SSScout

BSA Gary: Welcome to the forums. I hope your sojourn at our virtual crackerbarrel is pleasant . Danbrew has the most of it. In the BSA franchise system, the CO owns the Scout unit, hence the unit's equipment. 99% of all COs just let the Scout Unit do what it will with whatever equipment the SU buys for its use. SOME COs take a more pro-active position; the SU is an extension of their childrens ministry, for instance, If the SU is dissolved (the CO has no use for it, all the Scouts age out and there is no more Scouts, the Council revokes the units charter for whatever reason, etc.) then the CO at ITS descretion, may do whatever it likes with the units equipment and useful property. Sell it? Donate it to a charity, pass it on to another Scout Unit? Lock it up in a closet and ignore the pleas of the units use-to-be leaders? It is possible. If your Troop is "self chartered", ie., Friends of Troop XYZ, that can be a whole different kettle of wormy fish. Check with your District Executive for the specific legalities in your area. Look at your Councils website for names and numbers.

As a nascent Boy Scout Roundtable Commisher, I'd be interested to hear how YOUR Scout Roundtable runs? Is there a regular agenda? Is it up to the whim of the RTC? Do you ask for suggestions of discussion topics? Demos? Guest presenters? Do folks come expecting to be "wowed" or expecting to be slumberfied? Ummmmm?

Ultimately, it doesn't matter what WE say, but what THEY say. By not understanding the correct order of things (wrong advice? No advice? Wrong assumptions?), S2BE has gotten himself in a time crunch. As they say, "go ask your Patrol Leader", only here, he should have been told "go read the Trail to Eagle guidebook (oops, the Eagle Project Book), or "go ask your SM or Troop Advancement Chair".... We hope S2BE has not taken on the wrong nom de scouter.net.... AND...We hope his next posting here is not titled " Eagle Candidate Appeal Process Please".

As a Unit Commish, when I visit my Pack, I always make mention of the boys that are well uniformed. If a Den is in good uniform, I will publicly congratulate them for their "Scout Spirit". I never downplay or castigate a Cub for his lack of uniform. I will, however, comment to the parent if his patches are out of place or such. Now , if the shirt needs tucking in, I will sometimes lean down as I pass the Cub in the hall before the meeting and whisper "tuck your shirt in, Scout" and watch the Cub look up at me in surprise and quickly tuck it in! I too shake my head at the new necker and hat each year, and last year my Pack decided the yellow necker and "Bear" hat was all they needed for all four years.

Looks like a Scout Troop to me.... Making their own rope, putting together a sample tower... Leaders drinking coffee, letting the Scouts be Scouts...

And for the observant Jew or the old order Amish or Mennonite or Quaker or SIkh or Muslim who remain covered as an indication of their faith? How would the Vet deal with that? If the vet would approach me that way, I know I would respond "thank you for your service friend, but no" and then perhaps we would have a discussion about who (or what) we owe first alligiance to. Google

Rumors.... Things I ""heard"""...... Scouts sent home for vulgar language.... Entire Troop quarantined for a flu outbreak... AT&T VIPs given priority on the Big Zip....Certain glow in the dark patches are radioactive and will give you cancer (and are thus more desirable)....bunch of Scouts sent home for showing porn on their schmart phones in the shower house.... a certain political candidate predicted that the Jambo was going to be used for Emergency Mass Evacuation training....there is no poison ivy in West Virginia....there is a 60% chance of rain this afternoon (bright sunshine ).... Look at that radar, the lightning is going to the north of us..... they are going to combine the Pet Care and Cooking merit badges...

Extra $500... Tents, signs, cots, biiiig duffle you can use again, three days of really great entertainment (no fooling, Mark Rivera was great) ( and Third Door Down was pretty good too) (and the King of Sweden and Mike Rowe were no slouches either), Showers... well, scratch that..... various (volunteer staffed) exhibits and activities, hikes in the woods, a really grand fireworks display, time away from the usual stuff, lots of Scouts to smile at and to have smile back at you, (depending on your "duty") rewarding and new challenging solutions to find, camping out (even on such a grand scale), a bag of patches and pins to take home to remind you of all the mud and rain and ....

