SSScout

And look at all the James Bond flicks. Can anyone actually put them in (supposedly) chronological order? When the Bond actor gets too old, you hire a younger actor. Connery, Craig, Brosnan, who cares? Ian Fleming has no say in it any more, if he ever did... And I can't see ever having a Saturday Morning "Young Bond " series, can you? "No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to DIE !"

Cubber: KiS MiF... Lots to see and do. Pull up a virtual log and help your virtual self to some virtual crackers and cheese....

Fred: Sounds like "Patrol/Scout" method to me... SM and his ASMs sit back and tell tall tales....

Very perceptive. One's title can certainly affect one's behavior or other's acceptance. Before I retired from County Service, my title changed several times. It was recognized that my new "position" had to be defined not just by the Job Description, but by the title. Our labor union also recognized this. So I and my fellows , with our reorganization, became "Transit Coordinators" not "Street Supervisors" or "Transit Managers" or some other type of supervisory person. As it was explained to me, if we were "Supervisors" we could not be in the union. We therefore were like "strawbosses" or "crew leaders". We could tell folks what to do, but not necessarily why. We could direct, but not discipline (either reward or punishment). We could report good and bad behavior but not do very much about it. Very much a division of responsibility, I thought, and it had some advantages.... So the idea of a "Scout Leader" might imply a youngish fellow, or an older fellow (but young at heart?) . I have come to say that one must get older, but need not "grow up". That said, I would also like to point out the need to NOT call our young charges anything remotely affiliated with the rest of the world. We should ALWAYS address them as "Scout", or "Camper" or " Patrol Leader" , and avoid like the plague calling them "guys", "kids", . They can be guys at school, or someplace else. Reinforce the idea of being a SCOUT by addressing them as SCOUTS. See you on the trail....

Shall we also draw parallels to the end of the Roman Empire (corrupt leaders, pagans at the borders, perceived enemies vs real enemies, coliseums/entertainment rather than bread for the masses, dissatisfaction with real life vs fiction, religion vs politics ... ) Creation of "ideal world" (Star Wars, The Island, Childhood's End,,,) vs "less than ideal" (1984, Brave New World, Enders Game, The Giver)

The unfortunate discussion(!?) about holiday greetings .... I need all the help I can get and therefore welcome any and all wishes for my health , luck , smooth trails, blessings and forebearance from any and all sources, be they Christian, Muslim, Hebrew, humanitarian, pastafarian , Sikh, Bahai, Zoroastrian , Hindu, theist, polytheist, Buddhist, Taoist, pagan or agnostican. Happy Jesus' birthday to any and all who read this, be ye Scouty or no. Pass the pie, please...

Back home again.... Rrrround Table... Invented by the BS of A folks so local Scouters would have a place to meet and get to know each other and learn from each other (at least, that is my interpretation). Again, It is what you make it... If your DE or DC or DChair takes it over to make the RT a "Listen To Me" event, that's not totally his/her fault. It just means no one else cared to step up and use the opportunity to benefit all the rest of the Scouters. "The Usual Suspects" will show up, the trick is to get more folks to see the benefit of attending. This is done by not just following the BSA RT guidelines, but that is a good place to start. Cub Round Table attenders are mostly (natch) Scout beginners. The successful CSRT here abouts is run like a Pack Meeting. Ideas, crafts, skits, get the folks up and involved. Pass out beads for attendance, awards for participation. BSRT needs a different approach. These folks aren't usually total newbies, but would like a more adult "help me" approach. Frame it around a Troop meeting, but ASK the Scouters what they might like to see/hear/do... Give them topics/themes that will make it GOOD to come... Talk about Philmont, High adventure organizing by getting someone from Council . Fundraising : Let the Scouters tell each other how they do it. I invited a podiatrist to come and talk about foot care, blister prevention, boot choice. Turn the chairs around to face each other rather than all face "front", and have a real discussion. Breakout sessions? If you have that big a group and really have multiple topics, sure, but why water down the discussion? Face time is important. Give everyone a 3x5 card and ask them to write down a question or two they would like answered . Put them to the DE nd other Old Timers... CSRT and SRT and (if you have one) should all cooperate their efforts. At least one RT should be a "Program Launch", try to invite lots of activities and places and events to come to a "Midway" type of event. Our three local Districts cooperated to host over 50 "vendors" and it went very well. Museums, parks, BSA High Adventure, COPE Courses, the OA, council and government things. WATTA ROUNDTABLE !! And promotion: By email newsletter (somebody can be identified to be a techy editor) , Facebook.... to every adult Scouter in your District (DE should be able to provide the emails) and beyond (we include the Chief Scouter and Council Staff, and any other Scout friendly person you meet), promote at Camporees and CSDC. Oh, it can be done, but when you raise your hand and say "why can't this be better" don't be surprised when they elect you as a committee of one to help MAKE it better! Have fun!

