SSScout

I like Pappa's approach. In my previous life (preretirement) one of my duties was investigating and reporting on traffic accidents. Even got to report on an antique trolley car accident. In our view, we observed there were two kinds of accidents : Good and Bad. In a good accident, there were no injuries, very little damage, our driver was not at fault and the other driver learned a lesson (we hope). In a bad accident, there were injuries, significant damage, and our driver was clearly at fault (or "contributed significantly to the cause"). When it became apparent that the trainers were stressing Schedule Adherence above all else, the PTB soon decided that the drivers had to have a new paradym to adhere to. When cautious, courteous driving became the standard, accidents and complaints went down. Are roller coasters safe? Exciting? Over engineered? (we hope). We have four (!) high rope courses within 50 miles of our house. These are the walk and swing playgrounds wire cabled 20 or more feet in the air thru the trees. Safety (there's that word again) harnesses, climbing clips, oversight and watchful eyes are the rule everywhere. They welcome "kids" ages 8 thru 80. At our county fair, the Scout activity is a rope bridge, 5 feet up at the ends, draping to 2 or 3 feet in the middle. We strive to have boy "lifeguards" accompany each crosser and yes there have been "slips" but no injuries (that I know of). The youngest has been 3 to cross the bridge, the oldest , at least 82. Oh, did I say "is"? I meant "was". The fair canceled the rope bridge for (to me) unknown reasons.

In one of my favorite Monty Python sketches, we see two airline pilots in the cockpit, bored to tears, and playing "I spy with my little eye...". One of them then gets an inspiration. He gets on the intercom and announces to the passengers: "There is absolutely no cause for alarm". That's all. This is , of course, perfectly true at the time, but what a context! To say an activity is "safe", can be true , but how about that context? People once thought installing asbestos in boilers was safe. Then. Not now, with more complete knowledge. I like Le V's thought. It is something that ALL activity directors need to consider, you can minimize risk of injury, but make things absolutely safe? Hard to do that.

Oh, come on... We all know that presidents do this kinda thing. It ain't news except that some techie (who is now out of a job) left the mike gain up. Didn't we have a prez once that had a "secret " way to end 'his' unpopular war?

It is a sad reflection on todays parent that they often miss out on the only time they will have to affect the growth of their child. Ten years from now, they will wonder why they have no affect on their child's behavior. What is it the Bible tells us? Bring up the child in the right way and when he is older, he will know how to go? What you are experiencing is what I call the "soccer syndrome": drop the kid off and come back in 2 hours. It is far too often that the parent doesn't think they CAN know how to "parent" . Tiger Cub gives that opportunity. You must insist and enforce the need for the parent to attend and stay with their child for the meeting. Hand the parent a pair of scissors the second they enter the door, ((don't let them drop the boy off at the curb)), and tell them to cut this out for you... Give them a definite assignment, WITH THE BOY, immediately. Tell the boys that their parent(s) are invited to be part of the Den. Make sure that the boys know, and help them to place the guilt trip on the parent. They have to make the choice: Which is more important, Their BOY or - ?- ?? The boy will only be 7 (or 8, or 9....) ONCE. Thank you for your service. Noli illegitimi non carborundum.

Bagerra the Panther

Is it too late to have a camp bugler? Taps at day's end is always welcome. Reveille , mmmm ok. Weather Rock... Staff should be ready with parkas, raincoats, anchor ropes, sunglasses as required for the day, as the WR predicts. DONOT do the announcement song. Do NOT. I like the Sports score thing. Cricket score from Kenya, Nauru, etc.

It is always "possible". Whether it is "probable" or "realistic" is another issue. That, neither the SPL nor the Sm can predict.But hey, no harm in the encouragement. Now , about the term "guy".... I always have a problem with that and counsel my Scouts and IOLS folks about the preferred labeling of our young charges as "Scouts" , "boys", by name. I hear EVERYONE called by the epithet "guy". I like to think our Scouts are something more than that.

