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Showing content with the highest reputation on 07/13/21 in all areas

  1. The BSA would've been in it's current position regardless of what it did regarding membership policies. The bill for sexual abuse was going to come due regardless.
    6 points
  2. I advocate for the Fieldbook as a primary resource too. Especially the first one. I often find copies of these at garage sales for $1. I have mentioned in the past a patrol could go page by page with the original fieldbook and lead a fantastic program.
    4 points
  3. More media churn. This article is not about BSA. If it was, it would admit that the "demise" is more of a "denouement" ... protracted over a half-century. It would talk about how membership began to decline in concert with policies intended to appeal to its (assumed) majority base. Nor is it about TL/USA. If it was, it would admit that this organization has not taken up the "slack" of scouts who left BSA before aging out -- in 2013 or any other year. It has not attracted the vast majority of Christian communities. It's a fun ride, but nothing "like wildfire." If it cared, it
    3 points
  4. Nor did he play the Global Thermonuclear War game. I hear it is a MAD game, worse than Tic Tac Toe. 🤣
    3 points
  5. It appears "Peter" has checked in since his initial post. Odd he has not responded.
    3 points
  6. Agreed. It hints of an emotional bias that takes away any integrity of reasoning. Barry
    2 points
  7. This is a great comment. By focusing on one leader the BSA, while talking about leadership, pushes aside teamwork and also responsibility. It's much easier to learn leadership if one is confident in what needs to be done and the team understands how to work together.
    2 points
  8. Almost I would contend that referencing is a tool in the toolbox for the "E" in EDGE. Don't always have to use it, but I do in most cases. Also think the "E" should include explaining WHY we do things, versus just the HOW. Why do we wash our dishes this way? Why do we use a particular knot? Why do we go 200 feet away to dig our cathole? Why do we use the EDGE method???? 🤪😜🤪 Most people respond better to learning when they know the "why." Gives them a sense of purpose more than just "Because that is the requirement!" yuck...
    2 points
  9. Yes, do. But the same essential problems rear their head: 1. No one reads. (This includes adults.) 2. Many do not learn from reading. (This includes adults.) When I give rides to Scouting events, we always use the drive time productively. Scouts who want to cover requirements, discuss merit badges, troop or patrol business, often jump in the car with me and the SPL/ASPL. I point the way, and the SPL/ASPL or senior Scout does the instruction and sign off...it is a beautiful thing. The Scout/SPL/PL Handbooks (my personal copies) are staple items during the ride.
    2 points
  10. Preach it, brother!! This is the same with parents For adult leaders, take a moment and ask yourself, "How would this decision violate the Scout Oath or Law?" If you do not come up with an answer that you can reason through and articulate to another adult, give the Scout the leeway to pursue. And yes, you will often be tempted to say "I've seen this a hundred times, and it never works out, so do it the way I recommending to you." Don't. Pick your battles wisely. Bite your cheek, swallow the blood, and resist the "I told you so" when the time comes. Your Scout will grow, and
    2 points
  11. That was me as a Scout. Very aggressive, authoritarian leadership. That's what I'd seen modelled in sports, band and in school. My Scout leaders didn't really correct me, because I got stuff done. I'd like to think I had the Troop and the Scouts best interests at heart, but my methods were still toxic. My friends joked that I put the "dick" in dictator. When I was 15, I attended NYLT, and it opened my eyes to the principle of Servant Leadership. That personal experience is what has made me such a strong supporter of NYLT. Like any BSA training, it's not a perfect syllabus, and the people who i
    2 points
  12. https://www.frc.org/updatearticle/20210712/boy-scouts "After 100 years of teaching future presidents, explorers, and civil rights leaders to follow their moral compass, it's been sobering to watch the Boy Scouts lose their own bearings. And yet, the unhappy ending for one of America's proudest traditions was easy to predict once the organization started chasing the approval of critics it could never win. Now, eight years into this experiment in moral compromise, the country is watching one of the saddest "I-told-you-so" moments of a generation. Disgraced, bankrupt, unpopular, and on the e
    1 point
  13. Interesting article. I've just never been a fan of taking cheap shots to prove your points. "lose their way" ... "unhappy ending" BSA has had 20 years of people taking cheap shots. This is yet just another one. It's not very Christian. It's not an example want my kids to follow.
    1 point
  14. You just won't stop dropping fantastic knowledge on us, will you?? #DuctTape4NationalCommissioner
    1 point
  15. Are you saying that EDGE is not enough to teach a scout skill? That a referencing is essential, and any method that omits it falls woefully short? Heretic!