National Holocaust Museum in Washington DC was created by the US Congress, the National Park Service, President Jimmy Carter and more than $200million in PRIVATE donations... http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005782 It does deal with the "final solution" and mentions other genocidal episodes, but the Nazi death camps are its primary focus and a trip thru it's exhibits often brings visitors to tears, even if you don't read Hebrew or German. If Ohio wishes to aid in "Never Forgetting" , perhaps it is appropriate. But we should REMEMBER the others, too.

The article makes a clear constitutional case against the memorials design.The six pointed star can have other meanings, but if one surveyed people, I would predict the overwhelming majority would associate the six point star with the jewish faith. But perhaps that is not the problem. Perhaps the memorial is of too narrow a focus and needs to broaden its scope. Perhaps it should include ALL genocidal and holocaust episodes: Armenia and the Turks. Serbia and Bosnia. The Khemer Rouge in Cambodia. Argentina. Darfur. Rwanda. Nanking and Suchow in WW2. The evil that created Auschwitz and Dachau was not and never has been limited to Nazi Germany and the Jewish people. Propose a memorial like that, and you will have my support..

In some parts of the world, the necker IS the uniform. The shirts and shorts and such may not be possible or affordable, but if one is a Scout, the necker is worn. It is , perhaps, the only constant among all the Scout brotherhood. Come February, I sponsor a neckerchief slide ("woggle") contest. I collect prizes from local ice cream, burger and donut shops: coupons for free ice cream cones and such. They are eager to support Scouting that way. Our Troop CCh writes thank you notes to them. The slides are judged on artistry, utility and originality. The contest is held at the CoH, and is judged by a local art teacher. It gives me a chance to display my woggle collection and talk a bit about the Scout Necker and its history. Our Troop now has a necker that is larger than the one they had in the YSL uni days, so maybe I have had an an effect that way. Signal flags and arm slings anyone?

His death was mentioned at our worship sunday morning by one of his Venture Scout staffers. He was well respected and loved and will be missed.

Oh, it was an experiment for sure, and one that went surprisingly well, I thought. It was meant to be more of a CAMP and less of a SHOW. Hence the duffles to carry ones gear to the Troop campsite, and the denial of BIG camp gateways. Made a real difference. A Troop could realistically unload their bus, hike to their assigned site, and with their Commissioners guidance be set up and cooking lunch (or dinner) in an hour or two. max. And it was aerobic, for sure. From A camp to the Barrels (shooting ranges)1.5 hours walk the first time. Uphill. Both ways. Garden Ground: from D camp, similar time, hiking THRU A camp. Canopy Tour, 30 minutes from A camp, thru B camp. Food: I just got the email staff survey to fill out, and it makes no mention of basecamp subcamp staff eating with troops, I had to insert that in my comments. Survey assumed (I think) all staff lived in Ecamp and ate in the BIIIIG mess tent. The food there was surprisingly good and hot and plentiful. In conversation with the messtent folks, the professionals worked well with all the foodie volunteers. It was the take along lunches that most folks found fault with. At breakfast, you made up a bag of "shelf stable" packets of gummy bears and trail mix granola, the banana chips and pineapple chips and "etc.". When they had the bumblebee tuna or BBQ chicken cans those were appreciated. Crystal lite mix to tasty up your water bottle. Any left over perishables were tossed. Back in A4 camp, I helped sort out the left overs for food pantry donations. Never saw so many big bags of cornflakes and "crispy rice". And surprise! Dozens of bottles of catsup. Pantry picked up every other day. When the busses were being loaded on the last day , we parceled out the left over snack food. Being sympathetic to the bus driver, I eliminated the gooey, messy stuff (peanut butter, jelly packets) .The Scouts took every cracker, cookie, apple pie, and fruit strip but pointedly left the trailmix bags. They had had enough of them! Camp A4 donated three boxes (the Summit Boxes) of trailmix granola. packets.