I like all the comments given. Set the example... remind gently... Don't let the boys forget that "a Scout is Friendly" oops, I mean, "the Cub helps the Pack Go..., the Cub gives good will". Don't forget to notice Good Behavior... Mom:: ""Care to guess what the parents are?"" ? Blonde? Alone? Absent ? Tall ? Acne covered ? Wheel chair bound ? Oh, I give up.... What are they?

I make the following predictions: 1) The boy is an only child, no siblings. 2) the family is well off financially. 3) If this is not corrected now, the boy will not move on to BoyS, or if he does manage the enistment, the other boys will do the corrective action or he won't be in for long. I like the responses from Joebob and Base and Blake. As a sub teacher, I have similar problems with a few kids, each time. Since I do not have the luxury of communicating with the parents to inform them of their cherub's socially unacceptable behavior, I usually make it personal. I sometimes have to go right up to the miscreant (surprise!) and 12" away from their face TELL them of my expectations. Surprise! I mean what I say. "One more word out of anyone, and they are out in the hall and we WILL talk" "I'm sorry..." "THAT"S THE WORD! OUT!" presto, no more problems with the rest of the class. So, in "class", (Den meeting, campout, etc.) You are "in loco parentis". Take the boy aside and out of the group, tell him how things will be, that his parents will be spoken to next. Don't like hotdogs? Well, you won't starve. Then you speak to the parents about how disruptive it is to have someone "cater" to such a behavior. Food allergy? Understood. Picky eater? ummmm. Will you accompany your boy to college? Into the service? On to his job? I went to a Maine summer camp with my cousin. My folks thought I was a picky eater at nine years old, but I was truly afraid Rich was going to starve. After a week, he began to try other stuff, and after the third week, he was eating peas and burgers with the rest of us. He never did come to like oatmeal, even with maple syrup, and at the camp in Maine, it was REAL maple syrup. Someone has to have a sit down with the folks and remind them they are PARENTS not BUTLERS (I think that was my dad's comment, but I may have heard it elsewhere).

HWGA... One of the finalists in the NSJ sweeps was the Goshen Scout Reservation of the NCACouncil. The idea was to use alarge piece of it for the NSJ and the rest (and all of it off times?) could be used for local council camping and training stuff. But the local county folks lobbied hard against it (for many reasons), so our Bechtel heroes came to the rescue, and here we are. Ideas: *Summit/Philmont alternate sessions. * Some Rocky Mountain Council offer a large chunk of Scout reservation for a large every eight years event. Charge a reasonable rent, but keep title to it. * Have regional Jamborees, like ScoutsCanada does. Make them every three years, make the national every five, somewhere, perhaps at a Council camp. Make them low impact, camping afairs, bring your own tent. Local Councils gain prestige, good PR, maybe a little income for their camps thereby, bidding for the privilege. Why else does a city go thru the agony of the Olympics? So: a gradation of camping: Individual, Patrol, Troop, District Camporee, Council whateveroree, Regional Jamboree, National Jamboree, WORLD Jamboree........ Can't go to the Biggee? Maybe the next biggee is more appropriate. You can use my idea for free, no charge....

Charlston is a nice little (relatively!) airport. They chopped a nearby mountaintop off and paved the result... You don't so much fly into as onto it. I would imagine that will be the airport of choice. Bus shuttle service and all.

Yep, been there taught that... When I teach Knife and Axe and Saw at IOLS, I always mention the G2SS wording, and mention the "local" bans, the lack of a National ban, and then we teach and discuss safe handling of ALL sharp tools. "Pride of skill" and "respect the edge" is the way I approach the subject. Including but not limited to: Cub folding pocket knife, Boy Scout folding pocket knife, Wenger Swiss army knife, lock back knife, cheap souvenir knife, Leatherman multi tools, Xacto knife, mom's (and dad's) big carving knife, serrated edges, Kbar, hand axe, hatchet, carpenters hatchet, 3/4 axe, double bit axe, broken handles, unbreakable handles, repairing and sharpening, wood splitting wedges and sledge, carpenter saw (rip and cross cut), pruning saw, two man cross cut bucking saw, folding puning saw, bow saw, Svensaw, and how to clean, oil, sharpen and sheath (!) all of them. I remind my nacsent SMs that the Scout may come upon any of these, that the care and skill involved is easily transferable to other sharp (DANGEROUS) tool use, and that, yes, SOME of these are NOT appropriate for Cubs or smaller Scouts to handle. It's up to the local leader to set the standard that the Scout will meet. Someday I should write all this down...

