There is nothing more refreshing than a child with such drive and passion choosing to take a stand for her beliefs; regardless of the topic, it is hard to not be proud of this Girl Scout.  Now, first and foremost, allow me to say that as a man who grew up with Cub and Boy Scouts, I agree with everything this girl has stated.  These views are absolutely going to creep in at times, but are in no way biasing the analysis.  Actually, in knowing that this was a 14-year old girl taking a “Youtube Stand” against an issue, the initial reaction was dreading a broken argument that would make the entire point and stand against this Fundraiser fall to pieces.  I am quite happy to say that already a bias has been proven wrong, as her arguments were pleasantly surprising.

As stated, young people taking a stand for their beliefs is something i enjoy (much more so when they are my own beliefs, of course), and professional, academic stands outside of a classroom are terribly hard to come by in modern society; “research” and “reporting” have become synonymous with schoolwork and essays, and thus absolutely no one wants to do any of it.  The fact that this young girl has, of her own free will, speaks a lot for her character.  Then she starts making her points, and it should be noted that it is much easier to read the transcript and remain objective rather than watching the video, and it all comes to fruition.  The Girl Scout’s work is impressive, for a 14-year old of course, and the first thing realized is just how much work she put into this endeavor.  She provides solid evidence and percentiles, accurately informally citing articles where need-be, and makes sure to let an appropriate amount of personal voice slip in without turning her entire goal into a rant.  Even her manner for how she presents her reasoning is impressive; whether intentional or not, she presents everything in a way that sounds academic, yet is none too flowery or arrogant, and can still be comprehended by everyone.  As she is a Girl Scout, this is key to her audience.  The big thing to take away from this, though, is her acknowledgement of the flawed system and she herself being the one to create this video and these points; she is showing audiences and cookie-purchasers what this situation looks like through the eyes of a child, which is always a persuasive tactic.

Of course, it is quite easy to see why this is so controversial.  But people do not seem to realize what they have done to help here, even if they dismiss this girl’s statements: everyone is taking her seriously.  Usually in situations such as these there are those who will hear everything she has said and not only dismiss, but openly mock them; the fact that everyone regardless of stance is actually hearing what she has to say proves how powerful this was alone.  Now, to be frank for a moment, unfortunately I will not stop “supporting” the Girl Scouts.  Will I silently hold a bit of anger that such a great organization is taking such a hypocritical stance allowing transgender children in?  Absolutely, but the cookies are just too delicious to stop buying.  Thankfully, the Girl Scout of the video possibly recognizes this herself, and in a final bit of impressive work she not only provides options for future alternative fundraisers, but first-hand sales data greater than that with the cookie Fundraiser.  Certainly, for all of these points and implications coming from a 14-year old girl, this is a splendid argument, and a hope for a bright future.