Rip's Discussion Topic #7

[Rip]

I believe boy scouts is a noble endeavor, something that is far better than leaving kids out on the streets. While I never participated in them personally, I can attest that they have positively impacted plenty of lives I know. But at the same time, the corporatization of boy scouts really hits home as a horror of modern society. In what is meant to be an organization created to improve character, it seems now we're allowing the brainwashing of youth by special interest groups, specifically the MPAA in this case. Thats right folks, the boy scouts have a new patch, titled 'respect copyrights'. Of course respecting copyrights is a good thing to do, but according to the propaganda put out by the MPAA on this, they make some suggestions on how to obtain the badge. They want kids to research what peer to peer programs are, and: "describe to your troop what they are and how they are sometimes used to illegally trade copyrighted materials," "There are peer to peer groups who offer legal downloads and those who offer illegal downloads. Make a list of both. Suggest ways to detect peer to peer software like the MPAA Parent File Scan."
Ok, the research might be one thing, but are you kidding me about the MPAA parent file scan? According to the gents over at ars technica: "This is a piece of software that simply lists all file-swapping applications and media files (whether legal or illegal) on a user's hard drive. Encouraging kids to do this (with the obvious correlation that they could discover and put an end to big brother John Q. Crazyreefer's stash of hidden downloads) seems a mite creepy,"
In other words, the MPAA wants to turn their little boy scouts into tattletales. More evidence of this can be found in the fact that the information provided by the MPAA on this badge doesn't actually encourage kids to learn about what copyrights are at all.
Again from ars:
because the curriculum appears to offer no guidance regarding fair use, public domain material, the limited duration of such rights, and why you aren't allowed to make backup copies of DVDs that you purchased. Instead, students are asked to "go to a movie and stay through all of the credits. Tell your counselor and/or troop leader who you think, in addition to the main actors and actresses, would be hurt if that film were stolen?"

Of all things, talk about biased propaganda. I don't have a problem with a boy-scouts sponsored patch being focused on copyrights, but it needs to present the whole story, people need to learn what copyrights exactly are and what they affect, and why!
Linkie (http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061020-8044.html)

[Pantslesswonder]

I was in Boy Scouts years ago. What ever happened to making pinewood derby cars? Or selling popcorn? This is just another example of corporate america's propaganda. The music industry is taking the once clean and glorified image of Boy Scoutery and turning it into their war on downloads. I wouldnt be suprised to see them armed with AK-47's, busting into a persons house, and deleting their hard drive.

[Pencilposer]

Boy Scouts are still around?

[PMS HateMaker]

Eventually Boyscouts will sport McDonald's patches and attempt to convince everyone they meet that fast food is good for you.

[Fuzzy]

Back in Boy Scouts, I remember the only "personal" and technologically relevant activity we had to do that was remotely close to earning a merit badge was when I had to use a table saw to cut the wood for my boxcar for the annual Troop 153 Boxcar Derby Tournament.

I s'pose the Boy Scouts are trying to keep up to date with events and modern science and technology. This has been a decade of great change in our ideas and the American perspective.

But I can't talk too much now...class is starting. I'll add more onto this later.

Sorry for the double post, but now I am ready to post my full reply.

Back in 2000, a U.S. Supreme Court case, Boy Scouts of America et al. v. Dale, challenged the constitutionality of the youth organization when a scoutmaster was found to be a homosexual. Homosexuality, according to the Boy Scouts, is not condoned or talked about and is immoral in the aim of the organization's goals (i.e. a Scout's motto to be "reverent" and "clean.") Even though Dale did not actively pursue to talk about homosexuality to his troop or to other Boy Scouts or attempt to molest the children, he was forcibly asked to resign from his position as scoutmaster. Contesting this issue, the U.S. Supreme Court found in favor of the Boy Scouts by precedent of Roberts v. United States Jaycees, stating that "implicit in the right to engage in variety of political, social, economic, educational, religious and cultural ends." What does this mean? It means that the Boy Scouts have the right to "freedom of association," allowing them to choose what they teach and practice without the burden of the government or the peoples influencing their ideas.

Referring to the MPAA and Boy Scouts copyright coup, it's sad to say this but the Boy Scouts do have a right to limit their teachings on how to "respect copyrights." It would not be considered detrimental to the boy's safety or their well being and it can only serve to benefit by creating an [false] awareness of what copyright laws are and P2P network programs do to the media industry.

Playing Devil's advocate, who are we to say what to teach these children if they freely choose to associate with the Boy Scouts? It is a private organization and bound to its constitutional rights as much as any other organization like NAMBLA or the Ku Klux Klan. There is a choice involved with learning about these ideas just as much as there is a choice of how much you want to learn or listen in the classroom.

However, this does not mean I agree with their ideas of surpressing homosexuals to engage in the Boy Scouts or improperly teaching children about the half-truth about copyright appreciation. These are two sides we need to take a look at in order to gain neutral insight to the issue.