Friday, March 07, 2014

Gonna Have To Be A Little More Thrifty

Okay, I will promise not to make any Webelos jokes here. After that one, anyway. The Walt Disney Company will cut funding to the Boy Scouts of America beginning in 2015 because of a policy that bans gay adult leaders in the organization. That means the Boys Scouts of America will have to go somewhere else to find funding for their pup tents and neckerchiefs. The Boy Scouts organization is "disappointed" by the decision, which will affect the organization's ability to serve children, Deron Smith, a Boy Scouts spokesman, said in a statement Sunday. What did they want? Just last year the Boy Scouts of America lifted their ban on gay youth. Wasn't that forward thinking enough?
Apparently not. Even though Disney is not a direct contributor to the Boy Scouts, but it donates money to some troops in exchange for volunteer hours completed by their employees. Feel free to imagine your new troop leader, Goofy. Or Donald Duck. Of course, if you were lucky enough to tear Mister Duck away from his very busy production schedule, you Scouts might be shocked to find that this Hollywood type tends to show up for work most days without his pants. He seems to be sending this message to his nephews as well.
It is possible that I am the exact wrong person to ask about this, having had precious little experience with Boy Scouts of America. My older brother was a Boy Scout, and he seemed to like it just fine. I really appreciate that whole "be prepared" thing. I do wonder if somehow they aren't following their own message. This is 2014, after all, and times have changed. If you want Disney money, you've got to play by Disney rules. Or maybe you can just join the Junior Woodchucks (pants optional).

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