"The Work Is Done By Whoever Shows Up".... District Committees: Time to plan and take on responsibility for and report on the progress of and success of all the various District events: Camporees, Merit Badge Daze, Training sessions, Friends (and enemies?) of Scouting, Scouting for Food, etc. Attendees should be CORs, and ANYONE ELSE who is Scouty dedicated. District Committee is the various Vice Chairs: Camping, training, etc.... Face to Face is important. Shake that hand. Make that acquaintance. Speak and hear, not merely email list... Wouldn't you rather have THIS conversation in person? Cuppa in hand? Pass the pie.... Round Tables.... TBC....

Wow, must be an important topic... fourteen pages.....

Like Bob the Tomato said, "It's for the kids".

As in all things Scouty, "the fault, dear Scouter, lies not in the stars, but in ourselves...." As we find the means to advance our Scouts in Merit Badges, and let those that counsel such to "allow" Scouts to slide on by ('eh, what's it matter".), and allow the standards of passage to slide... I was a temp teacher for some years, and (as always) my students often taught me... early on, I learned a new word: Gudnuf as in "Mr. SSScout, is this 'gudnuf'? " Even in Scouts, I came upon this new word: in Totin'Chip, "Is this tentpeg gudnuf?" In Pioneering: "Is this lashing gudnuf?" If the knot in the rope saves a life, yes, it was , indeed, "gudnuf" , but in testing, was it a correct ""BOWLINE"" ? SOMETIMES (sometimes), I was asked "Is this correct?" but not as often as I remembered from the teachers and mentors of my youth. When I have of late counseled Bugling MB, I am always surprised at the number of Scouts who will attend my class and come never having even HELD a bugle or trumpet, much less be able to play it. Discuss? Answer the requirements? Read the booklet (READ???) I have even had a Scout honestly (and I congratulated him on his honesty) tell me he attended my class in the hopes of a "sign off " for attending ! The requirements say "Play the calls". SURPRISE ! I congratulate the Scouts that can say they have EARNED all 135 Merit Badges. What a supremely well rounded young man, a true generalist, with knowledge and experience in so many fields of endeavor. I hope.

Document, document, document. If you wish, you might contact the Packs in the "other town" you mention. Have they had issues with her? Why did she pick your Pack? Such history may help you understand her issues, but cannot define your response. When you give (inperson, if possible, in sight of witnesses) her letter of expulsion, LIST everything you have observed/heard/read that was false or defamatory or destructive to your Pack and Cubs. Define clearly what this means. No attendance at any Pack/Den event. The Cub at continue in the Pack or transfer to another unit, no problem, but the PM must NOT be involved in anything of your Pack. Refer to the COuncil and the possibility that her Scouting participation may be totally banned if her behavior continues. Not a registered Scouter? Not the Pack's accepted/elected Treasurer? That should be enough for expulsion. Your COR and IH have the lead and must have YOUR back (being CCh). Problem Mom has problems , for sure, and it is sad when the child must grow up trying to deal with them. He will (we hope) grow up sufficiently to remember and be able to sort out her dynamics and how it colored his maturity. Am I missing something or has the Cub's father not been mentioned? Where is he in this mire? Stand your collective ground and smile as you hand her the letter. See you on the trail.

Oh, I have to agree on all the above. BL used to have Build it yourself, do it yourself, how to camp articles for every Scout from the Tenderest foot to the survivalist AT thru hiker. How to plan your own Troop's week long trek? How to make a tarp tent? Sharpen an axe? I do like Dr. Hawk's articles. Sometimes the super gear reviews, but it has become a millenial's read about rather than a go out and do type mag.

It is a New World. Back in my day, us student HSchool Stage Crew were expected to be available for AV duty most any time the office would call on us. Movie projector, slides, tape deck, plugs, we were trained by one of the shop teachers. We carried pliers, multi end screwdrivers, rigging knife and other stuff all day on our belt. We wired the stage lighting, cut and pulled extension cords, Klieg lights, set up and worked on 25 foot high scaffolds. I remember pulling out and replacing a defective wire rheostat , big sucker, must have weighed 20 pounds, on the light control board. Drama teacher ordered the replacement, me and my buddies did the installation. The school janitor ("Building Engineer") and us got along famously. Stripping off insulation just so from a "00" gauge cable....

