Once_Eagle-Always_Eagle

"Oh, and thanks, but no thanks...I don't need to be reconciled. "

Then I won't waste my time. However, I want to strongly challenge you on another front, to make allegations against the Bible and organized religion and then subsequently refusing evidence or arguments that would challenge your position speaks for itself.

I would respectfully ask that you either engage bi-directionally in the conversations *or* keep your cynical comments to yourself.

Scoutfish:

By and large I like to lurk until someone says something arguably untrue about God or the Bible. Please cite examples of what you find are biblical contradictions and I'll do my utter best to reconcile for you.

All you have to do is turn on the news and see- whether it is in the tragic tornadoes that devastated Tuscaloosa and Joplin, or the families that have been flooded in South Louisiana in order to save a larger population further down river, families across America are in need. As I look around my own house, it is easy to see the abundance I have been blessed with. I only have to open my closets or walk into my garage or shop and I find stuff that I havent used in years. However, these things can help these same families whose need is so great right now and the infrastructure is already built The American Red Cross. The American Red Cross shows up in these and other declared disaster areas to help these families. While they cant erase the grief, they provide food, shelter and a change of clothes while families begin their own recovery.

So what is the call to action?

1) Look around your house, garage, closet, storage building, attic, bookshelves, etc. Find those things that you keep telling yourself youll get rid of one day maybe the stuff you plan to sell in your next garage sale the things youll never even miss.

2) List those items on eBay. I would encourage you to give 100% of the sale price, but determine your own percentage according to your conscience. Simply specify the Red Cross as the recipient of your auction proceeds when you list your item. eBay even gives a credit of selling fees according to the percentage you give. (e.g. a 50% donation is a 50% credit on selling fees, an 80% donation is an 80% credit on selling fees, a 100% donation gives a 100% credit on eBay fees).

a. http://www.redcross.org/portal/site/en/menuitem.d229a5f06620c6052b1ecfbf43181aa0/?vgnextoid=5da1aeb95d6cc210VgnVCM10000089f0870aRCRD&vgnextchannel=46f51a53f1c37110VgnVCM1000003481a10aRCRD

b. http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/GivingWorks-fee-policy.html

3) After you list your own things to sell, look to see what other people are selling to benefit the Red Cross and bid high- especially for those that are giving larger percentages.

a. http://donations.ebay.com/charity/charity.jsp?NP_ID=3843&searchString=&submit=Search&sortOrder=-4

4) Share this challenge (email, blogs, web posts) with friends and family encouraging them to do the same.

I would also support the idea of a Eureka Timberline 2 tent. These tents are as easy to setup as a tent can get. When I was a boy scout, our scout master actually had us set these tents up by ourselves in the dark. They hold up well in adverse weather conditions. Replacement parts are easy to come by if needed. I look at it like this... if you spend the $50 for a Ozark tent, you will be getting a mediocre tent or mediocre quality. You are likely to experience issues with the fiberglass poles and small rainfly over time. When you decide to get rid of the tent, you'll end up donating it to someone because you will NOT get anything trying to sell a used Ozark tent. Providing he doesn't rip the Timberline tent, it will either last him well into Boy Scouts with lots of great experiences... and if you decide you want to sell it, resale value of the Timberline tents in good condition is pretty high. It is entirely plausible he'll get $50~$60 or more selling the used timberline, in which case you are out no more money than the Ozark- plus you get the added benefit of a much better tent.

(Now to take the other side... my own son is promoting to Webelo scouts in 1 week and I don't believe I would buy him a Timberline myself because I am fairly certain he would not give a $100 tent the respect it is due. So my recommendation for this tent entirely depends on how well you believe your son would treat the tent.)

