From a reader:

Mr. Goldberg,

One difference between the early immigrants and the current illegals, of

course, is the lawbreaking.

The referenced article dismisses the legality issue: “Until 1918, the

United States did not require passports; the term “illegal immigrant”

had no meaning…. The Mexico-United States border then was unguarded

and freely crossed in either direction. “

Well, alrighty then. It was A-OK in 1918.

But right now we have different laws in place, and a large wave of

immigrants who choose to ignore US law and evade the US government.

This differs substantially from those who observed the existing laws,

and intended to join our nation and integrate into our culture.