Leaderboard

Why would the BSA feel the need to wade into this? Does National not know the Scout oath and the Scout law? I just marked a Scouts rank advancement tonight about how he lives the law and the oath in his daily life. As Scouts that is what we are called to do. Does National not think we take take the law and the oath seriously. We must all share in the collective guilt, right. Purely political. Sad.

Here's another idea: Make scouting more available to kids in poor neighborhoods. Rather than describe and discuss, do. I read a discussion among some people trying to figure out how to reduce violence in poor neighborhoods. A study was brought up in which three different approaches were tried. The first was increase police. The second was increase social workers. The third was replace dilapidated buildings with parks and playgrounds. The first two did very little but the third made a substantial impact. They also mentioned how important youth programs are. They mentioned Boys and Girls Cl

Agree to that. But these moves won't address any of that. Stuff and fluff...

Rather than a merit badge, it feels like this is more something akin to the Cyberchip. Make it required for an earlier rank and a catch up at Star rank. If the intention is to have everyone take it for Eagle, only a few will take it and they will leave it to the very end of the Eagle journey.

IMHO, the larger issue is injustice... liberty and justice for all, helping other people at all times is the Scout Way. My $0.02, P.S. I wonder if Dan Beard Council will return $2.5M from the Marge Schott Foundation and drain Lake Marge Schott?

Agreed. This is a perfect example to illustrate the term "virtue signalling"

I disagree. I can't disagree with any of these initiatives. Discrimination is wrong on every level

I would agree Specifically I dislike the collective guilt expressed in the opening sentence As our country reckons with racial injustice, we all must consider our role and our failures and commit to meaningful action. That makes a lot of assumptions

So... BSA has decided to change the Eagle requirements AND add a new merit badge with little or no input from volunteers. Sort of on a whim. Great move. This falls into the "let's do something even if it's not well thought out" category BSA has decided to add to the required training for volunteers with little or no input. Another great move Not saying these are necessarily poor initiatives. They wreak of knee jerk reaction and a lack of actual leadership

Here's another question. Who mandates anything in the present BSA. The national organization has disavowed ownership and control of the local councils. I don't care about charters, permission to use a brand, or anything else about what "National" can and cannot do. In reality, and according to the mysterious "National" all they own is 4 campgrounds, which are mortgaged to the top of the pine trees, and a brand. If a parent finds out that their little boy spent the weekend being supervised by a gay man, get really pissed off, and through a fit, they are not going to "National"......they ar

Perhaps its because when we were young we were left to our own devices. Members of a Boy Scout troop went to school together, played in the neighborhood together, road bikes together, and just hung out together. Scouting taught us that we were all equal and had the same oppertunity as everyone else. We joined scouts to have fun and we did. We enjoyed each others company and we worked together rain or shine. We had respect for all adults and followed the rules. We didn't get involved in major social issues and had no idea what racism was because we wernt mature enough to understand an in

As I'm seeing other posts and reading about camps closing across may councils, LDS separating, negative BSA legal commercials during prime time TV, and price increases, I have to question what is going on with marketing, protecting the scouting legacy, and whether scouting is on the downslope. Long gone is the public support of scouting like Waite Phillips donating Philmont to the BSA. We need some of our wealthy folks in or out of social media circles to save camps too. My beloved Silver Trails Scout Reservation in the thumb of Michigan just announced a buyer for that camp. Crossroad

IMHO....this is a family discussion issue just like the YPT pamphlets for Scout Ranks and Cubs. This is not just a BLM issue, it spans across all ethnic and other groups who experience racism possibly including groups we don't agree with? With an almost 600,000 loss of membership in the last year. The BSA needs to focus on their current issues that could put them out of business. Adding an Eagle Required MB is unnecessary. If you want to inculcate this into scouts you make American Cultures a required MB for Tenderfoot. Doing it as the last MB the night before a scout turns

I have read a lot of the posts and am glad to see the scope and depth of passion and dedication to keeping scouting to its core missions (albeit even that isn’t entirely agreed upon). Naive or not, I want to advance the idea of what must be done. It may be self evident but I haven’t seen it expressed as such. it seems to me, the most reasonable choice of action is to revert to community control and NOT ask for permission to do anything. A national organization embroiled in its own legal trouble will more than likely just say no, wait till things are settled. It’s the safest route.

As soon as BSA said, "this is what we're going to do," anything else BSA had say was irrelevant. All that matters is what BSA is going to do, and what it is going to do is next to nothing: a merit badge, a class, a review of names.

BSA must be willing look to its own house, and identify any aspects of its organization, operations, and program that could be considered discriminatory or racially insensitive or belittling, or a cultural misappropriation, or a condition that -- however unintentionally -- results in exclusion or inequality in access to or benefits of the Scouting program. That would mean looking at things like: Rates of earning Eagle Scout rank by race, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, etc. The use of Native American / Indigenous Peoples themes in the Order of the Arrow and in every oth

What additional actions would you have BSA take to help eliminate discrimination? Are there other best practices that they should follow and are not?

