NJCubScouter

This should be in italics, this should not. Just testing using the html codes like Mozartbrau.

I'll confirm that. The determining factor for me was that, from my perspective, the old software didn't work. Sometimes it posted my posts, sometimes it didn't. Sometimes it ate a post in the middle of me writing it. Most of the time when doing moderator work, it gave me error messages. It was time for a change, without delay. This software still has a few things that need to be worked out, and it is (so far) missing two weeks of posts, but for me it is at least 10 times better, because I know that when I hit "Post", my post is going to appear in the forum.

Berliner, if it was a year ago, it should be there. Do you remember the name of the thead? I could look for it.

Actually, I have them on my desktop computer, but not on my Ipad. EmXaN, can that be fixed?

Hmm, don't feel bad, now I don't see them either!

Test test test test test test test The markup features seem to be working from here

It does seem a little light, though I can read it. I am glad the time issue was fixed, otherwise I was going to have to figure out whether it was Moscow time or middle-of-the-Indian-Ocean time that would give me an 8-hour offset.

Moosetracker, first of all, welcome back! Stay awhile! Based on the first few days of this new software, it definitely seems to be working and works very well. I have not gotten a single error message, as opposed to the old software where even at the end, I was still getting some sort of error message at least 60 percent of the time I tried to post, and probably about 80 percent of the time I tried to use my "moderator's buttons." (My favorite was when I was moving a post or a thread from one place to another, it gave me an error message every single time, but about 75 percent of the time it actually did make the move properly, but told me it hadn't! I wasted a good chunk of time before I caught on to that.) So this is definitely better, there's no question about it. And I think currently active topics can be easily tracked, there's a column on the right side that does that. I am hoping that some of our other old friends like Acco and Trevorum might reappear as well, now that the software has been replaced.

Seems to be.

Oh! Look at that...

I don't think you have anything to worry about, Stosh.

I don't have to image fields of snow. (Or to be more precise, lawns full of snow.) I am looking out the window at some right now, and the snow is still falling. I think Spring officially started sometime in the past hour, and it's still snowing. And then tonight it's all supposed to freeze. Doesn't whoever or whatever makes it snow know it's not supposed to be snowing? Enough with all the snow.

Hueymungus, you do not HAVE TO be registered to be a BOR member, but you SHOULD be. This is from the Guide to Advancement section to Tenderfoot through Life BOR's: We can now go back to the actual topic of this thread.

ScoutingMom2, first of all, welcome to the forums! Second of all, you are to be commended for caring that your son be properly uniformed when he shows up for his first troop meeting. In my experience, a lot of parents don't really care. I personally think that the sons of the parents who DO care about things like this end up having a better Scouting experience. I also think it is largely a matter of "local custom" whether a new Scout is expected to show up for his first meeting with the Webelos patch removed, den patch removed, unit numerals updated, and the other things mentioned in some of the earlier posts. In our troop most of the boys who just crossed over show up with their "Webelos uniform" intact, and generally over the next few weeks the patches are changed over. (Not to mention almost all the boys show up in jeans, because very few of the Cub Scouts (or Cub Scout leaders) in my area wear the uniform pants. Sometime during the Scout's first few troop meetings, the parents go through the "uniform closet" to see if there are any pants of the right size, and if not they go out and buy them.) There is also the possibility that the troop your son is joining has its own hat and/or neckerchief and/or customized unit numeral patch, which you should find out before you buy anything. As far as removing the Webelos badge, as I said, in my area nobody would say anything if it is still there. But you can't go wrong by removing it, since it is not a Boy Scout award.

I have seen it. Right now SSScout's icon is ok on the page I am looking at, but it is doing the corner thing on the full forum listing page. I recall a few other people it has happened to.

Everybody can feel free not to answer this question. I could, if I wanted to, go look up the answer myself. However, if anyone is so inclined, can someone give (or point me to) a brief description (hmm, where have I heard that recently, oh yes, in a thread under Advancement) of what the change to the Webelos program is? Or is a change to the entire Cub Scout program? I have seen bits and pieces about it in this forum, but have noticed an overall description of how the program is actually changing. Although my account-name may suggest otherwise, I have not been involved in Cub Scouting since my son crossed over more than 10 years ago, so I have not had any need to find these things out for myself.

Maybe I have missed something in this thread, but why are we bothering to divide the POR's into leadership, management, working-with-people-skills, part-this and part-that, etc.? The "book" defines various troop Positions of Responsibility, and that is what they are called as a group, from SPL to Scribe to Troop Guide. A Scout who is active in one of these positions helps the troop, and if they are between First Class and Life and are active in one or more POR's for the required amount of time, they fulfil a requirement for their next rank as well. Good news, right? Why are we making it more complicated than that?

Testing

So, some college students did something silly? And this is news? Better that they should get this out of their system now, before they get out into the "real world." I also think we can criticize people's actions without calling them names, I.e. "pin heads"

Look at all the metaphorical elephants, going in different directions and bumping into each other. It's like there's a whole poorly-run virtual circus in the room, that half the people want to talk about, not just one elephant. And all the elephants are starting to cause a (metaphorical) waste disposal problem. Anyway, the issue of an openly gay Eagle Scout who turns 18 was dealt with by the BSA when they made the so-called Big Policy Change in 2013, effective 1/1/14. When you turn 18, you're out. You can't be an Assistant Scoutmaster. Makes no sense to me at all, and I don't think it is viable as a policy in the long term, but that's the policy right now. (For anyone who hasn't read my posts on the subject back to 2002, I think CO's should be able to have openly gay adult leaders in their units.)

Well, I sure hope you can stay, Packsaddle. Even a post every once in awhile would be better than nothing. The forum would not be the same without you.

TwoCub, it probably is not the first time I have caused people someone to slowly shake their head on the subject of tobacco and/or smoking in this forum, and it probably won't be the last. I realize I am somewhat of a "hard-liner" on the subject. I am not suggesting there would be a "firestorm." (Where there's smoking there's a firestorm? I'm so funny.) And I don't know what the Scouts are going to do. I was basically just asking whether there are alternatives. As for my family's Passover Seder, the children are provided with grape juice when it's time to drink the "wine." (I didn't come up with that, it was the custom in my family from before I was even around to drink the grape juice.) If an older teenager wanted a sip of actual wine, it wouldn't be a problem. But that's a controlled situation, in private, at home. And the person who bought the wine is of legal drinking age. I really didn't mean to make a "big deal" out of this. It just sort of struck me as odd. But I also appreciate Eagle providing the information about this Native American custom, of which I was not aware previously.

Let's accept that for the moment, but it does not explain your remark about the elephant in the room, nor does it explain your statement that I quoted above, which was not correct. It seems clear that the motive for this change was to draw a bright line, with no exceptions, at the age of 18, past which the BSA will not allow anyone to remain as a participant in a traditional program (Cubs, Boy Scouts including OA, Varsity Scouts and Venturing, and presumably uniformed district, council and National positions as well) if they are openly gay, regardless of whether that participation is as a "youth", "adult", "leader" or anything else. There are other aspects of the new policy, such as background checks, impact of YP guidelines on particular situations, some terminology, etc., but I believe those issues are just "along for the ride" with the real motive. Do you, or anybody else, disagree with that?