SSScout

1965....

After my Gmoms death, my dad and his brothers were going to sell the old farm. Dad says "you ought to go over there and just see whats left of the old place". And so I do. Took along a buddy of mine for company on the adventure.

Found old tractor parts, shovels, rakes, rotten away rabbit cages,

And in the back of the barn, behind some hay bales... a Motorcycle. A Big Motorcycle. Looked like it was built of cast iron. Big yellow "X" on the tank. Whao, we said and dragged it out. Cotton cord tires rotting off the rims. Straight handle bars with no curve at all. Exposed lifters on the side of the engine. That is the engine, right?

My buddy and I were pretty savvy about cars and trucks but this was new .

Went home and told my dad what we had fouund. He perked up." That must be Arthur's (my Uncle Arthur. He had died 2 years before). He ordered it thru the mail. We picked it up at the Railway Express office, put it together on the loading dock out of the crate, and he rode it home. He drove it around for, oh, I guess two years, then parked it in that barn and it's been there ever since, I guess. That's a 1917 Excelsior."

My buddy and I went back, huffed and puffed that antique into our truck and took it home for contemplation. The engine would still turn over with the kicker. Big brass headlamp, acetylene, broken. Gear shift lever between the legs. No cables, levers and linkages for the throttle on the right handlebar and the single right foot brake pedal. Nine feet long. Leather seat all but gone. And rust, rust, rust. Wheel spokes pittied, all but gone.Frame solid, springs solid but pittied. No license plate. And that big yellow and red "X" on the tank. My buddy's father was an antique car buff. He owned and let my friend sometimes drive to school a Humber! His advice was to sell it for parts, he'd get me some names.

And so I did. Sell it.

In my garage, a 1985 GT550 Suzuki, oiled and sealed, under a tarp, waiting for a new day. But that's another story...

The church fathers (and mothers) were discussing which translation of the Bible should be the standard to use in the Sunday School. After all, one should avoid confusing the children. Should we use "consider the ant, thou sluggard" or "think about the ant, you lazy bones"?

New International Version? Standard Revised? Good News Bible?

An old respected Deacon was consulted. He replied "King James, of course. If it's good enough for Jesus, it's good enough for me."

So: Which is the Authority? The printed word or the author of those words or the editor of the printing of those words...

...or the SPIRIT that inspired the writing and translation and editing and printing so ANYONE may read and see and know FOR THEMSELVES?

* May God bless the proofreaders of the world *

"Fascinating, Captain"

And Bones and Kirk smile and wink at each other as Spock gets contemplative...

"Brainwashing"

I have come to the conclusion that we teach our children, either actively thru instruction OR passively by example (rather we realize it or not) a religion that they will either ACCEPT or REBEL against. That is THEIR role/duty and they will do one or the other, whether they consciously choose, it will happen. Accept Christ? Become a Wiccan? Om nio rengeyo? (Buddhist chant) They will pick up or discard what is useful, trendy, popular, logical, easy, available, but first they will see the religion of their upbringing.

Ku Klu Klansmen have become Jews. Taoists have become Christian evangelists. Quakers have become Catholic priests. Rabbis have become Buddhists.

And what does it all mean? Religion certainly DOES "inform" Scouting. BP was very right. Many times. I'll not quote him again.

But ultimately, as to religiosity, yer pays yer metaphorical money and yer takes yer cherce.

" It is a sad reflection, that many Men hardly have any Religion at all; and most have none of their own: For that which is the Religion of their Education, and not of their Judgement, is the Religion of Another, and not theirs."

== William Penn ==

It is our duty as Parents to teach our children The Truth as we know it, and how to be responsible for the results of ones choices. They will soon enough discover their own Truth, and the results thereby will be theirs to accept as their own.

My home Troop is sponsored by a Methodist Church. We have at least six different faiths represented therein. Our Chaplains Aide last year was from a Jewish family. He didn't come to Scout Sunday at the Methodist church, but he did some Chaplainy things thru the year. Our latest new member is Hindu. The only concern so far is how to respect the familly's dietary concerns on camp trips. (purely vegetarian. Wouldn't hurt any of us).

