Re: Drinking Policy on International Trips?
Ben Parker (bparker@INTERACCESS.COM)
Sun, 2 Jul 1995 23:37:50 -0500
On Sun, 2 Jul 1995, Tom Turba x6774 wrote:
> As most people on this list know, there is a policy of no drinking with Boy
> Scouts in the U.S.
> ...
> "What should be the rules regarding drinking for U.S. Scouts and Scouters
> while on Scouting trips in other countries where the rules and customs are
> different?"
The fact that rules or customs may be differnt when we are visiting
overseas is not an excuse for not abiding by our policy. We don't change
our uniforms to match those of the locality, why should we change our
rules and customs. Exploring these very differences can be a quite
enlightening experience for US Scouts, and for Scouts from other
countries visiting the USA.
As to your situations:
Legal drinking age in most places in the USA is 21. Anyone over 21 is not
a youth, so must be a leader. Even in the few places where it is lower
than 21, I'm pretty sure it is everywhere over 18, again a defining age
for adults (in terms of BSA rules). So no youth will be of legal
drinking age anyway (in US).
Youth should not be drinking at all. Adult leaders should be mindful of
their role as leaders to set a proper example by also not drinking
whereever youth are or may be present.
Adult leaders in a situation with ONLY other adults present may chose to
drink or not. Adult leaders in uniform, in public, even if no youth are
present, are still setting an example of conduct/behavior for all Scouts
in general to the public. Probably not a good idea to drink.
What people do out of uniform, and/or in the privacy of their own home
is, of course, private and not subject to discussion here.
Consider another scenario. You are travelling with a group of Scouts
from a troop sponsored by the LDS church (for whose members alcohol is
proscribed adult or youth). I have never seen a problem with a gracious
request to substitute water or soda instead.
================
Ben Parker (IL) bparker@interaccess.com 71450.2735@compuserve.com
* ASM T-16 Oak Park IL (founded 1916) * Beavers are Busy! (C-22W-93) *
* Pachsegink Lodge 246 * Des Plaines Valley Council IL * Eagle Scout-1962 *
Terry Howerton Sakima Group, Inc. SCOUTER Magazine Kansas City | 
