Scouts Stopping Al-Qaeda

The District meeting this evening included an envoy from the Executive Selection Committee who requested we provide information on features we’re looking for in a new executive.  Someone suggested “having an open door policy”.  I found this quaint as I consider it far more important to get an appointment than to be able to barge into someone’s office, but I pressed the point and wanted transparency in that meeting minutes and documents should default to public.  The guests did not agree.

Me: Every set of meeting minutes and agendas should be available on the web page.
Guest: We will be making them available on request.
Me: Why?  Just publish them.
Guest: There are some people who shouldn’t have access to them.
Me: What are we doing that we need to hide?  We are the Boy Scouts of America.  Our victories and failures should be public.  Who are these enemies?
Guest: Some people don’t have our best interests in mind.
Me: If you can’t name a single person, then it’s a canard.  I’m not going to accept “If we release our minutes, the terrorists will have won” as an argument in America’s premier youth values-based program.

A few people clapped or laughed and the guest changed the topic quickly.  As I’m leaving Scouting, I’ve become much more outspoken as to its weaknesses.  When I return, I should quit six months later for a few days and see if I can keep the iconoclasm going.