I've been lurking around this forum for a while now, but with all the rattle around this topic for a while now, I decided to join and offer my (rather controversial perhaps) opinion on it.
In fact, IMHO, GSUSA ship is sinking. The question is how fast, some people say 5 years, others 20... But I do believe that GSUSA, due to it's mismanagement and constant alienation of core (scouting) membership in favor of glorified daycare and arts-and-crafts club. Troops are collapsing left and right and those that do not are usually very exclusive and nigh impossible to get in. There are some isolated islands here and there that still try, but they are few and dwindling in number.
The question is, what will happen if (or rather when) GSUSA folds. Suddenly, it's vast resources, active and passive will be up for grabs. And here is, IMHO crux of the matter with BSA. BSA leadership is afraid that GSUSA potential successor will take too much out of their book, while also making the whole thing co-ed or so-called family friendly. With that, they will suddenly have much more powerful competitor that will likely start to cut into their own membership. And for that, they are instead trying to be themselves the one who will tap into the vast free resources that collapse will leave behind. But only way to effectively do that, is if their core is co-ed or if venturing is expanded to such high point, that it will essentially become the coed BSA scouting.
Also, I could be wrong...