Yes, but they say the are training leaders, if that is the case then maybe they should look at the greatest leaders in the world, the US MILITARY. They can welcome gays, so can the boy scouts. It's their right as a private organization to not allow who they want, however history will show them to be on the wrong side.

Anyone who claims "all I am trying to do is maintain the quality and integrity of the Boy Scouts of America and its policies" is a repugnant, backward, wimp who supports this kind of discrimination and doesn't have the balls to actually come out and say so. The pack should continue to uphold its sane, modern membership policies, and f*ck the national Scouts if they don't like it.

Yes, you are WAY off topic, and yes there was coverage, even interviews with the organizers.

I would rather they describe the attitude of this scout troop as "pro-equality" rather than "pro-gay."

“Pack 442 WILL NOT discriminate against any individual or family based on race, religion, national origin, ability, or sexual orientation.”

Typical bible-thumper mentality....if the GOOD BOOK says it...then it's just gotta be true. You just gotta ask yourself...what would Jesus do?? (not)

Carryingconcealed

This pack took an anti-discrimination stance.

I agree with an anti-discrimination stance.

You do not.

How should we describe you? "Ballsy" is not the word I would choose.

I think that if the original Boy/Girl scouts do not want gays in their organization that they have a right to. If the openly gay persons have a problem with that, there is nothing stopping them from forming their own organization.

The BSA is NOT a private organization. It receives funding and support from taxpayer funds. They MAY NOT discriminate because they live in the past.

If they want to be in a different type group they should start their own club or go to the kind they want.

Why join something just to try to change it.

The gay crowd needs to learn tolerance of other groups.

Tolerance of alternative-to-their life styles.

Mary I hope you were not insinuating that because they are gay they are molesters are you? If you meant it shame the hell on you. If I misread then mea culpa I am sorry but I doubtr that was te case was it?

OMG enough of this "They get taxpayer fund stuff". It's old and been proven incorrect time and time again. Why is it so hard for people to understand that not everyone thinks homosexuality is awesome and don't join the PRIVATE organization that has a problem with it. I'm sure i can find a ton of private organizations that discriminate and yet nothing is said about them but the second it involves homosexuality its front page news all over the place....

Although I wasn't award of the BSA's stand against gays wen I was a member as a kid, I do have vivid memories of the threat of being sexually assaulted by older members of the troop I was in. I could do nothing out of fear of being regarded as a snitch. Fortunately, nothing happened to me and I made it to the rank of Life before leaving.

Having said all that, Im disappointed that the BSA hasn't wised up and changed it's bigoted view in this area. It would seem that there are still too many like Carryingconcealed (doesn't that moniker tell you a lot about the guy?) in the organization.

Sooooooo....when a scout troop wants to ban gays, the response is "Leave them alone, they're a private organization!" When they want to include them, then it's "Take away their charter!"

That's consistent how?

actually the boy scouts use public schools to meet, notes for the scouts go home through the teachers, etc etc. then they use public resources and are part of the schools then they can NOT discriminate!

How does acknowledging that you are gay in 2013 affect any part of being a Boy Scout. Not any. This is just old fashioned bigotry by the National organization.

A Scout is: Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverent (Hmmm... and Straight?)

Mary I hope you were not insinuating that because they are gay they are molesters are you? If you meant it shame the hell on you. If I misread then mea culpa I am sorry but I doubtr that was te case was it?

No, Sharon J-1312993, I don' think that's what Mary was saying. I think she was just pointing out how most anti-gay establishments, oh, like the church , have many high profile cases of adult male leaders molesting or sexually assaulting young boys. Ironic, isn't it?

*from a gay man*

It's the BSA's right to say who they do and do not want in their organization and there should be no strong arming them to change their policies. With that said, no more using public schools, libraries, or tax payer property. Let them meet in churches that hold their particular beliefs. Personally, I wouldn't want my kids to participate in an organization that has the belief it's ok to discriminate and would seek out alternatives for my kids. But bashing them for their beliefs is the same as being pissed off for them excluding LGBT people.

If people feel that strongly, leave the BSA for other organizations. I bet if there was a mass exodus from the organization, it would have a different point of view.