Yep, the SfF is a worthwhile endeavor. And leads to some headshaking, as has been noted. Make sure you include an explanatory note, a half page is sufficient, about WHY this empty grocery bag is hanging on your doorknob, and include a phone number to call for information. And Scouter, the government engineer would say... "the design and execution of the liquid retention device is overly commodious and should be therefore redecided to allow more economical utilage of available construction materials".

Oh, lots of ideas... "RESCUE!" Get your "victim" out of various situations. Across the raging river, pioneer build a bridge, slack rope walk, signalling to some one for rescue, first aid, call your state police to have a helo land, fire and rescue come and do demo, "GAMES" Have a live chess game (merit badge?), build real Temple Ring game with 3 8' posts sunk in ground and tires of graduated sizes (tractor thru VW?), various capture the flag games ("Jugs"), rig up a joust game with a rope riding horse thing, cudgel sticks (lots of padding on the ground) on a balance beam, archery range, hatchet throw, ((How did you get Airsoft approved for a Scout camp??), scavenger hunt (at night?), look up frazzlyram on line, burn a string contest, Find a reeeealy big American flag (like 12 by 20 or bigger) and have Patrol fold it correctly for time...

((news item)) SHIP CRASHES AND GROUNDS ON MAIDEN VOYAGE A long time ago, when the Earth was green There was more kinds of animals than you've ever seen They'd run around free while the Earth was being born And the loveliest of all was the unicorn There was green alligators and long-necked geese Some humpty backed camels and some chimpanzees Some cats and rats and elephants, but sure as you're born The loveliest of all was the unicorn The Lord seen some sinning and it gave Him pain And He says, "Stand back, I'm going to make it rain" He says, "Hey Noah, I'll tell you what to do Build me a floating zoo, and take some of those... Green alligators and long-necked geese Some humpty backed camels and some chimpanzees Some cats and rats and elephants, but sure as you're born Don't you forget my unicorns Old Noah was there to answer the call He finished up making the ark just as the rain started to fall He marched the animals two by two And he called out as they came through Hey Lord, I've got green alligators and long-necked geese Some humpty backed camels and some chimpanzees Some cats and rats and elephants, but Lord, I'm so forlorn I just can't find no unicorns" And Noah looked out through the driving rain Them unicorns were hiding, playing silly games Kicking and splashing while the rain was falling Oh, them silly unicorns There was green alligators and long-necked geese Some humpty backed camels and some chimpanzees Noah cried, "Close the door because the rain is falling And we just can't wait for no unicorns" The ark started moving, it drifted with the tide The unicorns looked up from the rocks and they cried And the waters came down and sort of floated them away That's why you never see unicorns to this very day You'll see green alligators and long-necked geese Some humpty backed camels and some chimpanzees Some cats and rats and elephants, but sure as you're born You're never gonna see no unicorns

Oh, I don't know... I think adults are just as prone to patch envy (or not) as the boys. Cub Belt loops: adults have special Belts and buckles: Jamboree, Philmont, Woody Badge, Centennial, Camp ladela, Seabase, Webelos, other ranks represented,... Neckerchiefs and woggles: (see above) Various hats ( traded some spare hats for some preemo patches once)and pins to put thereon... I thought it was a good thing when tempo patches were first allowed on the BACK of the MB sash. At the CSDC, I once gave a talk about how the Uniform is kinda like a diploma and Scout resume (explain that to a Cub Scout). The adults in attendance (mostly new to Scouting, I guess) found it interestng, I had a couple come up and thank me. Talked about how each part can show where the Scout has been, what he has accomplished, what he (should) know(s), where he belongs. Used to be the red shirtjac served the adult purpose of the Scout MB sash. More room for proof of "been there done that".

