Posted on 02/13/2004 7:37:38 PM PST by DemWatch
Across America, Girl Scout cookie sales are in full swing. Last week, Girl Scouts of America officials announced a sales record for Washington, D.C. as 4.2 million boxes of Samoas, Thin Mints, and other cookies were sold in the nation's capitol.
But I'm going to be critical of the Girl Scouts. I love the cookies, but the organization has somewhat rejected moral decency.
At a recent Nobody's Fool annual meeting held at Planned Parenthood of Waco, Texas, the Bluebonnet Council of the Girl Scouts of America bestowed on Planned Parenthood chief executive Pam Smallwood the title of "Woman of the Year."
A Texas Christian radio station is urging its listeners to boycott Girl Scout cookie sales because of the Girl Scouts' close dealings with Planned Parenthood, and last Monday, parents of nine Girl Scouts in Crawford, Texas announced that their daughters will be leaving the Girl Scouts of America. Pam Smallwood is "not who I want as a role model for my daughter," announced the mother of a ten-year old Girl Scout who apparently broke into tears upon learning of Ms. Smallwood's lethal occupation. "I have to make a stand or there's no telling what else would happen," another mother told the Waco Tribune-Herald.
Sadly, more unfortunate positions have been taken by the Girl Scouts of America in recent years than parents and supporters may realize.
Rather than fight a 1992 lawsuit that challenged "God" in its Promise, the Girl Scouts broke its Promise with overwhelming support at the 1993 Girl Scouts national convention by permitting atheist and agnostic girls to use "words they deem more appropriate" in place of "God."
Since the 1970s, the Girl Scouts have been aligned with the radical feminist movement. For many years, Betty Friedan was seated on the national board of the Girl Scouts of America. In 1972, at the urging of Friedan and other feminist leaders, the Girl Scouts dropped "loyalty" from its oath because the feminized America was one where neither men nor women were expected to commit to each other in marriage. And for the past thirty years, the Girl Scouts have taken great pride in their anti-family sex education program, a program that has alienated Catholic churches and archdioceses as well and has drawn sharp criticism from leading pro-family organizations.
Girl Scouts sex education materials include such words as, "Some girls have sexual attractions or desires for people of the same sex." A 1997 book entitled On My Honor: Lesbians Reflect on their Scouting Experience estimated that approximately one in three adult Girl Scout professionals are lesbian and that the Girl Scouts are a positive place for lesbian relationships to develop. Obviously, the Girl Scouts are not a lesbian organization, and different girls have had different experiences as Girl Scouts - some good, some bad. But the organization is far from standing against homosexuality. Open lesbians are welcomed into the Girl Scouts.
In the summer of 2001, Mountain Meadow Girl Scout Camp in New Jersey was advertised as a "feminist camping experience [for] children of lesbian, gay, transgender ... and other progressive families." Children ages nine to fifteen were required to fill out an application asking name, birth date, medications, and "Gender of camper: male/female/other (please explain)."
In December 2000, President Clinton welcomed leaders of homosexual organizations to the White House to debut the Girl Scout-promoted film That's A Family! The video, produced by Women's Educational Media (WEM) to educate public schoolchildren about homosexual families, used young children to describe what it is like growing up with two moms or two dads. Girl Scout President Connie Matsui addressed the assembled crowd of homosexual activists at the controversial White House screening, explaining her enthusiasm for the film.
One might wonder why the Girl Scouts have been spared the painful attacks that have been launched upon the Boy Scouts by the Left in recent years. The reasons are simple: the Girl Scouts allow homosexuals and atheists to join their ranks, and they have become a pro-abortion, feminist training corps.
While the Girl Scouts fit comfortably in the dire realm of political correctness, the organization should not fit so comfortably in America's network of moral education. Parents should be warned that the moral content of today's Girl Scouts is no longer based in the Victorian virtues that gave it life in 1912.
Parents and supporters of the Girl Scouts must be vigilant in these matters. If the Girl Scouts of America can't get back to teaching real character, perhaps it will be time to look for our cookies elsewhere.
Hans Zeiger is a columnist, president of the Scout Honor Coalition, and a student at Hillsdale College in Michigan. He can be reached at hazeiger@hillsdale.edu.
This can't be for real.
They aren't getting a dime from me.
(Now Ann Coulter would be a great choice for recipient of the next Bluebonnet Woman of the Year award!)
Conservative families participating in Girl Scouts should recognize what the organization has become. We should organize (on Free Republic?) and initiate a campaign to increase public awareness of the radical femnist forces that have infiltrated the program. Then we can proactively apply pressure to redirect the Girl Scouts philosophical orientation to values which are conducive to the raising of healthy and well-adjusted young women who will be solid citizens in our society.
Equally importantly, we should all send our extra $s to the Boy Scouts, which still stands firm on values like faith, family and integrity, and against unnatural acts!
Stolen right under noses
This is just another example of an organization that has been hijacked by the "homosexual agenda". A recruiting ground, clearly.
Unfortunately, there is another group that has infiltrated the leadership of the Girl Scouts: the "death culture", that has rapidly gained ground in the the US in the past 10 years. The "death culture" supports abortion and euthanasia.
Where Americans fail
The single-agenda interlopers are really quite clever. They go for the organizations with lots of money and then push the "straight" people out,while keeping control of the assets.
Americans need to resist the quest for dominance by those who would subvert the moral foundations of our country. They need to recognize the money grab and they need to take back their organizations bit-by-bit starting at the local level.
It's a difficult assignment. It requires a certain strength of character to put up with liberal boards that want to silence all opposition.
Many conservatives have tried multiple approaches to counter the effects of these non-profit takeovers. They've attempted to control the IRS, to develop counter groups and to put up "walls" that crumble when challenged in court.
A possible solution
After several years of observation, I have come to the conclusion that only one group will be able to provide a bridge back to morals-based governance: African Americans.
African Americans are not silenced and pushed out when they attempt to become involved, regardless of religious backgrounds. Therefore they have a unique opportunity to penetrate back into leadership positions.
I would also like to see Americans with Disabilites give up the wheelchair ramp fight and put their energies into routing out the euthanasia movement that seeks to terminate them rather than provide occupational therapy.
Just a thought. Perhaps someone else has an idea?
Copyright 2004
Then you don't have to deal with the loons at GSA National. Problem is, sometimes you don't realize how far down the chain the rot has spread until it's too late.
Also, these are good kids. Certainly mixed activities are a theoretical opportunity for misconduct, but as long as the supervision's good and these kids are reminded of the proprieties, they aren't going to go out of their way to misbehave.
I have been a Boy Scout leader for my son's troop for many years, even after he earned his Eagle and now is about to graduate from college. His sister wanted some outdoor activities and had tagged along for some time some of her brother's activities.
Our troop formed a Venturing group for outdoor challenges such as rappelling and canoeing. My daughter was a member and officer for a couple of years. I accompanied her and the group on all outings and there was never any problem with the mixed group. It also brought us closer at a critical time in her life.
Explorers has always been career-based - sponsored by a police precinct or fire station or law firm or, as in your case, a radio station. Venturing is strictly outdoor adventure - the idea is to carry through the Scouting outdoor program to the older teens. Our crew is mostly hiking and whitewater adventure. Went to Philmont last summer.
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