The alternative is quite simple. If BSA believes that BLM has merit, they should: Encourage scouts to participate in the rallies in uniform either with the movement or with the police (both-and is possible), and help all participants maintain peace and order as they advocate their position. No merit badges, no rank advancement ... just another good turn daily. It's not original either. It's what we do. From two years ago: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-39804471

Something much more like this: https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2020/june/a-statement-from-chief-scout-bear-grylls/ A statement of support; of the idea that justice, empathy, and peace are part of the very fabric of Scouting; that these events reinforce the necessity for each Scout, each Scouter, each unit, each Council, and every other component of the Boy Scouts of America to ensure that we are living and acting every day in accordance with those principles. It must be deep, open-ended, and continuing. By responding with steps that are minor -- a merit badge, a sensitivity class, a r

It doesn't help stop the rioting, looting, and arson. I doesn't help show our support for law and order, or for the police who put their lives on the line to protect us every day. The scouting program of my youth were unapologetically pro-military and pro-police.

While BSA has had Black scouts since its founding; as an organization it also allowed COs to continue racist membership policies such as segregation as recently as the 1970s. Residual racism still exists even if it is not overt.

Honest question Have you read BLMs manifesto? Looked at their stated goals? Can you honestly say they are compatible with scouting? As for me "bending the knee" and begging forgiveness for my "white guilt", not gonna happen. I believe we once fought a war so that we could stop kneeling to King George III. My ancestors fought the redcoats in that war, and died in the war to free the slaves 85 years later.

Wow.....very well said and greatly appreciated.....thank you and God bless.

So we're going to introduce a new MERIT BADGE???!!! Could there be a more trivial response to murder, anguish, and heartbreak?

2. Reviewing every element of our programs to ensure diversity and inclusion are engrained at every level for participants and volunteers by applying a standard that promotes racial equality and denounces racism, discrimination*, inequality and injustice. 3. Requiring diversity and inclusion* training for all BSA employees starting July 1 and taking immediate action toward introducing a version for volunteers in the coming months. (*atheists not included)

They are poor initiatives. Except for #4.

I’m long winded... I hear what you are saying and understand the distinction you are drawing. When it comes to matters of ethics, morality and reverence, they are indeed stated objectives of scouting. This certainly is a slippery slope. I had the honor of being chaplain as a scout and was very conscious of various denominations. The leaders were conscious of behaviors such as any tobacco use and drinking which were not allowed and one scout who drank on a campout was suspended. Things of a sexual nature were simply not brought up much though when I was fairly new I told another y

Does it put a timeline on for the Merit badge? My son is working on his Eagle Project now.

I'm sure there are plenty of people who would find me absolutely intolerable to be around. But I want to clarify, I don't simply avoid anyone who thinks homosexuality is immoral. If someone thinks it's wrong and decides they need to pray for the person's immortal soul, I can respect that. We are probably too far apart culturally for us to be great pals, but that doesn't mean I'm going to treat them like a foul odor and turn up my nose and leave the area. Where I start running into a problem with being around someone is when they follow up "I think homosexuality is immoral" with some s

Wow. The things I never knew about scouter.com. Hey guys, bring your friends.

Why not? What's the difference? How does it fit with YPT? This whole damned thing is a mass of inconsistencies and confusion. You know, other countries just dont sweat any of it. Boy, girl, men,women, LGBTQ, it doesnt matter. They camp together, they sleep together, they all hand out together, and at the World Jamboree they went to medical together to pick up condoms and "the morning after pill". Then, if that wasn't enough fun, they went to the trading post in search of beer. If Scouting is going to be an all accepting organization then why stop the progress. Pull out the stops, in four

Now here is a thought. That’s spot on as far as I see it. I guess many don’t think that’s a good thing. Pity isn’t it.

As are all of the anti-Catholic comments I hear in scouting.

I used to tell Webelos leaders that if games was half their meeting, they will have no problem with scout attendance. While I was SM, I would visit my younger sons Bear meetings just to watch. The leader was like me in that he wasn't good at details. Details like advancement. So, the first half of his meeting was doing some scout stuff, then the rest was basket ball, baseball, or whatever he could think of for that meeting. The games usually involved the boys getting sweaty, Those scout couldn't wait to got to his next meetings. I took over his scouts as their webelos leader and I

Cub Scouts: $$ - uniforms, handbooks, badges, pins, belt loops, parental presence, adult supervision. Scouts BSA: $$$ - uniforms, handbooks, badges, pins, sleeping bags, backpacks, personal gear, troop camping gear and supplies, adult supervision, transportation, hiking trails or routes, campgrounds. Both: progressive development of skills and experience over long periods of time via the rank system, often operated on planned timelines to complete all of the requirements for a particular badge within a certain number of months. BSA Scouting has become very "heavy" with all of the st

June 13, 2020 A statement from Chief Scout Bear Grylls copied below In 1907, a new movement was born on Brownsea Island, in Poole Harbour Dorset – one that would bring skills, adventure and friendships to millions of young people around the world today. It was on that small island that Robert Baden-Powell founded the Scouts, taking a small group of young people from diverse backgrounds, with the goal to learn about the great outdoors, and show that we had more in common than divides us. Since that first camp, Scouting has grown year on year to become today a worldwide

In 2010, the International Scout Bureau released an article on MI5 and MI6 papers from the Nazi era relating to Scouting. It has much to reflect on even today... Some key quotes Finally, The link is here.

