Forgive me for posting this as a diary, but I don’t see an appropriate open thread for it.

Many are familiar with the tactics of the social-engineering shakedown artists. Jesse Jackson, among others, has made a career of it. There are numerous examples of lawsuits brought before sympathetic courts to force a bending of wills to Progressive agendas. We see it most often in the public arena, but when it happens in the private sector, the outcome is particularly despicable.

I offer for your consideration the eHarmony shakedown by a homosexual activist. I won’t cover the details; Michele Malkin does it far better.

When Conservatives bring up their opposition to issues related to homosexuality, we are quickly accused of forcing our views on others. That accusation never seems to apply in the other direction. In this instance, how can a rational person argue that the lawsuit is nothing less than imposing one’s view on another?

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When I saw this, I was reminded of an incident in my childhood. I was about five years old, and my Dad (a Combat Infantry veteran of the Pacific campaign in WWII) was a member of the local Civil Defense unit. It must have been during the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Dad and his peers had gathered at the church to watch a training film on the nuclear threat and the response to it should an attack occur. Even the seriousness of the subject did not prevent my Dad from taking me with him, I went with him everywhere (even to work as he drove a gas tanker on local runs).

I still remember the scenes from that film today (although much is stock footage that has been shown over and over since), but mostly I remember the experience. I don’t recall being particularly frightened by it, I was too young to know enough about it to be scared. But I do remember the faces and demeanor of the adults, and the effect the training had on them. To say the least, there was a seriousness of purpose about them.

Viewing the teaser about 33 Minutes, coupled with this video, puts me in a different frame of mind than the one I had in 1961. I am old enough now, and have seen enough of our enemies in various parts of the world - up close and personal- to know enough to be scared. And I am not ashamed to say it.

By ‘we’, I mean the collective populace of the country. The term ‘collective’ has a certain irony as we become a more socialistic nation, by the way, but I digress. The germ of this thought came about from two of my readings this morning concerning the issue of the potential Detroit bailout. The first was the transcript of the Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) appearance on CNN Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer (Rep Charles Rangel (D-NY) was on as well.).

Part 1:
Part 2:

The second was an article at NRO by Michael Barone.

The US automakers have allowed union demands to price them out of the market. Now we see the results of this blackmail. A free market that will allow a business to reach the heights of success must also allow it to fail. To do otherwise negates the concept of a free market and will ensure mediocrity. If the automakers fail and go into bankruptcy, so be it. Actions have consequences. GM, Ford, and Chrysler; the unions and their members, shareholders, enablers in government – all bear responsibility. Creative destruction demands that efficient entities will arise from the failed remnants. First, we must allow failure.

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