Eamonn

Here in PA In the light of what happened lately the legislators are looking at many aspects of child abuse and things like who reports to whom. While I've not read any of the recommendations that an appointed panel has come up with. Having only heard what has been said on the local NPR station. The recommendations, from what have been said are very far reaching. Covering volunteer organizations, schools, Internet sites and a really wide area. It is yet to be seen what happens when all of this is debated and what becomes law and what doesn't. Over the past year or so, here in this fo

I like Christmas. It's nice that we have at least one time a year when we go out of our way to be nice to each other. - Not just our families but, just nice. I'm at the stage of my life when I really don't need anything. Chances are that if I need something I either go and buy it or I can't afford it and if I can't afford it then I don't expect or think that others will. I'm not in any way anti gift giving. I enjoy giving and receiving presents as much as anyone. Still I can't help but think things are going a little too far. Stores are out there to sell stuff and lure peop

I'm not sure about the cover up thing! This thread did make me think back to the times I spent at my Grandmothers home in Ireland. She had a small alter /shelve, lit by a red electric light bulb with a cross inside the bulb. On the wall was a picture of the Sacred Heart. On the shelve there was statues of the Virgin Mary and two or three of her favorite saints. There along side the saints was a plate with JFK'S face on it. My Grandmother was not into politics, but like many of the people in Ireland she was so very proud that there was an Irish /Catholic in the white house. I'm not r

And from where I sit I don't understand how it isn't completely obvious that striking, hitting, slapping, harming others, be they your kid, the kid next door or the little old lady down the road. Or worse still me! -Is just plain wrong. Wen it comes to teaching our children I fail to see how "Do as I say or I'm going to hurt you." Can ever be seen as a good example. Ea.

While the adult count most of the time is seen as not being that very important, when it comes to the Commissioner count it does become a very big deal. Every now and then the number of volunteers is mentioned. Sometimes size does matter. Ea.

packsaddle I hope I didn't come off as seeming like I was complaining. I both like and enjoy my job. A big part of it for me is because everything is so new, so different. I'm also one of the few who don't think that I'm under-paid or in any way hard done by. Second Class - Thank you. The post wasn't to be as long as it turned out being. Papadaddy, One of the problems I sometimes have is understanding some of the younger guys at work. Most if not all of these guys are really nice guys when I deal with them one on one. Sadly when they group together it seems that they wa

Yesterday I presented a lesson on Dealing With Stress. Working in a jail is very stressful and the stresses take their toll on the people who work within the razor topped fences. Part of the lesson plan deals with bad ways of dealing with stress. On my way home I got to thinking about how I deal with my own stress. I'm not an expert in this kind of thing but even still I think that I know me better than anyone else. I'm very aware that there are stress-ors out there and from the time the electronic gate clangs shut, early in the morning till I get to get out I'm under stress. Jails

Seem to remember reading someplace that if there isn't a Vice-Chair the District Nominating Chair steps in until a new Chair is selected. Most times one of the other District Chairs will take the job on a temp basis. The District Commissioner and the DE should never take on the job. Commissioners need to take care of units and DE's have their own agenda. Ea.

While units can often latch onto and play with any District that they might feel like doing so with. The truth is that when it comes to Councils and Districts, the only thing that really matter is the CO. Most CO's see the reasoning why they are in the District that they are in. The IH if he is lucky? Meets with the DE about once a year and has no idea if the DE is good, bad or indifferent. If the unit is blessed with a real and a active COR? Maybe things both good and bad might get back to the IH. Once the Council has that Charter Agreement filed, chances are that the Charter will r

Sorry BSA24 some of us District types are trained negotiators. I seen the work I did at the District level as being important. While of course there are some units that don't need as much help and as much support as others. Still feeling that you belong to something bigger than just your own unit and working with others toward a common goal is very much what Scouting is all about. I am and have always been willing to accept that my understanding of the program and the working's of the program might not be the same as others. When it came to visiting units I always seen myself as a gues

Hi, You need to think along the lines of what services the District offers your unit? As has been posted most of the time Districts follow some kind of geographic line. As a rule this is done so that Commissioner staff are people who are people who come from that area, DE support for things like School Sign Up Night and other events are done locally. Back when I was District Chair. We had a Troop that was on the boundary line of another District. Their adult leaders seemed to think that we did things better than the District they were in and that our guys were more friendly toward them

"Macedonia... and whether or not it's Greek." And there was I thinking them nuts came from Hawaii! If they decide to secede the price of sugar will go up and what will the Texans put in their tea? Sounds like a real mess, maybe joining with Canada might be the way to go? Ea.

Kinda makes me glad that my kid was a little to old for a Tickle Me Elmo. Ea.