I'll agree with UCEagle... we use Google sites for our pack. The cost is free. When combined with the DNS masking/redirect feature at GoDaddy, we spend a meager $10/year and have a site that can be managed by any parent with basic word processing skills. Take a peek at the end product at http://www.forneycubscouts.com

"What I don't get, is folks who would chalk the resurrection up to fabrication and wish to stay in a Christian camp. "

And we agree! :-)

p.s. - No condescension or superiority in any previous post. I'm not superior to anyone in thought or deed. However, above all else, I am passionate about my Lord Jesus Christ... and I feel a great sadness for *anyone* that refuses the love and forgiveness offered through Him for whatever their reason is. One can be sad for the fate of another person without feeling any superiority over them.

qwasze

I couldn't tell by your posts exactly where you fall doctrinely but I do read some cynicism that doesn't glorify God, so let me do this... I discovered long long ago that there is little to be gained by exchanging lengthy conversations of what I believe vs what you believe. This puts us in an adversarial relationship where one of us is wrong and one of us is right. Our exchanges would likely sway others by the eloquence of our logic and how well we can Google search. Instead, I've found much greater value in this- rather than say what I believe or trying to refute what you believe (and you refute what I believe), I would be happy to share why I personally choose to believe (my own story). I would also be happy to show what the Bible says. In very concise terms, the major themes that run through the book are:

1) God created EVERYTHING. He existed before time. He will exist after time ends.

2) Man is seperated from God by his choices (the free will God has given every man). This is a really simple definition of sin.

3) God loves each person and wants a relationship with us. However, it is our sinful choices that keep us seperated from God.

4) Left to his own ways, man would continue to decline morally and move further away from the intimate relationship God desires with each of us.

5) As a holy and just God, he is obligated to judge sin.

6) Because man is incapable of achieving the intimate relationship with God on our own, God acted and sent his only Son that we may be reconciled.

7) Believing in faith that God has restored the relationship through His son brings us into a right relationship with Him. (This one can be expounded but I'm trying very hard to keep this high level.)

It is not my role to persuade you. Similarly, there is no benefit to pointing to the people who claimed to be Christians and missed the mark, I would simply agree with you that these people don't align with what a 'Christian' should be. However, I would be more than happy to share with you what the Bible says about itself, God and the person and work of Jesus Christ.

WOW! I wish I had seen this article two days ago when it was fresh out of the gate. Matters concerning the Christian faith excite me more than any other topic and I couldn't resist bringing the thread back to the original poster's question. I hope to provide biblical support to support the logical argument I'll make to follow:

===============================================

BIBLICAL ARGUMENT

===============================================

1) Romans 10:9 says "if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that GOD RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD, you will be saved" [emphasis added]. I will acknowledge it can be dangerous to invert a positive statement and draw a conclusion- but the tie connecting salvation to a belief in the resurrection certainly exists in scripture.

2) 1 Corinthians 15:14-19 says "And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is USELESS and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be FALSE WITNESSES about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is FUTILE; you are STILL IN YOUR SINS. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are LOST. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most TO BE PITIED." I don't need to add any commentary to this section beyond these CLEAR words!

3) Romans 4:25 says "He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification." Justification is a 3 dollar theological word that meas God declares us "not guilty." Without the resurrection, we are still in need of justification before God.

===============================================

LOGICAL ARGUMENT

===============================================

Oh where to begin and still be succinct...

First, denying the resurrection is pulling out a MAJOR tenant of the New Testament. The moment you start to pick and choose what scripture you wish to believe and refuse, you have lost the battle. To deny certain parts of the Bible is to call The Book untrustworthy. If you declare The Book untrustworthy, you are declaring the author [God] untrustworthy. To declare God untrustworthy denies His character and refuses to believe in Him- much less the One He sent.

Second, the miracles Jesus performed were evidence that his claims to be God were true. The resurrection was the culmination and greatest of the miracles. Any person could have died and even claimed to die for the sins of all, but to rise from the grave was the evidence that what he declared was truth. It is the resurrection that seperates Jesus from every other 'prophet' from every other religion in the world.

