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As mentioned in the other thread. We sing. What I didn't explain: If a boy's shy, the SPL and PL's will join him (half the time, they have to sing for stuff anyway). Usually there are several items, and the boys line up together. Our crew doesn't meet as frequently, and they do a lot of organizing online, so I was toying with making venturers post a Youtube of them singing to claim the stuff they left in my van. But the president wisely nixed that one!

Hey I'm an old crow! One year old, that is. We'd line up after the Antelopes, focused and determined. Ready to ... Ohh, look, a shiny!

Have your son write the publisher. That'll make sure the correction gets made in the next printing. It's also a good experience to get a note back from the editor. Most do reply to these sort of things.

One would do well to think of the HA bases as training centers. They are pretty tightly controlled environments. You can find much wilder for much fewer $$, but you need more conditioning and team building to enjoy it to the fullest. For example, I asked our captain at Seabase Bahamas if he ever hosted any Sea Scouts. He hadn't. That made sense to me after a little. Being on someone else's boat following someone else's well refined float plan is not something a successful sea scout ship would be interested in. Certainly NT is the most isolated, if that's what you mean by wil

Who is this "we" you speak of? Our troop PLC sets the dress code. If a scout comes to them about something that should change, they consider it. The SM only steps in if it's a flagrant deviation from the National norm (e.g. bermuda shorts with the tan shirt). Our crew ... well, let's not even go there.

We sing for stuff (as individuals or in groups) all the time. In fact, I've gotten so good at it the boys just give me my stuff back and sometimes "forget" to ask me to sing. I would never call that hazing. Why? It demeans what true victims of hazing have had to endure.

"Blinders" are in the eye of the beholder. But I've seen more folks get a grip on their own faith as I've been able to spell out my own. Anyway, seems that Merlyn finds it hypocritical that we might give a youth 7 years to decide if the Statement of Religious Principle is not for him, and we'd drum an adult out instantly. My approach is a matter of pure practicality. Some American boys change their religion as often as they do their underwear. Imagine the scenario: Monday (at scoutmaster conference): "I'm and atheist." "Okay turn in your membership card, and I don't wan

I'm no universalist, by any stretch of imagination. But, I know that for many post-moderns (i.e., nearly all of our boys), quoting verses is idle story time. Your religion might as well be another walk-through of a video game. In that sense an animist may very well "get it" better than some text-parsing theologian. But, regardless of where you are on that spectrum ... *You* are the best scripture a boy may ever read. How you act, not what you say, will help him determine if this reverent thing is all it's cracked up to be.

OGE, the point is that God (now matter how generally we define it) is a distinctly human construct. The boy's puppy isn't concerned about it at all. So, he's come to the conclusion that he doesn't need to be either. We want to show him that other people think differently. Now we can argue 'till we're blue in the face about that construct coming from external or internal sources -- wether it's personal or impersonal. (I tend to believe, after these few years of living, that it's external and quite personal. Some of my psychologist colleagues say otherwise.) So, to rephrase Kudu (

While we're talking $$'s here, if you think the price for you to go is prohibitive, you may want to consider staying at home and sponsoring a young man or woman to serve as staff or adult leaders. (I knew two who went last year, one as an ASM and the other as a climbing instructor, they did awesome work and had a great time.) Jambo fees are half for 16 to 25 year old volunteers, but even that can be prohibitive for a college kid or graduate student. You were just toying with going yourself. Maybe you know a young person who would be a great volunteer for an event like this. He or she m

Your expenses as an essential leader may be considered a charitable contribution. This includes fees, travel required to get to the event, and uniforms that are expressely purposed for the organization. Your kid's expensenses are not. A contribution you make to your chartered organization so that other kids can go to the event may be. Depends on the nature of your chartered organization and how they account for stuff.

I think with younger kids you want to start with the dictionary definition. I could care less if your statement of faith matches mine, if you are generally disrespectful at anyone's religion (or lack thereof), that needs to change. If the kid can handle "respecting the religion of others" for now (e.g., not being disruptive in church if he has to go, not teasing his friends or enemies over matters of faith), that's a start for Tenderfoot. You do need to inform the parents about the discussion, and the expectation in scouting is that as the boy matures his opinion will grow (howe

I'm now at the fish-or-cut-bait point of stepping in and disallowing some of the appointments or not. Fish. (I think. If by that you're meaning work with the boys appointed.) In a month have the SPL pull up any lines that aren't "hitting." Recently the SM and I had to admit to the committee "The popular boy - not the best leader - got elected SPL. As much as we don't like it, we'll deal with it." It was a risk because some parents of younger scouts were in the room. We had already lost a few boys because parents didn't appreciate our willingness to let this youth have the reigns.