I would say forget the BSA and keep the group who want equality, meet, have fun, learn, and let them be nasty and keep their pedophiles and bigots. If you have a group that likes to meet just quit the BSA and you'll have more fun anyway.

JERSY GIRL 1

Then tell the BSA, that if they are a private organization, they NO LONGER get any tax payer support. They can pay to rent the school they use for a fundraiser, they can PAY to use a park, or ANYTHING else my tax dollars go to support. My taxes are for "We the People" they are NOT for those who practice BIGOTRY

you haven't researched the story enough because this is about the Boy Scouts getting public funds but not meeting simple equality standards that all other organizations meet if they want public funding.

Shame on the BSA.

Ok, so the Boy Scouts of America does not allow gays or atheists or agnostics in their group. It is a private organization and lots of people are happy with it the way it is. So, don't join it if you don't agree with its policies and don't donate to it if you don't like it. Take away any federal funding if that is what must happen to let them continue with their program in peace.

Just please give it a rest.

Sheesh, the next thing will be a suit demanding that girls be allowed to join the Boy Scouts even though there is already a Girl Scouts organization.

And then there will be an age discrimination suit saying that just because someone is in their sixties, he/she should still be able to join the Boy Scouts.

And then the atheists and agnostics will be up in arms saying take God out of all of its oaths and platform, etc.

As for that part of the article that said Mitt Romney was okay with gays joining the Boy Scouts - yeah right. Just try that around here where I live. The Mormon Boy Scouts have their own troop and I can assure you, there is NO WAY a gay scout is going to be allowed to join that group.

If gays want to have their own private boys' organization, then I think that is great, let them start one.

But, please stop trying to force organizations that are based on religious beliefs to compromise their values. They may be different beliefs and values than gays or atheists or agnostics hold, but that is their right and their freedom to do so.

I hope they stick to their guns. It seems like everyone wants to buy into the gay bandwagon, when gays haven't even produced a so-called "Gay gene", and never will.

There is no so-called "straight gene," either, and it will never be produced.

What's your point?

ghult said: "The BSA is NOT a private organization. It receives funding and support from taxpayer funds. They MAY NOT discriminate because they live in the past."

This has already been decided by the courts, partner. They DO NOT receive taxpayer funds so get over it already. They don't want gays and they don't have to accept gays, so gays can go cry their crocodile tears and then . . . well then . . . oh who cares. Just go away...

Ross: There isn't going to be a "mass exodus." Believe it or not there are millions of people in this country, both Christian and Atheist, who appreciate an organization like the BSA that won't compromise their morals to accommodate the filth your party is constantly trying to guilt and browbeat others into accepting as normal, when it's anything but. As a matter of fact I happen to be one of those Atheists. Imagine that...

BSA has the right to disciriminate and we have the right to ridicule them for it. And public facilities have the right to refuse to support them. Everybody happy?

ItIsWhat!t!s

The "gay gene" has been well documented in numerous species. The most notable of the studies were done on nematode worms. While this doesn't prove that humans have this development, it does present the possibility. It's actually very interesting in its irony since the study was done at the highly Mormon populated University of Utah and you can even find reporting of the study on foxnews.com

Here is a link for anyone who would like to purchase a "unofficial" but Official looking BSA Adult Leader "Rainbow Square Knot"

http://www.scoutingforall.org/data/layer02/store.html

Inspired by the knot patches used by the Boy Scouts of America to signify various acomplishments, the Scouting for All Rainbow Knot can be worn on a Boy Scout Uniform (unofficially, of course) to signify solidarity with Scouting For All's Cause. On one side, the Blue of the Eagle Scout knot and the Silver of the Religious Award knot, on the other, the Rainbow of the Gay Pride Flag. This knot symbolizes the diversity of our cause, the high number of Eagle Scouts in our ranks, and our wish for acceptance not only of gay members but also of those of differing religious beliefs within the Scouting Program. Remember, net proceeds support Scouting for All

XX.

lol. Leave the boy scouts alone.

The military didn't welcome gays into the ranks, they had it shoved down their throats by vote seeking political hacks of which many are perverts themselves.

Sharon J-1312993

I love it when people get upset about people saying gays are peds. I mean, you have heard of nambla, haven't you? You know, the North American Man Boy Love Association? They even have a friggin website! As long as that association exists, I can't take gays seriously, or someone who gets offended of the notion that all gays are peds seriously. As long as that association exists, "gay" means most likely ped.

