Eagledad

Great Monday all >>Eight out of ten times the boy wants to stay with his den mates.

>>But I do believe that the PLC roles are more than just fun and games. They are to teach the boys responsibility and leadership. And, you can't do that without a little work involved.

>>No one ever said everything we do in life is "fun". The PL and SPL positions are jobs.

>>That PLC was the best attended, then as time went on, attendance again dropped.

>>It did not give me the ability to diagnose or treat Scouts with learning disabilities, just an understanding. Diagnosing and treating Scouts was not my job as Scoutmaster. Understanding my Scouts and finding new ways to help them grow was my job.

Hi All Why do the parents want their sons to move so fast? I think that is your concern and your point of discussion. My experience is most parents who push their kids faster than the norm are looking to get a jumpstart ahead of their group, usually its advancement in scouts. Whatever the reason, you need to sit and explain why the program works as it does to change their inexperienced vision with a picture of reality. They need to learn and understand that the BSA looses more scouts the first year in a Troop than any other age. If they want their sons to have a long enjoyable scouting experience, then they need to understand why waiting a few months gets their son's maturity closer to the other boys in the troop and a better chance for a successful scouting experience. Also, you need to counter their motivations by painting the big picture of the troop program. Example is if advancement (Eagle) is their motivation, explain how boys who focus on one of the eight methods usually don't enjoy the program and quit early. Boys who experience all the methods at a rate their maturity can handle enjoy the program a lot more and hang around long enough to earn whatever rank or goals they seek. My suggestion is find out the parents motivation and quietly refute it with logic and compassion for their sons future of scouting. I hope this all makes sense. Good luck. Barry

>>STDs, child support payments, fury of a scorned woman - there is much fear to go around! Not that fear should be the motivation factor but as I've always believed, it takes two to tango.

>>We have become a society of sexually irresponsible and immoral people.

>>This is a personal issue between a woman, her doctor and God.This is a personal issue between a woman, her doctor and God.

>>I'm still concerned that turning work into a punishment sends the wrong message about work.

>>In the world of testosterone laden men, doing push-ups on command is a power issue.

>>Odd that we've chosen to "reduce" that sin to a personal matter before God, though escalated being gay, despite no mention of it from Jesus.

Generally Jesus spoke in the behaviors that are pleasing to God, not in what are offensive to Him. The many references of sexual or family relationships in the New Testament are always with the man and woman. Even the commandment of honoring thy father and mother is repeated in the New Testament. Clearly Jesus is guiding us in how we should behave to get closer to God, as opposed to giving an endless list of behaviors that are offensive to God. Barry

Wow! what a great idea. I think however, you need to Wow! What a great idea. I think however, you need to consider that if JLTC or NYLT are not popular, a JLT theme camporee will struggle as well. I was given the responsibility of bringing the scouts back to our JLTC when our council struggled with JLT as well. What we did was make it a boy run program. Instead of sending participants to a program to sit and watch the staff act out leadership skills, we made the participants plan and run the four day long program. Our program became very popular and successful. If you can organize a "Boy Run" theme camporee instead of a "JLT" theme, you might have more success. The theme of the events "leadership Development" can be the same, but the name implies who is going to run it. I think you have a great idea. If you do this, it needs to be given out to us so that other Districts can try the same thing. There is one other suggestion I would like to toss your way. JLT was never intended to replace the SM in leadership development. The number one complaint about Council JLT is the SMs dont know what to do when they get their scouts back. You have an opportunity here to make this and educational weekend for them as well. Include instruction classes on boy run, aims and methods, teaching leadership skills and the importance of developing leadership from role modeling. Good luck, I am excited to see what you develop. I love this scouting stuff. Barry

>>As far as the votes in states on gay marriage, yes, the people have spoken, but I'd be interested in looking in those states to see exactly what people spoke.

>>In religious matters, we should, I think, err to the side of freedom of expression. As I've said, every religion should be able to act as they see fit, but they shouldn't be allowed to place their views into civil law in such a way that limits the religious rights of others.>When GWB was elected I tried to tell people that he would be the worst thing to happen to personal freedoms, womans rights, the environment and education. I am still waiting to proven wrong.

