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1. Good article. CRKT is a great company. I purchased my first CRKT knife two years ago and carry it everyday.

2. Regarding Scouting. It was an important part of my life: Cub Scouts, then Boy Scouts, up till about age 16 or 17 I think. Great time, great experiences, and still great friends with some guys 50 years later. It was probably a decade or more back when political correctness made the decision for the BSA to allow gay scoutmasters…I believe in NO discrimination, however a change in Scouting occured as a result. About a year ago I saw a copy of Boy’s Life in the dental office…It was not even close to the same magazine I grew up with. In a way, Scouting in my time was making us into little soldiers and outdoor survivors. The things we were taught would not be considered today–Way different today, softer, more feminine focus, and no hard core subjects such as hunting, skinning and tanning , as well as cooking the game killed. Even so, I tried to order a subscription of Boy’s Life for my 9 year old grandson. Never has arrived…and maybe just as well, now that I see they are bankrupt and being sued for sexual abuse…I realize how much I resent this. How many men are allowed to be Scoutmasters in the Brownies or Girl Scouts? Honestly, I think this a type of planned destruction of the “male toxicity” hype of old school Scouting..

3. I forgot to add that we not only carried pocket knives…I think every boy did, but we also kept our .22 rifles in our school lockers for shooting practice in the gym after school! Nobody ever thought about shooting anyone else. If there was a disagreement between two boys then we put on boxing gloves and fought it out under the eye of the Scoutmaster, who was often one of the school coaches, and a ring of other boys…then shook hands afterward. Those were good days, wonderful life learning experiences, and made superb long lasting bonds. Things have not gotten better with time.

4. Pat, I have to comment on your praise and anger with Boy Scouts. I to was very upset with BSA when they changed their adult leader policy. I was reminded tho that the organization has more safeguards in place to protect both youth and adults than any organization out there, churches included. We can safeguard against the evil we know about but it’s the ones we don’t know about that we constantly have to be vigilant about. Two deep leadership always. Regarding them allowing girls. My feelings are mixed as it is Boy Scouts. I have a story for you. I maintain a scout camp. I had a group come in to camp, boys and girls. They camped in separate campsites girls in one boys in another with their respective leaders. The girls helped me plant a bunch of tree seedlings and had numerous questions about the outdoors. Didn’t know what the boys were doing. When they all left for home the girls campsite was clean and in order. The boys campsite was in disarray and several of the tent tie out points had been cut. So… in my mind the girls are welcome back anytime, the boys and their adult leaders. They’re welcome back too but I have a few splitting mauls that need the rust removed and it won’t be with sand paper….. I’m just an old guy in the mountains trying to make a difference in the lives of our youth in a fallen world.

5. I liked the article Pat. I’ve been carrying a CRKT folder, on and off, for about 20 years. Still have the first one that I started carrying. Actually the second one. The first got lost, but I liked it so much I went out and bought another one exactly the same.

   Their knives have always been made with exceptional quality, and materials for a price that the average working man can afford. They aren’t cheap, but they are affordable, and I think probably the highest value for the the dollar you’ll find in any production knives.

   As time has gone on, and I’ve gotten older, I can afford to carry something a little more upscale, and I’ve tried a couple companies, but I always seem to come back to CRKT. They have always been a knife I can depend on, no matter what, and to be honest, I use them harder than any other knife. A $100 CRKT knife will get used when a guy might hesitate if he was carrying something more fancy/expensive.

   To quote Dick Marcinko: “Knives are like American Express – don’t leave home without it.”

6. I was a Girl Scout, absolutely delighted in the experience, and completely support the separation of the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts. There is no reason girls and boys cannot share in learning on all subjects, but it is not necessary that they do this in a co-ed environment. In fact, it is probably developmentally healthier if the learning environments are distinct. Some might wonder if my views are a product of the era in which I grew up, or by virtue of my family culture — and neither would be the case. I simply believe that the co-ed environment (almost regardless of age) changes the nature of the learning experience, and not in the best ways.

7. the boy scouts should be for boys and the girl scouts should be for girls. call me a cave man all you want that is the way it should be….

   1. AGREED.

8. When the perilous times come, we’ll all go back to BOYscouts and GIRLscouts, as we’ll all be working our butts off.

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