Joey Bo

You are irrational.

Saying that all gay men are pedophiles because a few are pedophiles is like saying all straight men are bigots because a small percentage of straight men are like YOU.

You are not only hateful, you are willfully ignorant of the facts in this matter. You will never understand the truth because it suits your purposes to believe the lies that you spread.

The BSA can legally cling to its ignorant views, but it seems to already be marginalizing itself by doing so. Several corporate sponsors have stopped donating to the group, and a bit of research tells me that membership has dropped by a total of about 20% for all levels of Scouting since 1999. If they decline to modernize their rules, they will in the years to come lose further support. They will be widely viewed as a conservative Christian youth group, period. Or they can look north to the Canadian model and bring Scouting into the 21st century and return it to the mainstream of America's progressing culture.

I'm so glad I had girls! The girl scouts don't seem to be quite so mired in the past.

I will be 100% honest, gays make me uneasy and I have never had a really close black friend in my life.

But, I realise that my own prejudices and opinions should not effect the rights of others.

Why is this so hard for so many people to understand?

Gays need to tolerate hate groups? Sorry, Neanderthal, bunch of crap. You people who demand only people like yourself get any consideration in life have lost, the world ain't going back.

Add a 'gay' Scoutmaster + a 'gay' group of "boyscouts".....mix in a 'campout' and what do you have?

Justme123,

What are you talking about saying that the Boy Scouts "will be widely viewed as a conservative Christian youth group, period?"

There are Jewish, Muslim, and Mormon Boy Scout troops in America.

Please leave the Boy Scouts alone.

Everything does not have to be the gay agenda.

Carryingconcealed,

Imagine this, I don't need or care for your approval of my life, much the same you don't care if Christians approve you being atheist. I believe, and tell me if I am wrong here, that it was an atheist by the name of Murray who campaigned to have prayer removed from the classroom. You can call me filthy all you want. It doesn't bother me. Christians, and by principles of the BSA, you and your kind, the atheist, are responsible for a rather large sin against America.

JoeyBo,

Until caucasian men get rid of the KKK, then all white men are racists. Until all African American men get rid of the Black Panther, Black Pride, Miss Black America, then all African American men are racist. I can keep that up all day long. Do you see the silliness of your statement?

and tell me if I am wrong here, that it was an atheist by the name of Murray who campaigned to have prayer removed from the classroom.

Yes, you are wrong! It was a group of 10 parents who first challenged school mandated prayer. the case was decided by the SCOTUS in their landmark case: Engle v. Vitale (1962).

you and your kind, the atheist, are responsible for a rather large sin against America.

What "sin" would that be? Besides, sin is a religious concept and has no value or appliability outside of certain religious circles or delusions, and certainly not within the government or law!

Everything does not have to be the gay agenda.

What exactly is the "gay agenda?"

, when gays haven't even produced a so-called "Gay gene", and never will.

Point out where the "straight gene" is!

Actually, Mrs. Murray did start the movement to have prayer removed. I was being sarcastic about the "sin" of removing prayer. Hypocrisy runs rampant and it's nice to point it out occasionally.

I don't know, Don; after the way you responded to Joey Bo I'd say you sound pretty hateful and ignorant yourself.

Is it somehow justified when you feel you are in the right and you simply hate that someone might disagree with you?

At the end of the day you liberals don't care about others like you claim to care about others. What you do, and admittedly it's smart politically, is that you pretend to champion the discriminated, the down-trodden and the oppressed, you show your faux love by putting as many of them as you can on taxpayer-funded entitlement programs, thereby forcing them into a socio-economic rabbit hole they'll never crawl out of, and by doing so you continue to build your bloated voting base of parasites who will never vote anything but dem because they now need you to survive.

C'mon, Don, if you really loved them and cared about them you'd teach them some skills, help them find careers, let them get a taste of what a free-enterprise system is all about, and let them start achieving their dreams. You won't, though, because you know if you did your party would never see another day in office, huh?

Pathetic really...

Actually, Mrs. Murray did start the movement to have prayer removed.

