It had been a few years since my wife and I had watched the classic film, “The Sound of Music.” With Christmas approaching, we decided to snuggle up on the sofa Sunday night and bask in the beautiful music, dramatic scenery, and heartwarming story guaranteed to bring a tear to the eye of even the crustiest curmudgeon.

If you are among the culturally deprived souls who don’t know the film, it is worth a look.  Overlaying all the song, natural beauty, and romance hovers the specter of the Nazis taking over Austria, where the heroic family of the film, the von Trapps, live in a beautiful estate, singing with their perfect governess played by Julie Andrews.

By way of background, the film’s story takes place during the Second World War, which many of today’s youth may never have heard of.  In sum, it was a horrible period of history in the early 1940s, with the German Nazis (led by the nastiest Nazi, Adolph Hitler) taking over most of Europe and murdering millions of innocent people.

The greatest tension in the film comes when the von Trapp family makes a daring escape from the Nazis who would destroy their music, culture, nation – and lives. Obviously (and this isn’t really a spoiler) they get away – because the movie is based on the book by Marie von Trapp. (That was the Julie Andrews role.)

Still, the tension is severe, and the viewer feels great relief when the family makes it to freedom. They eventually built a new life in the United States, where subsequent descendants have performed as the Von Trapp Family Singers (yes, I have seen them perform).

I’ve watched “The Sound of Music” several times.  In the past whatever fear I felt during the viewing was the result of the dramatic tension of the Nazis chasing the von Trapps. This time, I felt a different uneasiness.

As the film progresses, the fear builds in the von Trapp family that it is only a matter of time until the Nazis come knocking on their door demanding their money and property – and perhaps their lives.

This made me uneasy because in the past couple years I have been thinking it is only a matter of time until I get a knock on my door from today’s Nazis. 

Who are these Nazis?

They are government officials who want to control my life at every level, from what car I drive, to how much money I can withdraw from my bank account, to how much water my toilet uses, to the exorbitant taxes I pay for little in return.

These control freaks want kids to learn about critical race theory and diversity, equity, and inclusion – but not reading, writing, arithmetic, or American history.

I figure that sooner or later the FBI, CIA, Homeland Security, or Secret Service will break down my front door and accuse me of owning a gun, sending my kids to Catholic school, disagreeing with my local school board, or failing to license my pet bird.

For the most part, the people I fear will coming knocking are Democrats, who speak and act lots like the Nazis did 70 years ago.

Democrats were once a party of sane people who loved their country. But that was many years ago.

Today, they are the Nazis who are coming for you and me.