From Wheeling West bygod Virginia.. .http://www.theintelligencer.net/page/content.detail/id/587799/Farnsworth-Honored-At-National-Scout-Jamboree.html?nav=515

As a staffer in A4, I can vouch for the wastage. five pound boxes (two each Troop) of potatoe salad and mac salad were often never opened. Staff ate with the Troops, and often brought stuff back to our fridge (only one in 8,000 Scout camp) for later snacking. It seemed the meals were calorically planned for a Scout on a winter camping trip, not for one in 110% humidity and 90 degree days. As for the "shelf stable " lunch, I agree. More protein and less gummy bears would have been welcome. The Bumble Bee canned chicken and tuna lunch packs were a favorite. Many Troops were given 2 half gallons of 2% milk a day , and brought back 5 h/gallons a week. The Scouts just didn't drink it. Same for the orange, grape juice. But if the bottle was not opened, it got donated. I helped sort the food pantry donations, and a pickup was made at least every other day. Bags and bags of corn flakes, crispy rice, oatyohs. 40 bottles of catsup. on and on... And many Troops brought canned goods to donate on their arrival. Much appreciated. Come departure day, I sorted out many boxes of snack food and the Troops took it with them for their trips home. One Troop said they had a 15 hour trip straight through to Michigan. Passed out every left over cherry and apple pie, pinapple, banana chips, apples, many oranges, crackers, cookies, power bars, The boxes of trail mix salty nut stuff went begging, they had had enough of that. Having a sympathetic feeling for the bus driver, I did not pass out the squeezy cheese or peanut butter or jelly packs. They went to the food pantries. As an aside, after the Scouts were departed, and we staff rode the shuttle bus around to E camp for dinner, we enjoyed the sight of deer, ground hog and wild turkey (!) coming out of the woods to reclaim the tent sites. Rumors of bear sighted were rife. And I heard great horned owl back in the woods around A camp. 7 hours later, I was home. Now, I gotta vacuum the living room rug......

GSUSA is council/leader oriented. No leader, no program. Leader wants cookies and fashion, GSTroop has cookies and fashion. Leader wants hikes and camping, GSTroop has hiking and camping. Leaders want male leaders, male leaders are welcomed. My good friend Ted formed a Daisy Troop for his daughter, they got dirty, looked for crawfish. Folks flocked to his Daisies.... While a CM, I approached the GS leaders at our elementary school to offer a joint "Join Scouting " night, their response was, "no thank you, we have enough girl scouts, don't want any more (Scout's honor, what they said)". Ever hear a BSA leader say they have enough boys, don't want any more?? Not even to form another Troop?? GSTroop traditionally dissapears when the girls age out. BScout Troop/Pack continues while there is a CO and leaders to make it happen. Ever see a GSTroop 50 years old? Yes, there are GSTroops "experimenting" with multi-age units, but that is not the "official" way things are supposed to operate. The GS program (such as it is) depends on the Leader, not the defined program. There is no program, but what the leader wants to do. There is nothing to MEET, except the leader wants to. In BSA, there is a standard to live up to, and it is encouraged (?enforced?) by a cadre of pros. Never seen or heard of a GSUSA pro doing the same. GSUSA camps are few and far between, yes, with many a tradition, but not the same as a BSA camp (never mind the mass selling off of camps. Another issue.). Venture program is good, but like anything else, it depends on promotion and the leaders attitude, but the BSA at least has a program that the adult leader can use and be trained for.

