Jarred – just more confused and confusing musings from your northern grove, I suppose. If you accidentally out yourself at work a few more times, you might be able to conduct your acts of blogggery full-time IRL. Meantime, your cherished anger is infectious and toxic as well as self-centered: to quote you, “But just so we’re clear, if it doesn’t, I’m too fucking pissed to fucking care.” And screw you, too.

I was never either because my parents couldn’t afford the uniform and whatever other fees came with it.

But going by those letters, obviously there’s some good going on in the troops.

When asked, I lead my troop as Senior Patrol Leader at 14 despite reservations that I would not be able to follow the example of my troop’s older scouts, who had graduated. Over the years, I grew not just to tolerate but to enjoy the diversity of my troop—not just the embrace of ethnic and religious diversity written into the Boy Scout handbook, but the embrace of smaller scouts, the ones from damaged homes, the scouts teased by other kids for effeminate behavior: these scouts deserved the friendship and support that scouting provided. The policy you just reaffirmed discriminates against some of the very scouts in my adopted family and I cannot abide by the BSA’s hypocritical policy to welcome some, but not all, boys in need of character-building experiences. Shame on you for reaffirming a policy to exclude the boys who may need this life-changing opportunity most.

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/news-national/20120805/US.Boy.Scouts.Gays/

As I stated, my experience in scouting was mostly a good one, yet it was, of course, not perfect. One of my sadder memories was of me and my fellow scouts one time tying another scout to a sled and pushing him downhill into the brambles that cut up his face, all because this young man was effeminate and thought to be “gay.” I’ll never forget the tears in his face as he sauntered back up the hill and rejoined the rest of us as we happily celebrated and our adult leaders simply looked away. I understand that the BSA probably doesn’t officially condone this type of behavior – but when you do have an official policy of exclusion based on irrational fears, this type of behavior is a likely consequence.

I have stood by the BSA for many years in the hope that it will be mature enough to adapt to changing times and more compelling human needs. Your latest decision to re-affirm a century-old policy that has no place in this world has prompted me, after thirty-five years, to let go of this medal, a symbol of one of the first major achievements of my life. I return it mindful of what Rev. Martin Luther King wrote in his Letter from Birmingham City Jail: “If I have said anything in this letter that overstates the truth and indicates an unreasonable impatience, I beg you to forgive me. If I have said anything that understates the truth and indicates my having a patience that allows me to settle for anything less than brotherhood, I beg God to forgive me.”

And just like the Vatican, there will be no change in the organization as long as people keep writing checks to them.

I agree also that writing letters to the national organization is fruitless unless those same letters are not also published in local, regional and national news outlets.

Don’t call anyone hitler unless they actually ARE hitler.

It cheapens your argument, and It cheapens hitler.