-Caveat Lector- DEFEND SCOUTING NEWSLETTER June 12, 2001 www.defendscouting.com SENATOR JESSE HELMS DEFENDS SCOUTING! Excerpts From His Senate Speech Introducing His Amendment To Cut Funding >From School Districts Discriminating Against Scouts. "Mr. President, for years, the Boy Scouts of America organization has been subjected to malicious assaults by some homosexuals and some liberal politicians simply because the Boy Scouts of America organization, and many individual scout groups, have steadfastly continued to uphold their moral and decent standards for scouting and the leaders of that great organization. I have long admired and supported scouting--its leaders, and the Boy Scouts themselves. (I was one a long time ago, although we will not discuss how long ago that was.) In any case, it comes as no surprise to me that the Supreme Court properly upheld in June of last year the constitutional rights of the Boy Scouts of America--their rights to establish their own membership guidelines, which included no obligation whatsoever to accept homosexuals as Boy Scout members or leaders. Nor was there any surprise that there came the customary discordant company of radical militants demanding that this landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court be undermined..." "This arrogant discriminatory treatment of Boy Scouts of America must not be allowed to continue, and that is why I am sitting here this afternoon offering amendments to reinforce the U.S. Supreme Court's decision upholding the first amendment rights of the Boy Scouts of America and not oblige those Boy Scouts to compromise their membership or leadership guidelines, nor any of their moral principles..." "Mr. President. I hope the Senate will, as the U.S. Supreme Court has already done, uphold the constitutional rights of the Boy Scouts of America to continue to take this (Scout) oath, meaningfully and sincerely." Excerpts from Senator Helms speech to the Senate, March 14, 2001, introducing his amendment to cut funding from school districts discriminating against scouts. His entire speech and the supporting material he submitted for the record is posted at www.defendscouting.com/helms.html . FROM THE EDITOR: Lessons From Two Extremes In The Attack On Scouting Two articles in this issue illustrate the extremes of the attacks on Scouts going on around the country. One reports the recent success of Tennessee Congressman Van Hilleary's amendment to the education bill in Congress. His amendment provides for cutting off federal funds from a school district that denies the Boy Scouts equal access to school facilities. It is very similar to the Helms amendment the Senator was advocating in the excerpt at the beginning of this newsletter. These amendments are a reaction to the unconstitutional effort by the Broward County, Florida, School District and others around the country to try to punish the Scouts because of their exclusion of openly homosexual scoutmasters. Hilleary's amendment passed on a voice vote, a sure indication that it was considered non-controversial. That, in turn, is eloquent testimony that most Congressmen recognize the high esteem in which the Scouts are held by the majority of their constituents. The second article reports the Los Angeles Times withholding thousands of dollars in campership funding over this same position. As a private organization, of course, the Times has every right to indulge in such an example of liberalism and political correctness run amok. The paper has lost some subscribers as a result. Its reputation takes a much bigger hit, however. It is ironic that a newspaper, which depends for its continued existence on the constitutional protection of a free press, should punish the Scouts for exercising their constitutional rights. These examples offer important lessons. One is that most Americans hold firm to the fundamental values and institutions that have made this nation great. But another is that unless enough of these good people are prepared to act in defense of these values and institutions, the liberals and other disciples of political correctness will continue to exert a corrosive influence on our society vastly disproportionate to their numbers. As always, thank you for keeping us informed about what is happening to Scouting around the country and for all that you do in its defense. Peter Ferrara Editor P.S. Please help us pass the word by forwarding this newsletter on to others who are defending Scouting. ************************************************************** WHAT IS HAPPENING TO SCOUTING AROUND THE COUNTRY (Please note: If the URL is longer than one line, you will have to paste the entire URL into your browser's address window rather than use the hot link.) SOME POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS FOR SCOUTING... --ANOTHER BIG VICTORY IN CONGRESS The House on a voice vote passed Tennessee Congressman Van Hilleary's amendment to the education bill to provide for cutting off federal funding from school districts that discriminate against the Scouts. Article at: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,25615,00.html . --HELMS AMENDMENT PROPOSES SENATE TAKE SIMILAR ACTION AS HOUSE North Carolina Senator Jesse Helms has introduced an amendment in the Senate similar to the Hilleary amendment. It also would provide for cutting off federal funds from school districts that discriminate against the Scouts. Article at: http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=\Culture\archive\200105\CUL20010515b.html --CONSERVATIVE WIN IN ROYAL OAK PARTLY TIED TO CONCERN FOR SCOUTS A conservative coalition supported by the Michigan chapter of the American Family Association and other religious conservatives won by a 2 to 1 margin a referendum repealing a city ordinance to include sexual orientation in the city's non-discrimination law. The potential impact on the Scouts and similar organizations figured prominently in the debate. Article at: http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=\Politics\archive\200105\POL20010516c.html BUT MANY PROBLEM AREAS REMAIN --LOS ANGELES TIMES CUTS CAMPERSHIP FUNDS The Los Angeles Times is withholding thousands of dollars in campership funds from the local Scout council because of the Scouts position on homosexual scoutmasters. Article at: http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=\Culture\archive\200106\CUL20010601c.html --WISCONSIN SCOUT COUNCIL PETITIONS FOR POLICY CHANGE ON HOMOSEXUALS The Four Lakes Council serving Madison and surrounding communities has formally petitioned the national Scout office to change its position on excluding openly homosexual men from serving as scoutmasters. Article at: http://www.captimes.com/news/local/1129.php --PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH APPEARS TO BE DISTANCING ITSELF FROM SCOUTING In a letter to the National Association of Presbyterian Scouters, an official of the Presbyterian Church turned down a funding request citing the Scouts as being "in conflict with the theological foundations of the Presbyterian Youth Conference." Article at: http://www.layman.org/layman/news/news-from-pcusa/pcusa-begins-dissociating.htm AND SOME THOUGHTFUL COMMENTARY ON SCOUTING... In the letter to the editor of the Tampa Tribune, scoutmaster Al Perrin eloquently describes how a respectful flag burning ceremony by his Scout troop illustrates the moral compass Scouting has provided for millions of young men. Article at: http://www.defendscouting.com/perrin.html . ************************************************************** SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE INSTRUCTIONS To unsubscribe from this newsletter, simply send an e-mail with the subject line and message left blank to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] . If this newsletter was forwarded to you and you would like to subscribe, please go to our Web site, http://www.defendscouting.com , and fill in the information on the home page. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! 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