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By Pale Horse · Posted
Here's the wording from the printed application (2018 Printing). If someone can point to the change that's causing the uproar, I'd appreciate it. Is it because some of the people who have been registered since the 70's and haven't had a background check since then now do? That doesn't seem like a bad thing. -
A scout Fortnite skin. Just sayin. https://www.digitalspy.com/tech/a862410/fortnite-characters-movie/ -
By walk in the woods · Posted
So a number of random thoughts, most of them pessimistic..... One might argue that the BSA was most relevant when communities were most relevant. By community I mean small groups of people living, working, and serving together (and actually knowing each others names) within a geographic region. Could be a small town, neighborhoods in larger towns, etc. It made sense for the local parish, church, Legion, Moose, Rotary Club to sponsor a youth program for the boys in their town or neighborhood. It helped keep the boys out of trouble, and, provided guidance for the next generation of leaders in that community. As community has become less relevant to American life, the organizations that were tied to community (all of those mentioned above and more) have become more and more irrelevant. Not because their mission isn't right and good, but, because there is no target beneficiary. I'd hold out 4H and FFA as organizations that have figured out how to keep connected to communities, particularly rural communities, and those programs continued success, but, they are more close tied to community and government (i.e. extension services and schools). At the same time as the decline of communities, we have the irrational rise in bubble-wrapped children. Whether that's due to people having fewer children, sensationalized TV news coverage, or whatever else doesn't matter. The program the BSA offered for decades (with @qwazse permission, boys hiking and camping independently with their mates) became totally out-of-date and dangerously irresponsible. Kids simply don't spend time outside like they used to, further making the program irrelevant. We live in a society today that at least some folks consider adolescence extending until 24 years of age (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2018/01/19/adulthood-now-begins-24-say-scientists-young-people-delay-work/). A program designed to breed personal leadership, independence, and responsibility in teenagers is hopelessly out-of-date. I think the BSA has also forgotten a simple truth about large organizations, that is, Simple Rules for Complex Societies. By attempting to nationalize everything, they've create a bureaucracy that nobody can love. The G2SS is seen as laughably restrictive in some places in America (squirt gun fights, really? How's that playing in Peoria?) and way too permissive in other corners of society. Advancement has been turned into paperwork drudgery that serves nobody but the bureaucrats. So to the question, how do you make the program relevant without changing it more? The short answer is you can't. The foundations that used to make the program relevant are gone or disintegrating, and new structures are growing up in their places. The program skills, well many, are viewed as irrelevant. We've heard people say society has changed and the BSA has to keep up. That may be true. But, it also means the BSA has to change, and it will be far beyond just membership changes. The departure of the Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints will be the vanguard of the migration of the BSA into a suburban/urban program, more so that it is already today. I've mentioned in other posts that beyond the remaining membership fights there will be battles about the BSA's relationship with the NRA, and guns in general, and the terror of boys carrying pen knives in open society, etc. The BSA will continue, but, it will be different, I suspect very different. Whether that's good or bad will depend on your perspective. I think for the OP the better question is, "what image do we want to project in 10 years?" -
By Thunderbird · Posted
In my council, I have been told that the Scout turns in their part of the blue cards (or a copy of the blue card, so the original blue cards don't get lost) at the same time as the Eagle Scout rank application. The dates on the blue cards are checked against the electronic dates that are in ScoutNet. ScoutNet syncs with Scoutbook, so merit badges that are approved in Scoutbook should be visible to the council in ScoutNet. If the dates don't match, they can be corrected. I don't know how a council could really check the names of merit badge counselors on blue cards - especially for MBCs outside of their own council (frequently the case for summer camps). Also, some of the MBC info. on blue cards can sometimes be a bit hard to read (whose name is this? LOL). It might not be an issue unless the parents try to sign blue cards for their Scout when they aren't MBCs (but this is the type of thing that hopefully gets caught at the unit level). -
After taking a hard and professional look at everything going on and all the problems we are facing. I think we're going to need more popcorn.
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