I have seen and heard a lot of conversation regarding the Boy Scouts voting to accept homosexuals as leaders and members. I have made no secret of my opposition to almost everything associated with homosexuality, or my stance that homosexual behavior is wrong.
With respect to the decision of the Boy Scouts, I feel to withhold my opposition. After careful consideration, I have found I have a difficult time opposing the inclusion of homosexuals within the ranks of the Boy Scouts of America. That's right, I think I am in favor of this.
Please do not misunderstand me, I am not changing my stance on the fact that homosexuality is wrong, nor am I renouncing the fact that those who encourage its practice or approve of altering marriage laws to include other groups are misguided. I view homosexuality as a corrupt practice. Its corrupt nature is precisely why it fits well with Boy Scouts.
I recall being involved in the Scouting program. I was the beneficiary of dedicated leaders who honestly worked to help young men develop skills and understand principles that are potentially important. At one point in the past, I had the ambition of becoming an Eagle Scout. Thanks to the support of parents and leaders, I was able to advance to the rank of First Class.
At this point, the nature of advancement changed. The requirements involved waiting for periods of time and earning numbers of merit badges, which was not the emphasis of prior ranks. At first, this concept was appealing. It seemed as though advancement had opened up, and there was choice involved in learning skills and principles tailored to personal interests. At this point, there was also an increased involvement in Scout Camps.
In these new environments that were less structured, I had the opportunity to meet a much larger group of scouts and leaders. Gone were the times of being trustworthy, loyal, helpful, or friendly. The scout motto "Be Prepared" seemed to have a universally understood and unspoken addendum of "to lie, cheat, and steal your way to merit badges." Merit badge "councilors" signed cards as though they were liberally handing out autographs. I would be remiss if I did not confess that some of the merit badges that I "earned" were obtained using the indulgence of such individuals rather than acquisition of skills and knowledge.
I had been shielded from the details of the costs associated with uniforms, badges, and participation, but as I became older, the existence of the "Friends of Scouting" movements that went around begging for additional money to fund camps that perpetuated everything corrupt in the scouting organization. A scout, I had been told, was supposed to be thrifty, but I discovered that the upper echelons of the organization had more greed than thrift.
As freely as camp councilors pardoned themselves from actually instructing young scouts in the skills and principles required for awards, they seemed compulsively obsessed with practicing strange ceremonies and rituals as though they had Native American heritage. Perhaps there were some that did have such heritage, but the majority of them did not.
I obtained the rank of "Star" scout before I determined that my time was better spent away from those that loved tight green scouting shorts. I was also gifted in that I did not have parents who were determined to measure their success by my scouting rank, or who were so determined that I obtain the Eagle Scout award that they performed the work on my behalf.
Though the LDS church has been a longtime ally of the scouting program, I confess that I have secretly (and sometimes not so secretly) wished that they would sever this relationship. Certainly the stance of Mormons, Catholics, and other Protestants on homosexuality has been a contributing factor in the Boy Scout organizations longtime policy of rejecting homosexual leadership. There have been several cases where this policy has been challenged in the past, and it seems to have been close enough that the LDS church's young men program (Duty to God) was revised to provide a scout-like path. Of course, the leadership was quick to say that this was not a replacement program for boy scouts, and that work towards an Eagle Scout award would fill much of the requirement for the Duty to God award, but the fact that the award represented a framework that could easily replace scouting was impossible to ignore.
As noble as the Scouting program's origins may have been, I am in favor of severing the connection to what has become a parasitic and corrupt group. Homosexuality may be the catalyst that allows religious organizations to treat BSA for the cancer it is.
