A week or two ago, a reporter asked Candace Cameron Bure if the Great American Family cable network would feature same-sex couples in their Christmas movies.  Ms. Bure, naïve of the reporter's intent in asking that particular question, honestly replied, "I think GAF will keep traditional marriage at the core."

To me, her response made sense.  Like other TV networks, GAF is a business that attempts to appeal to a certain demographic.  I suppose I am part of that demographic.  I'm a heterosexual married male who, for myself, prefers a two-person heterosexual marriage to the various alternatives.  As a result, that is the type of marital relationship that I most relate to.  That doesn't mean I don't love and respect my gay friends and neighbors.  I make no judgments.  But, given my personal preferences and experiences, I would probably relate to a Christmas story that involves a man and woman rather than one where the relationship is less traditional.

MTV has never aired a documentary on Hank Williams.  BET has never aired a movie on a Jewish family's Hanukkah celebration.  ESPN has never shown a soap opera.  From these examples, we shouldn't infer that MTV executives think country music fans are evil or that BET is anti-Semitic or that ESPN thinks soap opera fans are degenerates.  They are just airing programs that they believe best appeal to their particular audiences.

To gain power, fame, or other sorts of egotistical pleasure for themselves, there is a tendency among immoral individuals to accuse the innocent of being evil.  Iago's insinuations of Desdemona's adultery in Shakespeare's Othello come to mind.  Putin justified his war against Ukrainians by claiming that the Ukraine was controlled by Nazis.  And, during the 1692 Salem witch trials, three young girls were celebrated as courageous and compassionate heroes for their insightful identification of those demonic witches secretly conducting evil in Salem.

Well, a petty actor named Neal Bledsoe yearns to be revered as such a hero.  Because of his supposed indignation, he has publicly accused the naïve Ms. Bure of evil bigotry.  In his well rehearsed statement, he claims that her use of the words "traditional marriage" proves her hateful intolerance and "is as odious as it is baffling."  Of course, as a well known and unabashed Christian, Candace is an ideal target for liberal hatred.

Sadly, Bledsoe achieved his selfish purpose.  By his public and unjustified denunciation of the naïve Candace, millions of entitled liberals undoubtedly perceive him as a courageous and compassionate hero for their cause.

Mark Bard, author of Obligated Conservatism: Striving for a Love Thy Neighbor Society,  is a lifelong conservative.  His email address is mabardpax@gmail.com.

Image: Gage Skidmore.