Boy Scouts Stop Taking Calls, Tony Perkins Freaks Out

Just two days after the Boy Scouts of America asked for public input in reconsidering the organization's long-standing ban on gay scouts and troop leaders, the BSA's Service Desk line, formerly answered by a live person, has been replaced with an automated recording redirecting comments about the policy to BSA's contact page on its website.

That didn't sit well with Tony Perkins, the president of the antigay Family Research Council. Perkins sent a frantic email to FRC supporters, asking them to call individual members of the BSA board and beg them to "not jeopardize the safety and moral integrity of Scouting in the interest of social activism."

Perkins also published the direct phone numbers of members of the BSA Board of Directors, complete with a sample script replete with scare tactics about the moral imperative of "restricting homosexuals from holding leadership positions over boys."

Read Perkins' histrionic email on the next page.

Dear Supporter,

The phones are ringing off the wall.

If you've tried to get through to the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), you know it's been tough. If you've wanted to express your concern about the BSA abandoning their longstanding policy of safeguarding Scouts by restricting openly homosexual Scout leaders from holding leadership positions, you may have been greeted by an endlessly ringing phone. This may be one instance in which the Boy Scouts were not prepared.

The BSA national leadership were not prepared for the thousands of Americans who were shocked to hear that an organization that could always be counted on for standing for what's right was about to cave-in to homosexual activists and corporations which have been threatening the organization's funding.

For generations, the BSA has shaped our nation's moral character by teaching young men to do their duty to God and country. This is why, when the BSA board begins its annual meeting on Monday of next week, it is so important that you keep the pressure on, to show them how devastating this moral collapse will be for the Scouts and the country.

Please call the members of the BSA Board of Directors (sample call script below) and kindly urge them to stand strong and true to their timeless values:

Select BSA Board Members:

*David L. Beck: (801) 240-1000
*R. Thomas Buffenbarger: (310) 967-4500
*Keith A. Clark: (717) 763-1121
*William F. "Rick" Cronk: (925) 283-7229
*John C. Cushman III: (904) 393-9020
*R. Michael Daniel: (412) 297-4989
*Jack D. Furst: (972) 982-8250
*T. Michael Goodrich: (205) 328-9445 ext. 200
*Earl G. Graves: (212) 242-8000
*Aubrey B. Harwell Jr.: (615) 244-1713
*Stephen Hemsley: (800) 328-5979
*Larry W. Kellner: (713) 468-4050
*Robert J. LaFortune: (918) 582-2981
*Joseph P. Landy: (212) 878-0600
*Francis R. McAllister: (406) 373-8700
*Scott D. Oki: (425) 454-2800
*Arthur F. Oppenheimer: (208) 343-4883
*Tico A. Perez: (407) 849-1235
*Robert H. Reynolds: (317) 231-7227
*Matthew K. Rose: (909) 386-4140
*Nathan O. Rosenberg: (949) 494-4553
*Roger M. Schrimp: (209) 526-3500
*Marshall M. Sloane: (781) 395-3000
*Rex W. Tillerson: (972) 444-1000
*David M. Weekley: (713) 659-8111
*Togo D. West, Jr.: (202) 775-1775

Sample Phone Script:

Hello, my name is _________, from __________.

Thank you for your service as a board member of the Boy Scouts of America.

As you're aware, a new proposal indicates that the Boy Scouts of America may revoke their longstanding policy of safeguarding Scouts by restricting homosexuals from holding leadership positions over boys. For decades, your national organization has kept the interest of the boys it serves as the focus of all its actions. No matter what, the Boy Scouts of America could be counted upon to do the right thing and not yield to any social pressure, and has thus far stood strong.

Please do not jeopardize the safety and moral integrity of Scouting in the interest of social activism. The proposal to relegate the decision on homosexual leaders to local chartered organizations sends the wrong signal from the national body: that political correctness ultimately triumphs over character.

Please retain the current long-held and time-tested policy regarding homosexual leadership and membership. America stands with you. Lead the way. Please stand strong.

Thank you, and God bless you.

Together, we can make a difference in turning the tide and keeping an honorable organization on an honorable path.

Sincerely,
Tony Perkins
President, Family Research Council