Eamonn

I still keep in contact with my Scouting pals back home in England. I have now been "Stateside" for over 22 years. Many of the people who were active 22 years ago are still active. During my absence Scouting back home has changed a lot. I have not really kept up with all the changes, but from what I see most of the changes have to do with age groups, going coed and a move from advancement to participation. On a local level, my dear 17th Fulham (Pioneers) is gone, the Fulham District is gone, the Greater London Central County has been completely reorganized. I have to admit one of the reasons I moved was that I was able to make a lot money by selling my house when I did. Today house prices in that area are out of sight: Terraced 425,400 Semi 516,900 Flat 256,700 The people who live there either don't have kids or if they do they pack them off to boarding school. When it came to reorganizing a pal of mine who had been a longtime Fulham Scouter was asked to make a report with recommendations. This he did and I think he was as fair as he could be. The District was very wealthy due to having been left houses and buildings, it just didn't have any Scouts. My other pal who never married and lived at home with his Mum is very upset and sees the reorganization as a hatchet job. He is now mad and upset with the report, the reorganization and his ex-pal. This really is a shame. The guy who did the report did so because he was asked, he didn't wake up one day and take it on himself. The fact that it needed doing because the District was on it's last legs is beside the point.Sure there are a lot of old timers still Scouting in the area. I was surprised to the fellow who was my Cubmaster is still Scouting!! Some have an idea that the wealth of the District needs to stay in the District and all sorts of emotions come into play. Change happens. Every year I dread the coming of winter, I dislike being cold. Yet I look forward to watching the dogs play in the snow or Rory sliding on frozen puddles. I never used to take being cold very seriously until I got Rory, now I know that I have to go out for our big long walk every day I have taken steps to ensure that I dress for the cold. I still don't enjoy winter, but I'm better prepared for it. One of the best things about going to camp was always having an open fire. Now that I'm in Sea Scouting, we don't get to camp that much and rarely have a fire, I still miss it but have moved on. One day I don't know when? A new Scout uniform will come along, I somehow think it will resemble the uniforms used by fast food restaurants! Sure it will be very high tech. But I can't wait to hear the comments. We can and should learn from the way things once were, but to live in the past and not move on is just silly. Falling out with a friend is even sillier. Eamonn.

While this is the place to discuss Scouting and BSA Training's and it's fine for us to have differences of opinions. I do feel if you want to have words with another forum member the way to do it is by using the private message. I for one am happy to spend many happy hours talking about Wood Badge. I am not happy when it seems as if we are attacking a fellow forum member. With that said I'm closing this thread. Eamonn.

In the other thread it was stated: "I really don't think it matters what size it was or what it was intended for or if it worked. The only reason to make any type of bomb is to blow something up and cause destruction." Having once been a kid, having a home-grown kid and having worked with kids for some time I have to respectively disagree. Was it it really silly and dumb thing to do? Of course it was!! Should people go around building bombs? Of course they shouldn't! Why did he do it? We don't know. Kids do dumb and silly things because they are kids. Why do kids throw knives? Why do they carry frogs in their pockets? Why are matches and lighters so fascinating? Most of the time they do this just because they are kids. Of course some kids do intend to cause harm and being a kid in not a good enough reason to excuse this. As Scouters we try to "Offer young people responsible fun and adventure" I look at what we try to provide as an alternative to fun and adventure which isn't responsible. Eamonn.

