Eagledad

Sounds like an impressive young man and I guess we adults must be doing a really good job if those are the kinds of suggestions youth wants adults to hear. However, that was not the kind of suggestions I heard from older Scouts at JLTC. I'm not sure what I called the scouts, but I know my heart was to treat them with same respect as I did adults. Scouts can tell when you're patronizing no matter what words you use. My philosophy about scouts feeling good about themselves was for them to earn that feeling with a job well done and by serving those around them, not from anything an adu

The BSA has an age requirement for JASM (16), but we ignored it. For us, JASM was an indication of maturity, experience and attitude. To put an age requirement would be restricting some really good scouts. Our JASMs were scouts who wanted troop responsibilities, had mastered the leadership skills developed in the seniour scout postions like SPL and Troop Guide, and were ready for the next step of advising scouts, not leading them. In most cases, the scout choose what he could offer or do for the troop. We had JASMs helping the Advancement Chairman, the PLC, CheerMasters and Grubmasters, JLT an

>>I use a pair of knee high womens nylon stockings ($.99) first, then a pair of Kmart mens nylon dress socks (3@$3.99) followed by a pair of Kmart mens polyester dress socks(3@$3.99). The nylon allows my foot to move slightly and eliminates blisters, for me. The nylon dress socks wick perspiration and the polyester socks cushion to a degree.

Wow, Been there and done that, threw away the T-shirt. It's hard to imagine that we adults don't think a like. It's even harder to understand that the adults don't think like me. Later on when the emotional cloud burns away, you will see that it's not really set back because the boys got it. The adults probably never did. But!, the boys got it. I have always spouted that our every step forward was preceeded with three steps back. In fact I sometimes wonder if our struggles were by design so that I could later get on some national forum and start out with "been there and done that".

>>The troop has made a number of trips to NT and they say anything less will not fall apart by the 2nd or 3rd day and will get sucked off in the moose muck, leaving you shoeless for the rest of the trip.

I'm not so sure. I think what hiking boots have over other types of hiking footware is ankle support. But I think that applies to rough rocky trails or a lot of stream crossings. Philmont is pretty much packed trails with just a few stream crossings. Our Trail Guide a Philmont wore Teva hiking sandals as well as many of the other Trial Guides. And some just wore tennis shoes. Those guys/gals put in a lot of miles each summer. My 45 year old adult partner at Philmont had blisters so bad by the third day, he was considering quiting and leaving the group. He decided to first try out his

>>Works great, unless you're a very small troop.

>>I then immediately had a talk with older brother then about how it "appears" when family members sign off on requirements (especially for 2+ ranks!!) and requested that he not do that anymore.

>>At our last jamboree there was a mild epidemic of dysentary.

We once had a cook burn supper while playing cards. After that, the new rule was the cook swills the cook pots. Never had a burned meal again. By the way, did anyone look at the scout Handbook to what they suggest for cleaning dishes. Not that it is the best, because I found it does conflict with the dept. of health, but I still rather send a scout to find the informatin than sit debate about it. I don't have the book next to me, but I think it suggest sanitizing second then rinsing. Dept. of health reverses that. Barry

>>The adult leaders do retest the boy's on some of the more difficult requirements just to keep them honest.

>> Crikey! Can you imagine the backlog of work the SM would have if he/she got into the power thing, and didn't allow ANYONE else to sign off?!?

Very impressive Beav. I agree with all the post, but as a Cub Master for a few years, I found that families tend to get lost with the differences of troops after about four different visits. I knew we were visiting too many troops when the Webelos were picking troops by the best games they did at their troop meetings. I might suggest you pick the best four to six troops. I used to find out who had the most consistant programs then send our scouts to see an example of the biggest, smallest, most boy run, and least boy run. I also knew which troops didn't mind handicap scouts or troops tha

>>They can experience living with the other 50% of the population and mistakes are expected. No pressure to learn and no exams to pass either. Maybe they will understand women more when they marry one and the divorce rate might drop.

>>Do some troops choose to go with mixed patrols because they can't or don't know how to staff these positions?

Wow, maybe I shouldn't even be clogging up the forum traffic when I don't realy have a good reply, but knowing the kind of person you are, I think you cantrust your heart to start you in the right direction. I've always felt that loving your neighbor as you love yourself is always a safe starting place. Barry

>>We were given strick instructions by the course director to stick to the syllabus and would like to know where I can find this.

>>Eagledad- What are you doing differently than how the BSA guidelines say it should be done?>I dont remember any training where we were told to go ahead and experiment with different things until we found something that works.

>>No, Barry! I insist that it was my bad for making you a "little angry" with me and forcing you to speculate on what my feelings must have been when I made you so, um, "angry."

>>So the advantage of a free market economy is that if you want your girls (or boys) to experience backpacking as a standard part of their Scouting program, you could choose Baden-Powell Scouting which still retains Baden-Powell's original expedition Advancement requirements. These have been dumbed-down and out of the BSA. But look up the First Class requirements in old BSA Scout Handbooks and you will find the BSA's version of Baden-Powell's "First Class Journey".

>>We are experimenting with using temporary "Super" patrols (more than 8 or 10 for a short time) instead of a NSP this year

>>In fact I have found that having girls present brings some reality to the machismo. Being dressed down by a young woman for being a foul mouthed abusive and chauvanist adolescent tends to smarten up the rare twit who forgets what respect means.

>>The boy who has served as a PL (elected, not the one month "trial") usually has great difficulty in that leadership patrol but that makes him a much better patrol member in the future. He can relate to what the PL is going through.

>>Yah, but FScouter, you're making a bunch of assumptions there, eh?

>>Having the boys start together in one patrol and keeping them together gives them the best chance of forming that tight group. This is the foundation of the patrol method.