I could go on and on and on with other arguments, but this is a scouting site and not a theology discussion board. Plus, I don't want to ramble on too much lest what I have already typed would go unread. The conclusion of my brief rant is "Believing in the resurrection of Christ is absolutely and utterly fundamental to believing in the person of Christ and following Him- which makes you a Christian."

We have some boys that have completed belt loop requirements multiple times. (For example, we have many boys that play city league basketball/baseball/soccer) so they are in these sports every year.

We have said that our unit will only pay for the belt loop the first time and after that, the boy needs to work on his academic/sports pin. If I play this out in a worst case scenario, a boy could earn the SAME belt loop every week he goes to practice and plays a game. :-(

I start to get confused when looking at Webelo requirements and it tells the boys they must complete the belt loop again, even if they earned it earlier. (For example, aquanaut requires the boy to re-earn his swimming belt loop).

How do other units handle this?

Although not new to scouting, I have been away from the Webelo program too long. I have seen a nuimber of reference to Webelo pins. Other people call them Webelo activity badges. As best I can tell, they are the same thing with just different names. Am I correct on this?

On a second related question, I understand the activity pins/webelo adtivity badges are entirely DIFFERENT requirements than the pins that are beyond the belt loop requirements, correct again?

Hey guys, I was looking for a good flashlight that was lightweight, put out a lot of light and was easy on the wallet. I was stunned at how much has changed in the world of flashlights recently. You can see the results of my comparison at http://anthony-morris.blogspot.com/2011/05/flashlight-snobbery.html

Thanks for the feedback. I suppose I had unrealistic expectations- especially after never having a tent with a vestibule before.

As promised, I finally got around to my initial review on the Alps Mountaineering Vertex 4. you can read it here: http://anthony-morris.blogspot.com/2011/05/review-of-alps-mountaineering-vertex-4.html

I've mentioned in other posts that I am the committee chair of a cub scout pack that is 3 years old. During my time, I've never really understood what makes a great Webelo program and it has been much too long since I was a Webelo myself. I've also read from others that significant differences exist between the operation of a Webelo den than a tiger/wolf/bear den. Anyway, my own son will be advancing from Bear scouts to Webelo scouts in about another month. What advice and tips and experience can any of you share that I can pass on to my up and coming Webelo den leader to help him run the best program possible.

Not my first post, I've lurked a long time and posted a few times but realized I never introduced myself here in this forum. My name is Anthony. I starting scouts as a wolf, went through Webelos, earned my Arrow of light, transitioned to boy scouts and earned Eagle Scout in 1989- 2 months before turning 18. Since that time, I did a brief stint as assistant scout master, but my most painful steps have been as a committee chair starting a cub scout pack from the ground up (e.g. zero transfers) three years ago. After a huge re-learning curve for me and teaching a lot of other parents how a scouting program should operate, we're arguably one of the most successful packs in our district. We've even been able to donate a very large donation and start a Boy Scout troop bearing our same number. I've attended Wood Badge training at Philmont last summer and still find this forum to be a better source of knowledge than *any* training I've ever found through the BSA (no disrespect intended).

I'm the committee chair of an active cub scout pack and we plan to do multiple trips per month this summer, several over 150 miles away. The cost of gas isn't going to affect our finances directly but it indirectly is hurting us greatly. I've had three families come to me in the last week alone saying that they can no longer afford the cost of summer camp (although they previously committed to go) due to the current financial climate (gas prices and other economic woes).

I pulled the trigger yesterday on a 'used - like new' condition Vertex 4 tent direct from Amazon for $30 less than ScoutDirect and $40 less than Amazon new. If the tent arrives in less than pristine condition, I'll return it and order from Scout Direct. I'll also try and post a follow-up review of the Vertex once I use it (have a campout May 13-15).

I got a chance to think about it more last night and decided why I am having a hard time:

1) The Wind Ridge: I am probably going to avoid the quick setup tents. Im a K.I.S.S. kinda guy and I dont like the idea of moving parts on a tent, seems like more that could go wrong. Plus, I dont like the fact you set the tent up before staking it. We frequently camp in high wind situations.

