anarchist

Buffalo, Forgive my long post... The encouragement to go through your CC is due to the fact that technically speaking the CC is the "hire-fire" person for the troop...its what "he" does...that said, after many, many years we have found very poor results from family meetings and "please help us/help the boys" missives... What has worked for us has been simple nose to nose asking. But this is part of a long term effort. Current committee and SM/ASMs spend over a year trying to get to know leaders of the packs and who will/might be crossing over...We have been accused (occaisiona

Beav...they "got" Dingle yesterday...he lost his committee chair. There seems to be a lot of hostility towards the US auto makers (both for the big shots and for labor)...There are also a lot of "bad product"- "bad car" comments...that I find interesting...personally speaking remember when "made in Japan" equaled "a piece of trash" ... On the home front, I have had pretty good luck with detroit's "iron". Personally speaking, I am a truck guy...my last truck was a chevy half ton, extended cab 4X4 with a 3/4 ton suspension and towing package and a 350 cc engine...1987...I got 360,000 m

Gosh we are willing to have a major negative impact on ten percent of the american work force over a little 25 billion but we give AIG 150 billion and watch as they give their excecs two large parties and $503,000,000 in deferred income. lets say if GM goes chapter 11...how many cars buyers are willing to look at a car made by a company that might not be here next year...already poor sales results will flat line sales... at least car makers produce something...what does AIG produce...paper? We are sitting back letting Paulson hand out 700 billion to his chronie banking friends with n

Kahits, Though not a difficult "trek" as high adventure goes... your crew might want to do some distance kayaking/canoeing just to build up a few skills and some endurance. long term-Light exercise is needed to build endurance...not for the "struggle" of the trek but to have enough energy to keep the crew participating rather than wimping out cause "they are too tired!" I would also recommend spending a good bit of time learning to snorkle and really getting comfortable in the water. SWIMMING is important...If you have weak swimmers-start this week on skill improvement! Rent time i

Adult leaders with no kids in scouting is creepy, wow! I did some research a couple of years ago as our troop was approaching what we thought was it's 50 year mark...Council had lost (in a fire) most of the old records but I did find a few bits and pieces including some "original" membership lists and several advancement forms from various years etc. What I found interesting was it appear that the same name appeared on the SM line over quite a long time. Seeing as how the troop was in a rapidly gentrifying rural area many old family farms still existed and I was able to locate many o

cheffy, ouch why the hostility? These folks might not have given you what you wanted (we rarely do) but they tried to help you solve your scout's issue. First, legal route is a lost cause...do you really want to try to enforce an unwritten (no signatures) contract? lesson to Eagle should be "when given a lemon...try to make lemonaid" ...not stomp the lemon to mush. I am not a lawyer no do I play one on TV but I do engage them frequently, in my line of work, and even when I win...I really do not win...just spend more money than it was truly worth. Depending on the fire regulati

Dustincoc, Any troop should have a good inventory system and update it regularly. It is not rocket science. Anyone with a couple of folders and a few sheets of paper can do it- a laptop spread sheet is even nicer. "tonight" is not the way to do it if you have any sizable set of gear. This should be a whole troop endeaver. A call should go out to troop leaders and all scout families to search home, basement, sheds and garages for "misplaced" troop gear and bring it to the "Inventory day". It is a Good Saturday project. The boys pull out everything....everything and set up tents

Wingnut, Developed camp grounds that are "pay to stay" do generally stipulate adults be present...however, millions of acres of national parks, wildlife management areas, state parks and private lands have no such restrictions. 'course bathrooms, outhouses and running water are also not usually available so the boys will have to know what they are doing. Much of this type of camping is "hike in" rather than "drive in" camping. Private ground is usually available if you look around enough and are willing to ask...and then be ready to leave nothing but foot prints. Issac Walto

cookiemonster, forgive the long post. congrats on a swell sounding young man... over a rootbeer with the SM (your son should buy) have him chat about what the troop goals are, in what he perceives as discouragement of middle aged scouts attaining eagle. perhaps he will get some troop insite and perhaps he will also get a so called "green light". Personally speaking, I would rather keep a boy active and in scouting until he ages out (without an eagle), than have him push for eagle and leave at 15 or 16... More to the point, we tell most of our boys that they should

long live white gas...off with the heads of well meaning, but sadly misinformed urban myth spreaders (like manure spreaders...but not a nice smelling)...get a new ASM! send the one you have back to district with a note to train the person before dumping him on a troop again... anarchist

hi all, just a (sorta) bomb throwing question here... If LDS troops do not follow the BSA program to the letter...why should this troop? I go back to a question I asked these forums years ago...If a troop is successful, and if the families are supporting the troop and it has a long string of successes...what is wrong with a tougher than usual program? Maybe that's what the CO wants! afterall the BSA says the CO can taylor the program and the LDS certainly does... When most of us look in the mirror we understand that BSA has watered down the program trying to be everyt

shortridge these are no cook meals our treking scouts really love: summer sausage and/or pepperoni and/or hard salami and/ hard cheeses crackers/or pitas/soft tortillas, thin sliced onion small packs of mustard... virtually no clean up...(a knife, cutting board, some small plastic packages, and cracker boxes) or dried fruit, (LOTS OF DRIED FRUIT! apples, rasins, pinapple, mangos, appricots, cranberries, prunes you name it!) hard cheese, nuts, crackers pitas, chicken (pouches- just like tuna) onion, diced small pouches of Mayo small pouches of rel

just a question in passing... Have the CO's started hanging board members heads on pikes yet? Just interested in seeing if the folks who wasted all this time and effort will pay for their malfiesance? anarchist

