gblotter

But do you use labels like “discriminatory” and “exclusionary” and “on the wrong side of history” to describe organizations that focus on the needs of girls? Or is that name calling reserved only for those serving boys?

You are correct that this issue crosses liberals and conservatives.

You are correct that this issue crosses liberals and conservatives. My main point should have been emphasized that the door swings only one way (against boys). This comes at a time when boys are clearly the group failing in our society and nobody cares. Nobody. Silence. Crickets. Any expression of support for boys and their unique needs is tagged with labels of sexism, chauvinism, and patriarchy. The fact that BSA is now abandoning its mission for boys under the banner of inclusion saddens me beyond belief.

Expressions like yours only reaffirm that those of us who disagree with the co-ed Scouting decision longer have a home in BSA. By your statement, I guess you believe that GSUSA (who excludes boys) is an organization composed of sexists and bigots who are on the wrong side of history too, right? Oh yeah - I forgot that your liberal door only swings one way (against boys).

Speaking only for this forum member, I will be long gone by 2024. Many will be exiting Scouting over these issues. The ones who choose to remain in Scouting are by definition the same ones who agree (or perhaps disagree less) with these decisions.

Stuff in our storage closet that gets used a lot: Flags, merit badge books, first aid equipment, ropes/poles for lashings. Stuff in our storage closet that never gets used: Mishmash of camping equipment that was mostly discarded from Scouting families who didn't want/need the stuff. For our troop campouts, everyone brings their own tents, stoves, etc from home. I like that solution because the Scouts are then motivated to take care of it. Troop camping equipment generally gets thrashed.

I'm curious to know how your 11-14 year old girls will feel about attending a co-ed summer camp with boy troops (because co-ed BSA summer camps will be the reality). Speaking only for our 11-14 year old boys, the idea of co-ed summer camp is anathema to them. They would rather skip summer camp altogether and do our own wilderness camp instead.

I agree 100 percent. Instead of Swimming OR Cycling OR Hiking, I would like to see Swimming AND Cycling AND Hiking be Eagle required MBs. Wilderness Survival should be Eagle required, too. Drop a number of the bookish badges like Personal Management and Communications, and it seems that one Citizenship merit badge should suffice.

I get it. I know other dedicated Scouters who willingly sacrifice unbelievable hours for the good of Scouting (i.e. they lead training weekends, they staff Camporee events, they mentor OA Lodges, they renovate dilapidated camp properties). I confess that my Scoutmaster motivations are more selfish (I want to facilitate a great Scouting experience for my son). When my son was unable to attend our troop campout last weekend, I wanted to transfer my duties to other adults/dads (but I ended up going anyway). I guess that makes me a "conditional Scouter" of a different variety. If you are asking yourself the question, you probably already know the answer.

I will not dispute your experience, but that has not been the experience for my son. My son definitely drank the Eagle KoolAid, and he will be the first to tell you that achieving the rank of Eagle Scout has been the highlight of his life so far. But in no way has advancement wrecked his Scouting experience. Yes - he has earned 57 merit badges, but he also has 50+ nights of camping and 150+ miles of hiking beneath his feet. Who says Eagle and adventure need to be mutually exclusive?

I am the Scoutmaster of my son's troop, so Scouting time has been mostly family time. Many of us understand how consuming Scouting can become. I completely detached from my Scoutmaster persona during a recent two-week family vacation. It gave me a pleasant vision into what my life will be like after the LDS exit on 12/31/19. There is indeed life after Scouting.

Because of recent BSA decisions and because of the recent LDS exit announcement, I feel I can be more effective and do more good working with the youth program of my church (and, yes - sidestep the crap).

No. Scouting has walked away from me, and I'm not chasing it down. I'm ready to be done after the LDS exit on 12/31/19. The only way I would say yes is if my daughter was doing the asking.

Or church.

The fight is over with BSA, but it is not lost. My efforts will continue full force with our church youth program that is well-equipped in the realm of developing boys into responsible men, capable providers, strong fathers, and loyal husbands. In that environment, one may still assert that men and women are actually different, with each filling essential and complementary roles in life (how outrageous is that?).

Let me know how that goes for you. Consider those on this relatively tame forum who dare to decry girls entering BSA (unScoutlike is the kindest of those characterizations). Are you ready to be assailed as sexist, chauvinistic, and patriarchal? You had better check your male privilege at the door. The only reason that article could be published at all is because the author is female.

Thanks, @Eagledad. I stumbled on this article before you posted the link on this forum. I cried when reading it because truly we are losing our boys and nobody cares. Not even BSA cares anymore. My son faces this on a daily basis in a school environment dominated by female teachers and female administrators. He is graded according to female methods of learning and disciplined according to female standards of behavior. Scouting has been his refuge - a safe space for boys to just be boys. That is now sacrificed on the altar of inclusiveness. With troops of 12-13 year-old boys and 12-13 year-old girls in the same summer camp environment, tell me which will be called out for being disruptive and distracting, and which will be praised for being focused and attentive? There is no going back. So our boys will retreat to their last remaining dominions: sports teams for those who are athletically inclined, and the dropout society of the video game culture for the rest. Sad beyond belief. This social petri dish is putrid.

All Scouting is local, and none of these decisions need change the experience for any of our Scouts ... unless they attend a summer camp, or a merit badge university, or a Camporee, or a Cub Scout Day Camp, or an OA Induction, or NYLT, or any other event sponsored at the District, Council, or National level. So the proposed solution is to draw inward, focus on the troop (la la la la la - I can't hear you Surbaugh), and insulate ourselves with as little involvement as possible with the larger Scouting world around us. What a sad commentary on the organization formerly known as the Boy Scouts.

Scouting is not co-ed. (1) (1) Unless you attend a summer camp, or a merit badge university, or a Camporee, or a Cub Scout Day Camp, or an OA Induction, or NYLT, or any other event sponsored at the District, Council, or National level.

Probably not technically correct per regulations, but who cares?

Simplest answer is usually the correct one: If BSA gave a different name to the girl program, that would be creating an avoidable hurdle to going full co-ed in the not-distant future.

We created a custom troop number patch that was distributed to all boys and adults at a court of honor. It is a nice patch, but only about half the boys wear them on their uniforms. I suspect many were lost. These custom troop numbers are available for order at patchtown.com

Any youth program (Scouting or otherwise) will reflect the dedication of the leaders who act as "fishers of men". You'll always find some who are extremely committed, and you'll always find others who just "wing it". I know of some stellar LDS troops, and I'm sure there will be wards who implement the new youth program in stellar fashion. I also know of some pathetic LDS troops, and I'm sure there will be wards who implement the new youth program in pathetic fashion. But overall, I am hopeful that the new youth program will meet the needs and fill the voids where Scouting came up short. Even in wards with great Scouting programs, there were inevitably some who did not get caught in the net.

For our LDS troop of 30 Scouts, I know of only two boys who are considering joining a non-LDS unit in 2020. Less than 10 percent - I think you will see that as a common statistic.

Yes. I am the Scoutmaster.