Why Woodbadge? When I staffed the course almost two years ago, I asked that question of the 50 or so participants, and here is (unedited) what some of them wrote::: “REASONS WHY I TOOK WOOD BADGE†(or, Why YOU should take Wood Badge) *I took away a lot of ideas from everyone else, not just the staff. *It reminds me of how much fun Scouting can be. *The fellowship. *It helps to build leadership in my Troop. *My sense of obligation makes me want to payback to Scouting. *Self-empowerment. I can do more, because I can. *To grow spiritually. *It keeps the Pack trainer off my back. *It’s my Eagle. To accomplish it as my special project. *To hear awesome bugling. *To learn leadership skills. *A chance to play and camp as an adult. *Train to make better project planning. *Gives you the BIG picture of Scouting, not just the day to day stuff. *Gets you in a Scout Spirit atmosphere. *Looking for the “AHA†moments. Found’em. *Make the transition from Cub Scout to Boy Scout more seamless. *Gain in understanding the “other†Scout. *I am not alone. *Seeking ‘Personal Growth’, it’s not just about the boys and girls, but adults too. *It renews your energy for Scouting. *Big chance, not just happenstance, to interface with lots of other Scouters. *“A raven is like a writing deskâ€Â. *Supreme networking. *Observing excellent exampling of Scout leading.. *Learning that everyone has their own strengths and talents and weaknesses – that the group can often accomplish more together than anyone singularly. *To experience the very best in leadership (what they told me before I came!). I think I did. *I gained tools to look at one’s past to be a better leader in the future. *You can’t help your Scouts “get it†until you “get itâ€Â, and Wood Badge is where I “got itâ€Â. *“Rehydrate†for Scouting souls: Water for the physical body, Wood Badge for the “Scouting†body. *For the Coffee. *Obtain a deeper understanding of the purpose of Scouting. *If you choose to do something, if you volunteer to do something, don’t you want the best skills to enable you to do that something the very best way possible? Why do it half way? *To benefit from them that have “been there and done thatâ€Â. The ones that did not respond? Well, I can't report wht they didn't tell me.

And "they" say we don't need a "Faith and Chaplaincy " forummmmmmmmm. Is the "Supernatural Ruling Entity of the universe" real or mythological? Depends on your attitude. Is it a Deist type (set the rules and components of the universe in motion and stand back to watch) or a (don't have a title) activist God, who takes personal inerest in his creation? Or some sort of combination? Can't rescind the law of gravity , but maybe help a human along the way.... Can't prevent cancer if the certain conditions are met, but maybe help show the way to avoid breathing toluene and ammonia. The recorded miracles of Jesus are part of how/why the Christian faiths were created. We don't have BIG miracles anymore to "prove" faith. Parting seas, raising the dead, curing deseases from a distance.... So we have to learn to recognize the "small" miracles. Some folks call these "coincidences", or "accidents". But they are the personal attention getters that fall across our path every so often. People we meet, "just in the nick of time", who are just the right person to help at just the right moment. The tree that falls across your cars path, not hitting it, thus preventing you from driving into another problem you meet later. The right words that come to your lips , despite your not being prepared to speak on that subject. Remembering that odd piece of something that you saved for no good reason on the back of the top shelf that happens to be just the thing to fix the necessary part you need for that important project. That piece of broken rock that could have hit you , had you been a foot further along the sidewalk, but you hesitated to glance at the pretty flower. This is more than "not boarding the Titanic". Recognizing the godspark can allow more to be recognized. As Quakers, we meet in silence, allowing the Spirit to inspire us and (perhaps) speak the message given us. I participated in a workshop once on the subject of recognizing when to Speak in Meeting, and when to Wait. We recognized there are "symptoms" indicating a need to speak, sweaty palms, nervous feet, inability to sit still, an urgency to say ,,,,something. Sometimes the subject is not known until we stand and give voice to it. One of the older women in the workshop circle was seen to be crying as we discussed these "symptoms". She finally said she had experienced all of them at one time or another , over the years had successfully fought them down, and now they no longer occurred. Look for and acknowledge the Small Miracles in your life.

Welkom! What areas will you be visiting? Boston: Clam Chowder. Chesapeake Bay: Blue Crabs. Carolinas: Barbecue. New Orleans: Etoufee Airline security issues:::: After walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain, , I had a 2meter oak hiking staff , notches and name carved in it, with a steel tip. I was not going to leave it behind. The first baggage agent in Madrid I spoke to didn't know how to deal with it. His manager said "No problem"., stuck a coded baggage claim sticky label on it, handed me the claim check, and in it went to the baggage area. They didn't even charge me for an extra bag. Only hassle was I had to especially ask for it at the baggage claim in Charlotte NC.. Stick the sharps in the checked bags, wear it in pouch on your belt.

