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I have been reading this blog for months and finally decided to express how I feel about this plan. I have always and continue to believe there are thousands of fraudulent sexual abuse claims filed in this bankruptcy. I also believe there are thousand of legitimate abuse claims that have not been filed. I am frankly disgusted by the lawyers of the Coalition and more specifically those of AIS. The coalition and the “supposed non organization” (AIS) actively recruited “victims” without, in my opinion, any legitimate vetting. My attorneys required a vast amount of evidence, which I provided,

One mentor of mine never had children of his own. He came back from WWII, and the troop he grew up in needed a SM, and he filled the role. He served as SM of the troop until Uncle Sam called him to Korea. Came back from Korea, and resumed SM job because everyone wanted 'Sarge" back. Stayed on for over 20 years. Even then he worked summer camp until health started failing him. Man who made the biggest impact on me, more than may father, was my SM. He was the role model for me growing up, and my role model now as SM. He also never had children of his own. HIs nephew's troop needed an SM,

A friend contacted me privately, concerned I've not been posting. He knows I am on all the hearings and was checking in on me. Honestly, Eagle1993 does such an excellent job I had little to add. My attempts at comic relief are often not well received (by some) and get shut down. Literally. Last time, I crashed the internet with an incouous though highly relevant observation about the repetitiveness of the presentations and arguments. We shall see what happens this time as I attempt to be serious. For the first day in, let's say, 787 days I feel nothing. I hear nothing. I have nothing to resear

Thank you all for the input. We spoke with the camp and they will make sure that troops follow the proper procedure and that no one will have sole use over any portion of the facilities.

Maybe just a moment to take a break in the discussion and upvote or downvote @RememberSchiff for his diligent and faithful monitoring of this site, and all the delightful and informative Scouting news and insights he brings to us. "Diligent" is how I think of his effort. (AND, moderators, all upvotes should be attributed to @RememberSchiffand downvotes attributed to me.) Thanks all.

Poppycock. The legal system found BSA with it's huge insurance and property assets liable. In the same context, the parents, police, schools and the rest of society covered up too. The issue is legally tying liability to all the other conspirators. This was looting for legal profit.

I just wanted to say happy father's day to all the Survivors who tried and have tried their best, for so long, to be the best father they could be. The secrets you kept to protect the partners in your life you cared about, how hard you tried to protect your own children, and the hard work to not let anyone know what you were battling are all the stuff to be proud of even when you feel like you could have done more. Chin up.

By the way, you also don't need an adult present when Scout skills are learned for advancement. Get those adults out of those groups, registered or not, and let the Scouts teach the skills. Let the older Scouts sign the younger Scouts off on the requirements. Only then does an adult need to be involved.

I've already mentioned this elsewhere but I'd chuck all of the advancement and turn the program into playing outdoors. Then, the cubscout handbook is nothing but ideas on how to play outdoors. The den leader handbook would be ideas how to play outdoors, safely. It's something nearly every kid would want to do. No schedules, no requirements. Pinewood derby is fine, as is kick the can. If the scouts want to do arts and crafts or go to the fire station, that's fine. And there's no need to keep track of how they played in order to give them bling because that's the definition of playing. The

I'm geographically separated from my family and my Pack for work. I'm home for a couple of weeks and got to attend our Pack Meeting tonight. I asked the COR to come so we can go over rechartering. She's also the Chapter Advisor for our OA chapter. I noticed she was wearing her sash which struck me as odd, but I figured she must have either come from some function I wasn't tracking. She got up in front of the Pack - I figured she was going to make some announcement about recharter or some other COR business. She then called me up and told everyone how much of a role I had played in the ch

Omni created a new docket for the appeals here: Consolidated Appeals of Confirmation Order Lengthy scheduling order is here: https://casedocs.omniagentsolutions.com/cmsvol2/pub_47373/e4a87bc5-4d56-40e5-bff6-4bcc044476c2_22.pdf TL;DR on scheduling order - look for briefs from plan opponents by Monday Nov. 7. Response brief of Debtors (and maybe other plan supporters) on Dec. 7. Replies on Dec. 21. Oral argument date TBD.

