From an old MySpace Blog:

Boy Scouts of America
Category: News and Politics

"Duty to God Scouting maintains that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God. In the first part of the Scout Oath or Promise, the member declares, " On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law. ""

-- www.scouting.com , the BSA official webpage

"The BSA reaffirmed its view that an avowed homosexual can not serve as a role model for the traditional moral values espoused in the Scout Oath and Law..."

-- www.scouting.com , the BSA official webpage

"

Atheists and Other Non-theists in Scouting
The Boy Scouts of America requires its members to believe in God and to recite an oath to God at every troop meeting. They do not permit membership to anyone whose convictions do not allow them to recite this oath and they terminate membership of anyone who is discovered to be an atheist or agnostic, even if it is discovered inadvertently. Consequently, over 20 million Americans are excluded from the Boy Scouts due to their religious beliefs. This includes not only people who identify themselves as atheists or agnostics, but also includes other non-theists such as secular Jews, non-theistic Buddhists, some Unitarians and animists (animists believe in spirits but do not believe in God). The exclusion applies to both children and adults.

The Girl Scouts of America also have an oath to God that they recite at every troop meeting; however, they do not prohibit membership to those who do not profess belief in God. They allow non-theistic members to substitute the word "God" for a word of their choosing. In this way, the Girl Scouts have maintained their oath and duty to God while accommodating non-theists at the same time. To allow all American citizens the opportunity to be in the Boy Scouts, BSA leadership should make the same kind of accommodation for non-theists.

Why are non-theists excluded from the Boy Scouts?

Non-theists are excluded from the Boy Scouts on moral grounds. On every application form and in the Boy Scout handbook you will find the words "you can't be the best kind of citizen without the obligation to God." This is another way of saying that you can't be moral without belief in God. While this is a commonly held belief, it is in fact a myth. Those who do not profess belief in God do not have any higher a propensity towards acts of immorality than anyone else. While about 10% of the U.S. population does not profess belief in God, less than 1% of the prison population does not profess belief in God. You would think that a group of such immoral people would have an unusually high percentage of its members behind bars!

Although the BSA now tries to mislead the public by identifying itself as a religious organization, it is, for all practical purposes, a secular organization. The BSA 1916 Charter says that the BSA is a nonsectarian organization. It is not to be driven by any particular religion or religious group. Currently the BSA is being run by the dictates of religious fundamentalists, who are dictating current policy. There are no prayers or religious teachings in the Boy Scouts and church attendance is not required, even on outings. There are no duties that a non-theist could not perform. Consequently, there are no good reasons to exclude members on the basis of
religious beliefs. An organization that is secular should determine membership according to criteria that is secular.

The BSA is ignoring the fact that there are many non-theists who are law abiding, contributing members of society who have much to contribute to the Boy Scouts. They want to be in the Boy Scouts just like everyone else. The BSA is a great American institution and it should be available to every American citizen regardless of their religious beliefs.

Most Scouting Associations throughout the world don't exclude atheists or other non-theists from scouting. It isn't even an issue in most countries. Lord Baden Powell , who founded scouting in 1907 in England never said in his writings on religion that non-theists should be excluded from the world scouting movement. In fact in England where Scouting began atheists, girls, and persons who are gay are all members and participate in scouting."

-- www.scoutingforall.org

That's correct, ladies and gentlemen, the BSA discriminates against more than just women. Atheists and Homosexuals are not being allowed in, and are getting kicked out.

I grew up in the cub scouts and went a little ways into the boy scouts. I did the entire little uniform thing, and had these ribbons with pins I earned, and had all these patches... And I always constantly won the pinewood derby. I just always would. No one could contend with my green lizard-stickered car. Maybe it was luck. Maybe it was the sleek design and the fact that I always had to make sure I widdled and sanded off more wood than everyone else, or maybe it was the fact I'd over do it on the grease laxative stuff I'd spray all over my wheels. Who knows?

I never thought much about the religious sides about it, or about homosexuality, I was too buys pasting together air craft carrier models and running around in half scout uniform, half Indian garb we made in arts and crafts.

When I finally evolved into the Boy Scouts (cub scouts weren't GOOD enough anymore), the religiousness... Was kinda boring and intoxicating. So I just left.

Later I became atheist. God must really hate me. You know, if he exists.

I'm glad I didn't like the BSA enough to stay until I became atheist. Being who I am, I probably wouldn't keep it a secret and get angry when asked to say the scout oath, and get kicked out. Then I'd get even angrier and they'll probably be some suing involved. If that failed I'd probably contact as many media companies and Liberals as I could to do what I had to in order to bash them publicly as much as possible, as well as the courts that failed to do me justice.

Hum. Maybe I SHOULD have stayed in the scouts - that sounds like fun...

I always barley miss my chance! God damnit.

But anyways, let's look at this morally and logically now.
Homosexuals are not allowed. Why?
Well, because they're "bad role models" for society, of course!
Hey, no other reasons are given, that's it. So that's all I have to deal with.
Homosexuals are bad role models for society, how?
Because they don't produce children?

