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LATEST POSTS
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Thank you for the well wishes. Truly. Though I'm still barefooted on the floor attempting to navigate the final stanzas of this treacherous waltz with Kaa (through shards of my life and the lives of others), I'll take any encouragement offered. So, 1908 days after the Chapter 11 filing and 1755 days after submitting my Proof of Claim, I received my Allowed Abuse Claim letter. Who's counting, right? Living through many forms of abuse starting at the age of 3, spent many years drowning in self-medicating techniques through diverse (and sometimes creative) maladaptive behaviors. Along the path I've had my share of so-called, 'out of body experiences.' I have officially added reading that letter to the list. Whatever that means to you and however you envision it, that was surreal. I meandered around for hours then days, experiencing more manic, sleepless nights thinking, writing and, again, trying to avoid feeling it all yet again. The non-monetary narrative section placed me, appropriately, in the Tier One, penetration, category. Is that a "YAY!" moment? I suppose one celebrates such a thing, as twisted and morbid as that it surely is. The letter, signed by Randi Roth, the Claims Administrator, said in pertinent part: "Allowable" Claim. The Trust assesses seven basic eligibility criteria to determine whether your claim is "allowable." They include: (1) your submission was timely; (2) there was no previous resolution of your claim in litigation or another process; (3) you stated the acts of abuse that were suffered; (4) you established your connection to Scouting and showed that BSA, a local council, or certain Chartered Organizations may have been legally responsible for your abuse; (5) you sufficiently identified your abuser(s) and your abuser's connection to Scouting; (6) you provided the approximate date of your abuse (or your age at the time of abuse): and (7) you provided the location of the abuse. Once the Trust determined that your claim was "allowable," the Trust turned to calculating the "Proposed Allowed Claim Amount.. There are many aggravating factors listed in the TDP. In your case, ten of them applied: extended duration of the abuse; extended frequency of the abuse; you were exploited for child pornography; multiple abusers involved in sexual misconduct; adverse impacts to your mental health; adverse impacts to your physical health; adverse impacts to your interpersonal relationships; adverse impacts to your vocational capacity; adverse impacts to your academic capacity; and impacts resulting in your legal difficulties." Wee. I have been validated. More balloons, streamers, cupcakes, pink punch and party favors? The single Mitigating Factor applied was the dreaded Statute of Limitations, though they used the most favorable option since I was abused in three states. Still, per a very helpful and knowledgeable Claim Administrations Advisor, it's doubtful an attorney actual read and researched the substance of my argument for tolling of the appropriately abbreviated, SoL based on fraudulent concealment. That means I stay in the game and prepare my Request for Reconsideration of the tolling argument. For me, it's worth another at bat on this key factor in the final award determination. Thus concludes this grunt's update from the war zone. I have not yet found a DMZ. Please hold hope and carry on all of you survivor claimants, my friends and fellows, still out here with me. Per usual, forgive my speed typos. -
By RememberSchiff · Posted
And now something completely different - Airport hawk trap Eagle Scout project (Long Beach, CA) "There have been incidents where hawks get sucked up into engines," Life Scout Jonathan Babati said. "I thought this would be a perfect project to prevent that and help (the airport) save a lot of money." Although wildlife-aircraft collisions are not exclusive to avians, a 2021 study by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln reveals hawks and owls are among the birds most frequently struck by aircraft. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, wildlife-aircraft collisions have resulted in $1.48 billion in damages from 1990 to 2023, killing hundreds of people. Babati says the idea is to place a rodent in one of the trap's layers to attract the hawks. The hawks will then land on a plank that folds and traps the bird inside the cage. Neither the hawk nor the rodents are harmed in the process, Babati said.... An environmental scientist will then take the hawk and relocate it to a better habitat, Babati said. More including photos at source: https://patch.com/california/longbeach-ca/how-cypress-life-scout-saving-hawks-long-beach-airport -
By Eagle94-A1 · Posted
My advice is to take your time, feel out the other Scouts and adults, before suggesting change. Get to know folks, their strengths and weaknesses, before you trying to change anything. And be polite and courteous when making suggestions. And most importantly, listen to their responses. As a Scout, and later as an ASM, I hated, emphasize HATED, when new adults just joined the troop and tried to change things. Worst case was a bunch of adults who transferred from Cub Scouts, and wanted a continuation of Cubs. No amount of explanations, discussions, meetings, or even training would change their minds. The COR had to intervene to fix the matter. But it was too late for one family that transferred out. Once you get to know them, if you can get the older Scouts behind your ideas, and a few other adults, you can try your ideas. -
I am sussing out that you're trying to figure out when to bring your knowledge to the table without burning a bridge. That's really tough to figure out; unfortunately we have a lot of bad leaders in scouting. I would recommend assessing the key 3 a bit, attend some leader meetings to see if they are just dictating or actually running the meetings properly. A key indicator to hold off and wait on making any recommendations is if the committee chair is not seeking input from all attendees at the committee meetings. -
I'm 100% okay with this. I'd celebrate getting the scouts outside their comfort zone and experiencing new things. My earlier response should probably not have been written during a work mtg.
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