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In the revised edition the need to lay down ethical and moral guidelines without trespassing on traditional attitudes leads to some blushing inconsistencies. The Pledge of Allegiance, with its assertion of national indivisibility, is explained and endorsed, as is the need for social change without breaking laws. Yet the book's careful selection of famous people "who have influenced history" includes Confederate General Robert E. Lee and that master of civil disobedience Martin Luther King Jr. While the BSA officially plans to de-emphasize the military aspects of Scouting, uniformed Scouts now have the option of wearing a beret, which gives them a dashing Special Forces look, or a billed forage cap for that nostalgic Afrika Korps touch. There is as yet no official Boy Scout headband, although the Handbook has nothing against "the cut of your hair," as long as it is clean.
Sex education remains a troublesome subject. Ex-Scouts remember the cold-shower-and-vigorous-exercise defense against temptation. Or the masturbation-won't-harm -you -but-it-causes-worry gambit. The eighth edition merely suggests that sex questions be asked of qualified adults. That is probably the wisest course. It represents a break with the tradition of partial enlightenment or downright misinformation, going back to the 1911 first edition, with its terrifying and confused theory of conserving vital fluids.
In other areas, the older Handbook provided more specific and useful information than the new edition. Many of the camping, woodcraft, water and first-aid skills have been dropped or oversimplified. Instead, the accent is on generalizations about leadership training, participatory democracy, and something called "personal communications skills." Fortunately, all the old down-to-earth lore can still be found in the Merit Badge pamphlets and, for $1.95, in the Boy scout Fieldbook. It is "the best value around," says none other than The Whole Earth Catalogue. ∎R.Z. Sheppard