Fuzzy Bear

I grew up using the white gas lanterns and stoves but was always leery of them, especially with the flame up problem. Even as an adult I bought and used them. It was almost like a right of passage to have extra wicks and parts all stored in a plastic box with a chain hanger. The stoves were pretty neat also because they box-up like a little suitcase and are great for storage. All of this magic stopped one cold winter night... White gas needs to be banned from Scouting or people like me, so I have gone the other way. I will only use those little charcoal briquettes or candles, or bring extra batteries, or anything other than go back to those highly explosive personal terror devices. Enough of that! FB

Here is one more Scout skill but it is not along the same lines of the outdoor skills that have been suggested. It is one that many don't think about until it is not used. It is a subject that doesn't appear to stand out, yet it makes each Scout special. It makes doing other skills and duties go smoothly and is the basis to keeping harmony. I could go on about it but if you decide teach it, don't make it a classroom assignment and don't teach it in front of the class. Ask the Den Leader to check to find if you are being effective by listening to the Scouts as they learn from your communications. Teach the skill incidentally or as you do other things over a period of , say six weeks. It is a life long skill that can be used outside of Scouting and in the home. If you haven't already guessed, it is teaching the Scouts about manners or being polite. FB

I do not understand how Science threatens the Church or the reason behind all of the many fears that Religionists have when it comes to Science. The three elements of God are: 1. He is all knowing; Science does not claim to know everything and even defends their lack of knowledge by stating most discoveries, laws and such, as theories; Religionists believe that they know everything and can prove it with scriptures, 2. God is everywhere at all times, Science tries to explain history, evolution, the beginning/end of the universe through observation, experiment, and theories but Religion explains God's plan for man, the earth, the history of man, the history of the earth, everything with one book, the Bible, without so much as one act or experiment, 3. God is all powerful, Science defines power, how it works, helps to build the atomic bomb, etc., but God can call in a legion of angels and conquer it all instantly, so where is the threat? There does not appear to be a contest but historically speaking, the fear of freedom to think has driven the Church to burn people at the stake for believing otherwise. It doesn't make sense that if a person has a belief in a God that is all powerful that one voice, ten voices, a million voices would be loud enough to quiet the one small still voice of a God that has shown the strength to withstand and overcome forces much stronger than any number of voices. It does not make sense that the Church needs to declare war on Science when there is no match, so there needs not be a war. If Science declares evolution as a theory, then why must the Church declare a Quasi-Scientific like approach to match it to try to defeat it? It should be stated that Science is based on theories and that the Church is based on facts that are irrefutable. Since God will overcome all in the end, any acts against Science become meaningless declarations. Does the Church fear their ability to have faith and that maybe, somehow God has left them behind? God exists and is just as powerful as ever. There really is nothing to fear, not science, gays, abortion, or atheists. God is much bigger than any issue. God can take care of his own plan in spite of not because of an argument. It appears that He really does want us to love one another. It is just that simple. FB

Watching the Good Ole Boys WB Club disappear over the hill after "staffing" every course, every year while discriminating about which one new person they would allow to be on staff was a beautiful sight. I hope that their replacements have learned that Sharing Leadership has value and they don't give us another round of the same. What I experienced was disgusting and I wouldn't have expected it out of grown and educated Scouters. They believed that their behavior was high minded but it lacked any of the qualities to make it so. That was the basic part of the "secret" that you might have missed. FB

