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(I started this in Issues in case it goes down hill) I was wondering what the others on here have noticed the editorial changes in Scouter Magazine. Just got the latest issue Saturday and I was startled by the difference in it and Boys Life (my sons read both and we usually comment on them). All non-snark aside. Is it just me? What I noticed was: (1) Scouter's cover article was on the benefits of a man who took his son and daughter camping. Other than mentioning he was a Scouter it was mostly just talking about solo camping trips. Did not seem that related to scouting at all. Wa

Regarding sizes, I remember the 'Made in the USA" merchandise was sized properly. The shorts and pants with elastic were sized with the elastic fully expanded. So the Scouts, and some Scouters , could buy a size or two bigger and have room to grow into. Last time I bought new pants, ok the son bought them with his Christmas money, it took several tries to get the right ones for my son. And when national put the Gen 1 switchbacks on sale, I heard they were sized too big. That wasn't a joke. I took the risk and bought XLs and Ls. XLs were HUGE, and thankfully I was able to sell them to someone.

I'm not sure we connected on the idea, etc. It's not about access or 3rd party on-line distributors. It's about visibility in stores people visit anyway. It's about putting BSA stuff in stores that parents visit so they see BSA uniforms and stuff BEFORE deciding to have their kids in scouts. Right now, parents have to decide for their kids to be in scouts before they see scouting merchandise. It's also partially about asking what is the profit level of our council stores. I see them very busy in September with new cubs. But if you remove the patches and advancements from the equati

Old fat middle aged men struggling to get our of a hammock look remarkably like a turtle trapped on his back....anything for the enjoyment of the lads.

I would think not a problem ... for a Turtle.

It's true. I have a very high opinion of my scouts. I stand convicted.

End of last summer camp as we got off the coach to hand the explorers back to the parents a good number decided they wanted to give me a hug along with their thanks for a good camp. No complaints from the parents, it was rather heartwarming I thought. Only time I can recall refusing a hug is when we were both having a swim, and she was in a bikini. Dear reader, you've never seen anyone backpedal in 4ft of water so fast as I did that day, arms raised, and a clear warning "no hugs! No hugs! Red alert! Red alert! No hugs!" Oh, and you keep talking about French kisses as a greeting...wow

Today was the deadline so I went ahead enrolled for university of scouting in a few weeks. My CM knows I'm nuts, and there is another more experienced DL with anxiety issues. So, at least it's not my little secret within the organization. Anyway my CM just happens to be in my first class and we will have lunch at the same time. I have my emergency meds from previous flare ups so I may just take a small dose to calm me down enough to get through the morning. I feel like I should be fine after that. I walked in the Christmas parade this past weekend in spite of the weak legs. Once we got g

I appreciate this comment. I apologize, @WisconsinMomma, if you felt my words were unkind. They were not meant to be, and if a general statement I made was erroneously taken personally, I am sorry. But they were meant to be honest, which I cannot apologize for. I do believe that making too big an issue over a small thing is unwise, and a distraction - it takes our attention from the things that matter by focusing our energies on actions and behaviors instead of on people and individuals. We can focus all we want on whether handshakes or upside-down boys are right or wrong - but by so doing, we

Hey y’all. I was wondering if I got a ring to symbolize I got eagle to wear everyday, which finger would you wear it on. Your middle finger or ring finger, on the right hand. What do y’all think?

Go to the BSA website and follow the links... www.scouting.org If you sign up, you will be given satellite images of the search area to inspect for signs of wreckage. If you see something, you flag the image and the search coordinators are notified. Pretty cool. Just got my latest issue of Eagletter yesterday, the national magazine of NESA. Inside the front cover was a letter from Steve, the incoming President of NESA. Obviously printed before he went missing.

They should not be using SEAL Training as a title as the BSA already has an official course by that name. It predates 1998 and stood for Sea Explorer Advance Leader Training. Then it became SEa scout Advance Leader Training. Link to an overview is here https://seascout.org/youth-training-and-education/seal/ SEAL pin can be found here: http://www.crventuring.org/Training/SEAL/

Now, now, you're not "nuts." You sound at least as sane as about half the people I know. Of course, most of the people I know have some sort of anxiety, OCD or other issues as well.

I would think ring finger of either hand. Pinky finger if you're Sicilian. You will find that most men as they get older rotate rings if they have them. Sometimes they will rotate in the class ring or the signet ring or the family heirloom ring, etc. The one ring that does NOT get rotated is the wedding band. Take that off at your own risk.

Welcome to the forum. Okay left ring finger is out if you're married. I think the ring is too big for a pinky ring. Thumbs look stupid. I've never seen a man wear a ring on an index finger. I'm thinking that rings need to be a bit out of the way of actually working so maybe middle fingers should be excluded. Well that leaves only one finger left, the right ring finger. Maybe they named it that for a purpose, I dunno, but if it was me I'd go with that one.