It is a learning experience.

I am Commishing a new Troop and Pack sponsored by an Islamic organization (not yet a full fledged mosque. A real learning experience).

I am sometimes reminded of "Home Improvement", the tv show where Tim Allen (Taylor) lives next door to Wilson, whom we never see except across the top of his fence. The fence defines the two neighbors areas but the top allows conversation and enlightenment. Mostly Tim is enlightened, but it does go both ways. If the fence was any taller, there would be no conversation. If it was too low, there would be little differentiation and mebbe not as much curiosity.

We make our fences too tall to our own detriment.

(((mechanical breathing sounds)))

Imperial Senate as CO?

Bobcat... Wolf... At-At... Bear... Wookielos?

" Akela... I am your... FATHER!"

" Pinewood Sand Crawler Races?

" Duty to THE FORCE and PLANET Awards?

" Is Belt Loop or no Belt Loop... Is No suspender"

Don't forget Jabba the Pizza (oops, wrong movie)

Search out the old radio skit done by Jack Benny and Mel Blanc ("voice of Bugs Bunny"). With some CS talent, or adult talent, you might recreate it with suitable background. In synopsis, it runs something like this:

Jack plays a tourist and stops to ask directions. The Mexican fellow says:

"south"

"Say, whats your name, signor?"

"SYE"

"Your name is Sye?"

"Si"

"And we should go south?"

"Si"

"Is the road rough?"

"So-so"

"Do you have a family?"

"Si"

" Any brothers or sisters?

"Si"

"Well, what are their names?

"Sue"

"You have a sister named Sue?

"Si"

"Anyone else?"

"Sam"

... And so on. Gradually, with excruciating exactness, we learn that Sye works sewing, lives in Sienna, feels so-so, is cinco years old (!), and carries his lunch in a sack. You get the idea.

KiS MiF

"Scouting is like a box of chocolates... You never know just what you'll git."

Units/leaders that 'alledgedly' don't follow the 'official' BSA program: The poor DE is judged by how the number of Scouts and Units rises and falls in his District. Will he be quick to reccommend the Charter or membership be pulled? On the other hand, we have the poor case of Chicago Area Council and it's camps. Do the LDS folks follow ALL of the "program" or just what they need?

The BSA program is what one sees it as being. Is it the 'Handbook' or the 'Fieldbook' or the raft of 'long versions' of the various 'regulations and policies' we hear quoted in these forums? Or is it something more amorphous? What was BP thinking?

I kind of like the idea that not all Scout units fall from the same cookie cutter. But the ideal is out there, somewhere, isn't it? I guess my ideal is the first SM that I had as a Scout. He was the sit by the campfire with his pipe sort, gently reminding us about the ideals that we should strive for. The Promise and the Law. Some of us Scouts found out that even the family we came from didn't much match those ideals, and so had to figure out which to follow, which held the greater reward. "A Scout is Loyal". Which Loyalty to cling to? I'm still figuring.

I am reminded of that scene in Forrest Gump, where he takes off on his cross sountry run and suddenly he finds himself followed by hundreds of people who see him as a human "grail" to be emmulated and pursued. And just as suddenly he stops, and the folks following don't know what to make of it. What to do now?

Was running the end in itself? or was there a purpose behind the running? Saw alot of beautiful scenery.......

As Scout Leaders we have to try and make sure that our "followers" know what to do when we stop running (both metaphorically and in reality).

There's a thread to spin off: Forrest Gump as erstwhile

Scout Leader,. I'll leave that to someone else.

YiS

CoL should check the definition behind "A Scout Is Obedient" and bite their bullet and obey the law as set forth by the duly elected government of their home town.

They need to find a new home and get on with the work of serving the youth of the city.

