fred8033

CubsRgr8 - One more suggestion. Call your district executive and/or scout office. Today. Don't stop until you reach a live person who can actually help. Ask for names of local supportive scoutmasters who would be willing to receive the scout into his troop and help fix the situation. I know I'd be proud of my troop if we received and helped such a scout.

A scout entering the military looking to make Eagle but with tight time constraints on one requirement. Okay. I was trying to be polite earlier. And maybe there's something I still don't understand. But if the situation is anything close to the earlier descriptions.... Time constraint for POR but otherwise other requirements are done or do-able. A scout entering the military and potentially risking his life to serve of your country. Politely said, the scoutmaster needs to rethink the situation. And any leader thinking this situation is okay would quickly lose my respect.

I wasn't thinking of it as using the MB to teach a trade. I was thinking of it as teaching skills that kids don't learn anymore. They might not need them very often, but it's good to be exposed to a variety of topics. It broadens the mind. Wasn't it Baden-Powell who created scouting because he thought kids were stuck in the cities too often without the chance to learn outdoor skills. (.... or at least part of the reason ....) I view it as in contrast to badges such as Communcations. Fifty years ago, I don't think school taught students presentation skills. Now students start doing

I wish more of the MBs were like this. Bring back carpentry. Others???? More practical usable skills that don't overlap with high school.

Opted out.... Reasons for not selling - #1 Very high product cost relative to perceived value - #2 Arbitrary product people don't really need - #3 Low profit margin for unit (Our pack is donating some of our fundraiser results to FOS this year.) Suggested changes - Different product - Different profit margin If changed, would you sell - Popcorn ... probably not

Beavah's right. I thought it was valid too, but looked at GTA and it explicitly says it's only for star and life. Not eagle.

I don't know the scout or the situation and the scout was sloppy to leave things to the last moment. But in the scout's defense, most teenagers don't think far in advance. He has time. I always view it as the scoutmaster's job to help every scout. Let the scout succeed or fail on his own. But if a scout came to me asking for help, I'm going to help. Shame on the scoutmaster for essentially saying tough luck. Now there's also no requirement for the SM to bend over backwards. But the good scoutmaster's do. So with that said, call the SM NOW. Figure out the situation. If the

Beavah wrote: "Government run pensions (and unregulated private pensions for that matter) are just a bad idea" Agreed. But for the employees (gov works, teachers, police, firefighters, ...), pensions are a good bet because a pension program is basically a government liability paid by the taxpayer. Hard to lose money unless the state declares bankruptcy, if even then. It seems that a big change in our state teacher pensions is that the pension program had relatively few retired teachers from under those contracts in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s when the pension programs grew in ben

Gotta love this debate. Anyone using the term socialism in a debate is just blowing smoke and making a political argument. Both republicans and democrats. Liberals and conservatives. Socialism has no EXACT definition anymore unless you add a context source. It's a over-used worn out term. One of the earliest definitions I could find is the Marx/Engels one: a step in the historical process from capitalism toward communism. ... BUT.... There was a post I got a kick out of. quote: "The thing is that liberals generally weren't the ones touting European "socialism." Pe

September dues are the way to go. Fully agree with momof2cubs and MarinesWife. Families expect to pay at the start of the school year and recruitment happens in September. As such, we get everyone to pay dues all at once and then be done with it. It's just not realistic to expect people to step forward and pay after the year has started. And it's too much for volunteers to chase funds later in the year. ... SeattlePioneer - I sympathize with your challenge. Our troop used to discount dues based on fundraising and other things. But it got to be too much work and to

Yep. It happens. Some kids are really picky and have been catered to for their whole lives. Heck, of my four sons, two will eat anything. One is slightly picky. One is very picky and would rather just wait to eat when he gets home Sunday if there is nothing he likes. He is slightly less picky on a week long camp out, but he will try to hold out.

Great article... (long read though). This weekend my friend and ASM said "It's easy to let go when your pushing." My new favorite quote. He and I were playing cribbage. One of the newer parents had just finished a game of cribbage with us but wanted to check on his son. And, then ended up driving his son to McDonalds because his son wouldn't eat anything the scouts were having. So the ASM and I were discussing what we could do to have the father on the periphery and not continually interacting with his son. I suggested using a technique effective on both toddlers and teens - swi

I'd be okay with with the council having the funds if there was a web page that I could use to review the account status (balance, debits, credits, corrections, WITH DESCRIPTIVE INFO --> WHO WHAT WHEN WHY WHERE. Give a sign-on to unit authorized people. At 11pm when I have a question, I could connect and review the status. Until that occurs, I doubt we'll use a council accounts.

