Living With Liberalism: Gays, Graduations, and Swedish Riots

One doesn't have to look far to witness the disaster that is modern liberalism.  Sadly, leading the debauchery is the Boy Scouts of America.  For over 100 years, the Scouts have operated under the oath: "On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight."  That oath has now been rendered meaningless, and the Boy Scouts, as we knew it, is dead.

Yesterday, in historic infamy, over 1,400 members of the Boy Scouts national council voted (by a 61%-to-39% margin) to allow openly homosexual boys into its ranks.  As USA Today noted, "Since 1991 the Scouts have barred openly gay individuals from participating in Scouting because it was decided that being gay was incompatible with being 'morally straight.'"  So now, all of a sudden, being "morally straight" doesn't necessarily mean being sexually straight.

As is so typical with liberalism, whenever there's a moral standard you want to change, just be persistent, loud, and threatening.  It took only about 22 years with the Boy Scouts.

Persistent liberalism has worn down Dekalb County (in Georgia).  For years now, atheist organizations have sought to get high school graduations out of area churches.  In 2010, a federal judge ruled (based on a lawsuit brought against a Connecticut high school) that holding high school graduation ceremonies at a church is unconstitutional and ordered the Enfield (CT) school board to find an alternative venue.

In recent years, schools in Georgia have faced boycotts from atheist students and threats from atheist organizations for holding graduations in churches.  This year, Dekalb County, GA decided that the fight wasn't worth it.  They have decided to pull all graduations out of local churches.  This is in spite of the fact that alternative venues are often not as convenient or as well-equipped to hold such events.

Then there is Sweden.  For days now, Sweden has suffered nighttime riots at the hands of unruly youths.  The young thugs have set dozens of fires, targeting many cars and even a school.  As reported by RT.com news, "[c]ommunity leaders insist that a main reason for the violence is the high rate of unemployment in immigrant communities, particularly in the suburb of Husby near central Stockholm, one of the worst affected by the nighttime violence."

Using very sound liberal logic, Swedish Democrat MP Kent Ekeroth stated, "In Sweden you've got welfare, access to the educational system -- up to university level, you got access to public transport, libraries, healthcare -- to everything. And still they feel that they [immigrants] need to riot through stones and Molotov cocktails. It's ridiculous and a bad excuse."

Apparently it has escaped many Swedes that, when you promote a culture of entitlement, those on the receiving end are likely to erupt when they don't get everything they expect.  Ingrid Carlqvist, editor-in-chief of the Swedish Dispatch International, concluded,

"The problem is not from the Swedish government or from the Swedish people. The last 20 years or so, we have seen so many immigrants coming to Sweden that really don't like Sweden. They do not want to integrate, they do not want to live in [Swedish] society: Working, paying taxes and so on."

In a moment of mental clarity, Carlqvist added, "The people come here now because they know that Sweden will give them money for nothing. They don't have to work, they don't have to pay taxes -- they can just stay here and get a lot of money. That is really a problem."  Yes, it is!  Carlqvist is correct; however, the environment that has produced this "money for nothing" culture is a result of the liberal policies favored by the Swedish people and their politicians.  Thus, the Swedes bear the responsibility for creating such a liberal haven.

Trevor Grant Thomas: at the Intersection of Politics, Science, Faith, and Reason. www.trevorgrantthomas.com

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