qwazse

So, the majority of kids did not attend BSA summer camps (which ubiquitously sleep two per tent, not 20 per cabin as in the camp recently studied) and the pandemic “is as bad now as it’s ever been ...”

And this is why our scouts should be encouraged to meet directly with BLM and LEO to provide venues for orderly discussions. Nothing ruins a propaganda machine more than kids asking tough questions. Patrol, verb: observe and report.

Oh, sure ... publicly pushing kids into the known highest risk for abuse scenario ... the one that has zero accountability. If you thought the lawsuit ads are bad now, just imagine how bad they’ll be three decades from for anyone who oversells family scouting today?

Maybe they can write it off as a donation to BSA and GS/USA ...

So, once an Imam tried to call me out for saying "Peace Be With You ..." in Arabic because I was a Christian. I cracked open my Arabic New Testament and showed him the verse where the Angel Gabriel gives Mary the same greeting. He tried to claim that my scripture was corrupted. I asked him to show me where in his scripture it says that mine is corrupted (spoiler: it doesn't). I then asked him where in his scripture does it say that non-Muslims couldn't use the standard greeting (spoiler: nowhere). Of the hundreds of Muslims from beggars to sheikhs who I've met since then, none has objected to appropriating this little bit of Islamic culture (and I have told scholars about my encounter with this one Imam). In fact most were very pleased when non-Muslims made the effort. Should I avoid honoring the hundreds for the sake of the one? It's a big country. Nobody even in a single clan (let alone tribe) is going to approach this with the same sentiment. That's why I rate each of these articles on how often tribal elders get quoted. They have a long view and offer insights. I could be wrong, but I suspect that the Mic-O-Say folks have done more homework than the bloggers.

Yeah, my uncles and aunts would throw their weight around as well. As individuals, even though they were fully dressed, it was not a great look, but ensemble ... truly beautiful. (Yes, even a conservative family who would never bare midriffs learned a few moves.) Love the Shriners! So, in town they had a clubhouse called the Syria Mosque. (Look it up sometime.) Classic 19th century brick, some of which was fired in relief with Arabic script around the eves. Folks always had a laugh explaining it to the devout looking for Friday prayers! They relocated and built a larger building, albeit with a less ornate exterior. But, they sold the old building by getting two divisions of the same company in a bidding war. I still imagine those guys in their go carts weaving down 5th Avenue all the way to the bank! The old building was demolished and turned into a parking lot. The decorative brick was sold and can be found in various private gardens. I never met an Arab who, learning about the Shriners, was offended by them using Arabic/Turkish history and culture to do good work.

Which protestors? and under whose authority? As an Arab American, I might encourage you all to appropriate my culture. There's a mom in my troop who is a belly dance instructor. She can bring you all up to speed. But if another Syrian (say Bashar al-Assad) protests, it's him versus me and that scout mom. Whose wishes would you regard?

Lazy tweet-trolling disguised as journalism. The author didn't even bother to call a local tribal elder for his/her take on the matter.

@yknot and I clearly disagree about the risk to children from camps. I believe he overestimates the inherent risk of camps -- especially relative to the risks youth face in their respective neighborhoods. He obviously believes I underestimate it. Having gone to camp myself, I observed more benefit than risk. The national risk of many camps closing their session involves: Youth and leaders from high-transmission areas traveled longer distances to the few camps that were open. Would-have-been campers missed out on practicing the discipline of safe hygiene, social distancing, and self-monitoring. Institutions who could have provided insight into contact-tracing were dormant. We are bearing the brunt of it now as teachers, lacking evidence to help them negotiate this fall, are stressed by the unknown.

@skeptic, I feel your pain.

That’s patently absurd on its face. One could be doing charitable work, but also be compelled to, and need a separate funding stream to lobby for public policy. These days, charities that don’t have sufficiently strong lobbying arms might find themselves victims of laws being changed to, say, increase statutes of limitations for legal actions against them.

Some things ... Churches and schools have libraries that need catalogued. Historical societies have articles that need scanned and clipped. Nursing home residents who need someone to call them, or a talented scout to record a song and personal greeting to them.

@thebigJLT3546, welcome to the forums. You sounded like one of the ‘cool’ adults. I already replied on the scoutbook forums and won’t pile on here. Except to add: look for ideas in the Boy Scout Fieldbook.

What ‘severe consequences’? Will someone be wrongfully imprisoned? Lose their home? Forced to wear some scarlet letter? What on earth kind of suffering can maligned scouters dole out? Really?

