Oh this is just rich.

Certified letters have been sent to major businesses supporting No On 8, demanding that they make a matching donation to the Protect Marriage campaign or risk having their “opposition to traditional marriage” exposed.

ProtectMarriage.com, the umbrella group behind a ballot initiative that would overturn the California Supreme Court decision that legalized gay marriage, sent a certified letter this week asking companies to withdraw their support of Equality California, a nonprofit organization that is helping lead the campaign against Proposition 8.

“Make a donation of a like amount to ProtectMarriage.com which will help us correct this error,” reads the letter. “Were you to elect not to donate comparably, it would be a clear indication that you are in opposition to traditional marriage. … The names of any companies and organizations that choose not to donate in like manner to ProtectMarriage.com but have given to Equality California will be published.”

The letter was signed by four members of the group’s executive committee: campaign chairman Ron Prentice; Edward Dolejsi, executive director of the California Catholic Conference; Mark Jansson, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; and Andrew Pugno, the lawyer for ProtectMarriage.com. A donation form was attached. The letter did not say where the names would be published.

Some companies have already started receiving letters, and the people behind the Protect Marriage campaign have vouched for their authenticity.

Equality California executive director Geoffrey Kors responded to the letters, “It’s truly an outrageous attempt to extort people. They are going after our long-term funding and trying to intimidate Equality California donors from giving any more to the No on 8 campaign and from giving to Equality California ever again.”

Like I needed another reason to hate organized religion. That’s it. There go the gloves. Any concept of civil discourse is officially off the table. These people will not be truly happy until all of our rights are taken away and we are kept in cages.

I’m sorry to be a broken record here but please DONATE today! Anything you can. Please, talk to your friends and neighbors. Get them involved. We can and will win this thing. We have to.

Update (10/24/08): Here is a copy of the letter. (PDF reader required)

A note to my regular readers: It’s going to be a bumpy ride through Nov 4, so hold on tight!