Aristotle, 384-322 B.C. gave us the "geocentric theory of the universe". This meant that the universe revolved around the earth and man. Aristotle also developed mechanical principles, so it was theorized that the celestial bodies were linked together with one Prime Mover. This theory stood for 1,800 years basically because the Church agreed with it. Ptolemy of Alexandria developed geometrical proofs for the circular orbits of the solar system in the second century. This theory held back advancements in astronomy until the sixth century when Copernicus put forth his arguments. Another problem that Ptolemy had was a discrepancy found later in the Julian calendar of 365 days as predicted from his model but was short by 5 hours and 48 minutes. This error in time was small but it created confusion for the Churchs Easter Sunday service and for astronomers, farmers, and sailors. During the years from 1350 to 1550, there were significant changes during the Renaissance that were considered radical. Before this time, the Church and its' beliefs were the law of the land. The Bible was the Word of God and man's reason was not allowed. Until this time, observation had to fit theory but during this time science changed so that theory had to fit observation. In 1475 Pope Sixtus had Johann Muller investigate the problem with the Julian calendar. Muller used more advanced mathematics and proved that Ptolemy's model incorrect. Copernicus, 1475-1543 knew that Ptolemy's theory did not agree with observation. He also observed that objects were attracted to the earth and that the earth moved. He wrote a book called "The Revolutions" in which he detailed the "heliocentric" or Sun centered theory and he found that the earth moved. He observed that things fell to the earth but the cause had nothing to do with the earth being the center of the universe. He solved the calendar problem and the new Gregorian calendar was later adopted by Pope Gregory XIII, around 1580-90. The Church still held to their belief that man and the earth was the center of the universe, in spite of Copernicus's views. In 1560 and with the advent of the Telescope, Tycho Brahe, 1546-1601, noted Copernicus's predictions and confirmed that the Sun was the center of the solar system. Brahe's assistant, Johannes Kepler, 1571-1630, demonstrated with math proofs the heliocentric theory. This model had the planets moving in an ellipse around the sun, not circles. This model was not accepted by the Church because this theory meant that the movement of the earth eliminated divine control, but this was the first time physics and astronomy were brought together. Giordano Bruno, 1548-1600, a priest, theorized that the Sun was a minor star which meant that other planetary systems must exist. This theory further reduced the importance of the earth and man and led to Bruno having problems with the Church. They staked him out and burned him alive. Galileo Gaililei, 1564-1642, used the telescope and math to study the solar system. He also saw that there were many more stars in the sky than first thought, remember Bruno? He also discovered four moons of Jupiter which indicated to the Church that the earth was less special than theologians wanted. This confirmation of the Copernican theory led Galileo into Pope trouble. Galileo felt that the Bible should be used for moral teachings and not as a source of scientific fact. He was forced to recant his theories and it was not until 1992 that Pope John Paul II acknowledged their error after 350 years. This was even after Newton and Einstein! Before Galileo died, he made significant advancements in the area of falling bodies. He used the Tower of Pisa to prove that falling objects fall at the same rate. He added experimentation to the list of theory and observation. This particular experiment refuted Aristotle's theory of falling objects after 1960 years. It also meant that science should use observation and then follow it with experiment. Newton published "Principia" in 1687 which stood as fact for the next 300 years. Newton proved how Kepler's laws worked to explain gravity, he developed the modern math system of Calculus, and he used deductive and Inductive logic to realign theory to predict results. He developed the laws of motion and gravity. Newton discovered the Law of Conservation of mass which states, that mass can't be created or destroyed, later refuted by Einstein. Newton also published a book on optics and thus brought about the era of Enlightenment and what was known as Newton's Clockwork Universe. This theory proved the Churchs argument again of predetermination and the Prime Mover. Somebody had to wind the clock and/or build it, and you can predict where a person will be in the universe at any particular time once you know their position, so God was vindicated by science. In 1905, Albert Einstein wrote four papers, one paper was about the Special Theory of Relativity (* called The Electrodynamics of moving bodies) where his famous equation E=MC2 was presented. He extended Newton's physics to include the idea that time is not fixed but relative. Time is relative to the speed of movement called "relative motion". So, for everyone on the planet earth, their frame of reference would be the same and the time would be standard or fixed to that movement of that planet. This made the earth special but also it made it one in billions. Based upon the experiment by Albert Michelson and Edward Morley disproved the Ether theory and they found that the speed of light was constant. Another experiment found that the speed of light is the same for either a moving object or an object at rest. For Einstein, this meant that speed is nothing more than the relationship between distance and time. Einstein reasoned that if the speed of light is constant then time is the variable. Time was no longer found to be absolute! Another way to reason this is that the faster an object moves, time for that object slows and the time between the moving object and the stationary object it traveled from would be different and that mass increases with speed. It was also reasoned that time would stop when the object moved at the speed of light and Mass would increase to an infinite amount. Also, the length of an object that moves at the speed of light shrinks to zero but the Mass increases to an infinite amount, but the speed of light would never be reached because it would take an infinite amount of energy to reach the speed of light. This means that that all objects that have mass also have an equivalent amount of energy that is equal to the speed of light squared, E=MC2. Likewise, energy has mass. This is the relationship between energy and mass, not the formula for the atomic bomb. In other words, man and earth was found to be no longer the only time and the only place in the universe but one of many. This was not good news to the Church. The arguments between the Church and Science have been a long running battle. It appears that winning should not be the battle as much as understanding should be the goal. The Church really does have something to say about morals and the how we should live. Science continues to give us clues about how things work all around us. We now know that we are not the center of the universe but with an all knowing God, that shouldnt be such a big deal. FB