""I've decided to build a cub mobile ..."" As much as you can, keep the Cubs in the design and building of the CMobile. Pounding nails, staples and bolt and nut turning is something every Cub can get into. Sawing a straight line, ummm, ooo, leave that to dad and Cub. Hand drills are available. Brace and bit. No power tools, natch. Visit your neighborhood lawn mower repair place, see if they can help with wheels and axles, both used and new.. The mechanics there would love to let the Cubs visit their shop , too, I bet. Check Wolf and Bear requirements, and Web Handy man , too. Pride of skill and good craftsmanship can be learned at any age. See the book "Superpower" by David Weitzman Pub. by Godine, Boston,1987 It details how steam locomotives were designed and built way back when, thru the eyes of a young apprentice foundryman. Planning, patience, craftsmanship, pride of accomplishment, teamwork,loyalty, and no computers! KiS MiF! YiS

Oh, get the kid OUT and in a tent... The problem in this requirement is the proviso for ONLY "a Scout Activity". Scoutson (who is soon to be Eagle, thank you very much) went canoe and bike and afoot camping with the Yearly Meeting camp program several summers (under nylon) and NONE of it can be counted toward this. Philmont, once and only 6 of the 9 nights out... Scout camp, no, (count only ONE long term camp). Troop trips, many times. Camporees, Webelos Weekends, yes. Jamboree Staff, no. Only ONE long term camp. If the "rough" church camp could be counted, he would easily double his nights out count, and if ALL his under nylon time counted, he could probably triple it.

OMG!!! We missed missing Pi day and time!!!!

Stayed up and watched the presentation. I do like old stuff (don't tell my wife that, exactly), and some of the old film and pictures were really neat, if especially about California history. I'm going to pass this on to our local folks. Don't forget the time difference! PST!

Alright, alright.... enough of this pandering, maudlin sentiment. Get back to work you two... Get some mind tweeking questions out there.... Oh, all right. Welcome to the ecracker barrel. Help yourself to some echeese and ebugles...

WHOA! You forgot to tell us this is Pacific Standard Time! There's still time to see it! www.communitymediacenter.net and look to channel 30. I need to wait another two hours!

Especially in Cubs, it is best to award the patches as they are earned. Don't wait for two or three months; award the patch with due pomp and ceremony (" Let's give'm a round of applause!")at the very next Pack meeting. As the Cub earns the total number of patches, he will see the collection increase and be the more eager to finish the collection. Let him make the connection between effort and reward. The delay of reward is harder for the young Cub. He'll learn the necessity of that later. KiS MiF!

I am constantly amazed at the differrence between the two programs. Some of the GSUSA program does makes sense, but then, some of BSA promotes head scratching too. Compare: In BSA, the units are self perpetuating, we actively recruit and seek more Scouts. My home Troop is approaching it's 65th year. GS units, on the other hand, are USUALLY limited to the girls that originally join. They therefor self destruct when the girls age out. Yeah, I know, some "enlightened" GS leaders organize multi age Troops, and even encourage Daisies and Brownies to fraternize (sororitize?) with Seniors and Ambassadors, but that is not the design... My favorite story: Back when I was a CM, we scheduled a "Join Scouting Night" by renting the school gym. We were going to run a PWD, and do other Cubby things. Hey! Let's invite the GSs! Bet they'd like the chance to use a corner of the gym for recruiting! Contacted the local GS leaders, and they responded (no kidding) "oh no, we don't want any more GSs, We have enough". (!!!???) That's what they said. That was my introduction to the difference in philosophy of the two orgs.

Yep, a valid reason to go "camping". Any excuse for a party, er, I mean, tent set up. Do they allow a breakfast stove? Our local Frederick Keys sponsor this, and last I went, they had a "stove area" for warming up breakfast stuff, but that may have changed, it has been a number of years. And a movie screen, and a rocket launch, and a free bag of popcorn....