On 5/24/2013 4:10 PM, PV wrote:
linuxgal wrote:
PV wrote:
Sexual orientation is not a choice, however atheism is, so why must
Scouts change to accommodate those that choose atheism?

They ought to change, they are not required to change. It's sort of
like those country clubs that only accept whites.

I have never seen a family denied membership from Scouting because they are
atheists.

I'm sure that it varies by council, but scouting has had both gays and
atheists for a very long time. In some councils it's been "don't ask,
don't tell" (for both gays and atheists) and some councils openly ignore
the BSA policies. Even the Mormon church issued a statement that
admitted that they have been ignoring the official policy, "Sexual
orientation has not previously been – and is not now – a disqualifying
factor for boys who want to join Latter-day Saint Scout troops." They
essentially made their own rules, as many BSA organizations have done.

BSA is a private organization and they can do what they want. Private
organizations are legally permitted to discriminate on the basis of
religion and sexual orientation. What they need to be careful about is
their tax-exempt status.

Churches sponsored my son's troop and my daughter's crew but I don't
think there was a single member from the sponsoring organization (I'm
sure that originally this was not the case). I'm sure there were both
gays and atheists but that's the last thing anyone would have asked
anyone else. There were a couple of parents that tried to inject their
religion into "Scout's Own" and as a result you had both scouts and
parents discretely disappearing before the ceremony, not knowing whether
or not they would be uncomfortable with it each time.

You hear all sorts of threats to leave BSA and form a separate
organization. Actually you hear this talk on both sides, from those that
want more discrimination and those that want less discrimination. It's
unlikely to happen. BSA has such an infrastructure with its camps, its
trips like Philmont, Northern Tier, and Seabase, that any new
organization could not hope to duplicate.

What would be ideal is if BSA would at least permit the formation of
troops and crews that are non-discriminatory in terms of religion, while
continuing to allow religious based troops and crews that require belief
in God. Those whose faith is strong do not fear atheists or agnostics.
Those whose faith is weak feel compelled to force others to believe as
they do.