The Boy Scouts Exodus Has Begun

[Mathew]

Bigots who are butthurt over BSA's recent decision to allow gay youth membership are pulling their kids out, according to this article.

//http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/05/31/18633729-after-vote-allowing-gay-kids-to-become-boy-scouts-some-families-call-it-quits?lite

And it's truly revolting. These parents would pull their children out of an organization that they love all because they just can't have them mingling with icky gays. Notice that one of the parents interviewed in the article didn't even explain to his son exactly why he was pulling him out (some vague statement about BSA "going against God"). He just can't have his son mingling with, or even knowing about, gay people at all costs. It reminds me of how I read about white parents pulling their kids out of schools that were being integrated and enrolling them in all-white private schools.

Whatever. Let them leave. BSA would benefit from having fewer bigots, anyway.

[Dreamer]

"Homosexuality is a sin" is not a sentiment expressed in the Bible and certainly not a sentiment held by Jesus, who Christians claim to follow.

[stromboli]

As one with some experience with scouting, I can promise you the world will not cease to exist if scouting withers and dies.

[Colanth]

"Homosexuality is a sin" is not a sentiment expressed in the Bible

Homosexuality isn't even mentioned in the Bible.  Men having sex with men is, but that's not what homosexuality is.  (The vote wasn't whether to allow scouts to have sex with other scouts.)

and certainly not a sentiment held by Jesus, who Christians claim to follow.

They may claim to, but they actually follow Christianity, which has almost nothing to do with an itinerant preacher who was supposed to have been alive in the early first century.  (Paul's Yeshua wasn't a man.)

I like how little adults who are involved in scouting actually know about scouting.  The quote in the article about "On my honor" isn't the Boy Scout law he claims they're violating, it's the oath.  (And nothing in it bars gay scouts.)  The law, "A Scout is: Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean and Reverent" has nothing to do with sexual orientation, but allowing gay scouts in is certainly friendly, and following the dictates of the national organization is obedient.

I think scouting will be better off without the bigots.  Maybe they'll form a "Non-Gay Boy Scouts of America" organization, so everyone will know them for who they are.  And they can make their uniforms out of sheets.

[rickcopeland648]

Don't they have some bit like "to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight"?

[Colanth]

Yeah, and "morally straight" and "be a bigot" are about as much polar opposites as can be.

"Mentally awake" is kind of difficult when you're using both neurons to figure out who your neighbor is sleeping with.

[stromboli]

Scouting in its essence is a good idea. Unfortunately religious groups early on saw it as a method of manipulating young men to their ends. And there is a definite connection between the scouts and the military. Get them in uniform and liking the idea at an early age is a conditioning tool. And for the Mormon church it is another way to get converts. Blow the whole thing up as far as I'm concerned.

[Johan]

Here is what I want to ask these people. Are you pulling your child out because of the policy change itself or because you don't want to child to be around other children who might be gay?

If its the former and your kid isn't gay (and therefore isn't really affected at all) then why do you care?
If its the later, then why did you put your kids in scouts in the first place? Because if you honestly think for a moment that there was ever a single solitary gay kid who said 'gee willikers I'd really like to be a scout, but they don't allow gay kids so I'll just have to not join oh well' then you are truly to dumb to live and most certainly too dumb to be a parent.

[stromboli]

Here is what I want to ask these people. Are you pulling your child out because of the policy change itself or because you don't want to child to be around other children who might be gay?

If its the former and your kid isn't gay (and therefore isn't really affected at all) then why do you care?
If its the later, then why did you put your kids in scouts in the first place? Because if you honestly think for a moment that there was ever a single solitary gay kid who said 'gee willikers I'd really like to be a scout, but they don't allow gay kids so I'll just have to not join oh well' then you are truly to dumb to live and most certainly too dumb to be a parent.

Religious people don't do research on whether Gayness is natural or a learned lifestyle. They assume that Gayness is catching, like influenza. Little boys hanging out will start to blow each other on camp outs. The other thing is the age group. The idea of boys that age having a sexual identity is frightening.

[Johan]

Religious people don't do research on whether Gayness is natural or a learned lifestyle. They assume that Gayness is catching, like influenza. Little boys hanging out will start to blow each other on camp outs. The other thing is the age group. The idea of boys that age having a sexual identity is frightening.

Right. Which leads back to what asked. Did these people honestly think there were not ALREADY gay kids in scouts? Did they honestly think the no gays policy actually stopped anyone who was gay? Are these people proud to admit that they really are that effing stupid?

[the_antithesis]

Notice that one of the parents interviewed in the article didn't even explain to his son exactly why he was pulling him out (some vague statement about BSA "going against God").

That's piss easy to do. All you need is an iron chariot.

[kilodelta]

Religious people don't do research on whether Gayness is natural or a learned lifestyle. They assume that Gayness is catching, like influenza. Little boys hanging out will start to blow each other on camp outs. The other thing is the age group. The idea of boys that age having a sexual identity is frightening.

Right. Which leads back to what asked. Did these people honestly think there were not ALREADY gay kids in scouts? Did they honestly think the no gays policy actually stopped anyone who was gay? Are these people proud to admit that they really are that effing stupid?

I'm involved with Scouting. I honestly can't tell if any of the boys are gay or not.

Also, no one has left our Troop.

[Colanth]

Are these people proud to admit that they really are that effing stupid?

Many, many of them are.  The less they know, the more proud of their ignorance they are.  They "know" that the Bible is literally true, and that's all they need to know.

[stromboli]

Religious people don't do research on whether Gayness is natural or a learned lifestyle. They assume that Gayness is catching, like influenza. Little boys hanging out will start to blow each other on camp outs. The other thing is the age group. The idea of boys that age having a sexual identity is frightening.

Right. Which leads back to what asked. Did these people honestly think there were not ALREADY gay kids in scouts? Did they honestly think the no gays policy actually stopped anyone who was gay? Are these people proud to admit that they really are that effing stupid?

Denial is not just a river in Africa.

[FrankDK]

> Homosexuality isn't even mentioned in the Bible. Men having sex with men is, but that's not what homosexuality is.

So with whom do homosexual men have sex?  Homosexual women?

I think you are either very confused about what homosexuality is, or you are trying to split hairs.

Homosexual acts are certainly condemned in the Bible.  Read Leviticus.

Frank