100 YEARS OF MERIT BADGES

As printed in the Wall Street Journal, August 2, 2010:

The Boy Scouts celebrate 100 years.

Most Americans live their lives blessedly far from the political headlines, and for some 35,000 Boy Scouts and their adult volunteers the big event of the summer is the annual National Scout Jamboree now underway in Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia. This year's gathering is especially meaningful because the Boy Scouts of America are celebrating the 100th anniversary of their founding by newspaperman and magazine publisher William D. Boyce.

Scouting isn't fashionable in our politically correct age, since the organization bars openly gay scoutmasters, atheists or girls under the age of 13. Naturally this has led to lawsuits, most of which the Boy Scouts have won. Some 2.8 million boys across the country nonetheless belong to Scout troops, learning the traditional Scout values of trustworthiness, loyalty to friends and country, and volunteering in the community.

They also still work to acquire "merit badges" by mastering a particular skill, such as first aid, cooking, camping, hiking, environmental science and personal fitness. To become an Eagle Scout requires 21 merit badges. Some 212 Members of the 111th Congress were either Scouts as boys or served as adult leaders, which shows that Scouting does not guarantee a successful career choice, but it has done an enormous amount of good by turning millions of boys into better men.

It's too bad President Obama couldn't find time to address this year's 100th anniversary Jamboree. The boys would have cheered him, and he might have noted what Alexis de Tocqueville called the particular American genius for voluntary organizations that sustain civil society without government power. America would be a poorer place without the Boy Scouts, so congratulations on a century of merit.

Once again thank you to Sister Robin for sending this along.