scoutldr

We had the local Astronomy club come in to do Astronomy MB with our troop. We registered them as counsellors, and one of them requested a merit badge to add to their club scrapbook. A reasonable request, right? The council shop refused to sell me one because it wasn't on an advancement report. I was embarrassed to have to tell them "no" after all of the hours they had donated to scouting. Rules are rules, but gimme a break!

The local Roman Catholic church will not allow scouts the use of their building...not for meetings, not for adult-only training sessions. They don't want anything to do with BSA, no way, no how. That's the parish priest's decision, who apparently is empowered to make such decisions. The DE has tried for years to get units chartered there...they won't even meet with him. A parishioner whom I know explained that the church does, indeed, require criminal background checks for everyone who comes in contact with youth...sunday school teachers, CCD teachers, youth group advisors, etc. To avoid imposing that requirement on "outsiders", they simply won't allow them access.

The best gift that a SM can receive is to see his (or her) scouts grow into responsible, successful young men, exemplifying the Scout Oath and Law in their daily lives, and passing on what they learned to others. IF they happen to make Eagle along the way, so much the better.

Try again...the Green Cross is a registered trademark of the National Safety Council. The Safety MB is a white cross on a green background. Clear as mud, eh?

In our area of the country (your mileage may vary), it's up to the Scouter to track his/her progress and submit the application (usually at roundtable), not the unit. The applications are now available on-line as .pdf downloads, as well. When I conduct training, one of the handouts is the application for the specific knot and an explanation of how to complete it. Some are interested in uniform decorations, many are not. Another question: I think that the medal form of the awards (neck ribbon for Cub Scouters) are still available, but I have never seen one awarded, or even worn any more. The "award" consists of a certificate and the knot. Most people don't even know that a medal exists, and if they want one, do they have to buy their own? Are these considered passe' now?

http://www.scouting.org/international/recognitions.html#iap It appears that the local council determines the requirements for the International Activity Patch. In the course of looking this up I discovered a new square knot!!! The International Scouter's Award.

For as long as I can remember, my late Father called me "Shaky Jake", and he would laugh at me when doing things like trying to hit the slot on a screw with a screwdriver. I find it difficult and embarrassing to eat soup in public...not much is left on the spoon when it reaches my mouth. At an early age, I realized I would never be a brain surgeon. My handwriting, once a source of pride, has been getting progressively worse over the years. I don't shake all the time...only when trying to do something like raise a spoon to my mouth. I blamed it on too much caffeine, but after reading your post, I now realize this may be a treatable disorder. I also recognized propranolol as being Inderal, a beta-blocker used for high blood pressure.

It's not just you. I agree. BUT...the BOR chair should not even schedule the BOR if all of the requirements were not complete.

I have been told by my employer that I must value diversity. I do not patronize McDonalds because I know they are universally bad. I can count on it no matter where in the world I happen to be.

That's pretty arrogant, ed. So anyone who doesnt' agree with you is wrong? IF you want the guarantee of "Freedom of religion", then we must also guarantee "Freedom FROM religion", especially religion with which we don't agree. With the Establishment Clause (aka, the First Amendment), the Framers wanted to guarantee that the Government would never establish a State Religion (i.e., the "Church of England" or "atheism") and to guarantee that religious persecution could not exist in a free society. So, as an educated and intelligent person, my interpretation is that Government may support groups such as the Scouts, who have religious duty as a basic tenet, however, in turn those groups may NOT advocate (and thereby discriminate) a specific religion over another (e.g., LDS, Christianity, Judaism, or Islam) or exclude those who choose not to agree. Benefits provided by the GOvernment (that is, our tax dollars), must be made available to all citizens regardless of race, gender, ethnicity or creed. The solution is for the members to put their money where their beliefs are, so that the BSA doesn't need to depend on Government largesse. It's almost FOS time!

At the time it happened, the news reported that the Church had leased the camp from the Colonial Virginia Council for the weekend. The rental agreement did not include the lake, and it was specified that it was off limits. Nor was aquatics a part of the Church's planned activities. The youth snuck away from the group and one dared the other to a swimming race to a raft anchored in the middle of the lake. Their deaths were tragic, but were the result of their own misconduct.

Merlyn, I respect your beliefs and your right to express them...you are a valuable member of the forum and have made me think. Although it may not have been evident in my post, I am still wrestling with this issue in my own mind. I do believe all forms of discrimination are wrong. I, myself have been the victim of racial discrimination many times (some would call it "reverse" discrimination, but the result is the same). I wish the organization that I grew up in and still love were more inclusive, or at least not as disclusive. I think the best option might be "local option". COs should be able to set their own membership standards. We have units sponsored by christian churches where every meeting is started with prayer and a "message" and they have the Cross of Jesus on the back of their Troop neckerchiefs. They are spoonfed their religious awards in classes at Den and Troop meetings (God and Country mills???). Other units are exclusively LDS or Muslim. ALthough, technically, if a white Jew tried to join the Muslim unit, he probably wouldn't be turned away, he would feel pretty darn unwelcome while the entire unit prays to Mecca 6 times a day, don't you think? Wonder how the Jewish kid would feel having to wear Christian symbols on his official uniform and having to listen to New Testament scripture readings during the opening? Others, like ours, adhere to the Declaration of Religious Principles, but have a "don't ask, don't tell" attitude, and religion is not a real visible part of our program, so I like to think we are as inclusive as they come. Like the BSA treats sex education, my personal belief is that religious training is a parental duty, according to their own faith and custom. And I believe we will be judged on how we treat our fellow human beings, and by our stewardship of God's creation...including the sinners and non-believers He created. Maybe this is a test??? HMMMMMMM.

