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I wonder if that's a function of smaller families these days. My SM was a church organist, so we were home in time for Sunday School. Never had a tough time cooking a big breakfast, but we camped nearby in any nook or hollow that was within 20 minutes from home.

I was one of those who insisted for the usual fare (including amassing a couple grand over a couple of years for an HA), this is a non-issue. But let's suppose you want to go forward with making the treasurer's life a little easier and phase out ISA's. It's simple. Johny's $1000 for Philmont stays allocated to that purpose. He can also add to that from his electronic device consulting service (the modern lawn-mowing equivalent) to pay his fees. Jimmy's $50 debt for camp overages will either be payed by him (from his online game-FAQ writing business) or out of the troop's operating budget. He defaults, you all owe. 'Nuff said. Treasure then says, "No more splitting fundraisers into ISA's." Done.

Lot's of details here http://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2014/04/02/service-stars-for-scouts-and-scouters-pins-with-a-point/

So @@NJCubScouter, you and I, when we're at flags, let's put hand over heart for the pledge. When a scout asks us why, we'll say "Some guy on the internet said this pin on my BSA shirt collar here makes me out of uniform!" Just for funzies. I will if you will so long as we promise to post our scouts' reaction (with their permission, of course).

If I understand the police correctly, all of those mechanisms were in place. If by "two ticks", you mean contour intervals, that would put you at 80' above on this map. That's pretty high.

As recently as last month, both "field" and "activity" were referred to http://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2015/08/21/scout-neckerchiefs-now-approved-wear-nonuniform-clothing/. However, even in that post, there is little distinction between "Activity" and "Non-" uniform. The rising popularity of "field" is a hopeful strategy, IMHO, to get scouts to be prepared. Regarding Stosh's photos of some no-doubt awesome scouts, I suspect the more casual one was a scout who was compelled to toss on his shirt for a photo-op ... out of sense that it really wouldn't look like a scout service project without it. This annoying trend of contentment with a 50% uniform long preceded scouters' application of pins to their collars, and will continue long after all scouters save the pins for ribbons, vests, or suit lapels. You mean sash racks? Depends ... if they are doing some great deed for their nation while conveniently hanging their sashes over their belt, I'll take it easy. On the other hand, if they are wearing them properly while robbing liquor stores to buy drugs ... I might have issues.

Thanks @@TAHAWK, I did not find that reference earlier. Must have searched the wrong section of the guide. Section 3 has "other pins for non uniform wear ..." So I thought the mentor pin would be listed before or after that. @@Cambridgeskip, we're a nation full of iconoclasts, but we really do love one another.

Your point's lost on me. All I see is a bunch of boys having fun doing good.

Just by way of definition, having perused a few military catalogs who actually use "A" and "B" designations ... Class A's rough parallel is the BSA Dress Unifom available to adult leaders. Class B's rough parallel is the BSA Field Uniform available to youth and adults. Class C's rough parallel is the activity shirt, with apparel suitable for the task at hand, and now with the "Official" BSA neckerchief. It probably also includes "brag vests" and other materials. FWIW the placement of pins apply to any of these three recognized methods of BSA uniforming in that: There is no official document prohibiting their use, but There is no official statement describing their intended use. Therefore, if you are willing to criticize someone putting their mentor pin on their field uniform, you must necessarily be willing to criticize someone doing so on a dress uniform, and someone in an activity uniform. In essence you must say such pins have no place in BSA uniforming with no guidance as to where their place belongs. Absence of endorsement is not prohibition. It's merely lack of endorsement. For some, that is sufficient to keep their pins on some non-BSA apparel, for others it's the loophole they want to jump through. Now I am not one to ask for an endorsement for things to which I am not prohibited. It violates my rule #1. (I.e.: Never ask for a rule.) As far as I'm concerned, National can stay mum on this forever. Scouters may read here about the little tempest in the teapot their innovations may inspire ... and decide for themselves how to best handle it in their units/districts/etc ... Life is more fun that way.

This sounds like words from parents who are fully informed and either satisfied with the answers they got from the camp or preparing legal action and have the good sense to not tip their hand to the press. Since the reporter can't pick the low-hanging fruit of a tear-jerking story, it's time to shake the tree for something nefarious. From my experience of being asked by a family to handle the press on their behalf, this is the worst part of modern tragedy. Fortunately, our IH was good at stonewalling camera crews for us.

Unless the troop has Muslims boys and religious sensitives are a concern, This is not about three square meals in a timely fashion. This is about after action review with the boys. Did the SM have it? What did they think? What do they want to improve upon? How can you all help them? The QM coach is a good idea if the boys are concerneD about getting organized and said they want a little help. If it's motivated by something else, it really won't help the boys grow all that much.

I'm with @@Stosh here. You need to make it clear that the committee will not micromanage troop program ... it will support it. When folks eat what is not a committee decision. It's up to the boys to evaluate the magnitude of the problem and thoughtfully come upon the best solution. (FWIW, in our troop, the best solution was eat before you come. Friday involves cracker-barrel.)