Have to say that I'm not very comfortable with the word felon. We could I suppose have a long and heated debate about The distinction between a felony and misdemeanor. I'm not a lawyer. I do however believe that at times the distinction can be caused by a lot of different factors. It wasn't that long ago that the English were shipping children over to the colonies for stealing. Juvenile Delinquency is a problem,juveniles are capable of committing serious crimes. In our small town we have a very nice JP. Sadly a lot of what he now has to deal with are things that in the past would never have ended up in his court. Kids fighting in school, used to be taken care of in house by the school, kids caught smoking or breaking curfew. The punishment in most cases is a fine plus the court costs. Talking with him, we both agree that this does little to teach the offender anything, the parent pays the fines and sadly the repeat offenders seem to just keep coming back. He tried to start a community mentoring type program. It failed because of lack of community involvement. He is now working with the County to see if there is a way that he can offer being a Scout / Venturer in place of imposing fines. If and when this happens? I would think that any Lad who opted to join and reached Eagle Scout or Venturing Silver, would be seen as having turned himself around and the program would seem to be a success. I'm not sure why? But when a Scout does something wrong or plain dumb, there seems to a mentality of "Go to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200.00" The theories as to why youths turn to delinquency are numerous.Travis Hirschi, who has done a lot of work in this area and written several books does content that groups that could strengthen the bonds were family, school, peers, religious institutions, etc. The social bond had four elements: Attachment to parents, peers, or school Commitment to conventional lines of action Involvement in conventional activities Belief in a common value. Which brings me back to the Eagle - Yes or No question. It would seem that if we really want to serve the Lad we need to keep items listed above in place. Handing him an award which is the highest award we can offer, isn't going to keep him involved. But telling him that he is never going to make the mark isn't going to keep him involved either. At the end of the day it will all boil down to us providing him what he needs and working with him to make a plan to see that he gets what he needs. I'm not sure if in the other thread it became clear what he intended to do with the pipe-bomb? Or even what size it was? Or if it would work? A few years back one of our Sea Scouts (who at the time was a Boy Scout) got sent home from a District Camporee for throwing aerosol cans in the fire that his Patrol was using to cook on. I'm sure that at the time he knew that he wasn't supposed to throw these on the fire, I bet he knew it was a risky thing to do. I don't think he intended to hurt or harm anyone. Somehow, sometimes kids do the dumbest things. This Lad was asked to attend a Troop Committee meeting, where they suspended him for a period of time. Last week he completed his Eagle Scout project. He isn't a bad Lad, but the Scouts were talking about the incident and he was making light of it, I think in part to cover his embarrassment. I did step in to remind him just how really dumb he had been. We work with each boy as an individual, we follow the guidelines and do our best to meet the needs of the kids we serve. Eamonn.

Having the COR act as the UC isn't the way the system is supposed to work. With the greatest respect to the Commissioners who do a good job, I do feel that Commissioner Service is very rapidly becoming a thing of the past. Eamonn.

Looking over the lists of the top 3 services that Councils offer, I'm sorry to say that I'm not very impressed. Maybe I was wrong only asking for the top 3? I keep hearing that it costs the Council X amount of dollars to provide the services that they provide. Our Council seems to devote more space in the Council Newsletter to popcorn sales and FOS, than just about anything. We use the $125.00 per Scout as the number. The Ship has 28 Sea Scouts. I fail to see that we receive $3,500 worth of services. I'm thankful that so far we have not come up with the "Council Tax" on activities, that it seem some Councils have. While cutting costs can be a hard pill to swallow, I really do think the time has come for us to look at the what bang we are getting for our buck. While it might very well be costing $125.00 to keep a youth in the program, or should I say we might be spending that amount. The big questions are: Can we afford it? Are we getting value for money? In our Council about 25% of our budget goes toward salaries. Five years ago our then SE wanted to promote our DE to become the Learning For Life Executive. At that time the Field Director looked after LFL. (3 Part time workers) She turned it down. The SE didn't like or get on with the Assistant Scout Exec. He tried to remove him. The argument being that a Council our size didn't need an assistant. The Board agreed, but kept the assistant as the program director, at the same salary. The field director moved on and we hired a new one, he landed himself in hot water and was never seen again. The position was never filled, it still has never been filled and due to lack of funds more than lightly never will be filled. This year the Scout Exec. moved on in July, his replacement didn't come on board till November. The Board moved at a slow pace to try and save a few bucks. Over the five year span, we have managed to: Not have a LFL Director. Cut the Assistant SE position. Not replace the Field Director. Strange thing is that no one seems to see any changes. We could go from 4 Districts down to only 2 or maybe 3. I don't know why we pay for the lease on the cars for the Program Director and the SE? If we were to offer a better wage we could cut the people who work in the Service Center, down by 50%. I do think that the time has come for us to look at the real cost per youth member. Come up with a number we can live with and stick with that number. Of course as membership grows the number gets bigger and if the membership goes down the number goes down. Eamonn.

"Some are staffed by volunteers, others by Pro's." They all should be staffed by volunteers, with a pro as an Advisor. Eamonn.

http://www.letssaythanks.com/Home.html Is worth a visit. Eamonn.