Any body ever thought of PAYING a CM or SM to help set up and run an inner city Pack/Troop? Seems to me that a volunteer CM or SM might be hard to come by in a disadvantaged neighborhood.

And ditto all the above about Mr. Zeiger. (he lives in Washington State??)

???

The sound of the broom used in "curling"?

Toy or history lesson or target practice or engineering challenge or potential weapon?

Check out the Scout participation in the National Punkin' Chunkin' Championships... How far can a hand made mechanism "toss" a pumpkin?

Trebuchet or Onager or 40' pnuematic tube...

Bridgeville Delaware...

http://www.punkinchunkin.com

Look for "Chuck B's Photos (part 2)" Pics # MGO0727 et al.

Don't forget the parents...

Inspire yourselves with watching "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"

Skits and silly songs and running jokes...

Killer rabbits and Tim the Enchanter can be your friends...

Dumdededumdumdum... We're knights of the round table, we dance when 'er we're able and imitate Clark Gable....

Nobody likes everthing...

Let's see now,which is prefferred?

"Wanna go on a hike?"

"Go take a hike!"

"Hike up them shorts!"

"Let's take a hike."

"Hike!" (pneumatically distended leatherized oblate spheroid appears in hand).

usw.

A lot of excellent Ideas...

You might invite the Scout Troop(s) that your Ws bridge over to. Do you have any Den Chiefs? Good time to recruit them from the Troops nearby.

The 'hero worship' factor can really work in your favor with a couple of Boy Scouts to help with the Cub activities.

KiS MiF YiS

Hiya, Hiya Hiya...

Reeeead all about it...

Get yer paper here...

EEEEleven Eagle Scouts in the same Court of Honor, Been together since Cubs...

Viking Patrol makes good...

Reeeeead all about it...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/18/AR2008011803722.html

19 January 2008 Washington Post page A1.

Recent history....

I was watching the Scouts begin the meeting with the usual color guard entry, and I did something I hadn't done before. I paid close attention to the APPEARANCE of the flags.

Here's what I discovered: 1))The Troop flag was the ORIGINAL flag that was used when I was a Scout in the same Troop, and it was really the worse for wear. I later went to the CC and spoke of getting a new Troop flag for the Troop to use and maybe retire the old one to a display case, with it's signatures and history mentioned. He was surprised that it was as old as it obviously was, and liked my suggestion. Troop 50th is approaching.

2)) The American flag had 15 stripes(!!) and only 15 stars. Because of the way the Scouts carry it in, no one had ever noticed this before, in recent memory at least. We had a short history lesson (no, the Troop isn't that old) about how the flag has evolved, and how cum the flag HERE looks the way it does and is it really an American flag we can use, shouldn't we get a new one etc. Well, the "star spangled banner" of the War of 1812 was 'created' just a few miles north of us so perhaps that is how we ended up with such a 'historic' flag rather than the up to date 50 star version.

Flags are fun and observation is important.

So, SctDad, get an up-to-date version! And just for kicks, sign the haul strip for reminincing when you come back later!

YiS

WWJD

Capture the Flag (adult version/international politics not withstanding) is a cool game. Almost any 'wide game' is. But the object/goal is not to ELIMINATE your opponent, merely to best them. Strategy, tactics, teamwork, vision, observation, knowledge of your opponent, knowledge of the ground all come in to play and are developed thereby. Ltag, Pball the goal is too close to the real type of 'point and shoot'. One is not shooting a target to improve ones skill. Ones goal is to KILL the other guy. Fill 'em with paint or low wattage ruby light.

Gain skill, confidence and experience and fear conquering by going the distance, living thru freezing weather, climbing rock walls, almost drowning in white water in tippy little canoes. In Rwanda and the Congo and Dafur, real children are being trained to really kill. Paint ball is too close to the real thing for my Scouts. They may eventually have to learn about the real thing, but first let's help'em to think about how to make such conflicts not happen. Past generations have not been all that successful. Is it possible to make things better without 'violence at a distance'? Or violence up close for that matter?