2) The Tetragon: I dont want fiberglass poles. They snap much too easy. Did I mention we often camp in high winds? :-) I prefer aluminum poles.

3) The Timberline: I *really* want 2 doors like my current Timberline and the new model doesnt have it. I understand the Outfitter does, but I don't want to go that high for a tent that is that heavy. Plus, there is no vestibule on the Timberlines without spending more money. Finally, while the fly is good, wind coming from certain directions still blows rain to parts of the tent I dont like.

So I looked around some more, I want a tent that I can love as much as my current Timberline, and Ive found one I think has the potential: The Alps Mountaineering Vertex 4.

Anodized aircraft grade aluminum poles

If you look at it from the right angle, it is almost a modernized version of an A-frame tent- halfway between A-frame and dome design. While my personal experience has proven contrary, popular opinion is that the dome tents withstand wind better than traditional A-frames.

64 sq ft of interior space (just a pinch larger than the others I looked at)

Free standing (no guy lines required, although you can use them if you feel they are needed)

2 doors (This was a biggie for me)

2 vestibules (Adds an additional 31 sq ft)- This is another significant plus

Based on the picture on the right, it looks like it will withstand rain and wind very well

Tent clips to the frame (none of that sliding through sleeves hassle)

11 of 13 reviewers on Amazon gave this 5 stars (combining reviews for Vertex 2 and Vertex 4). The other two gave it 4 stars. This is the highest rating I have seen for any tent this size at this price point. Not even the Eureka Timberline scored this well.

My only personal concerns are re: ventilation/using it in the summer. Other reviewers shared a similar concern but no one has complained about it. And truth be told, on my Eureka, I usually end up zipping the door 3/4 to the top anyway, so I typically dont have a lot of ventilation myself. Im also not crazy about the idea of vinyl windows in the rain fly because it sounds like a future leak point. However, I can see the advantage of wanting to peak outside.

I have it narrowed down to three:

The Timberline 4 from Amazon for $157. The Eureka Tetragon 8 for $90. Or an entirely new comer I just discovered... I am really intrigued by Wind Ridge 4 person tent for $140.

I like the looks of the Wind Ridge best, and am intrigued by the reviews and advertising. However, I *KNOW* I like the Timberline. I know replacement parts are easy to come by. I know I can set it up myself in the dark and wind fast.

I'm not having a lot of luck telling the difference between the tetragon 8 and the timberline (except A-frame vs dome tent).

It is with great sadness I write this... I need to replace my Timberline tent due to age. I have one of the old style Eureka Timberline 4 tents with 2 doors. I have been exceptionally pleased with this tent, but over the years, it has simply worn itself out so I am looking again and just amazed at the choices that exist. I enjoy the larger space of the 3 and 4 man tents and am willing to carry the extra weight to keep the space (I'm 6'1", 258lbs). I also want something that will keep me dry in a hurricane... not that Hazardous Weather training permits camping in Katrina, but I want a tent that will keep me dry and standup to the wind and rain. I also want a tent that is EASY to setup. I can setup my timberline 4 by myself in the dark in less than 5 minutes.

Anyway, I've found a site that sells the Eureka Timberline 4's delivered for about $150, but the Eureka Tetragon 8's are about half that price. Anyone have experience to compare the two? What about other tents that are highly recommended and field tested?

I realize the wording in the manual and training, but that's why i titled this slippery slope. due to the paperwork completed, the parent with teh boy *IS IN FACT* the legal guardian. I suppose the safer solution is to look at the intent of the guideline rather than the technical boundary. It is simply safer for all parties involved if the boy has his own tent.

I like to keep things simple, and a good way I can ask the question that makes this clear and evident:

"Even if you sign a paper assigning legal guardianship, would you want this unrelated adult to see your son change clothes- or would you want your son to see him?"