@Lu Ta Don't get too enthused by some of the ideas (or overly rankled by replies to them). BSA does not have all the "site inspection" rules that GS/USA has. So, use the safety guidelines for brownies to identify if there's something you would normally do that would conflict with encroachment on the park. Here's some steps (they worked for me when my family had to deal with rolling projectiles - a.k.a. cars left in neutral -- crashing our fence, and even though we're on opposite coasts I think they will work for you): Contact one of your town councilman. He or she can help you put this on the docket at their next meeting. Or, maybe he can put you in touch with the person on your park board. It's likely he'll get in touch with the Mayor on your behalf. Present your petition respectfully. Frankly, I don't think signatures from beyond your community are of any use. Ask them to relay your concerns to the casino owner and the bus companies. It's what elected officials are supposed to do so people's emotions don't get in the way of making the town a better place. (And rubber-encased air remains that way, @@JoeBob ) What you need, besides pictures of cars and buses, is documentation that someone instructed bus companies to use the park. In fact, you may want to ask some casino goers about how they knew to park there. So, make some friends. See if anyone can show you instructions that they received directing them to do what they did. Needless to say, if those instructions came from an elected official, you can ask him if he'll be campaigning on this next term! Eventually, the casino will be asked to make some improvement. They may pawn off responsibility at first, but with persistence and courtesy, they might figure out a way to be a good neighbor. That may include a stand for selling popcorn -- and cookies!

Now for the arduous task of all those greetings ... Welcome! And thank you for your service to the boys!

First, two-deep leadership applies to overnight activities. The principle here is no one-on-one contact. And, frankly, for an afternoon/evening activity, no adults need to be present. I suspect the misinterpretation of youth protection requirements put you in the awkward position of having to be there with nothing of importance to do. Your time might have been better invested in a different corner of the house teaching the dad whatever knots you know. Let the PL know that if the boys feel stuck on a knot, he could find you, and you'd come by and demonstrate it. The SM and I come off as very laid back, because a good part of the meeting is chatting with adults with only one eye on the boys. What we are actually doing is having meaningful conversations that some of the boys may overhear.

Good point. Let me rephrase ... A boy should know what kinds of questions may be asked. He should know that this is how a committee learns what's important for the troop, and maybe what should change. He should know to provide a succinct answer, stop, listen, and think (i.e., take a breath) before answering the question. He should not have any idea of what we old farts think the right answer should be. Nobody learns what by hearing what we already know. So, it's really important that our boys are prepared to speak their mind respectfully ... not to attempt to read the minds of their reviewers.

You just answered your question for you. Let the boys do the talking. Here's some BoR questions that may help: 1. What is your favorite thing about our troop? Least favorite? 2. If there was one thing you'd like the troop to do while you're working on your next rank, what would it be? 3. You know, the new SM is gonna be a busy guy (new wives do that to a fella), now that a bunch of you are advanced, what troop responsibilities do you think you boys could do to make his job easier? 4. Do you like your current position of responsibility? What would you like to do differently with it? Or would you like to try a different PoR? Or, is there a service project you'd rather lead? 5. If there's one place you'd like to take your patrol (maybe while the adults stay home or back at camp, if it's an overnight) where would it be? And, since it sounds like you're tight with one or more of these boys: NO COACHING IN ADVANCE.

Enjoy the sit-down with their advisor. I think ultimately you will need to give a special "training for scout-parents" seminar. You're kinda sorta becoming the unit commissioner.

I think this hits hardest on an NSP of 8 crossovers who were advancing uniformly in isolation of the troop. If they've all made it to 2nd class at about the same time, they have to set aside 8 camping nights to get everyone up to speed. Even so, I don't see this as the greatest problem. While one boy and a buddy cooks, the others could be mastering other first class skills. (Camp gadgets, swimming, navigation, etc ...). Of course the obvious troop-method solution is to try to integrate these 2nd class scouts into existing patrols. But, if they've been really mastering skills and having a great time, why would you want to? IOLS: maybe the best syllabus would simply be allowing direct-contact leaders to earn advancement. That way, they hit the same snags as the boys do without having to waste a weekend trying to foresee all possible advancement woes years into the future. Rosters: Did I miss something? Does the sample duty roster require rotating everyone? OR is it just implied? At summer camp, our boys usually rotate into cook for all three meals of the day. On weekends, we honestly don't pay attention to who does what. If the PL is always fine with how his boys chip in with chores, we might not ever suggest a roster to him.

Foil-lined cardboard boxes seem to work the best. I've also propped up large rocks for a similar effect. My brother made one from #10 cans pounded flat and wrapped around coat-hanger wire scaffolding. Impressive, but I never used it.

Rosters are meant to be ignored. Just ask to be cook for a full day (or three consecutive meals, if you all insert before suppertime). I'm not against using multiple camp-outs, but that really drags things out. And each of the T2F requirements are best worked on over the span of a weekend. Lot's of newbies? Plan more camp-outs -- especially, "back nine" camping with the patrol. Round here, some boys are counted on to be the weekend cook for dad's hunting camp. Getting them trained in their patrol is a boon to our families.

Well, by the logic of @@BDPT00 and @@Krampus, since there is zilch in the insignia guide about pinning neckers, or fashioning neckers out of pins, or pinning bolo ties ... it is a uniform violation to use pins in that fashion. To which I say ... if someone does manage to configure such an animal (I could imagine a "spiral" of pins wrapping a necker or maybe a chain-mail necker interspersed with pins), please post a pic. I would love to see it functioning. By the way, I don't buy for a minute that just because an element is "optional" that it is less a part of the official uniform. Just because it is allowed to vary within a troop, once the boys clearly articulate its use for their troop -- as they should, it is a official.

That we care more for who is under the shirt than what is on it? Here's the thing: a search of "mentor" or "pin" in the IG comes up with zilch. Thus some folks take that as lattitude, others see it as limiting. So, what about the BSA dress uniform? Can scouters wear a mentor pin or two on that lapel?

Although not in uniform, I don't see anything wrong with a scout leader testifying that the parents in his/her troop are feeling encroached upon by industry in what used to be a community setting.

FYI: Inuit has no more words for snow (or any kind of precipitation, for that matter) than does any western language. They use adjectives just like the rest of us. Although, when it comes to rain, I'm sure the Brits' adjective choice is far more colorful!