My great hope is that if Boston starts to act up (Again!!) That this time they do a better job of making a nice spot of tea. Do they drink tea is Texas? moosetracker I was younger in 1977 and spent a week touring with a bus load of International Scouter's. We sank a good many warm beers (The Brits and the Irish outnumbered everyone else on the bus.) But I do seem to remember spending the night in the BSA HQ in New Jersey, not New York. Ea.

"My question is will I be able to provide my proxy to a registered Scouter from one or our organization's units so that they can vote" I'm not exactly sure what the book answer is. I don't ever remember seeing it anyplace. But here in my neck of the woods. The answer would be a no. I don't know how familiar you are with these meetings? Sad to say for the most part they are a waste of time. The Nominating Committee Chair. Puts forward the slate of officers and it is as a rule passed. If for whatever reason the slate of officers fails to pass, the meeting should be closed and re-

"My question is will I be able to provide my proxy to a registered Scouter from one or our organization's units so that they can vote" I'm not exactly sure what the book answer is. I don't ever remember seeing it anyplace. But here in my neck of the woods. The answer would be a no. I don't know how familiar you are with these meetings? Sad to say for the most part they are a waste of time. The Nominating Committee Chair. Puts forward the slate of officers and it is as a rule passed. If for whatever reason the slate of officers fails to pass, the meeting should be closed and re-

moxieman While I'm in agreement with you that money does indeed talk. Money, or not having enough money? Never seems to have been a problem for the BSA at the National level. (Yes I know that they cut a few staffers a year or so back.) My thinking is that there are people and groups of people with very deep pockets who support and will continue to support the BSA, some because of the gay policy that it has in place, some just because it's the BSA. IMO HO, what hurts or harms a youth organization more than anything is when the membership keeps going down and there isn't any real explana

Can't help wondering if the Seattle Times is always so far behind when it comes to the news? Since this story broke, there has been a member of the House of Lords wrongly accused the CEO of the BBC has resigned. Several people have been arrested and a few have been held for questioning. Maybe by 2013 the Seattle Times might get caught up? Ea.

I have no idea what the BSA might or might not do. Thinking locally. While some people have opinions about homosexuals and gay marriage. Up until very recently there wasn't what I'd call a gay presence??. No gay community, no gay clubs that I know of no real gay movement. There were of course people who were openly gay, but not very many. For the most part the gay issues were something that happened elsewhere. There is now however some concerns that a fair number of boys in the local High School, who are saying that they are gay and there have been incidents on the school grounds and boy

I have been asked time and time again, why I wasn't a professional Scouter? As a rule I answered that I didn't ever want to give up my being able being able to tell people that I might not like or didn't want to get along with. - Where to go. I'm a volunteer. I do what I do. Because I like doing it and a lot of the time like to think that I just might, just maybe might be doing some good. I enjoy seeing the kids in our program have fun, enjoy the program and grow in the program. I hate the cold, but have taken Scouts hiking, camping and skiing in the snow. I've camped in the rai

"Always? You don't believe parents have a right to discipline their children, even corporally if they believe it to be necessary?" Yes always. I don't care what tag you tie to hitting and hurting others. - It's just wrong. Adults who hit children need help. Ea.

Peregrinator, To answer your question. I'd report it because I see /think that hitting other people is just plain wrong. I would hope that I'd do what I could to remove the child from the danger that he or she is facing. By reporting it I would feel that I had done what was needed. I don't in any way judge the person who was hitting the child. I don't know what the authorities might or might not do. I tend to think that people who hit kids are in need of some kind of help. Help that I'm not qualified to offer. When I see a convict hitting another convict. I report it. Surel

BSA24 I'm not really sure what your saying? I was born at a time and place where whacking kids was seen as being acceptable. My Irish Catholic parents and teachers, school masters seemed to take spare the rod and spoil the child to heart. To this day, I'm never sure if I'm a good person? Or just a person who fears the consequences of my actions? I'm really happy that we no longer live in the dark ages. I believe that people who hit their kids need help, but before we can help the parents we need to take care of the child. - Most times that entails removing the child from the danger

ScouterCa, As others have posted it is both possible and allowable to hold several positions within the BSA. The membership fee is for the person, not the position. There is a rule that states that a Unit Leader is not allowed to also serve as a Commissioner. But this seems to sometimes ignored at a local level. A few years back the BSA and some Councils were found to have a fair number of "Paper Units." Units that really didn't exist. Sometimes to get a charter through volunteers who had no real association with the unit or the charter would be listed as CM's. There are some v

"So your boss leads a squeaky clean life? No association with organizations that have had problems in the past, like maybe a Church?" I'm not sure how squeaky clean his life might be. But I do know that he isn't facing the problems that the BSA is. If our only answer, only reply to the crisis we face is to poke fun at the people who are now feeling uneasy? Then we might as well all quit now. Within our own ranks I do think that our members support the organization and feel that any sort of abuse wouldn't and isn't going to happen on their watch. I'm not sure how much or how lit