One key difference between BSA and virtually any other youth program that heavily utilizes volunteers is that the BSA tries to keep theirs even once the volunteer's children are no longer involved. As a result, a uniform that serves as something of a badge of service has more value than it would if you were just using parents as volunteers for the length of their child's participation. It also helps newer Scouters gauge the value of input from more experienced Scouters. Not that it's foolproof by any means, but at least if someone has been around long enough to earn 4+ knots, you know t

Thanks for mentioning that. Probably a good time for me to pop back up. I just want to say thanks to everyone who participates on this and other forums (Fora?). I take my role on the TCC seriously and try to take in opinions on all sides. Like you, the TCC is waiting on the Judge's ruling and anything I'd say about that, or anyone else would say, is pure speculation. As well, while this is ongoing the handcuffs of "Mediation Confidentiality" prohibit my saying too much about the process. I'm grateful to have participated in the confirmation hearing at the beginning and offer some final w

I want to apologize for me cussing in my comment last week.I let my anger take control of my response.Please accept my apology.I don't want Scouts to shutdown.Even though I was abused I've seen a lot of good in the Scouts.My scoutmaster God rest his soul was by far the greatest scoutmaster a kid could ask for.I learned a lot from him.I guess my anger flared up when someone said how we want to only talk about the bad well we do.Most victims have been carrying this heavy load for a very long time by ourselves. And speaking for only me, Im 50 years old and I'm finally strong enough to share my st

Dr. Doug Kennedy made an impassioned speech to the court and asked the Judge to keep her focus on the survivors as she makes her decision(s). Jessica Lauria thanks the court for the time devoted. A few more letters/filings will come in on the docket including minor changes to the plan (coming in next week). Next Friday will be a general hearing and the only topic is the sale of the BSA distribution center. Judge thanks all of the staff that made this so smooth. Hearing was pulled off very well and great teamwork between firms. February 2020 until mid April 2022. Matter is un

This framing drives me crazy. BSA isn't being sued because BSA has money, BSA is being sued because BSA DID SOMETHING WRONG! That has been the finding of virtually every judge and jury that has heard these cases: BSA knew or should have known that pedophiles were using its program to access victims. BSA's failures, to act, to watch, to look, to enforce rules, etc. were the reason its members, volunteer and professional, were able to sexually assault children --- for decades. BSA DID SOMETHING WRONG AS AN ORGANIZATION! That's why they were sued AND LOST, over and over again. If BSA had

This has been debated previously and there are differing opinions. That said, organizations are responsible for both paid staff and volunteers. If an organization was so poorly run and organized to allow volunteers to repeatedly rape children, I do think that organization should be held accountable. In addition, there is evidence that BSA intentionally covered this up. While I understand society changed over time (background checks didn't exist in the past) I really struggle with the cover up that seemed to be occurring at national. BSA could have decided to fight this in court, but t

I was inducted into the Order of the Arrow back in the 1960's. I was a part of our chapter ceremonies team for years. I was a chapter chief and an advisor. I have been a Vigil Honor member for more than 50 years. Over the years I have seen a change in how the YOUTH perceive the use of Native American culture in the OA. I hear all the time about chapters and lodges who have difficulty fielding ceremonies teams, and when listening to the YOUTH who decline when asked to participate one of the most common things I hear is that they are amazed that we still dress up and play Indian. Many of t

I suppose if a NCAP advance team had seen this cache of water guns, the US contingent would have stayed state-side. https://25wsjnewsroom.imweb.me/74/?idx=15972542&bmode=view

About a month ago someone left a note on my door, rang the bell and left. The dog went crazy, I found the note, read it, and immediately called the scout that left it. He was my first scout that joined, some 18 years ago. The note was a thank you for helping him through some good and bad times. He very gently asked if I'd like to have a beer with him and I said absolutely. Long story short about 30 scouts and scouters from the past 25 years got together last night at a favorite brewery. It was fun. It was also better than that. There were a few scouts I didn't recognize until a certain phrase,

Yes, I am glad of it. As for survivors, our "moving on" means reprocessing our claims for the Settlement Trustee, undergoing the scrutiny process, arguing our case if need be, and waiting many months or years for the envelope that could be wee Lilliputian size. Don't forget about us. Fortunately, we will have YP representation from tip to tail and a Youth Protection Committee perpetually at the table. There is more than a little solace in that knowledge but recompense is not unimportant to many (most?) of us.

This is an issue that the Lodge Advisors should have recognized and remedied. The "Buddy System" is not just for swimming.

I think many of us would agree the aims of scouting including citizenship development. The question is the how (methods). In order to achieve the top rank in UK Scouts, you have to complete 9 challenge awards. Of those, 1 is similar to BSA's Citizenship list. Below are the requirements of the "World Challenge Award". You can see all of our 4 Citizenships in this one award. I also notice that it would be tough to earn this sitting in a classroom (in fact, there is almost no classroom aspect to this award). This is about taking action (6 of the 7 requirements are about taking action,

I just completed a scouting survey. It included standard questions and asked for recommendations. It has additional questions for Scoutmasters that dug into collecting feedback about how girls troops are run (are they really independent or integrated and if integrated how integrated are they). It then had questions about recommendations if BSA should consider coed Troops and if they were coed, how integrated should the integrated Troops be managed. Hopefully this is really a survey to get input before decisions but I know that is not always the case. However, I can say that BSA must b