In debates concerning homosexuals I am constantly amazed whenever my opponents, which they always do, assume that homosexuality is something that is evil. Concerning Gay Adoption, for example, they'll say something like, "It makes the children more likely to grow up to be gay."
They're assuming, behind the lines, by themselves, that homosexuality is a horrible, evil, unhealthy thing, and being it, in general, is "bad."
It is not "bad."
How could it be "bad?"
It doesn't produce children? We have plenty of heterosexuals for that. PLENTY. Hell, to be honest, way too many. We have too many children, too many people. Right now, if anything, MAKING kids is probably "worse" than not making them!
Why is homosexuality always assumed, behind every debate, as being something that should be avoided? Something that should be condemned, something that should definitely not be taught as "okay?"

IT. IS. OKAY.

It is perfectly, 100%, okay to be gay. Anyone who so much as implies otherwise is a bigot; a sorry excuse for a human being. Nothing more, and definitely cannot be anything less. They are a shame, and a moral/intellectual embarrassing failure.

Those against Gay rights, be it marriage, adoption, or scouting, are against it because they don't want to send the message to the youth that being gay is "okay." They believe that if you don't say it is wrong, then that says it is right. Well, guess what, it is. It is perfectly okay. It does not harm anyone, it does not attack anyone; it is okay. And that is what you should be teaching. But you aren't. You know why? Because you are what evil is. You are what stupid and ignorant are. That is you. Next time you insult someone, calling them an immoral moron, look at yourself in a mirror and remember: you are one. There are horrible people in existence, and you are one of them. Congratulations. You will go down in history as one of the bad guys.

Homosexuals are bad role models? Nay, your hate and intolerance to those with different life styles... That's a bad role model.

But enough about the gays. They're defended too often, they can get off their asses and defend themselves. I'm an atheist, and now I'm going to defend myself and my kind.

You need, in order to be a good role model and an effective member of society, an obligation to God, says the BSA. You cannot be an atheist and become a good citizen.

Sorry, Lance Armstrong. Sorry, Susan B. Anthony. Sorry, Thomas Edison. Sorry, Robert G. Ingersoll. Sorry, Thomas Paine. Sorry, founders of DNA. Sorry, James Randi. Sorry, Jack Nicholson. Sorry, Robert Frost. Sorry, countless other humanists who were evil, wicked enough, slimy enough to put the rights and love of men before the twisted, jealous assertions of the possibly made-up unknown. You're terrible role models. You're terrible citizens.

OR...

The BSA is an illegal organization.
Maybe, just maybe, there is a something called the Constitution.
Maybe, just maybe, there are human rights.
Silly little things our founding fathers decided to base our nation off of.
Maybe there is a first amendment, a foremost amendment.
Maybe in such a bill of rights it says something about religion.

No, I understand, the first amendment is easy to miss. You pass over it accidentally all the time when you decide not to look at the rights of our country's people.

You see, the BSA is paid for by the people. Using taxes and the like. It's a federally aided program. And as such it has to follow the rules of our country. If it was a private organization then, by all means, discriminate all you want, it's your little club. But the reality is that this is not such a private organization. It MUST obey the constitution if it is to continue to suck our money. The money of homosexuals, and the money of atheists.

It cannot make laws within its group respecting an establishment of religion. It can't. That's what I like to call "illegal."

That's right, ladies and gentlemen, the BSA is an illegal organization. It is literally a thief and a criminal. It will change or it will no longer get funding - if anyone cares enough to uphold silly little laws. If anyone cares enough to stop a thief from taking their money in broad daylight.

I recognize, that often at the local level, the little BSA groups often do NOT discriminate against the homosexual. They often DON'T refuse admission of atheists. A lot of the groups allow them with open arms and flat out hate the other groups that do not.

I'm talking about the main core of the BSA. The main site, the main guide, the main pledge, the main council, the largest part, the center, the core rules, the HQ of the whole thing.

They ban homosexuals and gays who love scouting, absolutely love it, and send them off in a combination of understandable pain and rage. And the courts, being completely ridiculous, insane, and irresponsible as they are, uphold those actions of the BSA. Why is the majority of human kind so disgusting? For the love of Lance Armstrong.

And as long as the BSA, courts, churches, other groups and individual parents continue using this kind of irresponsibility to teach this hateful intolerance to their children... Then the wrongs will never be righted. And as long as the good do nothing, the wrongs will never be righted.

"On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the scout law, to help other people at all times, to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight."

You have no honor. You do your worst. You do your duty to a myth. You attack your country. You disobey the law to uphold your own twisted bigotry. You help others only when you believe what you believe, elseif you treat them unfairly and unjustly. You keep yourself mentally weak. And you don't have to worry about being morally straight, because you have no morality to even deal with. Reality check.

Samuel Thomas Poling, Blog 118, Boy Scouts of America