Council accounts? Yes. Managed by council. Not the scout shop. Receive statements? No. Never. I question if they really have good accounting controls. Withdraws without notifying unit? Yes. I don't think there's any double check as who can use the account at the scout shop or other. IMHO, it's a black hole. Have you ever had a problem with a council unit account? Not really. Other than being surprised that there is no money and not being able to learn what happened. I'd like to be able to have a cash reserve of $500 or $1000 at the council office, but I just don

7220 Paradise Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89119 ... Las Vegas Scout shop. My wife and I were there two months ago. Nicest staff and scout store I've seen. Spent four nights and five nights in Vegas. Only souvenirs I bought were from the scout shop. My wife was frustrated. It would have been $40 cheaper if we did not rent a car during our trip. Then I sheepishly admitted I wanted to hit the scout store. Love the council patch. It's red with the big diamond Vegas sign that you see when you enter the city.(This message has been edited by fred8033)

When scouts join the troop we have a chat with the parents. - We let them know that attendance is not mandatory. We recognize that scouts have competing priorities and scouts will need to make priority decisions. - We also discuss that scouts do depend on each other. So missing a meetings and activities affects other scouts and the troop as a whole. - We do ASK that parents don't use scouts as a punishment. Scouting is trying to teach lessons and be a positive influence on their sons. Why would you deny a positive influence on their lives as a punishment. - Finally, we

Explaining the ideas and goals and child/parent separation is fine. I do it all the time. Asking parents not to exercise the right is a grey area. I wouldn't do it. But in all cases, it should be clearly communicated that parents have the right to observe. And then if a parent requests it, the parent must be allowed to observe. ... KC9DDI wrote: "If a parent demands to attend a ceremony, camp next to their child, whatever - we have to allow that. " I differ with the "next to their child". Parents don't have that right. They have the right to observe. IMHO, that means OA

I haven't read all the many posts in this discussion as the conclusion is obvious in my opinion. G2SS explicitly documents the answer. The "no secret organizations" and "All aspects of the Scouting program are open to observation by parents and leaders" are direct quotes from the G2SS in a chapter titled "Youth Protection and Adult Leadership". You can't get any more basic then that. ................. Summer camp versus OA - The difference is where. Most parents learn about the separation while on their first few camp outs with the troop. And it's a good idea to ha

Eagle707 ... well said. I completely agree with your "program focus" comments. Eagle is promoted so heavily and put on such a pedestal by everyone, it's only natural that earning it has become such a focus. And also a focus by those saying there are too many of them.

Tampa Turtle ... I just read your "no more automatic POR check-offs speech" comment. I'm good with having high expectations. It's how it's accomplished that I contemplate. What Chippewa29 wrote above is an interesting practice but "might" be inconsistent with the BSA "Guide To Advancement". The removing from office part is a dead on correct. If the scout is not doing his job, the SPL should put a scout in there who's willing to do the job. BUT ... "If they get below a 2.5 (out of 5) average score for the month, they won't get credit toward advancement" contradicts the BSA GTA. GTA

It's a different world today. Society has changed drastically in the last several decades. Students in college (in millions) 1970 8.5 1980 12.0 1990 13.8 2000 15.3 2009 20.4 (140% increase) Manufacturing jobs (in millions) 1987 17.5 2000 17.3 2010 11.7 (33% decrease) Incentives? Padding the college and job resumes. Higher pay grade when entering the military. I think the higher Eagle numbers reflects a change in society more than a change in scouting. But I was not in the program 20 or 30 y

IMHO, Cub Scouts and Venturing have a similar problem. Leader turn-over, focus and training. Boy Scouts is unique in that leaders get invested and then stay long enough to develop knowledge and skill and to make it work. Then the investment is such that they often stay another ten years just because they enjoy it. Venturing pushes more of the leadership to the members. Members who are busy with school, new relationships, trying new things and just getting started with life. Members that do or should leave when they are 21. The program also does not produce enough "invested"

Does anyone really think that YPT will stop a predator from signing up? YPT is about removing opportunity. If you remove opportunity, predators will go elsewhere. The key is to create an environment that has built in defenses. In our troop, we teach new parents / leaders to help create a climate that it just doesn't happen. It's not about accusing anyone. It's about the environment. For example, if an adult is going to hang back to wait for a scout, hang back with 'em. If a leader is going to go check on the scouts, put your cards down and walk with 'em. Don't make a big dea

This is the link I've seen for years. http://meritbadge.org/wiki/index.php/Image:Boyscout-troop.gif ASPL and SPL both supervise leaders. SPL --> PLs and TG. ASPL --> other youth leaders. Troop guides are mainly used for new scout patrols, but can also be used to mentor new scouts or mentor skills. There's no rule you need to fill all the positions. If you don't need them or can't find a way to productively use them, don't staff them. With that said, our troop does staff most if not all positions.

The new "Eagle Scout Service Project workbook", pub 512-927 2011 printing says on page 22: "At the time of publication of this workbook, changes were being made to the Guide to Safe Scouting that will affect how service projects are conducted. The changes limit the use of hazardous power tools, machinery, and equipment, and also such activities as working at heights or on ladders, and driving motor vehicles." On page 14 it says "*Power tools considered hazardous, like circular saws, must be operated by adults who are experienced in their use. See the Guide to Safe Scouting."