American Cub Scouting is very different to Cub Scouting in the UK. When I got involved in Cub Scouting over here, I needed some one who could help me with the program. I didn't need someone who was more concerned about the CO than helping me deliver the program to the Cub Scouts. Problems with CO are really best left to the Key 3 or members of the District Committee. In our District we have a new District Commissioner, I don't know him that well. He seems to be a very nice fellow. Talking with some of the Scoutmasters they feel he is just "Filling in" as his only experience in Scouting is having been a Den Leader. While he is a nice fellow, the feelings of the Scoutmasters is that he is about as much use to them and the Scouts they serve as pockets in their underwear. The truth is that he is just filling the hole, the District needed someone and was having a hard time, so he was nabbed. Being as we are the only Ship in the Council, there isn't anyone that can really do the UC job for us, thankfully when I filled out the Starting a new Ship block on the Sea Scout web site, the Region had a Sea Scouter with many years behind him contact me. We exchange E-mails and he answers my questions, a few weeks back when I was having a problem with a boat he drove the 80 miles to come and help me. He knows nothing about what is going on in our Council, he lives and has done all of his Scouting in another state. But when it comes to meeting my needs and helping me do a better job of serving the Scouts, he is my main man. Back when I was District Commissioner, I asked Her Who Must Be Obeyed to take on helping with ensuring that the Charters got to where they were supposed to be and got back in time. She likes the paper work and administrative side of things and is better than I am at it. I asked that our UC's be "Warm and Cuddly". While "I don't know!" is sometimes the best answer, if the person who the Unit Leaders are asking for help keeps saying it, the Unit Leaders will soon stop asking. I suppose it depends on what you call the Unit? I see it as where the rubber meets the road and the role of the UC is to be there for the people delivering the program. To do this effectively he or she has to know the program Sure the plumber and the electrician both work in construction, but they do different jobs, use different tools. There is of course some who can do both, but most of the ones I know are far better doing one trade. Eamonn.

I can't help thinking that the pig didn't have much say in the matter!! Our role as Scouter's is about teaching ethical choices. Eamonn. (I will however use this.)

I think I go along with John-in-KC. Please don't take this as being unkind, but I don't think if I was the Wood Badge Director that I would select someone who has just completed their ticket to be on staff. At the course so much information is given, that it is hard to take in. After the course participants are busy working on their tickets. I think taking some time to allow the course to sink in is a good idea. Wood Badge is going to eat up a lot of time. You need to find out how much time? How will this effect the Crew? I might add that I don't see any reason for me to take a Powder Horn course. I know and have used just about all the resources in our area that a course would want to introduce me to. While I know the adults who attend have a lot of fun participating in the activities, I think my attending would be taking away from the time I might better spend with the unit I serve. - But that's just me. You do need to talk with the CD and find out what his /her plans are for the course development. It can and does take a lot of time and you need to look at how this will fit in with the Crew. Staff members are now supposed to pay their own way!! So with the weekends, uniforms, course fees and other costs it can prove to be a lot of expense. Eamonn.

A lot of people ask me if we celebrate Thanksgiving in England? As a rule I say that due to the fact we didn't have any Indians we tend to skip Thanksgiving. Many churches celebrate a Harvest Festival. At times the Thanksgiving holiday falls on my birthday, I'm not that happy about having to share my birthday with everyone else, but still it does mean that I had the day off work. This year we are keeping everything very simple. We haven't invited anyone to join us for the holiday. The menu is nothing to write home about. Mushrooms stuffed with crab-meat, candied sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, pies and of course the turkey. Strange thing about turkeys is that they scare the heck out of me. I know a Scout is brave, but I'm not at ease around turkeys. As a little fellow, every summer I'd get packed off to my Grandparents farm in Ireland. I loved the time I spent there. I think it was there that I fell in love with dogs. My Uncle Paddy was a well known dog trainer and worked at Slane Castle. Over the summer I was fine working with cows and calves, we still milked by hand. I would feed the hens and collect the eggs, but there were always a few turkeys. I somehow got the idea into my head that turkeys looked mean, I think they knew that I didn't like them and them knowing this made them even meaner!! I made sure I didn't get too close. One day last fall as OJ and I were going up to camp three giant turkeys flew from the field next to the drive way and landed right in front of me. It was early and I wasn't as alert as maybe I should have been. I was shocked to see this turkey trio land and couldn't help but think that they were trying to get back at me. You see when I was feeding the hens, I was so scared of the turkeys that I didn't go near them and they missed out on a few meals. To make matters worse a year or two back there was a murder case in our county where the weapon of choice was a frozen turkey along with another case of assault in a supermarket again with a frozen turkey. I was thinking of asking if turkeys in our area could come with a government health warning!! To make the cleaning up a little faster I have cooked our turkey. Rory the Goldie and Joe the setter, sat by the oven drooling!! Golden Retrievers can really drool a lot. Her Who Must Be Obeyed couldn't wait until tomorrow for some stuffing, so She had a little drool as well. Thinking about it I now wish that we had Thanksgiving in England. I'm still scared of turkeys, I hate the idea of winter coming, but this holiday does give me the opportunity to look back over the past year. While it sure as heck could have been a lot better. I'm thankful that I am where I am. I'm thankful for having the best health-care in the world, so that Her Who Must Be Obeyed was able to enjoy her stuffing. I'm thankful for the people I love and who love me and the kids who allow me to share in their growing. Thanksgiving isn't about Indians, puritans, turkeys. It's a great time to just be grateful for the gifts that have been bestowed upon us. I wish everyone a wonderful holiday. Happy Thanksgiving. Eamonn.

