Customer Reviews

The Boy: Baden-Powell and the Siege of Mafeking

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Did we really need another revisionist history written with the sole purpose of showing that everything European and "Colonial" is bad and all native peoples are good, virtuous, etc., etc?

Given the current standards for degree granting(that work must break new ground to be worth an advanced degree)the academic community has been gleefully re-writing history for years to fit their fantasy scenarios and strange political/ social theories.

It is a pity that these authors could not be using their academic skills for something better than pandering to the new political and social powers of South Africa, and to the PC pirates and thought control police of the rest of the world.

Apparently, the author and his assistant had a gripe agains the Boy Scouts and B-P. Not only did they spin things to their own liking, they mis-used quotes, poetry and other quoted comments to try and prove their point. At the same time, they've added their own interpretations to misrepresent B-P, his family and his views.

I felt sick the entire time I read it. It's noted that a newspaper editor printed it because it "entertained the reader." Well, that goes to show what the focus is... don't tell the truth or both sides, just entertain.

Luckily, I didn't have to buy this... the college library (of course) had it available. Too bad I wasted the time to read any of it.

I will be up front about my biases...I am an Eagle Scout and I have not read this rag. However, Amazon has graciously printed the text found on the back cover so that I can judge the character of the rest of the narrative. If this is insufficient for some, tell the publishers to do a better job next time, because I don't need to read every word to know when it's tripe. Some books can be judged by their cover.

If Lord Baden-Powell were guilty of the crimes outlined in the summary, he would not have had the disposition requisite to form the movement that still bears his imprint. That is not to say he is perfect; mistakes are constant in war. But there has been no great captain that has not been held in contempt by some of his men that felt slighted due to decsisions that person made in the line of fire. Additionally, mistakes are one thing; unsubstantiated pedantic critique by those holding worthless paper from a backwater diploma mill is quite another. That may seem a ruthless assessment, but I refer you to Ms. Dugmore's alma mater's history department, which complains about its lack of resources limiting its reach: [...]

The wrongs committed by all sides in the Boer War are now out in the open for all to see, and any proud Brit ought to be ashamed of the travesties that did occur; but such is the conduct of certain individuals, and not the army of Lord Baden-Powell; thus it is unnecessary to salt this wound.