Merlyn, read the "12 steps"...do you also advocate goverment agencies withdraw support from Alcoholics Anonymous? Around here, churches regularly meet in our schools until their buildings are built. What about military chaplains and churches on military bases? Your tax dollars are providing religion to the troops and the amount spent is FAR in excess of the paltry support provided to the BSA. But if we want to provide a coffee pot in our office (military), we are not allowed to spend congressionally appropriated funds ... we have to pay coffee mess dues. Where is the logic? Why not go after the BIG bucks where you could make a difference.

Scouter ties are available regularly on eBay...

NAVY FOOTBALL The Naval Academy Athletic Association would like to invite your scout troop to join us for our annual "Scout Day" on November 22, 2003, for the Navy vs. Central Michigan game in Annapolis, MD at 1:30pm. This promotion is available for boy scouts, girl scouts, cub scouts, etc. We are offering $8 discounted reserved seats for scouts and $15 reserved seats for parents. You can camp out the weekend of the game, tour the yard (Naval Academy) with a Midshipman, and receive a patch for the event. There will be special recognition for those who come in groups of 20 or more and Eagle Scouts will be recognized during the game Order deadline is October 30, 2003. Please contact Ray Dixson at 1-800-874-6289, ext. 140, or via e-mail at dixson@usna.edu for further information.

Did you mean to say "Varsity letter"? We have no Varsity units in our Council...wonder why BSA keeps it alive?

Words, words, words...

I'm not diabetic (yet!), but my wife is an RN and my mother was insulin dependent Type 2. She advises that we should always carry glucose tablets, or cake frosting in the squeeze tube...someone unconscious cannot swallow solids so the frosting is squeezed in between the cheek and gum and massaged in. Avoid the color blue, since it will look like cyanosis! It will absorb through the skin of the gums. All scouts and scouters who camp with diabetics should be trained in the signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia (low sugar) and first aid.

Man o steele, spelling is, indeed important. It's Captain Jean-Luc Picard. And most missed FOG's metaphor, "He was hoist on his own pitard." Pitard being a spear, and being hoist (impaled) on one's own spear denotes the ultimate in blunders. It is indeed a dying art to be able to insult with the victim remaining clueless!

For $350 bucks, I would have rinsed them off. 7 second rule applies, right? Yes it's a rip off, but it is small potatoes for the insurance company to investigate. That's why my premiums are over $200 a month and going up 10-15% per year. And why I now have to pay ($600) for a separate non-group policy for my full-time student son who turns 22 in January, but is still living under my roof and out of my wallet. My "self and family" policy now covers 2 people instead of the original 4...but my premiums are the same. Fairness??? Forget it. BOHICA!

Not to start another off-thread debate, but the implication that overweight means that one has heart disease is just not true. It's just one of many risk factors. I'll bet smokers are not automatically disqualified, but they should be, using that logic.

Speaking for my ASM who used to be one.."The Green Berets"

Bravo!

The "Insignia Guide 2003-2005" is out, cat no 33066D, but I had to drive 4 hours to get it. Maybe if we all refuse to buy the old stuff, someone will get the message. As I said, I travel a lot and always try to visit the Council Shop in other councils. I spent over $100 at the National Capital Area Council updating my "training library" of new versions that I didn't know were out. For some reason, they had all new up to date stuff. I really would like to support my local council, but I don't appreciate being sold old goods. If I were a Cub leader, I would order all new stuff from National if I had to. Why have kids start the program using obsolete materials?

OGE, CPAP here also. If I don't use the machine, I wake up with a crushing headache because my O2 saturation drops below 80% during the night. At summer camp this year, this 100 foot orange extension cord snaked through the woods leading to my tent. All of our leaders snore, but I am the only one so far that has gotten diagnosed (severe OSA) and now I travel with my machine and earplugs everywhere. I don't feel comfortable wearing earplugs while camping, however, for safety reasons (can't hear the bears eating the scouts!) For those who don't know, Obstructive Sleep Apnea is when the tissues of the soft palate relax during sleep and block the airway causing the patient to stop breathing for up to a minute at a time...20-30 times an hour. This causes constant arousal (not the good kind) and deprivation of REM sleep. The CPAP machine forces air into the nose to keep the airway inflated during the night (not as bad as it sounds).. The surgery has now fallen into disfavor because it is very painful and usually does not work. My brother in law had it and he snores worse than ever. (they take a laser and carve away the soft palate and uvula...OUCH!) The sleep technician who did my study said "whatever you do, don't have the surgery...it NEVER works! We went cabin camping last year, and my machine blew air that smelled like bacon grease for weeks after I got home (should have changed the filter!). And not only have I been to Bethlehem, I was born there! (actually Easton!)