ColdTowne Theater
Leave Boy Scouts Alone
RECEIVED Fri., Feb. 25, 2005
Dear Editor,
When in 2000 the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Boy Scouts of America, my hope was the Scouts could put their legal battles behind them and get on with the pressing mission of preparing boys for service to God and country. But the harassment continues. The Boy Scouts have been booed at the Democratic National Convention, stripped of United Way funding in some parts, and sometimes denied the opportunity to use school facilities for their meetings.
As a former Scout and airman I am deeply troubled by this slap against the BSA. Scouting teaches the basic virtues of discipline, industry, courage, and integrity, and Scouts do not deserve harassment. They are simply standing firm for what they know is right.
The left's crusade against the Boy Scouts is errant. This nation was founded on the "Laws of Nature and of Nature's God," for God the creator is the source of our unalienable rights. George Washington, who probably understood the First Amendment better than does the ACLU, declared in a National Day of Thanksgiving Proclamation in 1789 that "it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor."
In the year 2000 the U.S. Department of Interior sought information on whether federal agencies that work with the Boy Scouts violate the Clinton administration's executive order banning discrimination against homosexuals by federal agencies. In response, on Aug. 31, the governor of Texas declared he was troubled that the memo appeared to suggest the administration would sever the federal government's relationship with the BSA. "I hope that President Clinton and Vice-President Gore respect the role the Boy Scouts play in our society and will not allow them to be shut out of federal funds."
We may hope the former governor, now commander in chief of the Armed Forces, will remember the wisdom of these words.
When in 2000 the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Boy Scouts of America, my hope was the Scouts could put their legal battles behind them and get on with the pressing mission of preparing boys for service to God and country. But the harassment continues. The Boy Scouts have been booed at the Democratic National Convention, stripped of United Way funding in some parts, and sometimes denied the opportunity to use school facilities for their meetings.
As a former Scout and airman I am deeply troubled by this slap against the BSA. Scouting teaches the basic virtues of discipline, industry, courage, and integrity, and Scouts do not deserve harassment. They are simply standing firm for what they know is right.
The left's crusade against the Boy Scouts is errant. This nation was founded on the "Laws of Nature and of Nature's God," for God the creator is the source of our unalienable rights. George Washington, who probably understood the First Amendment better than does the ACLU, declared in a National Day of Thanksgiving Proclamation in 1789 that "it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor."
In the year 2000 the U.S. Department of Interior sought information on whether federal agencies that work with the Boy Scouts violate the Clinton administration's executive order banning discrimination against homosexuals by federal agencies. In response, on Aug. 31, the governor of Texas declared he was troubled that the memo appeared to suggest the administration would sever the federal government's relationship with the BSA. "I hope that President Clinton and Vice-President Gore respect the role the Boy Scouts play in our society and will not allow them to be shut out of federal funds."
We may hope the former governor, now commander in chief of the Armed Forces, will remember the wisdom of these words.
Gerard Kern
