Free Republic

The erosion of what many Americans once believed were the foundations of our country continues apace. They include, but are not limited to, overspending and debt (personal and national), never-ending wars, uncontrolled borders leading to massive immigration with no time for or expectation of assimilation and political divisions that grow wider by the day. It's now the Boy Scouts of America's turn to join the parade. The organization, which began in 1910 to, according to its website, "...train youth in responsible citizenship, character development and self-reliance" so they become honest men, worthy of admiration and respect, is now in danger...

Another one of our great national institutions, the Boy Scouts of America, has officially lost its way. An organization with an impressive history of over one century has buckled to the insidious forces of political correctness. The latest sign occurred this week as the Boy Scouts formally opened their doors to girls. In 2018, girls will be able to join the Cub Scout program and the following year will become eligible to attain the highest rank, Eagle Scout. This act of inclusion was wisely not followed by the Girl Scouts, which will remain an exclusively female organization. According to Jacqueline...

From the moment he joined, 8-year-old Joe Maldonado eagerly looked forward to camping trips and science projects as a member of the Cub Scouts. But his expectations were dashed after his mother said she received a phone call from a scouting official who told her that Joe would no longer be allowed to participate because he was born a girl. Kristie Maldonado said she was stunned because her son had been a member of Cub Scout Pack 87 in Secaucus for about a month, and his transgender status had not been a secret. But some parents complained, an official from...

[T]he BSA, which is based in Irving, announced last week that it is raising annual membership dues from $15 to $24 per Scout — a 60 percent increase — beginning Jan. 1, 2014. Chief Scout Executive Wayne Brock . . . and BSA staff did not mention how much revenue might be lost from the defection of conservative families that leave the organization because of recent membership changes that allow [homosexual] youth to be Scouts. . . . The BSA once boasted of five million members back in the 1950s when the United States’ population was about half of what...

A heavyweight rock crusher's disability claim is being slammed by critics as more mental than physical. Glenn Taylor — who infamously filmed his ability to knock over an ancient 2,000-pound sandstone with his bare hands — filed a lawsuit claiming "debilitating" physical injury weeks before the stunt's filming, it has been revealed. Taylor, seen destroying a 200 million-year-old goblin sandstone formation in Utah's Goblin Valley State Park last week, filed a personal injury lawsuit last month claiming to have been disabled after a car crash four years ago.

(Email received this morning.) Dear Friends, So far, we have released our proposed membership standards and a statement of faith & values that all adult members will be required to sign. We now also submit a Key Differences chart and outline between the new Youth Adventure Program and the Boy Scouts of America. Please forward this email to everyone in your troop and council to understand more about the new (soon to be formally named) organization. Outline of Differences between the Boy Scouts of America and the new Youth Adventure Program: 1) The BSA's new policy requires troops to accept...

I fully support family and friends of removing their sons from a once impressionable institution. The great “lie” that children are gay is nothing more than men and women pushing an evil agenda. America does not give up. Stand and fight for your boys and they will love you for it. This evil has not place in the lives of young boys or anyone for that matter. Do not allow these sick twisted individuals to dictate what your lives should and will be. I and every other Marine, Sailor, Soldier, Airmen, Coast Guard, and National Guardsman didn’t take an oath...

As counterintuitive as it may sound for an organization with such a wholesome and all-American reputation, it seems that secrecy and heavy-handed tactics are the order of the day at the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) meeting that will decide whether the BSA will change its century-old policy to expand its membership to include open and avowed homosexuals.

WASHINGTON, D.C., February 4, 2013 (LifeSiteNews) – President Barack Obama on Sunday said the Boy Scouts of America should overturn its national ban on homosexual members and leaders, just days before the organization is scheduled to vote on the issue. In a pre-Super Bowl interview with CBS, anchor Scott Pelley asked the president if he believed the Scouts should allow openly gay members and leaders. "Yes," Obama said. Pressed to elaborate, Obama said homosexuals should be able to fully participate in “every institution” that others can. “I think that my attitude is that gays and lesbians should have access and...

Once again CNN is cheerleading the fight for gay rights, this time within the Boy Scouts. An effusive Starting Point panel welcomed gay activist Zach Wahls on Wednesday and celebrated his cause of pushing the Boy Scouts towards acceptance of openly-gay scouts and leaders. Wahls is no stranger to CNN, as back in May he was lauded as a "very powerful" activist during a soft interview. On Wednesday, the CNN panel oozed admiration for him. "I'm a big fan. I've followed you for a little while," Starting Point regular Margaret Hoover told him. "You're a wonderful spokesman for the effort...

