An Atheist Mothers Depressing Journey With the Boy Scouts

[NeoGreen]

9. No insult taken...

...and I enjoy Scouting, of which the BSA is only one outlet (which has many flaws in of itself) which provides a useful conduit for scouting in general.

However, the premise:

If there is no connection between scouting and the military, then why are Eagle Scouts, Quartermaster Award Sea Scouts and Gold Award Girl Scouts pre-approved for promotion to the rank of E-2 in the military, just like graduates of ROTC programs?

Is flawed, first since the ROTC program is specifically for training of military officers (by explicit design), and is not a program for enlisted personal, and in addition to the awards you mention above, individuals who have completed one or two years of college also receive promotion to E2 and E3 upon completion of basic training. So therefore, by the logic applied above, all persons with a year or two of college credit have received sub rosa military training.

If an external organization, military or otherwise, deems it worthwhile to promote someone who has earned any the the awards above, it does not mean that scouting is providing training explicitly or implicitly for those organizations (military or otherwise).

Are all EMT trainees at my local fire department receiving military training just because those skills have application in the military?

I'll take the BPSA at their word:

The Baden-Powell Service Association (BPSA) was formed in the U.S. in 2006 as an independent and traditional-style scouting association. The principles and methods originally drafted by Robert Baden-Powell in 1907 have been developed and refined in scout associations around the world. BPSA's program harkens back to the origins of scouting: promoting self-reliance, good citizenship, training in habits of observation, and loyalty. Our badgework and program are simple, our uniform is minimal. We teach real outdoor skills and engage in adventures, campouts, and community-building. Service is one of our core tenets, as we create a culture where children and adults ask, "How can we help?"

And in the introduction to their Rover Handbook:

The training scheme devised by Baden-Powell is based on using the natural desires of young people as a guide to the activities that will attract and hold them. The appeal of true Scouting has always been to that element of the outdoorsman, pioneer, and explorer, which is part of our nature, and is at its most evident in youth. Hence the significance of the opening sequence of BP’s “Explanation of Scouting” in Scouting for Boys:

“By the term ‘Scouting’ is meant the work and attributes of backwoodsmen, explorers and frontiersmen.”

Scouting is an outdoor movement and that is part of its character.

As far as the uniform goes, is everyone who wears a uniform for work secretly, or overtly, receiving military training, or aligned with military principles? Is a nurse or doctor who wears their professions prescribed "uniform" inherently militaristic?

By being a veteran, does that a priori taint everything you do later in life as owing to, or specifically promoting a military or militaristic approach? Even when you strive to do otherwise?

From BPSA's Introduction to Traditional Scouting

Why Traditional Scouting?
During the Boer War, Robert Baden-Powell (“B-P”) was the commander of British forces—and the British civilian population—in the besieged city of Mafeking. Through leadership, courage, and cleverness, B-P successfully defended Mafeking until the siege was lifted, and returned home to England a hero. During the siege, boys had acted as couriers in the city, and B-P had been impressed with their courage and service. On his return to England, he was disturbed to find many boys reading his book, Aids to Scouting for NCOs & Men. He had intended that book for soldiers, not boys, and thought the material was inappropriate for youth. His experience at Mafeking taught him that youth were capable of much more than most of society realized, and so he decided to rewrite Aids to Scouting with boys in mind. He wanted to take the best aspect of the military—selfless service—and train boys to be of service not for war, but for civilian life.

They would be “peace scouts” and the book would emphasize the techniques of backwoodsmen and explorers rather than soldiers. He also had an idea that it could be done in a way that was fun, so that the boys often didn’t even realize it was training. He led a camping experiment with boys on Brownsea Island in August 1907, wrote Scouting for Boys (published in 1908), and the Scouting movement was born.

B-P continued to refine his teaching methods until his death in 1941. The goal of his system was, and still is, to teach better citizenship through games and outdoor activities.

The ideas may have come from military service, but the program was never meant to be a preparation for military service.

In the BSA there are 3 merit badges focused on Citizenship:

Community, Nation and World, and all are required to earn the highest BSA rank of Eagle.

Please show me the requirements for the Patriotism merit badge, because up til now, I have never seen the like.