Cookies, Anyone?

            Boys and girls are different. Shouldn’t that be obvious to everybody? Or maybe the differences shouldn’t matter. At least that’s what the 108-year old organization formerly called the Boy Scouts of America seems to be saying. No more Boy Scouts. Only Scouts. Girls are now welcome to join the new, all-inclusive club.

            It all started, I suppose, with the brouhaha over having gay scoutmasters. Then the battle over admitting transgenders. It was just a matter of time before any age-qualified person would be admitted, irrespective of gender identification, natural or preferred.

            I never joined the Boy Scouts, but my oldest son David did. I was never more than a sideline admirer of his achievements, except for the one time I joined him for a camping and canoeing outing. I remember getting up aching from having slept on the ground and then getting an awful sunburn from paddling down the Delaware River for two days in brilliant sunshine.

            My son passed on is love of the Scouts to his son Tyler who became an Eagle Scout last year. I attended the induction ceremony and was very proud to see his accomplishments celebrated. I don’t know how I would have felt if had he shared the stage with a girl.

            Is this latest development another phase in the war on “toxic masculinity”? Boys should not be boys anymore, lest their juvenile games of cowboys and Indians corrupt their imagination, and their fascination with toy guns potentially develop into a crazed attack on their neighborhood school. Fortunately, the inclusion of girls in the Scouts is sure cleanse the organization of any activity suggestive of incipient violence.

            The most vocal opponents to the inclusion of girls in the Scouts, believe or not, are the Girls Scouts who object to losing membership as a result. I have two granddaughters who were active in the Girl Scouts for many years. They supplied us, and many in our neighborhood, with our annual supply of Girl Scout cookies. They learned from selling cookies: they are now active in campaigns to solicit funds in the battle against cancer.

            Will the newly re-constituted Scouts earn a merit badge for selling cookies?