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In the last few months, the topic of illegal immigration has been a big issue with lawmakers and the people in Congress. Generally speaking, illegal immigrants are just people trying to better their lives. They are fleeing oppression, chronic unemployment, poverty and little or no opportunities in their homelands. However, in the process, they face some tough issues regarding immigration and the rule of law.

Statistics from the Pew Hispanic Center show that 56% of illegal immigrants in the U.S. come north from Mexico in order to supply thousands of U.S. employers and farmers with low-skilled laborers.

Pros Of Illegal Immigration:

1. It helps keep the economy moving by filling low-wage jobs.
2. It provides a better lifestyle for those who enter the country illegally.
3. It creates a pool of consumers for a variety of goods and services.
4. Farmers are able to plant and harvest less expensively.
5. Contributions to social security funds often go unclaimed.
6. Illegal immigrants pay sales taxes.
7. Illegal residents, who are property owners, also pay real estate taxes.
8. Millions of illegals rent properties in depressed areas where renters are hard to find.
9. They purchase real estate and generate commissions for agents and brokers.
10. Illegal immigrants contribute to mortgage loan profits.
11. They open bank accounts that yield interest and dividends to bankers.
12. Many purchase auto insurance and contribute to insurers profits margins.

Cons Of Illegal Immigration:

1. Burden on tax-based resources, costing taxpayers billions of dollars.
2. Difficult prosecution and justice when perpetrators flee the country.
3. Disparity between legal immigrants who follow the rules and those who don't.
4. They risk death when traveling the desert to reach the borders.
5. Those who successfully cross the border inspire those left behind to do the same.
6. Continued growth of the demand for cheap labor and low wages.
7. No government reimbursement to offset states' illegal alien maintenance costs.
8. Potential negative effects on working and middle-class citizens.
9. Millions of U.S. dollars remitted to Mexico
10. Mortgage loan fraud
11. Fake document mills
12. Imbalance in authorized immigration quotas

We live in very difficult times. Americans and people from other countries are feeling the pains pressures caused by unemployment, homelessness, poverty, hopelessness, lack of education, low-paying jobs, stress and hunger. Should people from south of the border be blamed and criminalized in the courts of public opinion for trying to have a better life?

If we looked at the United States of America as a man who went for a long walk and left his garage door open with his wallet, cell phone and briefcase in it.

Another man, destitute of money and down on his luck, walks by and notices the garage was open and unattended. He has a family to feed and has been unemployed for several months. He notices that wallet, the cell phone and the briefcase on the floor. He enters the garage, without permission and takes the wallet, the cell phone and the briefcase and disappears into the city. When the other man comes back from his walk, he find out that he's been robbed.

Who is at fault? The man who left his garage door open or the unemployed man? Both? Is one man a thief by entering the garage without permission and is the homeowner a fool for leaving it open and unattended?

If we look at the law as it is today, the man who left his garage door open could be called "negligent" or "careless" for not protecting his own personal property. But he couldn't be charged with a crime. On the other hand, the man who invaded his garage and walked away with his possessions, when caught, is punishable by the law and considered a "thief".

Therefore, leaving the garage door open does not automatically grant a license for someone who's uninvited to come in and help himself to whatever values may be in there. Similarly, illegal immigration may solve the problems of many who are here just to work or improve their lives, but at the end of the day, illegal entry is still just that, "illegal."

The punishment, however, should be metered out to befit the crime. One man should learn not to leave his garage door open if he values what he owns and the other man should learn that just because a garage door is left open, it's not a license to walk in and steal.

Illegal immigration is a complex issue but it is not an unsolvable problem. In my view, We'd be off to a good start if the government imposed hefty fines on employers who use illegal labor. The money collected should then be applied to implement efficient border security and law enforcement. As far as a fast track to U.S. citizenship, I think that is wrong unless all other immigrants who have been patiently waiting, inside and outside the United States, are granted the same privilege.

At the end of the day, everyone is just another person trying to do the best he or she can to have a better life. Compassion and justice intermix, which brings me to the thrust of this article: considering illegal immigration pros and cons, does the end justify the means for the person who knowingly enters the country illegally? Should compassion outweigh legal justice?

*** (C)2006. Rem Macson writes about a variety of topics. Rem is also the owner of MillionDollarDays.com, the software which makes it easy to promote all your RSS feeds and boost your Adsense income! For article promotion, Rem also manages blogtelecast.com, a growing article depository from over 1,500 authors.***