Oldscout448

Eagle, I  know firsthand how hard this can be.      But honestly it doesn't sound like you're leaving a scout troop.   More like a collection of self-important children, no matter what age.

Take care of your kids first and foremost, secondly take as many as you can with you.    Try to show them what real scouting should be.

Lastly try not to burn all the bridges behind you.    It does indeed get better.

Firstly, I fail to see what the cultures in India and other middle eastern nations have to do with criteria for choosing a spouse in America, unless perhaps the region in which you reside has a significant number of immigrants from such areas. 

As far as I am able to ascertain no one here has called for suttee, or dowery,  or even the acceptance of sexist and demeaning jokes or stories.

Secondly, scouting belongs to the scouts. Not the siblings, not the parents, not even the Scouters with half a century of experience,  The scouts. 

1 hour ago, WisconsinMomma said:

This sounds a little bit like how wives are chosen and treated in the backwoods of less developed countries -- a woman is chosen as a worker and treated like a slave / donkey, and the man goes and finds beauty and love and spreads his seed around with mistresses.  Absolutely ridiculous. 

It does?  Where?

1 hour ago, SSScout said:

I am the Lawn Mower parent, but that's only because Scoutson is now 24 and there is no one else to mow the lawn..... 

I know the pain all to well.  As soon as they are finally trained well enough to not need supervision every 15 minutes,  they pack the car up and leave. 

Bye, see you at Thanksgiving.  

As others have pointed out, the first priority  for National is covering its legal behind.  

They cannot help but know that some aspects of their policy are simply impossible to follow.  Just how are we as volunteers supposed to stop the scouts from snapchatting, etc?

I really don't think they expect us to follow all these rules, some of which seem completely antithetical to the purpose of scouting.

Stated to type a comment, then realized that I just don't care anymore.    Just glad my two sons, five nephews and I earned Eagle before all this " the sky is falling"  or " a lawsuit is pending" nonsense started.

We often hear adults say that Boy Scouts has changed a lot since they were kids.  But scoutson #4 doesn't  recognize scouting nowdays  and he is only 21.

I guess it's about time to finish that last cup of coffee, hoist my pack, and head down the trail.

Not trying to come off as " being superior" here, but our troop doesn't advertise or even mention merit badge mills colleges.   Every one in our area seem has seemed much more concerned with handing out the maximum number of badges than actually teaching the scouts. In some cases the badge was awarded with only about half of the requirements  completed.  If a scout wants to go on his own he can, and no one will say anything negative about it.   But I'm not going to help him use cheat codes.

I spent over an hour just trying to get on scoutbook.   

 First my account didn't exist, then it did, then the password I used for the last 2 years was no good, I tried to get them to send me a new temp password, but the account was back to not existing,please sent us your BSA ID #, so I did.

Nope, still doesn't exist.  so I tried to create a new account.  

It twice insisted my address was invalid   although I've lived there for 30 years.  It worked the third time ,don't know why

finally

Got a little FAILURE TO SET UP ACCOUNT  sign!   with a suggestion that I call my local Scout service center tomorrow for help

Sounds like fun, I'll see if any of  the team can come. if you are going to be there maybe we can finally have that cup o' joe. 

On 9/21/2018 at 8:45 AM, gblotter said:

The common misconception is that BSA is an altruistic organization composed of selfless volunteers with the mission of building boys into men of character.

The reality is that BSA is a corporation driven by corporate motives. Money - not altruism - drives BSA, just like any corporation. While many BSA volunteers may indeed be selfless, BSA corporate leaders largely ignore and dismiss the opinions of front-line volunteers in decision-making.

Sorry to say, that does seem to be the case recently.    

8 hours ago, walk in the woods said:

It's not complained about because it's widely ignored.

Yup

25 minutes ago, LVAllen said:

"Q. Will you change the program to accommodate girls?  

Our existing programs are relevant for both young men and women. After all, the values of Scouting as outlined in the Scout Law – trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent – are relevant and important values for both young men and women. As such, the program for girls, ages 11 to 17 will be the same curriculum offered in the Boy Scout program."

OK so the program will be the same for both sexes.   But will it be the same as it is now?  or radically changed ? 

8 minutes ago, ParkMan said:

That's when the new G2SS rule that requires adults at all activities kick in.

which  my scouts are planning to totally ignore.    I am planning on going temporarily deaf whenever they are discussing any such activities.   I don't like flouting rules, but it's the best option I have at this point.  The patrol method may indeed be dying, but not on my watch

8 hours ago, HelpfulTracks said:

It used to concern me when I saw Scouters leaving the program for any reason, particularly out of frustration.

But seeing supposed support for boys being turned into disdain and disrespect  for women and girls changes my mind. 

