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Proud Eagle

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Everything posted by Proud Eagle

  1. I don't know for certain what the book says, but I do know what is common practice in my experience. I think every board of review I appeared before contained ASMs. I also know that I have served on several boards of review as an ASM. This may not be the way it is supposed to work, but it seems to be common practice in my area. Conversations with other adults indicates this is the norm in most units. I think it is because the average CM is usually just a parent who doesn't have a clue what is going on while the ASMs at least have some idea what the Scouting program is supposed to be.
  2. I know all of the national (and if there are any) regional committee members use gold loops. This applies to all program areas. The pros at those levels also wear gold. The various directors at Philmont wear gold, though the rank and file employees wear the loops of their program. OA officers are a tricky issue. Many places have lodge and even chapter officers wear silver loops. This doesn't make sense to me, with one exception. In most instances the Lodge Chief serves on the council camping committee and/or the council Executive Board in an advisory/non-voting capacity. Section Chief
  3. Woow, what a relief. I felt like a moth being drawn into a candlelight for a minute. Then the thread returned to a far less dangerous and more productive topic. Yes, you must undertand something abouting following before you can be a good leader. You can be a leader without knowing how to be a follower. However, you can never reach your full potential without also knowing how to follow. Consider this example. It is crude and not entirely correct, but it is the best I can do at the moment. If you are a shift manager at a fast food place you need to know the basics about your
  4. FOG, I think you just made the best case I have heard for banning those things. I happen to think you're examples are dead on. I know my personal experience is generally in line with your reasoning. List of traits these devices don't encourage, maybe even discourage: cooperation kindness courteousness helpfulness teamwork compromise enthusiasm for the outdoors and nature appreciation for simple things I am certain there are more. That may not be a reason to ban them from all Scouting functions, but it is certainly a reason to discourage their use. Oh, here is qu
  5. You know what they say about assumptions... They make an (three letter word that can be used for a farm animal or part of the anatomy) out of you and me. and They are the mother of all (a crude reference to an act involving two people) ups.
  6. Listen, if I had the time to go look up the references and take the training before I expressed my opinion I would. However, I do not in this case. Generally on most Scouting issues I am reasonably well informed. However, I have never served on a Troop Committee or been trained to be a member of one. That doesn't mean I don't know anything. It doesn't mean the experience I have had doesn't give me a few useful insights. The point about the tour permit came from an earlier thread. It seemed to be the consencus that the committee had to approve an outing. (Though not the permit i
  7. This requirement seems to have been different at some other point in time. At a former summer camp, (now just a run down little council camp) there is a trail that was created as an Eagle project. The dedication plaque list the date. I think it was early 1970s.
  8. Advisor Jim makes an intersting point. I think most volunteers would advocate for the importance and quality of the program they support. We would all like to be able to recieve more support from the district/council pros and volunteers. I know in my district it always seemed like the cub scouts got the lions share of the attention. The Venturing program did not (and to my knowledge) does not exist. However, the DE is frequently pushing charter orgs (through the unit leaders) to establish Crews, or even change Troops into Crews. So, no matter how you figure it, somebody gets mo
  9. It seems that dsteele is coming the closest to expressing the opinion I hold on this issue. I am not in favor of creating troop rules unless there is a need for those rules. Because each charger org, each community, and each unit is different, I can not say what is or is not needed to carry out the program in individual cases. If a unit does create rules to assist in carrying out the program they must originate in the appropriate location. Any "arbitrary" rules that are not addressed by BSA policy, charter org policy, laws, and other binding things should generally originate with
  10. I find this issue to be interesting in a somewhat indirect way, since it does not directly relate to me. I would strongly advise the troop to formally set the membership of the committee. The position of committee member exists for a reason. Otherwise committee meetings turn into adult leader meetings, or parents meetings. Neither of those seem to be particularly capable of doing the job assigned to the Troop Committee. I would suggest that the Troop Committee, by the very nature of being a committee, must operate according to parliamentary procedure (at least in principal, if
  11. Having been through my onw board within recent history, and having been on two boards since, I guess I could provide a couple of semi-useful pieces of information. 1. Make certain all the paperwork is squared away. Have simple, yet thorough documentation of the project, your planning of it, and all other papers that you are asked for. Providing an extra copy isn't a bad idea. Don't just do the bare minimal of what is required in the life to Eagle packet. You can pass the board with the minimal, but it doesn't make a stellar first impression. 2. Have complete and correct uniform
  12. I have to wonder if providing advertising space on a trailer or something along those lines would constitute a service. In that way you could have your corporate sponsors, and be selling a service. I don't know if that would work or not, but it might. I know my troop gets most of its funds from annual Christmas tree sales. That has been enough to pay for several troop trailers over the years, most of the scouts summer camp fees, a 15 passenger van, and many other things over the years. Another idea, (one I just thought of) you are chartered to a church, is ask if at Scout Sunday y
  13. The thread about the most important word in the Scout Law made me think of this. At my Eagle Board of Review, I was asked a simple, yet difficult question. If I could add one point to the Scout Law, what would it be? I have since served on two Eagle Boards and that same question was asked on both occasions. (Once by the same person who asked me, the other time by me.) I think it is a good question to ask. So what would your answer be? Don't tell me the Law is perfect, come on, you can think of something. Now explain why that 13th point should be added.