@Deerehaas18 welcome to scouter.com

I was thinkink about this thread yesterday, and how hard it is to know these sorts of things....gear being a very individual thing but I was thinking that one of those small swiss army knives (a name brand quality one)or maybe a small multi-tool I would think would likely be a hit regardless. Even if i have one or more I'd still appreciate another...and even if I was a knife collector and preferred some completely different kind of knife, it's still handy to throw into a day pack or sopmeplace as another backup.

Amen brother, amen.

I have to agree with Flagg. A couple years ago I found more useful articles that I might hang on to for later reference. The last two years I quickly scan it for official pronouncements and trash it. I probably look at the ads more than the articles. I really do read the magazines in that I have plenty of waiting around time as the family chauffeur and prefer the printed page to smart phone. It is a shame as campouts are a good time for an ASM to catch up on some reading...

If it’s like gaming boards it’s guys who get to know the board owner and share their views. They try to be fair but usually end up showing favoritism in some way or form. Some are good and some not. It’s like anything else I suspect. On those boards people just ignore them.

That’s my point. You can’t write a law that says no knives on school property because the school is already violating their own law by supplying metal knives in the cafeteria. So by some folk’s definition of zero tolerance the law is de facto already broken. If I have a 2” emergency blade in my safety kit how and use a knife at lunch, a I guilty twice? Should their be a difference in bringing a two inch blade versus using a 4” knife to cut my Salisbury steak? If yes, then we’ve already built discretion in to the law (bringing a knife versus being supplied a knife) which refutes NJ’s argument t

I read BL and thought it similar to recent issues. I read Scouting while at home in break. Wasn’t like past issues I had read. Really dry and boring. I figured that’s just what old scouters like. That’s a joke. I do wonder what the future of BL is. Will they rename it or simply start a girls version.

Or, from observations, the upper hammock being tied a little looser than the lower hammock, and/or with heavier contents, the hammocks can get, err, well, a little too close for comfort. I've had explorers triple deck hammocks before, I really don't like it, as the top "bunk" is 6ft off the ground, but apparently they know everything and "it'll be fine". It was, as it happened, but it doesn't mean I have to like it.

Love the "use only manufacturer's replacement ropes" line. (No pun intended.) Manufacturers often ship hammocks without ropes!

And a rough back of the envelope calculation of the error bounds on a sample size of 60,000 in a population of 75 million children will give you an accuracy within one percent. i.e., there's a 99% probability that the answer is within 1%. A survey sample size of 60,000 people is really large. Anyway, back to our regularly scheduled program....

Brother moved to Phoenix - bragged about it being 115 degrees and a "dry heat". Called to gloat when it was 15 below here - I responded "yeah, but it's a dry cold". Big City Snow Day Thresholds: Nashville = 1/2 inch Washington DC = 1" New York City = 8-10" Cleveland/Milwaukee = 12-14" Boston/Buffalo/Chicago/Minneapolis = "what's a snow day?" Winter Camping in Great Lakes States - many inches of snow - temps below 20. Winter camping in Orange County - 75 degrees and cloudy. Good luck building a quinzhee with sand.

Maybe it's just better to wait and see what the other person does. If they offer a hand, shake it, if they bow, you do too, if they grab you and do the kissy thing, go with the flow. If they give you a big bear hug, smile and pat them on the back. Just remember, whatever it is they are doing is trying to be welcoming and friendly. Accept it for what it is regardless of your reaction. So, if they are pointing a gun at you, it might be wise to hold your hands up in the air, I think that is the universal option at that point.

If I'm in a scout unit, I'll do what the CO wants.

If I am in Japan I will bow. If I am in France I’ll do the kissy thing. If I am in Sweden (and they’re girls) I’ll pretend I’m French and do the kissy thing. If I’m in the USA I’m shaking your hand whoever you are. That’s what we do.

The schools in my area do NOT have that "safe harbor" rule. However, I'm aware of one case where a student told a teacher that he accidentally had a pocket knife in his backpack. And the teacher wisely told the student to just leave it there until the end of the day. But if the teacher had decided to go by the book, the kid would have been in a lot of trouble. What I've told my kids, and what I've told other scouts to talk to their parents about is this: If they discover that they accidentally have a knife or some other contraband in their possession, then they should go to the teache

As a leader of 14 and 15 year old boys in the LDS program I think there's a key item missing from the conversation. Like in the traditional scouting program some LDS units run good programs and some LDS units run poor programs, units that run good programs will continue to help their boys work in patrols and advance in the program, units that ran poor programs will unfortunately have boys who will suffer. In our unit (we call them Wards) I'm a Varsity Scout Coach for the next 23 days after that my responsibility for the boys and for their progress towards Eagle and learning important skills

Well, I was Navy I'd want to get that darn cover off my head as fast as possible!!!