Jtanner, Fly recommendations - depends on what you consider "light weight" and how you are going to use them. for car camping our troop uses a really cheap ($12.98) roughly ten by ten poly fly we get at K-mart (other big box store have them also) the poles and "ropes" are garbage and we discard and make poles (five) out of 2X2s with threaded studs epoxied into the ends. We love these things 'cause if one "accidently" comes down on a hot lantern...we can duct tape the damage (hole) a couple of times then simply replace the fly with out major damage to the troop budget. For hiking

This is why we have our own boats... hey OGE...$1,000 is peanuts for a good modern canoe...many of my friends plunk down $1,800-$2,400 for fancy touring canoes or solo semi-ultra lights. $1,000 is a "so so" royalex 16/17 ft boat in todays market. and almost no boat likes to be wrapped around a rock with a couple of tons of water pressure doing the wrapping! and as was said above ...don't borrow what you can't replace...don't lend what you can't afford to lose! Troop owes nothing...They didn't borrow the boat, and the CO certainly did not borrow the boat. It seems to be a $500 p

I would like to play>>> Shame that we all want much the same for our boys and then seem to spend so much time acting or responding like self absorbed children...(myself included). It tickles me that BW, it seems, lives a in a different world from many of us. He has a wealth of knowledge and figuratively speaking a sharp tongue (typing fingers?) But in most of our scouting lives we do not get to "choose" our troop leaders (thats the COR/IH paygrade)nor can we usually "force" these folks to get trained...some do some won't...but we do witness lots of "malpractice". Reading a b

kill a few bugs??? heck, I wish they'd bring back taxidermy... and packsaddle ...that hain't a picher of GaHillBilly...but I am sure its my wife's twin sister! fifty "bugs" is not a great loss...and scouts do not have to come close to "pinning" "pretty bugs" if they want to remain politcally correct...They can stick (sorry) with flys, beetles, spiders, skeeters, bees, hornets, wasps, grasshoppers...on and on- and truely, unless you have a way to view photos in 3 dimentions you miss so much. The engineering and motor functions of insects alone are wonderful to explore. Th

BSATroop1989< gifts for eagles...can't say how far back it was started but the troop buys a really nice, really big, eagle decorated sheet cake for the reception. We also buy the scout an Eagle Bolo...In our troop the scouts wear troop neckers and the adults wear scout theme bolos and Eagle wear eagle bolos. The troop also buys one of the nice wood Eagle award frames that holds the certificate and the medal. We mount the certificate but give the metal to the young man if the Eagle is having a ECOH (his choice)..if not, we mount the metal also. Our Scoutmaster presents a paid membership

AnniePoo, Right on about the NOVAcraft...I have the 16 footer and she is a sweet lady on moving water...I can heel her over in a canadian lean and paddle for hours! Unfortunately we got a much better discount on the 17 ft Old Town Trippers and Mad River fleet than Novacraft was willing to do for us (a much better discount). The troop boat are still really great hulls but I LOVE my royalex prospector (sorta Bill Mason's boat in plastic) For our hundred miler, the Old Towns can carry a bunch of freight and still stay dry and upright...good boats! Keep your dreams alive and light

AnniePoo, Having your own canoes is GREAT! We raised funds...lots of work and brought our own new boats. I have to say that I disagree with BW...we have found it much more financially benefical and not a hole in the water that you just pour money into... Our trailer is registered and tagged permanently (just once and not annually) in our state. And there is an annual tax on the trailer which we budget for. We have had the trailer and canoes for four years now and we have spent a grand total of $400 for skid plates and $50.00 for a new tire for the trailer. The eight boats are

cheffy, Our Troop Trailer is our store room (CO had no facility it could give us). Years ago our QM with a little guidance started an on going computer generated inventory system and laid out the trailer...(everything has a place and everything is in its place), complete with diagrams on the walls showing "what goes where". Our troop has a great deal of equipment from tents, tarps a sail boat and canoes to patrol boxes, small tables, lanterns, first aid kits and high adventure/back packing stoves. For Patrol activities each patrol checks out what it will need (written form)on t

cad-guy, Fog togs are ok, very, very light but if you are backpacking the "paper" seems to be abraided by the shoulder straps after a few hikes...and they are not the greatest with thorns...or sticks that grab in the night... Light gor-tex jackets are great and I have fallen in love with fishing jackets with several chest pockets for "stuff". Most seem to be well made, some with ripstop type cloth and breathable...a bit pricey like gor-tex however. So you need to judge keeping in mind what you are doing...in camp and just goofing (or fishing from a boat) frog togs are about the

jblake47, just fyi, Belt (hand) axes are available at many if not most scout shops...unfortunantely, most come now with a "Official BSA" sticker instead of being "stamped" into the steel. my personal copy (stamped and 40 years old) is about half the size it was new...forty years of regular use inside and outside of scouting ...and sharpening have take a toll (and a lot of metal off the old girl...). Proper use and training is truely a problem...as are the "terror/fear police" (mommies, daddies and scout leaders afraid the boys are gonna hurt themselves), and so avoid the issue by "

Pack15NISSAN, pack...troop shouldn't make a difference. Most scout camps have WEBELOS programs or even separate camps just for WEBELOS. And the result should be the same...if the camp can not treat you fairly others can be found...just don't be bulldozed by the "in council" propaganda. so good luck... anarchist

pack15nissan, sorry but I disagree with the thought that you should be worried of the council camps reaction to your statement to look elsewhere if they could not meet your needs! Let council know of your units displeasure...respectfully in a business like manner (of course) and if you do not get a good response, by all means look for a better camp...and if you find it...then GO! Assuming that units and the boys they serve are the "customers" or clients of council camps, then these folks have a vested interest in doing the right thing...and if they do not or can not satisfy the