" ... our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor."

Well, the party is just about over. Since WWII, most of us Americans have enjoyed a free and fun ride. I say most because some Americans got sent to Viet Nam against their will. But overall, we have been playing in the sandbox called America with minimal cost for a long, long time.

I fear the hammer is about to come down on us. Life as we have known it is changing, and changing rapidly. Right now, most of us are still unaffected by all of the backroom maneuverings of the current administration. Most of us have yet to grasp the real meaning behind the Fannie Mae/FreddieMac, TARP and Chrysler debacles. We only see the billions of dollars being poured into failing institutions. We don't yet see the real meaning behind these moves. A nationalization of American industry is occuring right under our noses. Our president fired GM's CEO. How can this even happen in America?

And soon, unless a miracle occurs, we will be saddled by socialized medicine, the scourge of countless other countries. Are we sleepwalking into oblivion? Have we chosen the path of least resistance? Indeed, our puny, reckless leaders are dwarfed by the giants of generations past.

Yep, as "Dandy" Don Meredith used to croon at the end of lopsided Monday Night Football games, "Turn out the lights, the party's over ..."

How long will it be before we realize that to right this errant ship of state may cost us " ... our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor?"