SP, I like the way it looks on the sleeve, although, I haven't seen it in a long time. I also should have looked it up. Thanks for the update. FB

I forgot to mention that I detest the Scout pants. FB

The BSA's number's crunch will remain a sore spot, make them defensive and continue to make problems, until they admit that they have created the problem and retreat from it. It would be much easier to teach professionals how to encourage recruiting through insuring good program in every district. People respond to good program at a fair price. The BSA has potentially one of the very best programs anywhere. I am not sure that they know it. FB

Here is another fact: The BSA uniform is one of the eight Methods of the Scouting program and each Method helps to lead a Scout to the three Aims. If a unit decides to deviate from anyone of the Eight Methods of Scouting, then they are pointing the Scout away from the intended destination. Some think that there are alternatives to the eight Methods but what they find is that they are usually a few degrees off. Some think that there are modifications to the eight Methods that are practical and not so complicated but what they find is that the BSA has already been over most of those routes before and has counted them out for many good reasons. Now, can a Scout reach the three Aims of Scouting and not wear a pair of Scout pants? If I am sitting on an Eagle BOR and a Scout is wearing a pair of jeans, I am going to ask questions of that young man that I would not ask of one that is wearing Scout pants. I would ask those questions because I would have evidence that something is missing and I would want to know more. Let's take another Method and apply the same test. A Troop decides that the Outdoor program should only be done when the weather is not too hot or too cold or rainy. Few would ever know how that unit approached the Outdoor Method until you begin to talk to one of the Scouts from that unit. The conclusion that one might make is the unit has missed the point of Scouting altogether. How about if a unit decided that Leadership was not necessary and all they did was work on Merit Badges at every meeting? How about the unit that decides that some of the advancement requirements are unnecessary and that the Scouts would only do the easy parts? What about the unit that lets the SM run everything because he runs a good show and the boys always make such a mess of the leadership? (* I use these examples because I have witnessed these modifications in actual units while being a UC.) It is not so much a matter of someone being compulsive about rule keeping as honestly attempting to assist Scouts in achieving the Aims of the BSA program. We want young men to have good character, be physically fit, and to be good citizens. We are taught the eight Methods or how to do the Scouting program properly but the reasons are generally not as clear. You can still be confident that all of the Methods have been tested and tried over many years. The alternatives have been tried long before any of us were ever in the program and those generally did not measure up to the standard that the BSA has found to effective. Their request is not to follow an arbitrary set of standards but ones that have been shown to be valid and reliable. FB

Hey Josh, Welcome and pull up a stump and warm yourself by the fire. If we can get you anything, don't hestiate to ask. It is a nice night for sitting and talking. FB

Even when we could wear our MB's on our sleeves, it was considered to be an obsessive act that only the conflicted would attempt. We generally sewed them on a sash in spite of the option and because it showed initiative. Once I saw an older guy wearing five MB's on his sleeve and it looked pretty snazzy. By that time, I had more than five on my sash, probably six. I knew that reversing the process would be out of the question and would result in even more conflict, so I left them alone. Scouting even invented the half width sash to resolve the too few problem. It didn't fire anyone's imagination and they looked like a bad order of sashes from a foreign country that couldn't read the American Standard scale of measurement. When you have five MB's on your sash and someone else walks in the room wearing forty-five, usually you would quietly hang the sash over your belt, kind of like at half-mast "out of respect" but probably not very official. After the BSA had several misses, the problem was never resolved and they gave up. My offering to the answer would be to develop a plastic houtis to hold five MB's and wear them as a Temporary patch on the right pocket button, which would look a little like you were wearing a small pizza. FB

