Re: Stripper Comments
Bob Morehead (rmorehead@NLS.NET)
Thu, 27 Aug 1998 09:48:15 -0400
Fellow Scouters,
Two unfortunate things have occurred in this thread, one of which I sort
of expected and the other of which was a total surprise.
The one I sort of expected was the religious tangent into which it shot.
Let me stress that when I started this, I had a generic, non-sectarian
values/morals slant in mind and I rather wish it had stayed there. I
said "duh!" under my "duty to God" argument with the understanding that
in my comparative religious studies, all the faiths encountered taught
against lust and the degradation of the person.
The one that surprised me was the number of people who disagreed that a
stripper shouldn't be a cubmaster. I've read and re-read the comments
and honestly can't figure out where these people are coming from. No
matter which way I twist this to look at it, a stripper is an unfit role
model for children, particularly our youngest! For those who say the
kids won't know, get real! I guarantee the kids know more about you
that you think they do!
One of my pet peeves from a debating standpoint is the way the
non-religious will toss the "judge not" verses (there are more than one)
into my face whenever I disapprove of something. To counter that, I'll
paste a comment I've sent to a couple of my Scouts-L correspondents
off-line. Copying it here will save me some typing.
<Quote> What we need to be careful of is the modern "politically
correct" tendency to regard any sort of moral outrage as an affront on
the rights of the person committing the outrage. While it is true that
we must not judge people (that duty belongs to God alone), we are under
an OBLIGATION to judge actions. It's like the parent who tells a
naughty child "I love you, but not what you did." Look at it this way:
Fifty years ago, adultery was wrong. Now most of the country can't
figure out why we should care what Bill Clinton did with Monica. Thirty
years ago, homosexuality was considered deviant. Now, it's "just another
way to love." Two years ago, I read a newspaper article where a
research psychologist was saying that pedophilia was a genuine sexual
orientation and we should understand that child molesters were simply
born that way. The psychologist stopped short of condoning the
behavior, but can you guess where this is headed? My point is that if we
don't allow ourselves to judge behavior, where can we draw the line?
When is enough enough? The only difference between legal and illegal
professions in my context is the pen of the lawmakers. Their
"wrongness" is not diminished by the lack of a statute. People living
immoral lifestyles (differentiated from the people who commit the
isolated immoral act) mustn't be Scouters. When they remove themselves
from that situation, Scouting will be here, but not before. And again,
let me be clear. I am judging the behavior and the lifestyle, not the
person. </Quote>
Somebody answer me, please. When will we be allowed to say "this far
and no farther!" ? I'm not out to pass laws to make stripping illegal.
Unlike my fellow conservatives, I'm realistic enough to realize
legislating morality is foolish. But we have a right and an obligation
to protect our youth members from influences such as these. Kevin Pate
said it in an unrelated post today: "Our actions speak louder than our
words." Understanding that it's delusional to believe the boys wouldn't
know what she does for a living, what do this woman's occupational
actions speak to her pack?
YIS,
Bob Morehead
ASM, Troop 381
Copley, Ohio
Terry Howerton Sakima Group, Inc. SCOUTER Magazine Kansas City |
