Were our ansestors Illegal Aliens?

[I borrowed (without permission) the above comic from drybones.blogspot.com Click on picture and it will bring you to the drybones blog site. There is another Thanksgiving comic there as well.]

Were some of our ancestors Illegal Aliens?

Previous posts of mine related to Illegal Aliens:
Economic Issues and Illegal Immigration

The 2nd Worst Argument used in the Illegal Immigration Discussion

I would be more impressed with the whole Turkey Pardon thing if the President had ToFu for Thanksgiving

(Photo does not necessarily show the same turkey which was Pardoned).

Economic Issues related to Illegal Immigration

Economic Issues related to Illegal Immigration:

Interesting article published by the Council on Foreign Relations:
Immigration Nation

My own stance on illegal immigration is still being formed. It changes from day to day as I read and think about more information.

How much do immigrants contribute to production?
Do they take jobs away from people born in the United States?
Do we lack enough labor to do the needed jobs without Illegal immigrants?
Does the strain on public services cost more than the benifits?
How much illegal immigration can we afford?
Other economic issues and questions related to the subject?

Right now I am just attempting to separate the economic discussion from the moral discussion.

I believe it is economics, not religion or other moral values, which shapes how most people feel about immigration. I believe some of it is even selfish (not necessarily wrong).

"What is it about the word Illegal you do not understand"

“What is it about the word Illegal you do not understand”.
“Illegal is Illegal period”.

This argument has been floating around for a long time, and I have often heard it when discussing the subject of illegal immigrants. Usually it is accompanied by statements similar to this:
“What good are any laws if you do not enforce them?”
“Throw open the gate to the jails and prisons let them all out.”
“What next, allow murder, rape”.

The purpose of this post, is to begin a discussion about the validity (or lack of validity) of the above argument as it relates to illegal immigration. I am not attempting to discuss the economic issues related to illegal immigration.

For those who would believe that the above arguments are valid, when discussing illegal immigration, I ask the following questions:

1) Are all laws equal?
2) Is there ever (or has there ever been) a situation where it is o.k. to break the law?
3) Were the Pilgrims illegal aliens? What about other European colonies in the Americas in the 17th and 18th centuries?
4) If you believe in God, how do you think God wants you to treat illegal aliens.

If anyone answers, or indicates an interest, I will make my arguments.
(I actually made a stab at this in another discussion after someone accused me of not understanding what "Illegal" means. However the blog owner wished to return the discussion back to answering a more specific question, as was her right to do so).