My file was shared with the local council, the "Catholic Insurance" organization, and who knows exactly where else. So, if the bankruptcy goes south, I have shared my most private details with multiple organizations (which also potentially places me at risk for retaliation) and the SoL still applies. I am so P##### off about this turn of events. Not that I was ever going to see much money (due to matrix sol), but I WAS going to have a feeling of some justice being served. Since the early promises, this has done nothing but further damage my life. I had built a big wall around my abuse and

While we are well beyond "Follow Me Boys" today, and in this incident, IF there is a way to try to guide the youth, while restricting his Scouting interactions, that might be a good course. In our unit long ago we had two youth get into serious trouble with the police on the edge. As it happened both were in POR, one the SPL, the other his assistant. It was at an OA function and I got phone calls in the early morning. One parent had to go to the camp to take them home. I spent a number of hours on the phone with committee people and the council reps for clarity. The boys were removed fro

Success comes from implementing a program that works toward a successful vision. The BSA lacks leadership that believes, much less understands the vision of developing moral and ethical decision makers. I get it, I struggled convincing many parents that giving scouts the independence to learn from their decisions in an outdoors environment is a successful path for building citizens of character and leaders of integrity. But, if organization leaders don’t believe it, how can the users believe in it. Barry

I would like to personally thank everyone who has participated in all the discussions in this forum and others. As I sat in Court today reflecting on the three-year journey we have all been through I thought about all of the passion that has been displayed. Regardless of whether I agreed with any opinion it helped to inform my thinking by understanding the views of others, and recognizing the amount of education the TCC needed to undertake. The nine of us on the TCC sought to do what was best for ALL Survivors and be agnostic about the BSA. We recognized that Survivors fell into three camp

I might have handled it differently. A family shows up, with scouts in uniform, to some event and they haven't paid. That's fine. I think the first thing I would have done was consider how much the pack will go into debt for them paying nothing. Apparently it's about $4/scout, so call it $10. Next, I'd consider the shame and embarrassment on these scouts of being turned away. About the same time I'd ask myself why they didn't pay. That's always tough to figure out. They could be just trying to get a free ride, might just be really disorganized, might be broke and too shy to ask for help,

@lithigin, It may be considered adding to requirements if you attempt to discuss what was said in the family meeting. I would be extremely ticked off if a counselor attempted to discuss what went on at the meetings with my sons. Don't even get me started at how angry I would be if other Scouts were around for the conversation. Let me summarize what happened a similar situation I encountered regarding Requirement 6.B.2. IT CAUSED AN ARGUMENT AMONGST THOSE INVOVLED (major emphasis). The discussion led to remembering events better forgotten. Folks were accused of making up stuf

It has been a while, but it feels like we are getting close to the end (or the beginning of the actual trust). It doesn't seem like District Court is pushing to overturn. In Purdue, the confirmation was September 17th and it took the District Court less than a month to reject the deal. I also do not see the US DOJ pushing hard against the BSA deal (compared to what they did in Purdue). I'm starting to get the impression that approval by District Court is highly likely. If they had major concerns, one would think they would push to hear the appeal more quickly. That doesn't guarantee

Most Ivy League schools and top employers, including the upper-echelon law firms and wealth management services, won't even consider you if you don't have Arrow of Light on your resume.

This is an opportunity to make OA relevant while bringing BSA back to the experience that most of us Scouters want for our kids. It's not hard to imagine... The arrow flies true, just as the order remains true to the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Reinforce the basics... The arrow on a compass points north, just as the Order of the Arrow always points its members back toward service to others. Service at camps, service to Troops, service to Packs... The arrow represents excellence in scout skills. Archery is a scout skill taught from Cub Scouts up through

I went from hating the idea of this badge and being very dismissive of it to thinking it has a valid place for a variety of reasons.

Just to be clear, accidental death, sometimes called involuntary manslaughter, is still a crime. In the military it can lead to dishonorable discharge and/or jail. An example I found of involuntary manslaughter is pointing a pistol in jest at someone and pulling the trigger, believing it wasn't loaded but not taking reasonable precautions. A 12 year old scout is not allowed to fire a semiautomatic weapon. It should never have been there, much less loaded. Sounds to me like "reasonable precautions" were likely not taken. So, whether or not it was an accident only changes the sentencing.

Small incident with my scouts last night that really made me smile. we had an evening punting on the river in Cambridge. For those unfamiliar it’s peculiar to Cambridge and Oxford and a handful of other places with shallow rivers. Anyway as we could only put 5 scouts on each punt it didn’t quite work out as punting in patrols. So we asked the scouts to organise themselves into groups of 5. So far so good. But we’ve got that one scout who is a bit of an outsider. Goes to a different school to the rest, comes into scouts from quite a long way out. Doesn’t fit in quite

I hope you find some peace. For me, the start of the bankruptcy and having to address the abuse again was difficult. But, I went back to therapy and found some other people with similar experiences (thanks, all). That has overall been positive.

