On February 8th, 1910, the Boy Scouts of America was incorporated. For 100 years, the BSA stood as a strong bulwark of conservative, libertarian, moral values. They successfully united boys from diverse backgrounds, different religions, and different ethnicities– uniting them based upon the principles required for a boy to become an upstanding man. The BSA was attacked from all sides for their righteous stance and even persevered and won their case (Boy Scouts v. Dale, 2000) in the Supreme Court. Sadly, they have in recent years caved from within. Their desire to fill the executive board with amoral, powerful industry executives, like Randall Stephenson (CEO of AT&T) and James Turley (CEO of Ernst & Young), have brought this once great institution to its knees, conceding the high ground on moral issues. Regardless, the first edition of the Boy Scouts handbook, 1911 is one of the prepper’s classic friends.
My Eagle Scout award still holds meaning to me, but its value is not because of what the BSA now represents; it holds value because of my hard work and what the institution once represented. – HJL