Kahuna

Aren't most rivers where there's whitewater listed in guides are published or accessible online? I would think any leader taking a group into whitewater would check out the river. A hydraulic like this would certainly be noted with a lot of warnings.

Never worried much about other troops, but in my own, it was full uniform or none, no exceptions. We had a boy led troop, but the leaders "led" the boys into making the right decision. I don't think money is much of an issue in most places and certainly there are uniform parts available used everywhere.

As an old timer, I remember scout camps having a concrete slab, pipe and shower head. The boys showered and nobody thought about putting up a tarp. Skinny dipping was not unusual on camp outs. While researching, I came across a council history regarding their camp in the 1920's. Seems the boys generally swam naked at the waterfront, except on visitors day. Times and standards change.

I don't see the issue. You're talking male adult leaders and male scouts? If male and female, well, could be different. I know we're supposed to have separate showers and all that, but in the backcountry, among "us guys," I don't think we need to make a big deal out of it.

Sunscreen and bugspray! Apparently the rangers on the AT and other such places are on full alert to throw 'em in jail. I guess it could be disturbing, but it would depend on the group you encounter.

Sunday is Naked Hiking Day across the nation. Might want to keep your boys off the main trails that day. First time I've heard of this one.

I'm shocked, shocked I tell you to hear that such things happen in scouting. Riiiiiiight! Eric, I think you handled that extremely well and it certainly shows that you have a good relationship with the boys in your troop. Having been a Big Brother a few times in my younger years, I found myself answering those questions from my Little Brothers over those years. I told them about the same thing you did. No dads to ask and I think most kids don't want to ask their dads anyway. Good going!

>>Of course, this was back when adults wore uniform coats, which Webb wore.

Wasn't it Clifton Webb in Mr. Scoutmaster who tells his secretary to call his tailor and have them "run up a few Boy Scout uniforms" for him when he accepted the position?

To answer your question, Eamonn, I don't think it's always been like that, but it's been that way for a very long time. I was camp staffing in the early 1960's and the camp program revolved around merit badges. As a scoutmaster in the 1980's through mid 1990's, we went to camps with two goals in mind: Merit badges and adventure in the outdoors. Our troop camped monthly and so didn't really need the camping experience. We chose camps that we could do fun and adventurous things at and on the way to and back. Seldom used the local council camp and sought out ones where the kids could do white water rafting, rock climbing and that kind of stuff. So, yeah, the merit badges are important, IMHO, at camp but fun and outdoor stuff is essential. If interesting stuff is not to be found at camp, why go? I want the kids to be able to earn merit badges, but I never really cared as much as whether they had a good time doing stuff they wouldn't be able to do if they stayed home.

On this note, I just got an email from a field director that our DE has left the profession. He is a nice, seemingly competent young man who had been in about 3-4 years. That's about how long they seem to last these days.

As a former professional, I would agree with the advice given here. Beavah's analysis is pretty much spot on, IMHO. Eagle92's suggestion about checking out the SE and other pros you'll be working for is a good one, but the situation can change without warning. I was hired by a council with a fantastic Director of Field Service and by the time I was on the job, he moved on, to be replaced by an incompetent. That can happen in any job, of course.

Much easier. Thanks!

This is pretty cool.

The oldest one I have is 1973 and I'm pretty sure I had one from the 1960's, which I don't seem to be able to find. ljnrsu is otherwise correct in what he says. The guide shows both the R/W council strip and the colored ones. There was no Trained strip, but one for Recruiter. As he said, the SM/ASM patches were of two varieties and the mylar one indicated trained. The guide is not in color, so I don't think it would be worth copying, but if you have any other specific questions about insignia from that period, I'll be glad to look it up. BTW, the title is "Official Uniforms and Insignia" copyright BSA, North Brunswick, NJ. I also happened to remember that, in 1970, we were wearing the fully embroidered, color council strips in South Florida Council. I believe that, in 1969, in Gulf Ridge Council, Tampa, we wore R/W council strips to the Jamboree.(This message has been edited by kahuna)

Sadly, there is probably as much discussion of Sea Scouting on this forum as there is on the SS listserve or anywhere else.

>>Who gets to go to the National Meeting? Is it open to any member who wishes to attend?

Thanks for that link. I never thought about MyScouting. Wow, that sounds like an exciting agenda, doesn't it? I think I'm better off just checking out the exhibits.

SSScout: No, not that one. It's in Orlando May 20-22. You bring up an interesting point, however. There as, as far as I can find, NO information about this meeting anywhere. I searched the website and googled it. Is this some kind of stealth proceeding? I wouldn't even know about it (in spite of the fact it's happening in my council) if I weren't invited to the Philmont Staff Assn reception and am hosting one of the participants in the meeting. Next question will be to see if the local media even notices it while it's happening.

I'll be attending the Philmont Staff Association reception and lurking around to see what I can see.

Welcome! Jackson is my home town, although I've been living in Florida and Hawai'i for many years. Was in Pack and Troop 3 at the now defunct Capitol Street Methodist Church. Enjoy your Scouting experiences!

>> will Sea Scouts' come in blue with white or white with blue?

Although my ancestors fought for the South and I have strong feelings about the flag, I just want to mention that Lincoln did not go to war with the South. The miltary of South Carolina chose to fire on Fort Sumpter, which was U.S. property, even though they had been told by the commander that the fort would capitulate within a very short time due to lack of food. Lincoln was forced to respond and the war he didn't want was on.

Yes, exactly. Years ago, when I first came to this council, one of the founders of the council was alive and well. I went to several events with him and he was very willing to talk about the early days. If only . . . But, he's long gone now. Nobody ever wrote down his story.

Kudu, Excellent summary there and on the other thread. I don't necessarily agree with all your conclusions, but your basic premise, that the BSA completely changed B-P's program into something else is indisputable. BTW, Bill Hillcourt was sort of eased out of the mainstream of Scouting in the Sixties while he wrote his book. He was allowed to come out to Schiff to talk about Scouting history and that was about it. Later on, the BSA realized they had gone too far and let him write another Scout Handbook. However, by the end of his life I think he saw that the BSA was going in a different direction than he ever envisioned. I'm not terribly optimistic about the future of Scouting, but I am hopeful.