Sorry to hear that. Time to fall back on the organizational chart. The Committee supports the program. The Cubmaster applies the program. If the Committee is happy with the program as led by the Cubmaster, no problem. If the Committee (not just the CChair) is not happy with the way the Cubmaster applies the program, hey, the IH and COR need to be brought into the conversation. In my book, here in this country, respect for the rest of the organization is important. If someone, ANYONE , complains about the way they are being treated, that needs to be addressed. And then, Brunch, you are a volunteer. And , remember, "the work is done by whoever shows up". And the way the work is done is therefore determined by "whoever" shows up. The IH, the COR, the Committee all need to decide if they want the present Cubmaster to continue "showing up". See you on the trail.

Sad, indeed. Back in the day, the local department stores all had a Scout Counter. Everything there you needed. I guess less was needed ! The more local the store, the more local the merchandise. Back then, the unit number was under a local Town Name and State ! . No "Council" strip. If you went to the wrong store, you might not be able to buy the right Town Strip. Each Troop/Pack often kept a supply of the numbers and town/state strips. Included in the dues...

Gentle Scouters: Beside the BSA regulations and standards of advancement and rank, You seem to forget that "All Scouting Is Local" I have known of Cub Packs who decided to end the madness. The Pack ALL wears ONE type of necker. The yellow traditional one. The various hats are another matter....

Packabrunch: Again, welcome to the virtual crackerbarrel (campfires melt electronics). All good suggestions. Metaphorically grabbing these two "kids" by the nape of the neck and telling them like it is will no doubt have repercussions, hopefully good for the Cubs. And THAT is what these two need to be reminded. They signed on , NOT to show up the other, or be mad or resentful or try to prove something, but to BE there for the CUBS. Ego trips, personal vendettas (any unresolved dynamics between these two?), perceived character flaws, whatever. They need to remember the GOAL is the Cubs program. Period. Pass the pie, please.....

All alliterative. Neat. Fixed blade vs folder.... It comes down to the need to: 1) Be useful. In the Panamanian jungle, yes, a machete on the belt might be useful. At Camp Runamuck, not so much. 2) Carve a wiffle stick (what did you call them?) for fire making, yes a fixed knife, maybe 4" blade can be useful. 3) Impress your friends, ("oh that is so cool! ") . Maybe, but at what cost to pocketbook, weight carried, awkwardness personified, legality, 4) Protection? A Boy Scout? Dundee not withstanding.... 5) Cuisine? Kitchen operation? Fish cleaning? Rabbit butchering? 6) Opportunistic need.... fingernail cleaning, toenail trimming, annoying tree branch elimination, shaving (!!), bear skin tanning, ,,, 7) Carve a woggle? WB Beads? Woodcarving Merit Badge? 8) Target practice? Yes, at CSDC, but must use the provided throwing knives. 9) Nice award for Old Scouter. Engraved and packed in a case?

Aviation Merit Badge included?

Well.... changes to IOLS are implied. Totin' Chip? Whitlin' Chip? The topic seemed to always come up, and was in my "Frequently asked Questions" section. That's EDGEFAQ, in BSAspeak.

Limited space? Make sure all have sufficient prior notice and opportunity. First come, first paid, first filled. Cubs alone? No. Gotta have parental escorts in any event, yes? Encourage the Family Camping, as noted by scoutldr. That said, if there is enough demand and interest, organize another trip!

Try again. I got an "Error" message about a minute ago. Any new "tool" takes some getting used to. Comments/nits to pick: 1) It is very pretty. 2) Things are too "light". I subscribe to a magazine (remember them?) that denotes it's pictures/insets in a smaller, lighter color type. Why? Same here. I do not like the light blue choices to click on. Hard to see/demark. The magazine uses light brown against a tan page (!!!). Why? Black, dark blue, even dark brown is fine. Light blue against white? Nahhhh. 3) Size/shape of icon/profile picture is not of much concern to me. Round is very democratic/equanimical. 4) Editing the essay is easy. Toggle away. 5) It is nice to know Scouter Terry (yes?) is so dedicated to our purpose. I know many Scouty folks here locally view if not participate on Scouter dot com because of my recommendation. See you on the trail.

There is nothing to the rumor that Pet Care MB is being combined with Cooking MB.

Nice to think one's "Secret Santa" has a cnote to spend on one. Howsabout a "Campaign" hat? Also known as a "Smokie Bear" Hat? "course, maybe the proper size might present a problem.