>>I believe the Democrat's problems (much of what you've outlined) is NOT with the Democratic party, but with their leadership. The rank and file of that party makes a far more articulate argument for what the party should stand for than any leader I have seen come along (though I was very impressed with Barrack Obama's speech at the Democrat's convention). I have always been a Republican. But I feel that party rapidly slipping away from it's ideals as it rushes to become a wholly owned subsidiary of the Christian fundamentalists.

>>While you have TG's in the NSP are they full memebers of the NSP or are they in some way both there old patrol and the NSP at the same time?

We tried it several different ways and keeping the Troop Guides (TG) with the new scouts until after summer camp worked the best for us. NSPs were created as an attempt to slow down the high loss of first year scouts. New scouts struggle their first six months because they are overwhelmed by the new experience of personal responsibility and independence required in the boy run program. It usually takes about six months to get use to the boy run program. Until then, new scouts need the constant consistent guidance and role modeling so develop the confidence and habits needed to enjoy the Boy Scouting experience. You only need to leave a NSP alone for 15 minutes to see them drift off task from lack of self-discipline. Even the simple task of going to sleep is challenging for new scouts who want to loudly express their days experiences. Typically a TG can move out of the patrol after six months. Barry

>> People are born gay like they're born left-handed. They don't choose it like a clothing style or a religion.

Hi All This is a strange discussion for me. I'm sure there are good reasons to have an adult sit in camp at all times, I just can't think of any. Let me start by saying that in all our years of summer camps, we never required at least one adult stay in the campsite while everyone else is gone. Never heard of a camp that reguired it. Also, we didn't check on our scouts in their classes. Not sure why we would need to do that. We didn't care if they thought we were just sitting around camp because we told them that summer camp was also our vacation. Usually our adults could be seen fishing, hiking, chatting at the SM Hut and even laying in a hammock under two Oak trees reading. By chance if a scout saw the SM at the camp store, he knew odds where good that that the SM would buy him popsicle. Even if a unit does require an adult stay in camp between classes, scouts are supposed to have buddies at all times, so one adult should be fine. I am very interested in reading the experiences that led units to leave adults in camp. Thanks. Cheers. Barry

>>What the Troop committee could do is develop appropriate consequences for violations of the Oath & Law.

>>While the W.I.S.E. information is useful, I take issue with it in this case. I do not believe discipline is within the realm of responsibility of the PLC

Hi All Thanks for all your heartwarming support. Nothing like hanging around the Internet campfire with friends to calm the soul. Kyle is home and I have to say the BW pretty told a similar story with his son. One of the adults called his wife a day before they came home to give a report of the week. Kyles crew was hit with rain and thunderstorms almost everyday. The two worst storms hit their camp the night before they got on the water and the night before they got off. They came off the water one day early because one boy injured his ankle while chopping firewood. They were forced to come back one day early to take the injured boy to a hospital. On the trip back, they had to deal with a long day of 30 mph winds, four foot waves in three big lakes along with several portages, three of which were over a half mile long having to also carry the injured boy. You can understand then why all the waiting parents expected a very tired discouraged crew when they got home. As the vans pulled up, Kyle was first to open the door and jump out with a grin from ear to ear telling the waiting parents that it was one of the best trips he had been on. That was everyones response, even the boy hobbling around with a hurt ankle. The doctors report said there was no major damage and he should be pretty much healed in a couple weeks. The whole group was energetic, laughing and excited to tell stories. So the prayers were answered and I thank you all. Kyle has talked a lot about the trip since Saturday and none of his reflections are negative. Officially, this was a last time gathering of his church group that has met weekly for over six years. But really between scouts, sports, church and school, This group has been a friends since before the first grade. It really wasnt a bonding experience so much as long time friends spending time before they started their new futures in different parts of the world. If the adversity of the trip did anything, it only brought in the open their welded friendship. There was not one discouraging word from the whole group. Not even a mention about having to carry their injured friend over two miles of rain soaked portages. And some people say there is no God. So, why is parenting so hard, at the moment I think it so we parent can have hope in our childrens future. Thanks again for all the kind words of encouragement. Thanks for your friendship. Barry

>>I honestly believe that the reason why so many troops spend so much time on these darn merit badges is because everything they need to do is clearly laid out for them and requires little or no imagination.