The answer to that had better be so shockingly obvious to any reasonable adult that it removes the question of what is allowed and replaces it with the obvious 'What is right'.

Thanks for the complement!

I don't disagree with you about the difficulty promoting. My hope was that I could raise an initial awareness here but REALLY the greatest value would be if you (and others) would print the flyer on the website (found in the FAQ's) and share it at your own district roundtable- because the more it is shared in a geographic area, the more it becomes valuable to the units in that region.

As to cubscouts, although my greater love is for the Boy Scouts, I am admittedly partial to cubscouts (because my own son is a bear scout for one more month). Honestly, it is an idea I hadn't thought of. I like the idea though. would you recommend adding 'Cub Scout Activity' as a single item (like I do with Points of Interest)?

Some feedback I have received already is to make the POI icons a different color than the destination icons. I could see doing the same thing for cub scouts.

I'll think about it more and how to do that.

I am the committee chair of a cub scout pack and we do family camping several times a year. I have two questions pertaining to youth protection requirements: 1 hypothetical and 1 actual

HYPOTHETICAL

Obviously, on a family campout, dad is permitted to share the tent with his son. No one would ever argue that. But what if mom/dad can't come? Can an uncle/grandparent bring the boy and share the tent with his nephew/grandson? I suspect the answer is yes.

ACTUAL SITUATION

Sliding further, I had a Webelo boy that really wanted to go on our most recent family campout but mom-and-dad weren't available. I told them that the boy wasn't allowed to attend solo since this was a family campout. I further added the only way he could go with another parent is if the parent had actual legal custody of the child. I then found a 4 page form on the internet that the parents could complete and have notarized to appoint a temporary legal guardian. I wrongly predicted the parents would determine it was too much trouble and just catch the next campout, but to my surprise, they completed the form appointing temporary guardianship of the child to another parent/friend in the pack so their boy could go.

I found out AFTER the campout was over, that the boy actually shared the tent with the other dad and his son (so one dad, one son, and one non-related boy in a tent). Am I correct in presuming this tent sharing was a violation and I need to have follow-up dialog with the parents making them aware of the youth protection policies?

Thanks in advance!

Anthony

Hey leaders:

i hope this doesn't violate the terms and conditions of this forum. However, I am completing one of my woodbadge ticket items and am so proud of it and believe so strongly in the potential, I wanted to share it here. Plus, the more the site becomes known and used, the more valuable it will become for everyone.

I have completed the development of http://www.scoutdestinations.com The premise of the site is like tripadvisor.com meets Wikipedia for scouts. I am trying to provide a site where scouts and leaders can record destinations you are familiar with, describe activities available, view maps (including topographic overlays), upload pictures, write trip reviews, save attachments (like trail maps) and link to other sources for more information. Other users then can come and search for matching destinations (e.g. Show all the climbing destinations within 250 miles). Ideally, youll be able to learn about the destination and arrive prepared before you ever get there- and better yet, discover new outdoor destinations you might have never known on your own.

Your feedback to improve the site is REALLY desired!

Thanks in advance.

Anthony

Hey leaders:

i hope this doesn't violate the terms and conditions of this forum. However, I am completing one of my woodbadge ticket items and am so proud of it and believe so strongly in the potential, I wanted to share it here. Plus, the more the site becomes known and used, the more valuable it will become for everyone.

I have completed the development of http://www.scoutdestinations.com The premise of the site is like tripadvisor.com meets Wikipedia for scouts I am trying to provide a site where scouts and leaders can record destinations you are familiar with, describe activities available, view maps (including topographic overlays), upload pictures, write trip reviews, save attachments (like trail maps) and link to other sources for more information. Other users then can come and search for matching destinations (e.g. Show all the climbing destinations within 250 miles). Ideally, youll be able to learn about the destination and arrive prepared before you ever get there- and better yet, discover new outdoor destinations you might have never known on your own.

Your feedback to improve the site is REALLY desired!

Thanks in advance.

Anthony