She campaigned to have school sponsored bible reading removed from schools, which was 1 year after the Engel decision to remove mandatory school prayers removed on Constitutonal grounds.

Yes, and then Madeline Murray O'Hair, the mother of American Atheists, was robbed and murdered together with her son and granddaughter by a fellow atheist employee who cut up their bodies with a saw.

Very morbid.

Carryinconcealed,

You mean the entitlement programs that help people get back to college? Or the entitlement programs that are available for parenting classes? Or could you mean the entitlement programs that help provide women and children with food and medicine? It gets kinda confusing when say liberals are holding down people and forcing them into a rabbit hole.

The truth is, neither Republican nor Democrat are perfect. Neither system is 100% right or 100% wrong. What has happened is their is an inability in this country to compromise any longer. It's the old, "My way or the highway," mentality and that most certainly doesn't work. But sense you want to categorize liberals by spending of entitlement programs, lets that a look at the top ten states that use the most federal resources.

1.Alaska- R

2. Virginia- R/D

3. Maryland- D

4. Hawaii- D

5. New Mexico- D

6. Kentucky- R

7. Alabama- R

8. West Virginia- R

9. Connecticut- D

10. North Dakota- R

Interesting isn't it? It would seem that 1/2 are traditional non liberal states that use the most federal money. So, I guess it's not just liberals that believe in supporting the citizenry.

Gordy,

Thanks for the clarification. As I said, I wasn't 100% sure but now I know.

Alaska, Ross . . . really? You put that out there as the #1 state using federal resources?

Look, I don't pay any attention to statistics because for every one you find that supports your argument, I can find two that support mine.

When I talk about entitlement programs I am talking about welfare, food stamps, section 8 housing, subsidized or free medical care, free education, etc. And I don't need statistics to tell me that if I lined up 100 welfare recipients and asked them which way they vote, 98 will have voted for the dems, and the other two meant to vote that way but got confused.

Line up 100 blacks and 98 of them will say they voted dem. And why not? They honestly believe this country owes them something, and you liberals perpetuate that bullsh!t every chance you get.

Latinos? Huge majority vote dem (the legal ones, and certainly some who are not legal) because they know that if this country did what was right - and that will only happen if the conservatives are in power - anchor babies would be a thing of the past, the consequences of coming here illegally would be so severe that it wouldn't be worth the risk, and U.S. employer caught knowingly employing illegals would have their business forfeited and auctioned off. Also, free education and healthcare would cease.

So you see, we're in quite the quandary because unless conservatives are willing to compromise their convictions and sell-out their own country like the liberals are doing, we're just going to have to accept that your parasitic voting base is going to keep you in power until the bottom finally falls out, at which time we'll step back in and eventually fix everything, but it'll be our way, it'll be ugly, but in the end we'll reclaim the greatness of a country that today is being horribly compromised by you liberals and your self-serving, putrid platform of entitlement.

justoneguy...what you would have is a campout. What do you think they would have?

Shame the BSA can't live up to that high bar........

As a former den leader, I fully support the Maryland charter's decision, too. How on Earth can the BSA say to a charter, "either you discriminate, or you're no longer one of us." BSA should be ashamed of their stance on this. Our local organization has a couple of gay scouts that they are sheltering, but I can't imagine why anyone would want to be a part of the BSA so long as they actively discriminate.

I see wehave biot amounfgus. must make you proud mary.NOT

I support their right to start a similar group without religion in it.

Why should a Religious organization be strong armed into accepting "sinners".

Mary, how do you earn your black merit badge or your Catholic one?

Here is a link for anyone who would like to purchase a "unofficial" but Official looking BSA Adult Leader "Rainbow Square Knot"

http://www.scoutingforall.org/data/layer02/store.html

Inspired by the knot patches used by the Boy Scouts of America to signify various acomplishments, the Scouting for All Rainbow Knot can be worn on a Boy Scout Uniform (unofficially, of course) to signify solidarity with Scouting For All's Cause. On one side, the Blue of the Eagle Scout knot and the Silver of the Religious Award knot, on the other, the Rainbow of the Gay Pride Flag. This knot symbolizes the diversity of our cause, the high number of Eagle Scouts in our ranks, and our wish for acceptance not only of gay members but also of those of differing religious beliefs within the Scouting Program. Remember, net proceeds support Scouting for All

XX.