Smoking seems to be a hot issue. As a smoker I know that I get very defensive when it comes up. I do find the hypothetical situation posted about alcohol to be a little insulting. The rules laid down by the BSA about alcohol are very clear. I don't think that my smoking has ever impaired my judgment when it comes to dealing with Scouts. As OGE posted the rules are clear. This 19 year old is still a youth member as long as he remains in (or joins) a Venture Crew. Hopefully at only 19 someone can find the right buttons to push that might make him want to quit. Even if it's only telling him how much it can cost over a life time!! I might add that I consider myself a very considerate smoker. I don't smoke where I'm not supposed to. I don't smoke in my car when there are non-smokers in it. If I'm at someone else's house I will go out doors for a smoke. I'd also add that the G2SS talks about tobacco products. I get a little annoyed at the holier than thou people who give me a hard time while they are gnawing on a mouth full of tobacco. Eamonn.

Hi Looking back at what you posted on 8/9/2006 things don't seem to have improved. Having served as a District Commissioner I really think that 4 problem units is too many for a new UC. I also have reservations about UC's serving in all the sections. The problem with the Pack and them wanting to change CO's is really a problem for the DE. The problems that might come out of all of this are beyond the scope of volunteers. I know if I was the Cubmaster and a UC brought in leader from Troop, without my requesting it I'd be upset!! If this CM wants to start a new unit with a new CO, the DE needs to take charge. In August you posted: " One crew that has dwindling membership, it currently has two girls and three boys" Sad as it may be the unit is dead and is doing little to serve the needs of the two girls that remain. Try and help them find another Crew is about all you can do. Messing with Units is never a good idea. They need to either stand on their own or die. Units have peaks and valleys. The Troop that is doing well today could well be the Troop that will have problems later on. If the adults from one unit want to join another, they can of course do so, if the boys want to transfer to another unit they can move. But when someone who represents the Council starts to step in it is a sure recipe for disaster. It really does jeopardize the relationship that the Council has with the CO's. Leaders tend to come and go, but CO last forever!! Your role as UC is to be a friend to the unit. At times you may have to do CPR,but heart transplants are not your job. Eamonn.

Welcome. Feel free to ask away. Eamonn.

At the risk of sounding conceited or big headed. At times it seems to me, very much like: "We, the unwilling,led by the unknowing,are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much,for so long,with so little,we are now qualified to do anything with nothing." Mother Teresa My term as District Chairman ended a year ago, when it ended so did my seat on the Council Executive Board. The Council was facing / is facing some hard choices as what to do about the Council Finances. The choices should have been made a year ago, but no one was willing to make them. Sadly the District Key 3 just don't seem to have their act together and seem only to be going through the motions. Membership is noticeably down. Units are closing. Esprit de corps is at an all time low. Of course I'm unhappy to see this happen. At times I do think "What the heck are they doing?" When people call or stop me, I try to be as loyal as I can be. I don't want to bad mouth anyone. I feel bad for the people that call. While I can offer an ear for them to chew on, there is nothing else I can do. I also find myself beating up on myself for not being able to do more to help them. Part of it is that I really don't have the time and part of it is that I don't want to come across as being a pain in the neck. Maybe I am "now qualified to do anything with nothing." But I just don't seem to have it in me to do anything? Eamonn.

