Boy Scouts vs Girl Scouts
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Boy Scouts vs Girl Scouts
| Tue, 03-20-2007 - 1:17pm |
I have a ten year old niece who is a girl scout. We were talking about the 12 year old missing boy scout who was found earlier today(she's out of school for spring break). To my surprise, she exclaimed: "Why do they teach boy scouts wilderness survival skills while girl scouts learn how to sell cookies and make arts and crafts?" I was speechless. I told her that it didn't make sense to me either to which she replied: "That is discrimination." I agreed. I then told her that we should create a new organization for girls. We're trying to come up with a name for it ; )
I was just wondering what you guys thought about this? Is it discrimination? Why aren't they taking girl scouts camping?? It's 2007 people.
Edited 3/20/2007 1:20 pm ET by cfk_3

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Both organizations are just so outdated and do nothing more than teach boys to be good little soldiers and girls to be Suzie Homemakers.
I was in the Girl Scouts at one time and I quit for this very reason: we never went camping or did anything other than learn to cook or do crafts. Boring!
Maybe it's her troup?
I know when I was in GS we did some serious camping. (Even did some dinosaur hunting LOL)
A friend of mine is a troup leader for her DD's group. They do extreme camping - like low impact camping. They also have a heavy focus on science.
The leadership tends to focus where the majority of the group has interests...so if most of the girls are into homemaking, then your niece's troup is probably going to focus on that.
Hmm...I thought GS *did* go camping and all that stuff...aren't there badges you can earn in outdoor skills? I was a Camp Fire Girl myself but we did LOTS of camping and outdoorsy things (in addition to arts and crafts and other "girly" things) and this was back in the dark ages when I was young ;-)...I seem to remember my friends who were in GS doing similar things.
Sheri
I specifically remember going camping and being the only tent that didn't get drenched in a rainstorm while I was in Girl Scouts.
I was in boy scouts for 8 years, earned my eagle, and stayed on as an assistant scoutmaster for 2 years to give a little back to my troop. During my time, we were a very outdoorsy troop (we even had a female assistant scoutmaster), a weekend campout a month during the school year and a 2 week summer camp. Other troops were a lot more book and merit badge oriented, some only going on a campout if a camporee going on(an intertroop skills competition twice a year which our troop would mop the floor with the other 12 troops in the district) and 1 week summer camp.
It really comes down to the motivation of the adult leadership in the troop to coordinate all these events, which is a big job in itself let alone just going on the campout. We had many former boy scouts and blue-collar workers as adult leaders who enjoyed being outdoors themselves. Other troops had a bunch of adult wusses and couch potatoes as leaders....seriously, I got to know these people. I don't know the ratio of BS to GS troops, but I visited a couple and I chose my troop since they were more adventurous. I know that the camp we used to go to a lot had a girl scout camp across the lake and us older guys in the troop would always joke about taking a boat and rowing over there in the middle of the night...haha.
I really think some of that GS do is a little outdated since the GS inception in the conservative, gender role period 1950s. It kind of focuses too much on "domestic" abilities rather than roughing it up. More women than ever are in the military and some of the skills that BS attain are very useful in the real world: knots, lashings, physical fitness, basic survival training, first aid, and some of the best food cooked over an open fire ever! I remember about 8 years ago, there was a serious talk about a merger, but it fizzled out with all the gays in BS that the media couldn't get enough of at the time.
AHHHH...memories!
Thanks for the input everyone.
She is here visiting until tomorrow. She and her little sis are on spring break. Anyway, it must be her troupe leader as some of you have indicated because after I read your posts I asked her if perhaps she has to work her way up to camping and she assured me that wasn't the case at all. She said that they have never even discussed anything remotely outdoorsy. She said: "But we did learn how to do the Heimlich maneuver." She then proceeded to give me a demonstration.
I'll take her camping myself. I don't have any survival skills, don't even know how to use a compass but I can learn! I may suggest to her mom and dad, since she's expressed an interest, looking for another troupe in their area that is more active/outdoorsy.
Thanks again!
I was in the campfires too we were called The Bluebirds!!! LOL
Smile,
Deirdre
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