Gays are sinners, gays are perverts, gays are sodimizers. God will take care of all of you. (Remember Sodom and Gomorrah)

You guys do realize that pedophilia is really just sexual orientation, don't you? So nice of 442 to support men who lust after boys. So open minded, so forward thinking, so non living in the past, so.... progressive. The North American Man Boy Love Association probably salutes you for supporting their cause in letting them have access to so many sweet young things, you progressive ninnies you!

God, the ignorance and bigotry displayed by people like Joey Boy, Kip360, and Mary Joones turns my stomach. Is there any wonder that we (LGBT) people need protection from the faction of Americans that are like this? These are the people that would have anyone that's not white and conservative silenced and pushed back deep into the closet (don't believe me, look at some of the comments on this section). Folks, that's not going to happen. I feel I stand a better chance on judgement day that the so-called "Christians" spewing their hate on this website. With that said, I support this cub scout group and their parents that are taking a stand against hatred and bigotry, no matter who it's aimed at.

Hey Joey Bo - I'm gay and I've never heard of The North American Man Love Boy Association. My question is...how do YOU know about it?

It is NOT a "second rate club" of any kind, shame on you.

The BSA has ALWAYS kept sexual content out of it's cariculum. Being gay IS about sexual orientation. It's a shame that the GLBT community is trying to strong arm people into thinking as they do. It's not about equality, it's about teaching young men to be good men. Having to explain two men or two women having sex does not have a place in Scouting.

To the GLBT community: STOP!!! You make most Americans sick... we know you're hear, but don't make me accept it. I have MY freedoms just as you do!

So they explain heterosexual sex at the Boy Scouts because they're heterosexual? I'm guessing this would come as an unwelcome surprise to many parents.

so all the secret files that the BSA kept hidden for so long listing the pediphiles in thier Org. shows that all those men were gay.........or straight? just curious.

Yes it is second rate. Anytime any organization takes a group of people and actively discriminates against them is second rate.

I don't believe that simply because you're gay you have no place in scouting.

When I was a scout the last thing we thought about or discussed was sex. Camping, knots, plants, first aid, survival yes, these things were the norm. Sex? We knew it existed but it was never a subject for us as far as scouting.

This organization discriminates against anyone openly gay and then turned around and hid that fact that pedophilic leaders were abusing the scouts.

I have to tolerance for hypocrisy, I get enough of that from our government.

oh please.... this is trash...please post info to back up your statements

So then, just shut up... that had no merit to the conversation... just another libby troll at work!

Markw207, He's right, if you don't believe it, look it up, the internet is just fine.

And that is exactly what they should do.

I hope they do... and no, a "big chunk" will not leave. There are more heterosexual scouts than gay. You're just being an idiot, trying to make your sexual orientation seem more important than it truly is.

So you're gay, why shoud I care? Do what you do, just allow me MY freedom.

What makes you think only gay scouts have a problem with discrimination? Obviously it's a problem for heterosexual scouts too, or so many of them wouldn't have mailed their Eagle Scout badges to the gay kid that was denied one for being gay. It's called the Boy Scouts, not the Bigot Scouts.

The notion of gays being discriminated against is a bunch of crap, hetro's have bent over backwards to allow you the same rights as them. equality in jobs, health care, houseing, education etc: the only thing we do not concede is your desire to redefine marriage. We draw the line there, you gave all the rights as married people anyway under the same sex union clause. Like the blacks you have it all but just don't see it.

kip, what's this we crap? "we draw the line"? You evidently slept late and missed last year's election results from Maine, Maryland and Washington. "We" are increasingly supportive of eliminating all forms of discrimination against our gay cousins.

sadden, I agree, you shouldn't care, but if "your freedom" includes opposing equality of rights under the law for our gay cousins, well, sorry, but you can expect more challenges to your psyche.

Sadden American 2012 stated: "So you're gay, why shoud I care? Do what you do, just allow me MY freedom." Well, funny how we're supposed to allow you your freedom but at the same time you want to refuse us ours. It always comes back to keeping the straight people happy, doesn't it. Well, you better get ready because the world IS changing and people ARE becoming more accepting of LGBT people and their relationships. You are on the wrong side of history, sir, the side of the sinking ship.