I’ve heard mixed opinions from gun owners over the years. The scholarships for youth camp’s ammo education, etc ... are nice. But a lot of folks are thinking they could get more to the kids without it funneling through an administrative behemoth. Sound familiar? That’s not to say the NY AG is free of agendas. But it has a long tradition punishing any false claims made in its jurisdiction. (A friend learned that the hard way when he posted a Times classified as a practical joke on another friend.)

Although the advice of your local health dept. is paramount, I would encourage outdoor in-person den meetings. Of course every den is different. And the risks are palpable. My grandson’s daycare reported one positive in the baby area. Fortunately he wasn’t there last week and tested negative.

Sure, it’s a big country so sooner or later your gonna cross paths with these types ... but, there’s a lot more folks willing to stand up for their youth.

First congratulations on your scout for his advancement. Second, the troop COR can report to the district commissioner that he/she witnessed the UC overstep his bounds and prosecute a BoR with prejudice against a scout. He/she can then request that the troop be assigned a different UC who visits at scheduled meetings and does not disrupt a committee performing its proper duties.

Land-O-Lakes might serve as a metaphor here. As a friend told me, “Remove the Indian, keep the land.”

Following because my institution offers it. But, I personally have not had the need.

@Mikey52971, welcome to the forums! I agree with @Eagle94-A1. And for one simple reason: Stupid happens fast. Scouts qualify to take out boats by themselves. If they can swim 100 yards, or float without panic, death can be forestalled. One wrong guess about a scout's current ability, and you'll carry a lifetime of regret. It's really worth your while to get parents up to speed with safety afloat, and truly great if you can bring a lifeguard and swim-test on site. Contact your district commissioner, they are bound to know of qualified folks in your district. Your community Red Cross or YMCA may also be able to help.

My condolences. As someone whose parents were called to the higher trail some time ago, and whose in-laws joined them recently, I can assure you that that the best way to honor the departed is to retell their stories. For my dad, who was on my troop committee and active in the VFW, it took me a while to find the best way to do that ... given that I had moved some ways from home. Eventually an opportunity came to me. I had my kids’ troop/crew “adopt“ one of the city’s larger cemeteries to decorate veterans graves with flags for Memorial Day. During that evening, I explain that I’m doing this on faith that someone is doing the same by graves of my dad and brothers. Then while walking around making sure everyone has the supplies they need, I tell the youth (and young vets present) some of the ways he encouraged patriotism among youth in our community. My goal is simple: to instill some of his values in them. Sounds like your dad would be pleased if you did something similar.

@TAHAWK, it's not me, it's the kids' earworms. This lot is stuck in the 7th and 8th decade of the last century. Stairway wasn't on my radar until I "appeared" in the midst of their hammock nest (all week, they kept wondering how I could do that) to enforce lights out, and that's the disk they were spinning.

As written for 2c: So, a 20' pool is not wide enough to adhere to the requirements as written. The operative phrase "... in a strong manner ..." So, as written , the requirement mandates some judgment in determining a feeble vs. a strong manner. This cuts both ways, as @yknot indicates. The water could be inhospitable to the point that scouts fail under conditions in which they normally wouldn't be doing aquatics. The solution is to find more suitable water and test again while making a note to self to avoid putting your scouts in those inhospitable conditions again. Or, it could be "too hospitable" that it doesn't reflect the normal course of aquatic activities and conceals a scout's true ability or lack thereof. My bottom line: recruit an evaluator who's guarded for a while, who's had to rescue a tired swimmer or two, and who can look at the pool in question and determine if it simulates a scout's "real world" swimming scenario. (E.g., getting oneself out from the middle of an aquatics area, getting oneself to shore or the nearest boat.) Edited to add: BTW: Even though I'm qualified by most standards, I don't do swim tests. I know that my desire to get everyone up and at the next adventure should be tempered by someone who's been currently guarding for the better part of a season or two over the past couple of years.

Actually, @Mrjeff, as people in the business of forestalling death, it is our duty to be somewhat particular about those “basic” requirements for little ovals upon which is a scroll with a two word declarative statement: Be prepared. If not for those two words, I would get behind your any ship in a storm approach. The nagging question that these ranks are supposed to answer with regards to aquatics: can the scout swim enough yards to save his/her life? The answer in the context of a backyard pool is only “yes” if it reasonably simulates the typical swimming area a 2nd or 1st class scout will regularly encounter.