I received the same email trail. I called in, spoke with a very patient clerk. She took down all my info, checked the med form (with my express permission) , asked me some questions (HIPPA concerns not withstanding), pronounced my medform correct and complete. It matched the paper copy I had previously printed and kept. Next day, I checked in the ole dashboard, and there was a notification that part A&B were complete, "status updated Jun11 2013". And in the Registration Notifications sedction, it read "Congrats! You have no registration problems to report!" I printed THAT out... Now all I have to worry about is the Venture YPT cert which may or maynot be OK, depending on what rule I read. The Venture YPT elearning site has been dead for a week now....

""Reverence to God and reverence for one's neighbour and reverence for oneself as a servant of God, is the basis of every form of religion. The method of expression of reverence to God varies with every sect and denomination. What sect or denomination a boy belongs to depends, as a rule, on his parents' wishes. It is they who decide. It is our business to respect their wishes and to second their efforts to inculcate reverence, whatever form of religion the boy professes. Robert Baden-Powell, “Aids to Scoutmastership†B-P got into trouble with the local church (of England) when he made it clear that , to Scouting, it didn't matter what the boy and/or his family professed. The Founder saw that the Church of Nature was more important than any "official" definition of faith. That is what I , as a Scout Chaplain, both at the Jamboree, at IOLS, and at home, try to make clear. It ain't up to me to judge the relationship between a Scout (or anyone for that matter) and his/her deity. The Divine is pretty much undefinable, and we do ourselves a great disservice when we try to tie "it" up in any one bundle. DW, I find your story very unfortunate, and your ability to tell it heartening. I, too, have found very often the pro's are unfortunately more likely to put their emphasis on the second point of the SL rather than the first or twelvth. More than once , I've had to remind folks that Scouting is NOT a christian organization alone, altho a unit may limit itself to one particular faith. I had a Islamic sponsored unit tell me that they would accept any boy, just so they undertood that the unit would worship three times a day and celebrate fast and Ramadan! And I have had Mormon units tell me they would accept anyboy , so long as they understood the unit would NOT camp on sabbath! And I have had a Catholic unit tell me that they would NOT accept a boy who was not Catholic (and it had to be "their" sort of Catholicism). Looks like we just have to keep on keeping on..... ((spelling correction))

My best example of "leadership Learned": I was sitting in on a PLC led by our SM. They were all newbie PLs and a new SPL. SM was talking about what he expected of them ("Leading" their Patrols, collecting consensus as to activities, etc. ). He told them he had confidence in them , being "senior Scouts". He made some suggestions about various hikes and campouts and Troop meeting activities, and asked what the SPL would like to see happen. The SPL's response was, quote, "You mean I can decide that???" When the SM answered in the affirmative, , you could see the light come on in the attic..... Give away the responsibility and remind them of your expectations..... And when the expectations are not met, remind them of THAT early on,

Founded: created, established, started up. Found: Discovered, recovered, retrieved that which was lost or misplaced, Look on: Observe from the side vs Look at: See or watch directly..,

JB: You reveal your age..... Firesign Theater, "Thank yew, Ahhhh Clem......."

I do not think Herr Einstein "identified himself as an agnostic" :::.: ":Ich glaube an Spinozas Gott, der sich in der gesetzlichen Harmonie des Seienden offenbart, nicht an einen Gott, der sich mit Schicksalen und Handlungen der Menschen abgibt.". Translation: I believe in Spinoza's God, Who reveals Himself in the lawful harmony of the world, not in a God Who concerns Himself with the fate and the doings of mankind. And....."Quantum mechanics is certainly imposing. But an inner voice tells me that it is not yet the real thing. The theory says a lot, but does not really bring us any closer to the secret of the "old one." I, at any rate, am convinced that He does not throw dice."