This is the real zinger in your argument: "no, a "big chunk" will not leave. There are more heterosexual scouts than gay. You're just being an idiot, trying to make your sexual orientation seem more important than it truly is." What your narrow little mind won't wrap around is that those cub scouts, those parents that are against discrimination ARE MAINLY HETEROSEXUALS. What will probably fry your mind is that more and more HETEROSEXUALS are standing up and supporting their LGBT family members, friends, coworkers, and neighbors. They are the same people that supported an end to discrimination based on sexual orientation in the military and who are supporting marriage equality. These are the same people posting here supporting this Cub Scout Troop's right to end discrimination in their pact. They are the future of this country, not bigoted people like you.

Lev.18.22 Lev.20;13 1Cor.6;9-10 Rom. 1;26-28.27

drp, your Leviticus references are such poor "translations" they are fabrications, while Corinthians and Romans are merely excerpts of letters expressing the opinions of a man named Paul. You'll find more meaningful words in the works of Dr. Seuss.

Do you really want to start throwing out bible verses drp? There are a lot of pretty insane ones in there.

No, the gay community is making this more than it has to be... the rules are set... if you're gay, please do not participate.

This is not about race, it's about sexual orientation. IF you remember your days in Scouting, that was NOT part of it.

Be nice if you'd stop trying to make it part of it.

dmiller2413. As a former member of the BSA, I have to comment that many/most gay scouts leave because if they're found out, they're made to feel unwelcome. If they stay, they can't be true about themselves and end up lying about their life experience to remain part of the troop (which kind of defeats the purpose of scouting, doesn't it?) Kind of hard to be a participant in a group who wants to exclude you. Funny, I suddenly remember there were no Blacks in our scout troop either. I suspect it was because they were not recruited into the troop and would not have been made any more welcome than a gay person. The scout's creed was good...for the 1950s. The world is a different place now and there is no reason that Scouting cannot broaden itself to be accepting of a wider community of people. After all, the scouting creed was not chiseled on stone tablets and sent down from the mountaintop.

So gay boys huh?

Pushing your agenda on others is just what you gay people accuse straight people. The BSA doesn't wish to have sexual orientation as part of it's program.

How can you expect anyone to accept you if you don't accept EVEYONE else?

Sadden -- Kind of like how you're trying to push YOUR agenda on me?

Darrell Ross-7690927 wrote: "I don't go around telling everyone my sexual preferences and I don't want to hear about theirs." Oh please, you and every other straight person is shouting their sexual preference EVERY DAY OF THEIR LIVES! Every time you hold your wife/girlfriend's hand in public, every time you kiss them in public or private where others see it, every time you marry, or divorce, or have a child. Every day we are bombarded with TV and radio ads that are oriented to heterosexual couples and individuals, movies that tend to be heterosexual-populated. When was the last time you saw an ad on TV that was oriented towards an LGBT couple or individual: impossible on all but LOGO (and even there, most of the ads feature heterosexual couples because few companies want to pay to reshoot the commercial for a gay audience as well. Only one I can think of was a Levi Strauss ad a year or so back that had a heterosexual ad and then the same ad shot with a homosexual couple; also some liquor ads are oriented towards the LGBT community). So don't give me this garbage about not going around telling about your sexual preferences: it's so ingrained in society that you don't see it yourself (but we LGBT folks do every day of our lives).

Yes they have:

Americans are a stupid people that love racism and are closed minded. Many Americans, like you, have no tollerance for anyone with different views.

Oh yes we have, Politicians will sell their souls for a vote, sinners will just sell their souls if it feels good, the rest of us see Christ coming back a very pissed off lord.

kip360. Plain garbage. If he comes back pissed off, it's probably due to how far away from Jesus' teachings the modern Christian "believers" have moved. Jesus taught a message of tolerance and love. He was one of the first real Liberals.

boooring

Lev.18.22 Lev.20;13 1Cor. 6;9-13 Rom. 1;26-28.27

drp, we've all heard those Bible verses already, and some of us have read the whole book. You might want to finish it yourself.

