I have a general feeling that they're bad (the org, not the individual children lmao) but am fuzzy on the details of why. It's generally agreed among leftists that it's child labor right? And that they love teaching little kids that capitalism = cool and good. I've got a niece in girl scouts and I'd just like some more concrete examples and reasons not to support them so that my family understands that I'm not just being cheap... although yeah ok I admit it the shrinkflation over the years is one of the reasons I don't give them money, fine.

Or uuuuuh if you think they're good actually then explain for the class pls. Make me feel bad about buying knockoff treats for a third of the price and then not donating the difference. finger-wag 🍪 walter-breakdown 🍪

  • Dolores [love/loves]
    ·
    9 months ago

    mewling little hitlerites trying to hock junk cookies and corrupt the fitness regime of my maoist cadre. i chase them off with a broom

    spoiler

    but the actual thing with scouting orgs beyond whatever weird sales junk they do is that, unironically, "Scout" orgs were established as child paramilitaries to prime kids for patriotism & militarism. the Hitler youth were the nazi version of scouts.

    and i extend this criticism to socialist 'pioneer' youth too. it was not a good idea to be emulate, even if you removed half the racism

    • AbbysMuscles [she/her]
      ·
      9 months ago

      and i extend this criticism to socialist 'pioneer' youth too. it was not a good idea to be emulate, even if you removed half the racism

      Seems excessive. Were they really that bad?

      • D61 [any]
        ·
        9 months ago

        Boy scouts started after US civil war after Union military commanders had to teach city people how to do basic things with a firearm and living outside. Some rich asshat decided that the city people were too soft and needed a club to teach the next generation how to be "men".

        • AbbysMuscles [she/her]
          ·
          9 months ago

          Oh I'm not denying that the BSA (and related orgs) are thorough crap. But the idea of giving kids a chance to join some group to learn a bunch of things and have some fun in the wilderness isn't inherently a shit concept

          • D61 [any]
            ·
            9 months ago

            Not at all, its a pretty common thing in most cultures.

            Shit, I was in cub scouts and boy scouts and for the most part, we just hung out did some guided activity for a while until we became "ungovernable" and were allowed to go play elsewhere.

            Outside of the occasional "fundraiser" and the Boy Scout Jamboree (which, I know I've been to, but have almost no specific memories of) it was just a bunch of kids being kids and our parents being able to talk to other adults for a while.

    • PurrLure [she/her]
      ·
      9 months ago

      The Hitler youth were the nazi version of scouts.

      wtf Well shit.