Oct 6, 2020 3 min read

Scouting analogy used for wrong purpose

I question Gary Stout’s thinking when he wrote his comments in an Oct. 4 op-ed about President Trump not being a Boy Scout. He listed the 12 points of the Scout Law that each Boy Scout studied and was to try to live by. Mr. Stout applied each point of the law with Trump, in the highest office, today, as our president. Only a political adult would do this, not a young Scout.

If scouting is meant to help a child develop into the best he can, tearing down someone else’s dad can make the teaching a little confusing. A child has an undeveloped mind with many adults giving him/her lessons to be a good citizen. There are parents, teachers, preachers, and special groups to patrol the walk and mind. I support the purpose of Scouts. I was a Girl Scout and went on to be a Brownie leader followed by being a Cub Scout mother when I had four young sons. My youngest grandson was just awarded his Eagle badge, and his dad is a Scout leader. Scouting is meant for smart, decent, respectable living, of yourself and others. It was never intended to be the rule of the land but a choice. Similar to the Ten Commandments, both will help you to be outstanding, trustworthy, and respectable.

During our lifetime, we must live by government laws. The nature to enforce such laws does not require a Scout badge. No president, governor, commissioner, or local municipal official must present a Scout badge to serve in office. We, the public, hope they represent the 12 Scout laws as intended but, who really does? If we are to make a future requirement that governing officials must have been a Scout in their young years and show proof of meeting each law in their adult life, we will never have future candidates. We all feel the dark side of life, waste time and food, not being friendly or helpful, many times in life.

Mr. Stout used the Scouting Law for the wrong purpose, to muddy the waters for the upcoming election. He failed to mention one other motto in scouting – be prepared. The commandments state, Thou shall love thy neighbor. Hopefully, the younger generations will never lose the meaning of these two statements. Politics is a mix of personalities that has no true teacher, just good convincers.

Joann Diesel

Houston