Any former Boy Scouts here?

[trof]

I was a Cub Scout, Boy Scout, and Explorer Scout.
Enjoyed it.
Made cigars out of pine straw and toilet paper.

When did the pedophiles take over?

[Squidly]

1. Made it all the way to life

Ran out of time for my Eagle.
The creepers were always around, its just that most of us were lucky enough not to become victims.

[trof]

4. Welcome to DU.

[stopbush]

2. No doubt the pedophiles were welcomed by the anti-gay, anti-atheists

who have made BSA public policy for decades.

[gladium et scutum]

3. Don't think pedophiles took over.

believed they were there all along, in small quantities. Some of these cases go back many decades. When an incident of abuse occurred, the National organization did not take public action to answer the abuse. They kept it under wraps to avoid embarrassing the organization. Think it was sort of like the child abuse issues in the Roman Catholic Church. Action was taken to protect the organization but not to protect the victims. Not a good decision for a church or a youth organization.

[Docreed2003]

5. Bobcat to Eagle Scout here

I'm a kid of the 80's teen of the 90's and in the 90's there were hints of this stuff. It's really sad to me and I hope they can clean house and make amends and try to right some of these wrongs in their coverups.

[LakeArenal]

6. My dad was a den leader then a pack leader

I’m sure that was the golden age of boy scouts.

[The Genealogist]

7. Yes

When I was 8, I wanted to join cub scouts because so many of the other boys did. Then my dad became a leader. So, when most of the other kids were done with it after Webelos, he forced me to stay in that organization til I was 15. I detested it. Lots of bullying by bigger boys against smaller ones. Adult leaders who were control freaks and micro-managers. Way too much evangelical religion and over the top rah rah patriotism. And what 6th grader doesn't want to try to light a fire in a cold downpour with only flint and steel? Glad someone enjoyed it, I found it miserable.