    1 point
  16. I agree with the disconnect of training. There are resources, or were until recently, the scouts could use to run their program. The BSA published the Patrol Leaders Handbook and SPL Handbook 20 years ago that was pretty good at giving scouts direction in leading and managing their program without additional training. Strangely, I never saw it encouraged by National, Council, or district in adult training. But, I knew their value and I required the adults to purchase those handbooks for my adult classes, and I even purchased several to give out to new Scoutmasters. I also required them for our
    1 point
  17. Guide to Awards and Insignia, pages 15-17 https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/33066/33066_Guidelines_for_Custom_Patches_And_Emblems.pdf?_gl=1*b4ey4f*_ga*MTgzNjYxMTcxNC4xNjIwOTkzNDI1*_ga_20G0JHESG4*MTYyNjE4NTU3OC40Ni4xLjE2MjYxODY4MTEuNTI.
    1 point
  18. It's one person's opinion. He may be right, but it is much more complicated than virtues taking the organization down. Through the whole process of challenges the last 25 years, the core of the organization, the volunteers, were never pulled in, queried, or even told what the folks at National were thinking. Even now they are a mystery. As some have said here, when they threw out the new Aim of leadership recently, they exposed their ignorance to the principles and virtues of the program. What are they thinking? How can there be compromise if the guardians of the program don't even know the i
    1 point
  19. Yep. But it is interesting to me to see how much of this is being attributed to "If only we kept the gays out in 2013, everything would be fine."
    1 point
  20. As a long-time knife lover, I always found giving a knife or other useful daily-use-tool was a great way to say thank you. After giving away a couple dozen over the years, many of the recipients still mention their gift. A couple of times, we even had a special dinner, get together, or public event to show how that Scout went above and beyond. When a Scout does something that earns an official BSA medal, that process should be followed...in addition to another knife.
    1 point
  21. At least he didn’t hack into the WOPR. 😀
    1 point
  22. Wasn't it his high GPA in the computer that got him into this mess in the first place?
    1 point
  23. Been mulling your comment looking for a response. I met him when he was old enough to work on camp staff and we worked together for several years. He was no longer affiliated with a troop, but only the Council camp, and was clear of the abuse he experienced at the unit level. He fit in well with staff, had an engaging personality, and nothing seemed amiss. He worked tirelessly at camp, preferring commissary work requiring physical exertion to counseling merit badges and such. He had earned Eagle, and was a top student. He preferred being outdoors and camp work put him in his element. It
    1 point
  24. This is anecdotal and hearsay, but from my perspective it appears dead on. The ones with the youth experience tend to leave, and the "good" DEs have no prior experience. I know when I eas a DE, most of us with youth experience left due to frustration. We did not see our upper management living the Oath and Law. We became disillusioned with the movement. And talking to other former pros, that has been their experience as well. Hearsay is what one high level council pro once told me: the best DEs and pros have no youth experience. They have no preconceived notions of thd job, and are
    1 point
  25. There are the generic contest/award medals; leaders are free to use them to honor whatever meritorious or noteworthy action they like. Sure, they are usually used for contests, but I believe acting especially Scout-like can certainly be included under that umbrella of honors. I used them for long-term uniform competitions and they were worn with pride by Scouts even at their Eagle Courts of honor. They have Cub Scout-colored versions as well, which I would often use for special Webelos events. One of the things I appreciate about them is that they come in gold, silver and bronze, so you c
    1 point
  26. This guy seems legit. He has a $4 quadrillion plan for China and other countries and is apparently and advisor for Obama and Trump. I hope the judge approves his request.
    1 point
  27. I agree that was the most likely motivation. In our hyper-competitive world, what parent doesn't want their kid to acquire skills to "be the boss"? I find it easier to swallow "Leadership Development" when it's defined non-traditionally. "Servant Leadership" comes to mind. Same with disaggregating leadership into its constituent parts: first learn to lead oneself, then how to lead oneself within a team, then within the leadership of that team, before finally learning the responsibilities of being "the leader". Of course, this is just me & my $.02. BSA has got much bigger f
    1 point
  28. After over 4 years of working in the field, today was my last day as a Professional Scouter. It's been an incredible ride, but it's time for me to move on and start the next chapter in my life. Thank you to everyone on this forum over the past years who helped me grow as a Pro. If you ever have any questions about Professional side of Scouting, or "the Dark Side", please don't hesitate to reach out. Volunteers are some of the kindest, most selfless people you will ever meet in this world. It was truly an honor to serve them, and I will miss working with them dearly.
    1 point
  29. Good to see another uniform with blue epaulets and a lodge flap. Not a common sight around here. 😄
    1 point
  30. Latest filing from claimant asks he be named as "Financial Master" for BSA case, including being named "CEO, COO, and CFO and Chairman of the BSA". His plan to rescue BSA is to get a $100 billion (with a B, billion) PPP loan repayable over the next 50 years. All scouts will be assessed $1200 in fees per year (he thinks current fees are $600 per year) which the scouts will have to pay off via selling...something. Oh, and scouting will overnight go back to 2 million scouts. And for his services as "Financial Master" "CEO, COO, and CFO and Chairman of the BSA" claimant wants $8.4 billio
    0 points
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