SemperParatus

Thanks all for the good information.

After a schedule like that, its a wonder you still the strength to type. Congratulations on the SM role. Have fun with it! Welcome back.

Just do it with honor and fall on your Swiss Army Tinker Only $14.99 from scouter.com

Nonqualified deferred comp plans have been around for decades. It is not a financial shenanigan. It is a very common business practice to ensure adequate compensation is paid to those selected and charged with the ultimate responsibility of managing large, complex business entities. Non-profits, in particular, make use of nonqualified plans since stock-based compensation options are not possible.

By the power vested in me, I hereby confer upon you the virtual and fictional title of honorary boy scout, together with all rights and privileges pertaining thereto. There, its official. Welcome to the party! You sound like a lot of fun. Have some bug juice, but please don't spill any on the carpet.

The thing I dislike the most about cruises is that I always seem to run into the drunk loudmouth that thinks he knows more than the captain and staff about how to run a ship.

EIKY'mon I always thought you had that certain je ne sais quoi.

If left to their own devices, sometimes boys can sometimes be lazy. Just hanging out with friends for a weekend and 'doing nothing' can sometimes be an attractive option. Doing it on every trip would likely become boring for many boys and you can probably see that evidenced in trip participation levels and scout retention. It sounds like this group may need some motivation and ideas, which can certainly be provided by the adults in a boy-run troop. At the next PLC meeting, challenge them to come up with at least a dozen new trip ideas of things they think could be cool and that the troop has not done before (at least in recent memory). I would find it hard to believe that whitewater rafting, caving, rock climbing, windsailing, waterskiing, skiing, cycling, tubing, shooting guns, sea kayaking, etc. would not make it on the list and be appealing to many. If they have trouble, start the ball rolling for them. Have them think about cool places they went on family vacations that they think others might like to experience. Maybe print out some calendars of other troops in the area (or country) to show them what they may be missing.

Ed, Are you Albanian...or what?

20,710 Albanian Leks?

While we are addressing the interpretation of this oh so important requirement, I think we need to also think about the 'jump feetfirst' language. What constitutes a jump? How much air should be required? Is a step off the side sufficient? Is a hop okay? I expect an Eagle Scout should be capable of diving off the cliffs at Acapulco...should I protest if a swim test is administered without a 136 foot jump? What about feetfirst? Does an amputee need to seek an exception? Do both feet need to hit the water at the same time, otherwise one foot is first and the other is second?

Time to visit the latrine...if I could just get the pas de deux open Let me translate that Texas twang for you... Where do you live in France? (This message has been edited by SemperParatus)

Welcome. You can have my log. I've been sitting so long I have sor bonnes.

Well there is 'depth', 'length' and 'width'. Depth = deep. It must be deep enough to cover your head. What else could depth possibly mean? As far as putting your head under water...not required either. It is possible for some to jump feet first and barely get the top of their heads wet by keeping arms and hands horizontal to the surface of the water. I believe the Handbook has pictures that demonstrate this technique.

'Over your head' means over your head, which would include scarcely over your head. Off the top of my head, I would say your SM's interpretation is fine.

If I received an unsolicited letter of nonrecommendation from someone I never heard of about an event that allegedly transpired some time ago, I would trash it immediately.

Our Greenbar meetings are attended by SPL, ASPL, PLs, APLs, Guides - afterall, they have the green bars. Scribe also attends to keep minutes. Also, whoever else is deemed necessary to attend by SPL given upcoming plans. SM and an ASM also attend.

Your understanding is correct. Your committee is overstepping and taking away an important leadership opportunity from the scouts.

Don't know anyone whose done it, but I can say that Hershey is the Sweetest Place on Earth. If you can't have fun there, you must be dead.

Great to see that both BSA and GSA are doing well and have a strong balance sheet to sustain them well into the future.

You must be very organized. Welcome to our group hug.

Horton Hears A Who...I think it pretty much covers the Scout Law in its entirety. Twelve Angry Men...a PLC meeting with ooomph. For pure leadership contrasts...the first two episodes of Band of Brothers.

Welcome aboard. Its nice to see that you have found your calling in life. I'm looking forward to hearing more from you.

CNYS, Any scout that meets the requirements for the eagle rank is an Eagle Scout. I would make no qualification due to troop deficiencies in providing a quality scouting program. It is not the boys fault that his troop is suffering from poor adult leadership. The 'values' you seem to be searching for are 'responsibility', 'extra-effort', and 'giving back to the unit", none of which are included in the Scout Law. Granted, we would all like our young men to grow with a tremendous sense of personal responsibility and to do more than is expected, but when neither is part of the Scout Law or an explicit requirement for Eagle, then you are asking for more than the BSA requires. Your issues are with your troop's function and the management of the troop by the adult leaders. Why use a boy's rank achievement, within the parameters set out by the BSA and your troop, as a means to attack those problems. To me, its working backwards. You know what the problems are...so fix them; rather than using those problems to question the propriety of a boy's rank. As you know, there is a lot more at stake here than advancement. Fix your troop, so that the young men take away more from their scouting experience. Deriding the Eagle scouts your troop produces under its current operations is not going to fix the problems. Its only bad mouthing the boys' accomplishments.

"He technically did do the requirements just did not learn alot of Scoutings values on the way." Which values? All values or just some? What is alot? What is enough? Were such values even taught/modeled? Does learning entail practice? How much practice? In whose opinion? What is the basis for the opinion?