My advice... Find a new troop. If not for this reason, but for your response #4 above. An adult should not be running a patrol. To be frank, he is not in Scouts if that is what is happening. He is being denied real opportunities derived from scout led patrol method. IMO, this is more important than any rank or mB. Edit... Run away fast!

Your points are well taken. Switzerland. Mexico. etc. I've hesitated responding because of extreme political intensity here. IMHO, it's not a gun problem, but perhaps gun control could help save lives. ... perhaps could break the cycle ... I'll avoid deciding either way on that ... I value the bill of rights just too much to take it lightly. My view. This is a fundamental civility, empathy and understanding the real hard facts of life. These murderers are playing out a demented fantasy to show their personal pain. Scouting has a place in this discussion. Hard lessons

May not be a big deal to most people, but my kid was on bacon duty this weekend. He crossed over in March and wont hardly cook at home. We help staff a Cub Family Campout this weekend and the Boy Troop and Girl Troop were both there. I am usually helping the girls and let him go on his own with the boys. Mainly so he starts to learn to do without me always being there to help. In addition to bacon, he also scrambled eggs, and cooked two hamburgers.

I think this is the wrong way to look at the problem and is the source of a lot of angst here. Rather than ask for a specific failure rate that is acceptable, after which everyone can say there is no longer a problem, it would be better to use methods that continually drive down failure rates. Look at air travel. Back in the 70's there were enough crashes that all the parties involved (manufacturers, airlines, regulators) got together and decided that air travel was both important and dangerous. They started measuring death rates in deaths per billion passenger miles traveled. I think it start

Welcome @MattySchnides! Zero percent!!!!!!!! And the DE response is laughable.🤣 Units do not exist to provide a cash cow for the council. Give them zero and ignore any other correspondence on the matter.

I have mucho thoughts swirling, including whether the documentaries will help the cause of survivors or serve only to make someone (else) money off our backs. That question is really my greatest concern. I'll not go too deep into it now. Before I don't, I must say that survivors and their families are entitled to say whatever they want, provided it's true and accurate. What the filmmakers do with their words and presentations is on them. Woe unto...Will they be held to account for any grand misrepresentations or false implications regarding Scouting, I bet not. Salaciousness, if that's what th

Thank you. I edited some of those posts. ~RS

Youth members also use this forum, can we please keep the conversations and language respectful of that? Scouting is local, always has been, always will be. And locally, most units operate without any cases of abuse. Nationally the numbers of cases are horrific. But keep in mind they are national numbers, spread over the better part of a century and heavily weighted towards decades in the middle of the 20th century. Today's BSA stands well above most other youth organizations in terms of training and resources to protect youth members. We have a lower incidence of abuse than most oth

I am really big on no structure on unit campouts. Especially Pack campouts. Have set meal times. maybe an organized hike during the day, but let em go play in the woods and do what they dont get to do when living in town all the time.

Yes, I was an avid Ceremonies Team member in my youth, until turning 21 (back in 1987!). Meteu was my favorite part, although I played each part at one time or another. We had really bad outfits, with really bad headdresses. We also used facepaint without regard to meaning. We "played" Indian... I was ignorant to the issue of this being offensive, in a religious-sort-of-way. (Although, I do think that card is played is little too much. It is the default when someone wants to stop you from doing something they do not like.) Now that my ignorance is gone, I do not support the use of most

The challenge continues to be the group (professionals) that "lead" the program. We had recent interactions with our DE as we asked questions about the new registration process. Their responses were at best condescending and at worst arrogant and dismissive. Our district is smaller with maybe 10 - 12 Troops and roughly the same number of packs. It is rare that you get insight into what a company (pros-BSA) really thinks of it's customers (actual units). The feedback referenced a very poor quality Cub Chat YouTube video and alluded to communications from National BSA. Well there has n

I won't lie, participating in BSA events as a non-Christian can be uncomfortable at times. I remember as a youth being taken with the rest of my unit to Sunday-morning "non-denominational" (but still Christian / Protestant) services at camporees and also at Philmont. Though that was more than 20 years ago now, I imagine there are still districts and councils that put on similar programming today. I didn't get the impression from my unit leaders at the time that attending such things was optional. You would do well as a leader to make sure the non-Christian youth in your unit feel empowered to

I know there often is a back and forth about suicide. Some say it's the ultimate selfish act by the one who lost the battle. Others who know the anguish understand it CAN be a severe mercy. I DO NOT condone or encourage self harm of any kind and certainly not the most extreme. I share these thoughts as someone who has been there. I thought everyone would be better off, including me, in my mortal coil absence. It seemed merciful to all involved, which of course is distorted and doesn't account for the good or the potential for healing, forgiveness, restoration, redemption and love that "covers