Tragedy hit our small town again last night. It was a rainy, dark horrible November night and it seems that the 17 year old Captain of our high School soccer team was driving too fast. The details are still a little unclear but sadly the Lad is dead. I love living in our small town, I love the sense of community, but part of me feels that when things like this happen life would be so much easier if we lived in a big town where no one knew anyone. My Mother-In- Law had been the Den Mother to the boys father. I had worked on several projects for Scouting with him. The Lad had been a Scout in the same Troop as OJ, but had quit to devote more time to soccer and cross country running. OJ is so very upset, the two of them have played together since they were little fellows. I have a photo of them both gazing into a mud puddle when they were supposed to be playing soccer. We don't have a scanner, but when the call went to the Emergency Room, it was a teenage boy in a white Ford Explorer. Her Who Must Be Obeyed works in the ER, the people she works with know that OJ drives my Explorer, thankfully he was home last night. But the ER workers were really worried. Our entire town is in shock. I know it seems that I keep on posting about kids and driving. But of all the activities that OJ and his pals do driving is the one that really scares me. Living out in the sticks, the kids can't wait to drive and become independent. I want for him to be as independent as he can be. I know that he thinks I keep on as every-time he leaves the house I tell him to drive carefully and not to speed. My heart goes out to the family of this Lad. I'm not sure if something like this happened to OJ if I have it in me to carry on, but this Lad has a younger brother. Anything we as Scouter's can do to try and help our kids drive more safely, we have to do. We lose so many teenagers on the roads. I'm taking some of the Scouts sailing this weekend in Maryland. You can bet I'll be doing my best to set a good example by not speeding. Eamonn.

Talking with OJ about what he wants for Christmas. He informs me that he needs (yes needs!) a Polyester/Wool uniform. While I think the pants at $59.55 are expensive, I suppose I can live with it, but $50.55 for a shirt? It seems that this need is due to the fact that he wants to run for a Regional OA Office and I'm informed that Polyester/Wool uniforming is the norm. $100.00 isn't going to break the bank, but I'm not sure I have it in me to spend over fifty bucks for a shirt. Add to all of this the fact that as his only real (Registered ) position is a Sea Scout and the Ship wears the Sea Scout uniforms, I'm not sure if he should wear a Boy Scout shirt. I know that the OA is a Boy Scout program, but he is 18 and not connected to a Troop. Heck, I think $32.45 for a shirt is too much!! Am I just being cheap? Eamonn.

While not a hard and fast rule/ guide, things normally go better in this organization when volunteers deal with volunteers. Of course a lot will depend on who you have to deal with. In some Councils the only requirement to be a UC is a warm body. In our District our DE is a young fellow right out of college. If the system is working as it should in most cases the DE is going to get a report anyway. The UC reports to the Assistant or District Commissioner and unit health is on the District Committee Meeting agenda and the Key 3 agenda. Eamonn.

With Her That Must Be Obeyed being sick and me doing my Florance Nightingale impersonation, just doing what I can do for the Ship is about as much as I can do. She doesn't like to be left home alone, so I don't get out that much. Where as I used to be a frequent visitor to our Council Service Center, stopping in almost every week. I haven't visited since June. Our District doesn't have a "Real" Venturing presence and we are the only Ship in the Council, so to be honest even if getting away wasn't such a chore, I kinda think attending R/T meetings wouldn't be high on my "Must Do List." Nearly all of my Scouting pals are busy doing what they do and don't have time to look in and shoot the breeze. I understand that, at times I don't like it but I do understand. What time I now have is spent doing stuff with the Ship and they are not into Sea Scouting. From what I do hear, which is Scuttlebutt, things in the District are not going that well. However the truth is that I really don't have the numbers, I have no desire to even look at the numbers (Other than the Ship's numbers) and I'm almost happy to let "Them" get on with it. We have a new Scout Executive, I know of him from the Area Meetings, but I don't know him and have not met him. Meeting him is not something that I see as being of any importance. Still every now and then I receive phone calls. Today it was a call from a Cubmaster, he was upset that the District Dinner had been canceled. He was upset as he thought that the person that him and the people from the Pack had nominated for the District Award of Merit, wasn't going to receive the award. I explained that I had nothing to do with the dinner or the award. I wasn't planning on attending the dinner, and had heard that it was canceled due to not enough people signing up to attend. He said that the Lady in the Office had told him to call me and was fairly insistent that I knew more than I was telling!! Last week it was a call from the local Lutheran Church Preacher. A super nice fellow, he was upset that the Pack which the church had chartered was no longer operating. I knew they were going through a rough patch, but didn't know how rough. It seems that the Pack folded and no one took the time to talk with him!! All I could say was how sad I was, but the truth of the matter is that I didn't know and this wasn't my job. I was doing a lot of ducking and diving so as not to point fingers, because the fact is that I really didn't know. Someone called and asked I was going to the Council Annual Meeting in January to ask about the Council finances? I said I wasn't planning on it and I had no real idea what shape the finances are in. A Scoutmaster called me to complain that Summer Camp had been cut back from seven weeks to six weeks, of course the week cut was the week he had planned on going. Again I knew of the cut, but I didn't have the facts. I spent over ten years as a District and Council Scouter, I like to think that I gave it my best. But now I'm happy doing what I'm doing. The people who are now doing what I used to do are welcome to the job. Sure I'm not happy with the stuff I'm hearing. But I really don't know, I don't have the time to do anything about it, I'm not going to do anything about it and what's worse is that I'm starting not to care. I'll do my bit doing my best for the Scouts in the Ship and if that sounds Un-Scout like? I'm sorry, it's about all I can do. Eamonn.

