Sailor Suit

But the big money comes from Laird and his right-wing buddies George Argyros and Carl Karcher, each of whom donated $1 million to the Scouts in 1997. Developer Argyros, no fan of either representative democracy or popular will, has already spent $3 million of his own money trying to shove a massive airport down South County throats. Karcher, who founded the Carl's Jr. fast-food franchise, is notorious for his anti-homosexual views.

To the Boy Scouts, perhaps, these intolerant, anti-democratic men have "character." And that's fine. But, as the ACLU will point out in its suit, such character formation, however legal, should proceed without public subsidies.