So how do the Scouts deal with bullys?

My interpretation of the aforementioned regulation (and it's intent) is not so much the chance of injury as the promotion of war like games. Shot gun skeet, .22 rifle, BB air gun, sling shot and archery TARGET shooting is all still allowed. Even encouraged. But Paintball etc. is a simulation of warfare. The desired intent is to hit a target, NOT to pretend to KILL your opponent. Hence the differentiation and ban.

All the above instruments and sport CAN be used to injure, but NOT in the allowed activity. Pball, Ltag are each intended to play act the "game" of war.

I would not favor a "lasertag" Camporee.

See the book "Ender's Game" by Orson Scott Card

Ditto the FOS presentaions. It shouldn't feel ike a timeshare come-on. A QUICK reminder is all.

AoL? See if the District OA Ceremony team can do a "show", always wow's our Cubs.

Ah yes, Red Green's solution to every problem (real or not)...

Duct Tape.

Search these forums, if you dare, and see the many uses (and misuses) of that noble commodity.

Is the man still a Scout Leader?

Since the cherces have been opened, I'll have to nominate my father, who played semi-pro softball as a catcher, ONE HANDED. Lost his left arm up to the shoulder in a construction accident before he met my mom, and according to my Uncle, could out throw and out hit many men in his league with the normal equipment.

I watched him when he helped coach my Cub Scout softball league and marveled at his manipulation of glove and ball. Catch the ball, toss it in the air slightly, drop the glove, catch the ball and fire it to third base. mm- mm-mm.

Sorry to say, all I have is his example and my Uncles remininces. No photos or record books.

"Course, Frank Howard was no slouch.

(This message has been edited by SSScout)

Well, I tried your instructions, John, and that worked.

Should not that extra super address be stripped when the link is clicked? I tried some other links from other sites and they didn't have the extra intro-http, relating to the originating site (to the link).

Thanks. YiS

Oh, there will be boys that will complain about going to Kings Dominion or Umpteen Flags over Texas.

Is AP Hill hot? sure, but you drink and you spray each other with water and you walk alot.

The worst thing that happened to me there was dealing with an MP sergeant who insisted that I should not ride my Staff issued bicycle on "his" pavement. It was okay to ride on the grass, but not on "his" pavement. But that was just poor me, staff Chaplain. Oh well.

Jamboree is fun, distracting, educational (shudder), much like a Scout summer camp, but so much bigger and more amazing.

Ultimate idea::: Get your Troop or Crew to plan and propose an activity to present. Many of the activity areas were there just by that method. If accepted, your group can get help (extra staff) to make it work, and a real reason to attend. And , again, you'll probably pay to be a volunteer(!)

Any boy not ready to immerse themselves in a new, foreign environment will NOT have a immediately fun time. Should this be the first long time away from home? No. The living of the Scout Law and Promise is everywhere. The Scout must be willing and able to take on responsibility for his share of the work of the Troop camp, be willing to try new things and not sit waiting for the fun to come to him, be able to take on responsibility for his own well being.

Most Troops insisted on the 'Buddy System', in getting around. The boy must ,in many respects, be willing to submit himself to the will of the group rather than the wim of the individual.

Take LOTS of drinks of ordinary water, not just sweet stuff. I met a Scout at the hospital who at first REFUSED to drink anything except sweet stuff. He succumbed and I met him in the hospital. I think he went back to the Jamboree drinking more H2O. Pride hath no bounds.

But Scout will help Scout.

Pack212, do your calculations again, and make sure your boys will not be dissappointed if they are not of age or rank or experience.

Good luck YiS(This message has been edited by SSScout)

Personal courage and tenacity:

"The Pistol", the Birth of a Legend" Being the story of Pete Maravich and how he revolutionized basketball. Racism confronted, new technigues vs tradition, cliques vs loyalty.

"Drumline" Loyalty, competition, personal success, fitting in and not.

Hope you can find'em.