The program was instituted two years ago and now there are Eagle Scouts that are rehabilitated. The judge has really speeded up things in his court room and in Scouting. I'll bet he could empty the prisons if Scouting would extend the age limits. FB

Let us say that the Book says a Scout cannot dual register. His "extended" family situation makes it so that he lives in two different places throughout the year. I agree that communication between the leaders (SM's and CC's) could make it possible for the Scout to be a "visitor" in one of the two units and still obtain credit for camping and attendance while visiting. The leadership requirement might even be able to be worked out, depending on the length of stay. He could work out most of the advancement/requirements while being in two units, one being only a visitor. Communication would be the key to solving the issue. I would also want both D.E.'s to be informed and get their permission to make sure that all bases were covered. The problem comes if the parents decided that the solution was dual registration and communication between the two units was not necessary. The SM's and CC's would not know what was happening and would be left in the dark about lack of attendance, lack of leadership, lack of advancement, yet the youth shows up with new badges. The lack of communication would create unnecessary problems. Even if the parents went to the individual units and told them what was happening but did not more, it would create problems. There needs to be a working solution where everyone agrees and is informed. FB

AMT, Welcome to the expressive side of the forum. There is plenty of room for another voice. We are glad you are here. FB

NJ, I agree that simplicity is important. Thanks for the tip. FB

If I could stop the PWD with just a few words and end the rampant cheating that I have observed over the years, then I would do so at the top of whatever large building that I could find close at hand. There are plenty of other Dad and Lad projects in the CS and WS handbooks to spare to make happy all around. Let the merriment begin, let the PWD end! FB

You can do a PWD search here and find many others that have come this way bearing similar arguments/laments. The focus is generally on losing, cheating, and authorship. The feelings of being personally violated appear to be the greatest pain and the next is about how their son had been subjected to the travesties of competition in what they believed to be an event that should have transcended the mundane. The reaction to such behaviors can be to do as they do or to expose them for their nature. One can also cling to the hope of an eventual righteous vindication which can help quiet the spirit. I don't believe there is an answer to this problem other than doing away with the PWD because of its' inherent openness to the ravages of competition. There is plenty of time to learn about those kinds of things and actually there is no escaping it. It is happening all around us all of the time and on all levels. Hardly a day goes by that some famous person is found out to be cheating in some way and in whatever domain they are competing. Some will do anything to win. The BSA program, even on the CS level, is about character building. It doesn't say that people come to us because they have good character but the opposite. They come to the program to learn about good character. We should look for opportunities to teach sportsmanship, following a noble cause, and doing your best. When we consider if a person can win at the Pack, District, Council or World level, it is of little consequence if a person has rejected good character to obtain it. What they have won is the right to continue being of bad character. They can put all of their trophies on their mantle and gloat but if it was achieved through deceit, they will know it and many times the rest of us will too. An important objective comes to us in the form of a question of finding out about who we are. We need to measure our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual selves on a daily basis. We need to be honest about what we find out and what we can and cannot do. Sometimes we are simply mediocre but there will always be a place for us in society. Sometimes we do poorly but that is good insight and good personal knowledge. Sometimes we do well but no matter at what level we attain to, we need to know how we did what we did and add that to our list of who we are. We need to know if we can do better or if we want to spend the time or have the interest to do so. It should be our goal to know who we are and then to accept those qualities. It is our character or who we are inside that is important and it is there where we should direct our efforts and not on the lesser issues of life. (This message has been edited by Fuzzy Bear)