I wonder what the Brits think a cookie is? The person who does the cooking. We were having our tea, crumpets and biscuits long before you tried making tea with cold water in Boston!! (Posted with tongue in cheek) Eamonn

A couple of my thoughts! For what they are worth. History is fine, but kids don't care that much about the age of the unit. I notice that you make no mention of a CO? Unless you are the only Troop around? The idea of "Feeders" doesn't work. Kids and their parents have different reasons for picking /choosing the unit they join. Some reasons are about program, while some might just be the night on which the meeting is held. Running a Troop of 6 active Scouts is hard. Trying to run a Troop of 4 active Scouts is really hard. To be honest going into the schools trying to recruit Boy Scouts rarely works. The reasons why could be discussed in a spin off thread. If the Troop is going to be saved? It is going to take a lot more than just your will and your enthusiasm. Maybe the time has come to take a long hard look at who (other than you) wants to save the Troop? The CO? The Parents? The Scouts? While Professionals and members of the District Team will never want to see a unit die. These fine people really can't do very much to help. If it seems that there is enough interest to save the Troop all of everyones effort has to be put into recruitment. The most effective form of recruitment is peer to peer. At your next meeting have each of the Scouts write down the names of two prospects. Kids of their own age that they are going to invite to a meeting. Keep a copy of the list and follow up with it. Ask the Scouts about the people they have named, prod them, keep asking. Keep doing this with every new Scout. I'm not big on bribery!! However some events seem to be more attractive than others!! Think about a all night movie and pizza event, our Sea Scouts seem to always bring friends to our all night bowling nights. While the Pro's can't do much to help, you might want to talk to someone in your Council Service Center about Scoutreach. A lot will depend on your location and how the Council goes about the Scoutreach program. - If you go that route you might find that the local OA Lodge is willing to help. Sadly it might be that you are flogging a dead horse!! Units die when there isn't enough people with enough interest to keep them going. People does mean more than one person!! Trying to be CM,CC,W2DL&PopcornK, in the pack was not the best thing to do. -If you try to do this with a Troop it isn't going to work. Set a realistic date and a goal for membership. Maybe the next rechartering date? If the Troop hasn't reached the goal, I would say that the horse is dead. Eamonn.

Seems that even when I try to get edumacated, fings don't work out. Eamonn.

I found the Scouting--September 1998 article, but that was about all I found. Seems to me that the time has come to gather all these "Training's" into one place and have the people who need them take them all at once or at least if they are on line training, on the same web page? The way things are going my "One hour a week" will be taken up making sure that I know how to save everyone that I'm not going to have time to do anything with the Scouts. While doing nothing is a very safe non-activity it doesn't help in other areas. I think I'll go and have a saucer of milk now!! Eamonn.

Hi bolin Welcome. Not sure what help you need? So far you seem to have mastered the essentials. Over time you will come up with your own lists of people that you agree with and not agree with. There are times when it seems that many of us have put the Scout Oath and Law on the back burner. - Sadly it happens and you will have to forgive us for it. It is worth remembering that a lot of what is posted is not from the horses mouth. The horse being the official BSA web site and publications. I have over the years I have been a member managed to meet up with a few fellow Forum Members. Maybe at the next National Jamboree, we can plan to set up a time and place to share a cup of tea and a biscuit? (cookie) Eamonn.