Well, most of them aren't very tall to begin with. 😁

There is definitely a market for some sort of relaxed organized structure for adults to get together in small groups (patrols?) to go hiking and camping together for their own pleasure and camaraderie, at their own speed, without at the same time having responsibility for youth members. There is definitely a need for adults (and especially adults with handyman skills and more) to assist Rangers with camp maintenance needs. There is definitely a need for training new Scouting parents and leaders in basic outdoor skills in an no-pressure, no embarrassment environment -- with more time and atte

A non scouters buddy of mine said he'd seen some BSA advertising on t.v. He wasn't sure of the channel, TNT he thought. But he's seen more of the lawyers advertising for clients. His take on the commercial was generally positive and he commented the BSA was clearly trying to prepare the public for girls in the program. When I told him girls had been in the program for over a year he said "you're one of the 7 people in the country that know that."

Progressives know that the key to controlling the future is to own the minds of the nation's youth. They took over education through the teachers' unions. The feminists usurped Girl Scouts. Boy Scouts of America was the last most prominent bastion for learning how to live a moral life. So that made BSA a very important target for progressives to eliminate. There once was a principle that one should adhere to their principles, even in the face of adversity. Compromise was the splinter that became a wedge that split the traditionalists from the program. Sadly for the youth, the knowle

I wish I had your optimism. Unfortunately I have seen pros take over and ignore the boots on the ground. Not only at the local level, but national as well. One example is the "instapalms" that 94% were either against (18%) or strongly against (76%). And to this day, they still have not released the results of the last membership poll they took. I have seen a few pros that have a passion for the movement. Sadly they tend to leave quickly and the ones that remain and move up tend to view it as a job. And they willdo anything to keep their positions.

Like most who comment on this site, I have a good amount of exposure to the ups and downs of Scouting through the years. In my case it is 54 years since I became a Cub and I have served in just about every role as an adult leader since age 21. I have carefully read the fine thoughts shared by all on this particular string and must say that despite some of the current issues, the BSA is going to come out of this 5-year workout in reasonably good shape. We have faced many other seemingly-existential matters before and handled them pretty well. We are now just needing to address the YPT fail

Here's my take on why. Back in the 60s most organizations were very top down. The Japanese took advantage of it using an American's idea, and started making better quality cars and electronics. They were hungry and more amenable to trying something new, like a more bottom up problem solving culture. The US auto industry eventually caught up. The BSA, however, hasn't. They haven't been hungry because there were always people around to make donations. Case in point: the failed idea that one can get eagle without camping. They had to bring Hillcourt out of retirement to fix that mess. There are n

It does feel like it's now a juggernaut and no one knows where it will land. One of BSA's issues to me is that it always seems years behind the times and never out in front of a challenge. A time or two could be understandable, but it happens again and again. Latest fee increase debacle is only the most recent case in point. I've been worried about scouting for years and from my low level have tried to talk to people where I've had access but it falls on deaf ears. The organization seems to be led by dirigible pilots determined to land the thing their way. Regardless, when it does go to ground

Also BSA may have issues with these activities Firebuilding - which contributes to global warming Citizenship in the Nation - which continues to support the capitalistic dogma the country was founded on Knife basics - which promotes use of (yikes) a knife Fingerprinting - Which supports the overreaching police state Swimming - which promotes class separation as not everyone has equal access to a pool Automotive Maintenance - which also promotes class separation as not everyone has equal access to a car

Since the title is "scouting" and not BSA, the answer is no. Scouting is at least as old as Moses (literally). There will be a need for scouts as long as there are civilizations seeking their place in an otherwise harsh world. And that pool of scouts will come from the world's youth. As long as there a books available that describe how to be a scout, youth will learn to scout. The only question is how many and through whom? Will BSA hold its claim as the largest scouting organization in the US? That depends on a number of forces beyond its control.

I’m a bit pessimistic. More wealthy families no longer see scouting as critical to their children’s success and they don’t see how scouting can fit in their schedule between mandarin classes, coding clubs, sports and music. Middle class families are being priced out with national, council and camp fees. Yes, there is fundraising, but scouting is not about fundraising and if that takes up considerable time just to pay registration fees you’ll lose interest. Lack of quality new volunteers is my biggest concern about long term health. Several Troops in my area are led by older

Honestly the challenge is, or the question is, that at a National and Council level, NOT the unit level, have we lost our focus as an organization? The mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law. The Vision is The Boy Scouts of America will prepare every eligible youth in America to become a responsible, participating citizen and leader who is guided by the Scout Oath and Law. At the UNIT level we do this with campouts, fun activities, community serv

While some kind of misunderstanding happened, I am suspicious of the story's direction. I suspect that legal threat was not necessary, but it plays into the larger "anti-Christian" persecution storyline. Surely the decision at the base was a poor misinterpretation or possibly a personal decision without proper vetting. JMO of course.