I will not miss that attitude. It is not something I could  never teach my son or any other youth. Apparently some think of women as second or third class citizens, or worse. So for those that think that way or talk that way, I cannot say thank you, I can only say don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

My immediate family has about 90 years in GSUSA, about 85 in BSA.  We bleed green.   I don't recall  anyone ever being charged with  " disdain and disrespect "  or thinking women are worse than third class citizens.  Whatever that is.  But  both have morphed to the point where it's more about the program and the money than the Scouts.and so the whole clan is ready to walk out that door.   All we ask is that you not slam it on us as we sadly  take our leave.

25 minutes ago, Thunderbird said:

The new YPT rules aren't going to help the patrol method any.

 

 

Which is why quite a number of the older scouts that trust me enough to speak candidly are planning on going backpacking, camping etc on their own.  To quote a 17 year old in my troop

" I didn't earn an Eagle badge to be treated like a Cubscout"

4 minutes ago, NJCubScouter said:

I am moving this to Issues and Politics.

As you wish, but it is like it or not now a part of BSAs program

Personally I prefer talking about scouting and life while sitting round a campfire rather than in the corner of a noisy room while a troop meeting is going on.

That said, I have never seen or  heard of such a rule.

I do like to take longer with the older scouts, as their problems and decisions are more complex than an eleven year old.  Sometimes a meeting at Dunkin' Doughnuts on Saturday morning is a good solution.  But campouts only?  Unless the scout in question never goes on them anymore, and the SM is using this ploy to force him to attend at least one, I just don't get it.

33 minutes ago, RichardB said:

Ever consider how would this look to parents of youth who might want to join scouting if it was plastered as a headline?    It isn't 1954 anymore.   Wow, just wow...

Im my experence when the rules that National imposes are explained to the parents of prospective scouts, most roll their eyes,  some ask if we actually follow these all these absurd,  ridiculous rules( their words), and there are always a few mutters of " You gotta be *@/&ing kidding me"

So yeah, I think it might look O.K. to quite a few people.

10 hours ago, TAHAWK said:

How I wish it were not so.  😭  Scouting, primarily the BSA variant, was a big part of my life since 1954. 

Mine too, since "67.    Although there were  breaks of a few years when the kinder were infants and getting enough sleep was but a fond memory.  Right now I'm looking at life after scouting and wondering what to do with it.   Half the stuff in the garage is camping gear and OA regalia.  Even when I go for a walk in the woods I find myself looking at shed snake skins or cast deer antlers and thinking " That would be a good thing to take back and show the sco.... never mind"   

1 hour ago, TAHAWK said:

BSA, most of whose employees literally do not know what the Patrol Metod is, have now abandoned it, and so have abandoned Boy Scouting.

How I wish I could argue with you on this

On 7/6/2018 at 3:34 PM, MikeS72 said:

Hand sewing needles do not do well with those heavy plastic backing either.  I broke countless needles trying to get them through the backing, which is one reason I bought the sewing machine.  I use a clear filament thread, so you do not see any stitching, and you can adjust the size of the stitch so it is easy to remove if and when needed.

Try heating the badge up with an iron set on low.    makes the plastic nice and soft

They told me that if you find a snipe and take it home, it will  carefully peck all the old badge magic off your uniform.

And a few hours ago I sat in the front row as the only vigil on the team, a 20 year old ceremonialist in the role of Meteu draped a Vigil " cookie " over his father's head, and told him that he needed a new sash. 

I have been reluctant to reply as I was unable to attend NOAC.   I did however have a long conversation at last weekends Vigil inductions with a friend who has been performing / advising ceremonies  for over 40 years, and has often served as a NOAC  judge as well.    It seems there was a one hour seminar devoted to this subject, that ran almost three hours.

So as best as my sleep deprived brain can recall...  National was receiving 4-6 phone calls or emails a month complaining of cultural theft.  That's 48-72 per year out of how many thousands of AoL ceremonies?  But this is National.    They seem to panic at any negative press now days.   So they decided to rework it and take it out of local hands.    The first draft was written by the two guys who rewrote the Brotherhood Ceremony a few years back.  Then it was handed off to the Cub Exec Committee.   Which is why, I guess,  it is such a " lame, corny " skit.  As well as a rather shameless plug for expensive high adventure camps.   

The attendees were assured that there is no plan to change anything else.   Callouts, Ordeal, Brotherhood, and Vigil will remain as they are.

Of course there was " no plan to let girls into Boy Scouts " either.

Call me cynical 

Oldscout

PS.  So far, every scout on my team wants to go with a Standing Bear Productions  LLC model  

10 hours ago, T2Eagle said:

Weird.  A woman chatting on a cell phone, having no idea what might be going on inside an office calmly walks in and for no discernible reason trashes some offices and walks out with a cupcake --- there's something more to this.

 

Well,  the council HQ is right across from Druid Hill, a section of Baltimore that has more than its fair share of drug use, and if you have never been to " Balmer" I can assure you that's saying something.