One silver lining to this is that the BSA council that hands down such rulings really has little to no control over the running of individual scout troops, which is done 100% at the local level, leaving the decision of who to admit to parents within the troop.

As to be expected, most of these individuals are not bigots, so they allow anyone to join, sexual or religious affiliations notwithstanding.

I agree, directing dissent at the national office is the way to go.
However, now way am I going to send my hard earned medal to the a holes in Irving TX. They'll just throw the letter and medal in the trash. This was popular 12 years ago after the supreme court ruling. It had no effect then either.

I understand why many will do this.
But I'm keeping mine. I need it to wear to Pride parades, etc. It looks great over a simple pink triangle or with a rainbow ribbon.

Honest to God all the Eagle Scout I know (and for some reason I know quite a few) are either kinky, gay, atheist or some combination of the three. My soon to be husband, when asked as part of the process if he believed in God, looked them dead in the eye, and lied his ass off. When I asked him why even bother being an Eagle Scout, he said, with a some what unnerving gleam in his eye, that he wanted to learn how to tie all those different kinds of knots. :)

I agree with you, @2, that it's an empty gesture as far as the lads in control are concerned, and I understand why it's one you wouldn't follow. But at the same time I think it's great some people are doing it, and they're doing so pretty eloquently. I hope it does more good than you or I are expecting it to.

Webelos are still totally gay.

my husband was a demolay.the scouts wouldn't have him.

I'm not mailing back my patch; I don't believe that they will pay any attention to such a gesture.

What I have done in the past is to send the national council a letter explaining why they cannot expect to see any financial contributions from me while they retain their current discriminatory policies. Hit 'em in the wallet - that's something to which they pay attention.

And ask friends and companies, and your local government why they still support them and give them preferential treatment (Many don't anymore).

I'm fully in support of guys publicizing their dissent and sending back their Eagle Scout bedazzlement, but I'm holding on to mine. I and another gay Eagle Scout talked about protesting at the national office in Irving, TX years ago then reasoned, "We earned this. It's mine, not their's." And like @2 Mr. Bradford said, the religious conservatives that run the national office won't be moved by this action.

I think the point is not to change the hearts and minds of the national office with the earnestness of the gesture. The point is the public declaration, the publicity it has the potential to garner, and how bad it makes the boy scouts look.

"...I feel nothing but the highest honor in my promotion to the rank of Former Eagle Scout." Give John G. Munley a merit badge for memetics.