I love pulling the "not my job card" on upset absentee leaders! SP's right. I know folks whose Pack treasuries "disappeared". A little wisdom and accountability is in order. Point is, you want to encourage the old guard to stick around, so thank them for jumping on this because even if the kids don't appreciate it, it's good to know that responsible people care about these boys $$'s! Encourage them that even though it may take a little more of their time, helping train these young parents will pay off in the long run.

Twocub, It sounds like you have a big enough troop, so there are several ways you can endure this "bump" in the road. Obviously, get the PLC running ASAP. Whoever misses the first one (without calling in with a reasonable excuse in advance), you ask the SPL to find his replacement. Seriously, first part of the meeting: roll call. SPL says who's missing, you ask why, he doesn't know, you say no worries, we'll announce at the next meeting that the position is open. If the boy shows up late, it's up to you how much grace you should dispense. Obviously, you can have the kid who got bum

Now might be a good time to call/E-mail your council (which I think may be mine, too) get in touch with their Jamboree chairperson, and let them know you are anxious to help budget this for your son and tell them what price would be a "deal breaker" for you. My kids have voiced no interest in Jambo, so I've never weighed in with anyone who might be planning the trip. Note that in general, the adults only go to Jambo as scoutmasters or assistants in their council contingent or as Jamboree staff. The practical upshot is that you won't cross paths with your son too much. So the choice

Last fall, one of my youth arranged for Kielbasa foil packs on a Weber gas grill. They turned out really well. Not something you can pack in a long ways, but plenty good if you can bring a car in.

I think the Baby Boomers with connections stretched that upper limit to include the likes of me so they could look less outdated than they really were! I might suggest that you see who on your committee might have a camp or a boat where your SM can get a weekend with just the adults. If you got a tough group of kids, he probably could use some time to talk comfortably about 'em so that everyone is on the same page! Even if you don't have anything better than what you all are doing to offer in terms of advice, it might be worth it to get a good laugh out of your predicament! Who

A bottle of 200 proof is cheaper and has more flexible uses. But seriously, BD, you have a right to sit a boy down with his mom and say "you have a problem, it is ..., you need to fix it, here's how to start [hand out diversion brochures] ... if you make the effort to do this, it will help me to work with you to be a better scout ... if you want to do this with your patrol, I'll see what we can do to help ... if you only want to do this with your mom and maybe your little brother, that's fine too. I will do my best to support you and make it happen. We'll talk about how it works out

As there is no love lost between me and EDGE, I'll spare you any biased comments I may have on that part of the WB experience. Since our groups aced TGOL (partly because me and a guy from another patrol had studied game theory and quickly identified the textbook example for what it was), no complaints there. Others: not so much. Still, that wasn't divisive within patrols. Although effectively car camping, our patrols acted as such the second weekend, and later in the evening, we hiked around to other patrols seeing if anybody wanted some leftover tiramisu. Plus, with cub-moms in o

I get a recurring itch to take my crew back to the Sods! We have a deep affection for the place, but she doesn't always return it with warmth, still waters, and low winds. October is the next opening on our schedule, but I have one youth whose circulation won't permit her to endure long hours in the cold. So, we may be stuck waiting until late April or May. All that to say: have your boys come up with a plans B, C, and D. B and C should be alternative hike plans in case the road is closed to the insertion point for your plan A. D is what you will to do if you call the Potomac Ranger's

Advancement is like poker: make sure you're playing with a full deck. You never know when you'll have to back up the hand you lay down.

BDPT00 And by the way, what "style" of cooking do you think Venturers will use? I think they detest the word "patrol." Well, I've been to enough gatherings to learn that there are "cabin", "tent", "hammock", and "maybe a tarp, when the rain gets heavy" venturers. Needless to stay, cooking style varies with each type. Because my crew has not expressed interest in Jambo or the national youth cabinet, I have avoided stepping in the ring to advise Summit's set-up. Maybe someone more involved will be able to give us a hint as to what they expect would happen. You are right about "patro

No offense to you all who have to fix cracks in walls etc ... but the quake was a pretty innocous event. We lost four Pittsburghers in flash floods last weekend on a stretch of road that was supposed to have excellent drainage. It's a relief to have one disaster that's more novelty than threat. The interesting thing was how incredulous my co-workers were when I told them we probably just felt an earthquake. I replied, "Well, if that wasn't a quake we just felt, we have a lot to worry about. Because whatever else could make the building shake like that is not gonna be good." Fortunate

My daughter and her friend (one ex- the other current VOA officers) taught ILSC (same as above except for crews). They were less enthused about how things looked on paper. While my daughter was reviewing the syllabus, she said "where was this when I was trying to be crew president?" Advisor-dad: "Um, you know that course I was trying to get you all to take but everyone said they had no time for?" Daughter: "Oh, I wouldn't want to take a course, I just wish someone would have given this to me to read." Advisor-dad: [Pounds head against wall.] Fortunately, their students were gu