  14. Examples of going the extra mile: The SE that personally cooks the steaks for the SM's dinner every week at camp. The DE that works at camp all summer, not because the SE forced him to, but because he cares about the camp and campers. The DE's that show up when they don't have to. (If our DE shows up at our troop's 25th anniversary dinner this weekend, that would be an example.) Things that I think would be nice if the pros did, but usually don't, at least where I am from: Show up at the largest gathering of Boy Scouts to be held in your council for 9 years for more t
  15. In my troop (as in the one I am a member of, not the nonexistant one I charter) we always make the Scouts aware of Council/District events during calendar planning. We then encourage them to use camporees and the like as part of the troop program. If camporees are well planned they should be a great addition to a troop's program. If they are not well planned then they can seriously detract from a troop's program.
  16. This thread seems to have gone off the deep end... I would suggest that unit level rules, if designed to be in keeping with BSA policies and made in such a way that they reinforce the BSA policies, Scout Oath, and Scout Law, can be a useful thing. We must remember that we are talking about kids hear. Their is a reason schools have rules. It is for that same reason that units should sometimes establish rules. Certainly it would be best if a unit needed no rules because all of its youth and adults knew, understood, and followed BSA policies, the Oath, and the Law, but that isn't
  17. I have good news. You can have your cake and eat it to in this case. You can create a temporary new scout patrol to place the new recruits in. They should probably stay in that patrol for at least a few months, possibly as long as a year. Normally new scout patrols are supposed to help get the scouts oriented in the troop and help them get their first class. After these new scouts get their bearings within the troop, and are no longer "new" they can then choose to move into the permanent mixed patrols (with a little guidance from youth and adult leaders), or form their own patrol
  18. I earned my Eagle and now I am an Assistant Scoutmaster. I also chair a committee for my OA Lodge.
  19. FScouter, I find your last post to be highly frustrating. It appears you decided to hide behind national policy to avoid answering questions about your own positions and beliefs. Perhpas I have misjudged your intent, but that certainly seems to be what you have done. In your previous post you argue your position about what you think is right and wrong. I then ask some questions of your position and present some challenges, and your reply seems to amount to a, "my opinion doesn't matter, only national policy does". If that is your assertion then I must wonder why you stated your o
  20. This seems to be a potentially very serious breach of Youth Protection, which is perhaps the most important set of rules in Scouting. The fact that you are at all uncertain about this activity indicates to me that you MUST take some type of action. At the very least, you should not allow your son to be alone with the SM. It is possible that the SM may consider these shopping trips to be something other than a true scouting activity. This is an area that is not 100% clear. What constitutes a Scouting activity that requires the rules of Scouting to be followed? The fact that this sho
  21. FScouter, I am not trying to suggest that killing people is a good thing. In fact I would agree completely that murder is a terrible wrong. So, we at least agree on part of the issue. I would also suggest that no Scout should participate in an activity such as laser tag or paintball unless both they and their parents are comfortable with them doing so. I do think that if a boy run troop decides it wants to engage in one of those activities, and the adult leadership is willing to support their decision, then it should be an option. Many parents object to shotgun, rifle, and archer
  22. I am not certain if my troop really has a formal rule on this issue. We do have a standard practice. We do not use or carry cell phones unless it is necessary for the individual or the troop. Many adults need to be able to check in with work or family from time to time. That we allow. Scouts with cells hasn't really been a problem. Last I knew we had one Scout with a cell. That same Scout is the only one that is old enough to drive. We allow him to have a cellphone during troop activities, but he keeps it turned off. Generally we ask that people do not bring things that they d
  23. That seems very unusual at best. I know of nothing at the national level that would support this. I also know of nothing locally that would support it in my area. Is it possible for the OA to charter a crew? I don't think they can. Maybe the council will turn a blind eye toward it, or maybe some other group is the charter org. on paper, with the OA being it in fact. My greater concern beyond this being within the rules or not is the question of this being of benefit to the youth and the program. The only possible uses I can see for an OA venturing crew would be to create a unit
  24. Dave J, I am not really certain if we are in conflict on the substance of the issue. Perhaps we are, but I don't really think so. ------ The reason I do not use the term value is that I do not think of "not pointing guns at people" as a moral value by itself. Pointing guns at people for no reason could be a negative value, but I would think it would be the product of bad or lacking values, rather than the presence of the "point guns at peole" value. I would agree with placing a "value", as in a measure of worth, on activities. If someone fully embraces and lives up to th
  25. I did a bit of looking and here is what I came up with: There is a dispute between the BSA and the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities over the Connecticut State Employee Campaign Committee. Apperently the state has some kind of charitable giving campaign for their government employees. The committee that runs that system decided the BSA couldn't be placed on the recipients list because of various discriminatory policies. Currently the state seems to be winning the court cases, with the 2nd US Circuit having ruled with them this summer. However, I DID NOT v
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