My feeling exactly about the writings of lord Obama and his minion. bunch of crap.

drp-587087: Always fast to trot out these (Old Testament) bible verses, taken out of context: Lev.18.22 Lev.20;13 1Cor. 6;9-13 Rom. 1;26-28.27. I bet you're also one of those Christians that would then turn around and state that Christ came into the world and his teachings supercede the Old Testament teachings. Don't get me started on "St. Paul". He didn't like anyone that wasn't like him or didn't believe like him. He came much later than Jesus so he didn't know him personally and all we know about his conversion was that he heard voices from the sky. Frankly, having studied the story of the Bible, it was passed down for millenia via oral tradition before being written down by MEN, then subject to their interpretations, the politics of catholic church and later the Protestant reformation who all had their own agenda to promulgate; centuries of repeated reinterpretation of Arabic and Greek texts. It's an oral history passed down by MEN, written by MEN, interpreted by MEN. It also reflects far different societies that existed in the past than we live in today. If you want to live the life written in this book, you need to head back to the middle east, probably Saudi Arabia where there are herding cultures and agrarian cultures that would be more to your liking.

Well we can't have all those gay kids joining 4H. It wouldn't be long before the right wing homophobes would decide that was a plot to give gay boys an easy way to have sex with animals.

Then why are you whining?

Hey Mike. OH good.

That was a truly ignorant post. So you had a pedophile among you. The word is pedophile, not secretly gay, and they aren't the same thing at all. Many people are secretly gay because of people like you, and they don't go around romancing boy scouts. What a load of bs.

Hey @!$%#WAD, just because someone is gay doesn't mean they are a Pedophile! Most Pedophiles are STRAIGHT men..................like you!

The BSA is NOT a private organization. It receives funding and support from taxpayer funds. They MAY NOT discriminate because they live in the past.

Oddly enough most pedophiles IIRC sleep with same sex children (I.E. Aren't most pedophiles Male and most or their victims are male as well right?). I'm not going to dig around and find this again because its to much of a time sink but I'm pretty sure I read that before. Sorry if your sleeping with a man or boy you're GAY I don't care what block you check when they incarcerate you. Doesn't that in turn mean most pedophiles by the definition are GAY or are you glossing over this simple fact because it doesn't sit well with people?

MrLightRail: That child molester thing is such a low blow, and completely without merit. I think most child molesters statistically go after underage girls, but regardless of the numbers: if I hear that someone had sex with an animal, I don't respond with, "Well, was it a sheep or a goat?" It doesn't freakin' matter, because it's still an animal. The same is true about child molesters. It's not a gay/straight thing. Get off it.

Wow, dan. You might want to go read about about what gay means and what pedophile means. Pedophiles are attracted to children, and that has nothing to do with being gay. No, it doesn't mean what you say it does and you are wrong. No, many pedophiles like opposite sex victims...see that word? Victim. It's what separates a pedophile from a gay or straight person who isn't a pedophile. Go educate yourself. Pedophiles are sometimes attracted to same or different sexes than themselves, but they are pedophiles. Straight or gay people who aren't pedophiles (and more likely you will find men who like children if they are with an adult partner it's the opposite sex, so them just being gay isn't the issue) are straight, gay, or bi, but pedophiles like kids. It's a world of difference.

When my sons were in the cub scouts, there was a man who claimed he was the "step-grandfather" of one of the scouts. About a year later, it was discovered he had sexually molested three of the little boys in that troop.

Last I heard, he was beaten up so badly by other inmates the first night he spent in the local jail that he had to be hospitalized. I can only imagine what must have happened to him when he was sent to the big house ....

Oh, and then molests the kids he can find handy. But no worries...he's straight and therefore must be trustworthy. ugh.

Anyone,

As long as his wife AGREES to be hung from the ceiling, whipped, and engage in anal sex, it's ok, she is a consenting adult.

ram,

Just because two adults engage in activities in the privacy of their own home that you find abhorrent, does not mean they also want to molest children, which most of us find

abhorrent.

Not sure where YOU live, but here the school district collects rent from the groups that use their facilities. The schools ARE NOT provided to scouting organizations at the expense of any taxpayers. They pay their own way, same as any other users of public buildings.

When I was a Scout leader, the school where our Cub Scout pack met did not charge rent.

is it the BSA or the KKK?