I realize when this is read that people will wonder what I am trying to say but Trevorum made a statement earlier about Jesus that interested me, Let me quote him, "You're right! That's because he was a liberal who spread a seditious message of social change which threatened those who held political and military power." So I tried to find out from the four eye witness accounts about Jesus' message. I integrated the accounts into a story, which I will not publish at this time. I used the arrest and trials of Jesus to confirm/disconfirm Trev's statement. Jesus preached openly to the Jewish people and leaders. His message was, in part, about his being a King but not in this world. Since his kingdom was spiritual, it was not a threat to the Jewish or the Roman leaders of this world. He stated that to them. After three trials, there was absolutely no evidence or any witnesses/testimony against him. The Roman leader stated that Jesus was innocent. The Jewish leaders could not find any direct fault. Judas recognized Jesus' innocence and fate but much too late. Jesus' followers denied and deserted him, so he stood alone and without a defense. On the first count of sedition, he was acquitted by all of the parties involved but it did not stop the execution. The social change did not appear to be anything different than the truths found in the Jewish Testament. He said he had a spiritual army that could fight the arrest and I suppose the Roman legions as well but he was more involved in accounting and fulfilling the prophecy in the Testament. It could only be done by using the very words of the Jews that had him crucified. So, he was not promoting anything other than their scriptures. The social change must have been to ask them to return to their own heritage/religion. I have found that being a liberal means that someone doesn't agree with you and being a conservative means that you are right. Also, I suppose there is a spiritual continuum of beliefs of either a "faith" based message (conservative) and those who have a "works" based message (liberal). So if we use that as our standard, then Jesus prayed and used spiritual words or faith and obviously had works, healing being one. So, according to the story I put together, he was both a liberal and a conservative. His ministry did not in any way immediately change the seats of power. It took several hundred years for that to change. (* the first Council of the Apostles in A.D. 50, and the Second Ecumenical Council 381 A.D., the fall of Rome in 424 A.D. with Attila, and the Jews have returned to their land and are currently in charge) If there was a threat, then it was a perceived threat that must have made everyone sigh a deep breath of relief when it was all over. I apologize again for straying from the topic but my interest got the best of me, thanks to Trev. FB

The Military controversy has been with Scouting since its' inception and remains today. Scouting has badges that simply look better on the uniform shirt than on civilian clothes. Some units prefer jeans to Scout pants but that generally is a functional answer rather than a protest. The pants aren't made for the outdoors. The uniform is a compromise to be all things for all occasions. It doesn't work and that is frustrating. The Uniform is one of the eight Methods of Scouting. If you would like to reach the three Aims of Scouting, then use all of the Methods. Setting the Example is one of the Skills of Leadership. If you want boys to follow your example, wear the Uniform. By not wearing the uniform, you deny access to part of the three Aims and the example you set for Scouts will be less than what the program has for them. Why? Scouting is not perfect but I have witnessed remarkable results both in others and in myself. As far as the uniform not being for adults, most would rather wear their own uniform from thier social or economic class of origin. People would like to be known for what they are outside of the program which makes maintaining the existing pecking order easier. It also allows sense of personal wealth or accomplishment instead of the training and knowledge gained from the BSA. The Uniform levels those personal presuppositions and allows for a new identity to be established based on achievement and knowledge from within the program. The adults become known as BSA leaders rather than an identity from the outside. When we speak of sitting around the campfire, there is a leveling effect that is similar to what the uniform method accomplishes. Those that sit around the fire probably would have never have chosen that activity because of who they are outside the program. Each seat acquires a new equality that was not there before, which gives it a type of nobility. Everyone is heard because they are part of the program and not because of who they are outside the program. People remain courteous to each other because there is a uniform Law that all know and respect. We can meet another Scout or Scouter from another part of the country and irrespective of differences in religion or politics or social class, we can come together and communicate effectively without the problems inherent in such a situation otherwise. I personally don't like the uniform but I will purchase it and wear it fully and properly because of these very good reasons. I will encourage Scouts and adult leaders to do likewise. I respect the Scout program and will support all of the Methods because of what I have witnessed as a result of actually doing them. FB

