care of this mess.

5) Vote for John Gorena in the city council place 4 runoff election. He's the right man for the job. When it comes to doing the right thing because it's the right thing, his opponent lacks the courage to make that commitment. John Gorena understands that, while we don't need to go looking for any lawsuits, choosing not to do what is right out of fear of being slapped with a frivolous lawsuit is precisely the formula that put us in the situation we're in today. John Gorena will not waiver. Early voting is JUNE 1-5, 8, 9 and Election Day is JUNE 13, 2009.

6) Email this page to your friends and neighbors and encourage them to take these steps.

This action plan will take only a few minutes. Please don't put it off. Make these calls right now. If you used to live in Lewisville but you don't anymore, you still have a stake. No matter where you are, Lewisville is still a part of you. Please help us and make these calls. It's okay if you prefer to do these things anonymously, but if you feel like telling the world that you believe that Lewisville is worth fighting for, send me an email, or leave a comment below. By the way, just in case you didn't know, you are already making a difference in our city government. Things are changing, policies and opinions are shifting, the themes and values we focused on during the campaign are starting to creep into city hall, and if you pay attention, some of the key phrases we used throughout the campaign are now on the tips of the tongues of some of the great people that work at city hall. I love it. At the end of the day, we're all on the same team because we all want this city to thrive. With your help, we'll continue to encourage our elected leaders to get off the bench and get off the sidelines and join us on the field.