LGBT advocacy groups are continuing to pressure Boy Scouts of America, which applies a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on sexual orientation of its youth members and its adult leaders. This morning, a press release from change.org landed in our in-box announcing that Jennifer Tyrrell, a gay mom who was removed as a den leader by the Boy Scouts of America, will deliver 300,000 petition signatures to the Boy Scouts of America’s national headquarters. The petition calls on the Scouts to reinstate her and end their policy prohibiting gay scouts and scout leaders. Deron Smith, a Boy Scout spokesman, said...

ANN ARBOR, MI – The Thomas More Law Center (TMLC), a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) joined forces to file a friend of the court brief asking the United States Supreme Court to overturn a decision by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals penalizing San Diego Boy Scouts because of their “morally straight” values. At issue in the case are leases from the City of San Diego allowing the San Diego Boy Scouts to build and operate campgrounds and an aquatic center for use by the Scouts and the...

Nearly nine out of 10 journalists who made political donations gave to Democrats or left-wing groups, according to a bombshell new investigation into media bias - and perhaps the most shocking name on the list was the writer of "The Ethicist" column for The New York Times. The probe by MSNBC investigative reporter Bill Dedman revealed the names of 144 employees - reporters, editors, producers - from media organizations nationwide who have lined the candidates' pockets since '04. Underscoring the leftward tilt of the press, 125 of the workers, or 87 percent, ponied up only to Democrats and liberal causes,...

It was 1926. Queen Elizabeth II was born, the first liquid-fuel rocket was launched and a pair of men's pants cost less than $6. It also was the year Charles Soldi joined the Boy Scouts. Soldi, the middle of six kids living in Orange, was 12 when he was recruited by a neighbor. He quickly advanced in Scouting with the goal of making Eagle Scout, the organization's highest achievement. He earned 22 merit badges and in February 1932, at a court of honor, he was presented with his sterling silver Eagle Scout pin. Yesterday, Scouting officials from northern New Jersey...

While growing up I was a proud member of an organization that emphasized the importance of honesty and "being clean in thought, word and deed." We vowed to serve God and our country. If you think that this organization's philosophy is non-controversial, you are sadly mistaken. We live in an era of Political Correctness. The beliefs and values that our society broadly embraced when I was a member of Boy Scout Troop 77, chartered by Holy Trinity Catholic Church of Racine, Wisconsin, are now endangered.Unfortunately, our federal courts often make decisions that assault our country's most cherished beliefs and values....

Boy Scouts: Legal bigots? Posted: August 9, 20041:00 a.m. Eastern Editor's note: This is your last chance to help choose a speaker for the Republican National Convention! Hans Zeiger has been selected as one of 10 youth finalists for a primetime speaking position at the RNC, scheduled for Aug. 30 – Sept. 2 in New York City. To determine who the speaker will be, both MTV and the RNC are holding an online contest where you can vote for one of the 10 finalists. Voting is open through then end of today. By Hans Zeiger © 2004 WorldNetDaily.com One must truly be...

LAW OF THE LANDSupreme Court rejects Boy Scouts' appealState can exclude group due to policy against homosexual leaders Posted: March 8, 20044:45 p.m. Eastern © 2004 WorldNetDaily.com The U.S. Supreme Court today allowed Connecticut to exclude the Boy Scouts of America from a state charitable program because of the Scouts' policy barring avowed homosexuals from leadership. Critics said the high court's refusal to revisit the ruling by the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals threatens not only the First Amendment right to expressive association but also the right to free exercise of religion. The decision has "far reaching implications that could threaten the...

A months-long controversy surrounding the Boy Scouts of America and its practice of sending home fliers with Portland schoolchildren has resulted in a new policy for all outside youth-oriented groups. The School Committee voted unanimously Wednesday night to require all such organizations - such as Little League and 4-H - to print disclaimers on their forms indicating that their views "are not necessarily the views of the Portland Public Schools system." The new policy came as a disappointment to parents who wanted the school board to take a bolder stand against the Boy Scouts' refusal to admit openly gay individuals...

THE CITY of San Diego recently announced a whopping gift of taxpayer dollars to the American Civil Liberties Union. With budgets tight up and down California, San Diego citizens might have been surprised to learn there was so much extra cash lying around city hall. The payoff is part of the city council’s shameful cave-in to the ACLU’s lawsuit that aims to kick the Boy Scouts off of public parkland in San Diego. As part of a nationwide anti-Boy Scout crusade by activists who can’t stomach Scouting’s traditional values, the ACLU filed suit in 2000 to end the Scouts’ $1...