LsStuff

Hey Brent you were asking about the swastika - Twice I believe and wanted a response, well here you go. In actuality the swastika was a ancient symbol used by many different faiths and cultures. usually it had meaning of the life cycle or the 4 elements , the native Americans used a circle with an x in it, and all were symbols of the cycles of life ect ... good things it was not until Adolf Hitler adopted the symbol and used it to represent the Nazi Party in Germany. What did the Nazi party represent but hatred and contempt for others who did not believe the way that the state sanctioned? So, it was ok to violent and hateful to others as long as you wore the swastika proudly. so if this is what you want to wear , I would ask you what is the meaning behind the symbol you want to wear? The purpose of the inclusive scouter award or for scouting for all is to show people- to show our youth that you are a safe person to talk to if you are confused or need guidance. That by talking to you they should not fear being kicked out of the BSA because of confiding in a leader that they are supposed to trust. Remember- a scout is trustworthy, loyal, kind ... As a side bar, remember that the young man murdered in Wyoming because he was gay, was murdered by 2 young men one an eagle scout, the other held a position in the priesthood in his church. So we can give our young men the tools through scouting to be better people but it is still up to them to make the right choices. How sad that a little diversity scares so many, when all this goes back to is a small knot to say - you can talk to me. (Edited for clarity) (This message has been edited by a staff member.)

Hey there wow a lot of controversy on the different forums here. it is interesting how many go off and have huge threads on off subject not what was asked. According to what i have read and asked about - Once you recieve your Eagle, it can not be taken away. I say this because there was a case in our council of a scout molesting other scouts. He was kicked out of scouting and Serving jail time, but the BSA can not take away his Eagle. Many Individuals who are gay and asked to leave or kicked out by the BSA hand in there Eagle as a sigh of protest. For what does the Eagle represent if we are kicking people out because of sexual orientation, especially when no inapropriate behavior has taken place? oh yes just being gay is inappropriate to some. The above named individual who molested other boys was not gay. if you want to read more on the subject of being gay and scouting policy from a non BSA standpoint go to the webpage SCOUTING FOR ALL. they can give you details ect on what has happened and what can happen to gay or athiest youth or leaders. Again I trulley wish that we would follow the example of England - the home of Lord Baden Powell - and not exclude boys for these reasons. Boys are too young to fully understand those choices. If there is inapropriate behavior -Yes definetly kick then - but just because people are different does not make them bad and you never know what they will take with them from the program

I would Gladly Wear This Knot! Actually I think the saying is to wear the Knot is to earn the knot. Kids need to know that there are people out there who will listen to them and who it can be safe to talk to. There are way too many people on the band wagon to 'kick em out!' I truley wish we would follow the example that England gives us, ( remember the home of Lord Baden Powell) and not kick kids out for such things as being Gay or Athiests. Youth are too young to fully understand God to be able to make the statement that they are Athiests and as far as being Gay, the question is about what is appropriate behavior? Staticticly speaking, it is not the Gay youth or leader that causes a ,molestation or an abuse situation. This is fact. I am sure if you do not want gays in scouting you wont aggree with this. But think about it, it is our church leaders, our family men who are hurting our youth. that is a very broad generalization I know. Being Gay does NOT mean being a pediphile! Two entirly different things! Inapropriate behavior is inapropriate behavior PERIOD. Many Leaders I know feel this way.... Many leaders I know like it the way it is...... This has only become an issue within the BSA in the last oh 20 years..... before that everyone was mostly in the closet.... Kids are too young to understand these choices fully and while some boys may be gay there is a trend in our country to have rebellion to ones parents by stating im gay or bisexual to create a situation that the parents will not appreciate. In addition to this our Teen Suicide rate is allarming one huge reason for this is that many teens who may be confused do not have anyone safe to speak with. The knot itself is suposed to state to somone 'I am a safe person to speak with' it does not state that you aggree or disagree with the scouts choice, it mearly states I am a safe person to speak with....... The really sad thing is that by wearing this knot that is a violation of BSA policy ( but hey wearing your Wood Badge Patrol Emblem your violating uniform policy), and by wearing the knot you may be opening your self up to being kicked out of the BSA just because you wore it. The BSA is a Privet Organization and can kick people out ( and have ) without due cause ect... It is my hope that one day we can accept all who want to be a part of the BSA untill then I am involved, and Glad that my son can be involved. But yes I truley hope that one day this will no longer be an issue.

Hi there a few things to address ( ok i am admitting now i am a terrible speller but you will understand what i am trying to say) When I first read this Post and saw a leader asking for help and the first response was "Sounds like you need to have a "Come to Jesus" meeting with this scouts parents" just really made me sad. There are way too many beliefs in this world to limit ourselfs to just one for scouting purposes. ok the BSA policy on Religon is as Lord Baden Powel Taught us, 'while religon is an important part of scouting it should be left up th that scouts parents and the religous institution of there choice.' Dont get me wrong I do follow Jesus but I also respect the rights of others to believe as they choose. I work in 'comunity Units' where we strive to be non-denominational. There is a shaddow over scouts and it depends on where you live what shaddow it is, where a general belief has become that BSA has become synonomous with Church Scouts Many of our Youth will miss out on Scouting and its benifits because of this. As a Webelos Leader I ask my parents to do the God requirement with the scout. actually it is very easy to have them do this for many reasons, i tell them it is a good way to prompt a discussion on beliefs with the boy! under the options in the Webelos Handbook it gives you several ways to have discussion, and the scout only need to complete 2 of them, and the charecter connection . one option is to discuss how your family religous beliefs fit in with the scout law? Most families i know will find a way to say that being trustworthy, loyal, kind ect is a good value to follow. another on eis to discuss with your religous leader ( parent) to do an act of service for somone else how did it make you feel. There they have MET the requirements Boys/ Youth are too young to make the decisions to be Athiest ect even if it is what the parents are teaching them. How many people grow up to go on to practice what they believe vs what the parents taught. I truley wish the BSA would adopt the Polices that the scouts in England follow in regards to such issues. That we will include all boys in our program and not exclude them.