CyndiA, Welcome aboard. The conductor will take your ticket. All passengers must remain seated unless you would like to drive the engine. You are more than welcome to do that at any time but only one driver at a time, please. This is an entry for your cookbook. It is from the 1962 Flintstone Patrol Cookbook, one recipe only. It was invented by none other than their very own beloved Patrol Leader and part-time want-to-be chef. This dish was never field tested but was first tried on the whole patrol during our first and only Semi-Survival Campout. The stew was considered a success. The patrol survived. FLINTSTONE STEW Open two cans of Pinto Beans or Red Beans (*depending on what you like) and pour them into a large pot. More cans could be used for a bigger patrol or appetites. Cut up one package of hot dogs into bite sized chunks and stir them briskly into the heating pot of beans. Another package could be used for more Scouts or if the day is cold but consider keeping the ratio of beans to dogs but that is not mandatory either. Sprinkle, then stir in a spoonful of chili powder or more to your taste or to the taste of the Scout with the least taste for spice. (*This method is used to keep patrol members from biting into large knots of chili powder.) Consider cutting a medium sized onion into small bits and stir into the stew. (*Some Scouts are afraid of bad breath after two or three days in the woods, so this condiment could be deleted.) Serve hot. Use a Ladle or a cup. After serving, place ladle or cup on nearby rock for later use. If you happen to burn the stew to the bottom of the pan, use sand to scrub. Try to wash pot before dark. If you happen to leave it overnight, it is possible a raccoon or other varmint will clean it for you. These little animals have acquired quite a taste for Flintstone Stew over the years. This recipe can only be used by permission of the Patrol Leader of the Flintstone Patrol, this means it is OK. FB

Taking the WB course again would be fun. I wouldn't take the time now because whenever I work an item, I review the skills and work the problems out using those skills. It is like one long ticket item, one after the other. I cover the bases and feel much more at ease in taking responsibility as a leader. I am presently taking a leadership role in a District CS event in October. I arrived at the first meeting with our DE and the Activities Chair with a packet of 15 typewritten pages of goals, questions, and ideas without ever speaking to another individual. After the first Staff meeting, I had doubled the size of the packet and had recruited 10 individuals for various administrative positions. Many new goals and ideas and requests were added and I sent out our first bulletin to the new staff for our next meeting. Since I remember how I prepared for such events in the past, I can easily compare/contrast my present work. I used to do an adequate job but my preparation now is far and beyond anything I ever did before. I owe that to the WB training I completed October 31, 1982. Bears, Bears, on the prowl, raise high your paws and roar and growl! FB

I ____ never had a problem with it until you brought it up. on an even lighter note, Saturday Night Live periodically has a skit that has a group taking an oath. They begin with the words, "I, state you name", and everybody repeats, "I state your name... AS far as I know, this has not been discussed as a major or a minor issue. Just give us a little rope and I bet we can. FB

Change takes time and feelings are held in reserve for just such an occurrence, as well as, the knowledge of your/correct way of doing things. You can now be the doorway for that change or the wall to prevent it. The SPL confided in you about those changes. I doubt he confided his woes to the new SM or used the mechanisms of the process. The SPL still sees you as the real leader, the person with the answers. He is telling you that he misses you. He may also be identifying with your action of quitting or leaving, even if it is justifiable. Since he came to you, you must still be available but unable to spend the necessary time to run the Troop. You may be able to help him understand better the reasons that you left and let him know that you believe in the Scouting program. It is no longer your duty to run the Troop. The SPL has his duty to represent the group in planning the program. If you were doing other things according to scripture, then there is a committee of parents that supervises the SM and supports the boys in the program. They have a duty. You must of had ASM's that may be parents of some of the boys that also know the program and are sensitive to the needs of the boys. They have a duty. The PL's should be representing their Scouts in the planning process and they have expectations. If you had a boy run Troop when you left, then all of the things are still in place for that to happen. In a boy run Troop, the SM is a cog not the wheel. If the present SM has decided to use an authoritative approach to management, then the best counter is to establish routes of communication. The Communication Routes that I am referring to should be open, within the unit and inclusive. The SPL, Committee, ASMs, and the PL's should use this approach instead of quitting or being quiet. He needs to understand the Law, Brave and he needs to use the Skills of Leadership that you most likely taught him. He needs to trust in those skills. Change takes time and if the boy lead program is to be maintained it will take a group action using the skills they have learned. Hopefully, that is the legacy that you left to the group and it can be trusted to work. FB

Let me jump in and be disagreeable, not that I really care to be but I want to point something out. Outdoors is a method. Knots were one part of being in the out of doors. Knots alone do not constitute being in the outdoors. Knots has been part of a tradition that made for allot of fun in the outdoors and that is what is missing. Everything changes, nothing stays the same. Yet, there is nothing new under the sun until you think about computers, TV, the radio, and cell phones. It is all still little more than communication and that has been around since men began to scratch around in the earth. So if there is nothing new and everything changes, then the equation cancels out. It is the same as it has always been but with a different style or different clothing or different approaches but it still the Outside and boys still love it. I have not been camping in a while but I love to camp. We recently purchased a few acres behind our house. It is wooded and has hills and rocks. I have been clearing deadfall and medium sized rocks for the last few months, a little at a time. I use it to fill the eroded areas with check dams. Whenever I have an hour and before it gets dark, I grab my tools and off I go to the woods. My wife doesn't particularly like it because of my strong desire to rush off and cut and build. What I found in the woods is something that I had lost. It was being in the outdoors. The reason for being in the outdoors wasn't as important as just being there. Since I have a memory of a different time, I remember using knots and building things with rope. It became second nature. I would even build miniature projects with sticks and string to practice and to dream. I know now the reason for all of it and that was just to be outside. There really is plenty of fun and adventure to be had "in them there hills". FB

The Eagle project is basically in two parts. The first is based on Organization and the next is Leadership; one is done on paper and the other with people. You want to determine where he is having the problem. Since he is in your unit, you have observed his leadership qualities but you have also witnessed his organizational skills on several other projects. You may already know some of his needs but if you want to go further, let me give you some guidance in doing so. Request permission for a conference to be held at the home of the Scout and meet with him and his parents to review his Individualized Educational Plan (I.E.P.). Look at his Educational Modifications that he has for his class work and which classes or subjects. Also, ask about how he learns or his style of learning. This might be oral, visual, hands-on, or a combination of any of the three. Observe what subjects he gets modifications in and then look at his transcript of grades to see if what he is doing is working. He should be able to speak for himself as much as possible. The idea is for him to be in the lead in this interview. (*ask to see his I.E.P. and his transcript) Next, ask to look in the Scout's room. A quick view will tell you some important things about him. Is it neat or a disaster? Ask about who is in charge of order in his room. This view is not definitive but is part of the evidential gathering process. Next review his Merit Badge work that he has completed up to this point. How has he accomplished the work with or without modifications? What is the time frame of his merit badge work? Map out how long it has taken him to complete the badges and in what order. What is he doing differently to be able to achieve in Scouting from schoolwork? Are his parents doing the work for him or are they helping to modify some of the ways that he is achieving? Remember, he may not need modifications in every subject area. Modifications vary, such as, writing problems may mean he uses a Word Processor/computer, math problems might mean he uses a calculator, reading problems might mean that he has someone read the material to him. The idea is to modify but he is to do the work himself. (*ask to see his Merit Badge history report) The next modification is very important and that is Extended Time. Many students that are Learning Disabled do have problems with organization but if he has been in Special Education for any length of time, he should have developed ways to organize and prioritize his work. He should be able to show evidence of the ways he accomplishes these tasks. Ask him. He should have learned how to organize and prioritize both his School and Scouting work. (*ask to see his school notebook or organizer and his school backpack) Next, the decision to request Extended Time is based on the evidence that you have personally viewed and can document. A Learning Disabled Scout is as subject to being lazy, the same as any other boy and that is what you are trying to define. If he has been doing things to keep his world in order, then he is trying. If his parents are doing the things for him while he stands back, then he is not taking responsibility. (*taking responsibility is the key) Why would you want to do this type of investigation? Because, if the Scout is trying to achieve and he is lacking because he really does need extra time, then it is best that it comes from someone outside the family. People that are within the family have a vested interest and may not be impartial. If in your opinion he needs Extended Time, then request it from your District Advancement person. If you do not think that he needs the extra time, then be quiet and tell the parents that you have done your job and that now they need to make their request to the District Advancement person. FB (This message has been edited by Fuzzy Bear)