Tiny1pj

I have to take a stand opposing the BSA allowing the boy to wear the uniform to promote the "anti-human" approach of organizations like PETA. They are truely terrorist organizations, promoting the hurting and possible killing of people involved in fishing, hunting, and use of natural resourses. This boy needs to be taught that he shows himself representing scouting when he appeared in the add wearing his uniform. These are the same organizations that align themselves with pro-homosexual, pro-murder (abortion), and anti-2nd ammendment groups. They cannot stand killing and eating a f

Thanks Mike. I had not heard of that search engine before. I did do several searches on differant engines, and after over 100 sites, my hands to sore to type any longer, I thought about posting here. Many of the replies on other threads have been very good and helpful for my very new troop. I will check each of these out. Thanks again! Paul

As with all things in scouting, you need to lead what you want the boys to follow. If you are not "reverant", neither will the boys. If you want the boys to respect everything, you need to BEFORE you try to teach them about respect. Before I became totally disabled, my sons always saw me at church whenever the doors were open. Now, I have difficutlty getting there. I have to budget my energies better than an accountant does money. Yet, they want to be at church whenever ANYTHING is going on. They are now 8 & 10. As we have all learned in training: You have to lead by exa

Due to my location (Lander, Wyoming), it is very difficult for me to find any wheelchair vans, let alone one that I can afford. My income is fixed (SS disability). Although I am multiply disabled, I would like to remain an active scouter. The boys are very important to me, and I attend every function I am able. My current registrations include: District Committee (Activities member), Troop Committee Chair, Cubmaster, and Webelos Den Leader. A full size van, with raised roof, side entrance. In the future I will need hand controls. I can currently transfer between my chair and the dri

I totally agree with eisley on keeping the emergancy electronics in the bottom of the back, planning to NEVER take them out, except as I mentioned with the GPS to help the boys to learn how it is an adjunct to the compass and map. Thank you eisley for your compliment. My reason for looking at having to go to a power chair is multifold. I lost my left leg to a farm accident, and now I have diabetes. Even with treatment I have developed several severe complications, most notably neuropathy in all 4 limbs, and have lost most of the feeling in my foot. Although only 40, I also have perm

While I agree that electronics should not be used as toys, I totally disagree about having them on the trail for emergency backup. I have had 3 high quality compasses fail (point inconsistantly). My experiences may be unique in that I handle over 100 compasses a year in my hunter education classes. Add to the fact that with bad weather and poor visability, you may not be able to orient a map on the ground. The GPS is a good way for the boys to validate their location AFTER they have determined it using the map and compass. However, just like everything, it has its limitations and d

In our council, anyone who wants may attend WB, after completing BS Fundamentals. As a relatively new scouter (4 years), I found the course informative and enjoyable. One of the things that helped my patrol come together was having to help get me around the course physically. I am almost always in a wheelchair. In our course, only 1 of 5 patrols DID NOT have someone in the course that was not mobility impaired, although I was the only one that could not walk. Paul

I am not sure who the "LC" is, however to ban prayer at a scout meeting would be to say that the 12th point of the scout law is of no importance. Because the PACK I am part of is not affiliated with a church, we have never had a prayer during a pack meeting except when a meal was served. However, every TROOP meeting the prayer, opening and closing is up to the boys. They are encouraged to include prayer, as well as keep their church an active part of their lives. Every troop committee meeting is started and ended with prayer. As to the "circle up", check out your "Group M

I find it amusing that so many people have no problem paying 40-100 for clothing they rarely wear, yet balk at a uniform item. In my course, EVERYONE was in full uniform, the SAME uniform, all the time not sleeping or bathing. Yes, the female leader did wear a campaign hat for "dress" times, especially for colors in them morning. Then we all changed to "class B's" for the activities, then back to "class A's" for evening meal. As an instructor, you will be setting the tone of the course to the students. Since you must have taken wood badge already, you should be aware that there is a

Perhaps this is a dumb query for you old woodbadgers out there. However, I have been pondering what to do for my ceremony. This last Thursday I completed my ticket. I am involved in the district at 4 levels now, District committee member, Troop Committee Chair, Cubmaster, and Webelos Den Leader. The boys of the Pack, whom I have been associated with for almost 5 years, would not be any more interested than they are of FOS (age related apathy :-). My troop currently consists of 2 active boys and 5 adults. It is less than 2 years old, and even our Court of Honor was rather anticli

There are several things that this topic brings up. 1) Slower Scouts. If they cannot be included, there is a problem with the troop. If the older boys want to participate in the "High Adventure" programs, great. However, that is not the intent of a regular BSA troop. In my Hunter Safety courses, we have always taught "The slowest person determines the pace, and the one in most need of a rest determines when to rest". Every troop is going to consist of both top athletes and couch potatos. We need to encourage the couch potatos to get involved, and leaving them behind at ANY TIME wil

The only disagreement I have with Oldgreyeagle's last comment is in regard to when we have to fight government based discrimination. Only in that case should we look to governement to help our "fight" to remain as we are. Here in Lander, many dens meet in the schools, and if the bans on using school property for scout meetings in the east hold, then that may not be an option. For ONLY cases where governmental agencies (local, state, or federal) attempt to restrict the meeting of any scouting group, we do need to have the protection.

If I have said this before, I apologize for the redundency. Remember the words of BP - "Scouting is FUN with a PURPOSE". 1 - What is the fun? That is the outdoor activities we get the boys involved in. Scouting uses outdoor skills and activities as a method of developing boys into productive young men. 2 - What is the PURPOSE? Teamwork, leadership, citizenship, etc. It is not learning to tie any of the many knots out there. They are just a tool. I could probably teach a monkey to tie most of the knots we use, but what would be the purpose? In my Webelos Den and in my Troop, I h

Regarding the CCC, it is made up of 2 staff, and 1 parent, and principal from each school within the district, as well as 2 "district employees" and 2 school board members. The purpose of the CCC is to review changes proposed to the curricula within the district, ensure that it meets state standards, and when it is acceptable, reccomend it to the school board. This saves the school board a lot of work. Here, in Wyoming, home schoolers must have approval from the district. They must present the curricula and, once approved, the students are required to take the same "standard" tests

KD - Being a member of the District Curriculum Coordinating Council, having regular contact with several differant parents who homeschool, and having considered it myself (my disableing conditions are too severe for the day-to-day rigors of home school), I know a fair bit about home school. > Just wondering...how much do you know about homeschoolers? Unfortunately that is not a rumor, but a fact here. The homeschoolers here GENERALLY meet with each other once a month. One of the mothers was very rude to the new den leader for daring to PHONE her to let her know about a scout acti

This year I had 2 homeschool Tiger cubs. They had some difficulty initially adapting to the social setting of multiple boys and parents, however it did not take them long to be active in the den. Paul

This one CAN be a "catch 22". If the boy is quilty (by his own admission outside of court), he should withdraw. If he will not admit to the charges, and others have seen him using illegal drugs and DUI, that is when a legal problem can develop. If anything, I fear that the legal implications can be similar to the homosexual leader issue. Parents who want their son to be an eagle have been known (personally to me) to pressure eagle boards with legal challenges to subjective assessments. Is he of high moral character? It appears not. Like others said before, this appears to be an issue for

As eisley has pointed out, what has this boy done to earn his eagle? The last eagle board I know that was NOT successful by the boy, was one where the PARENTS did all the work, and the boy did almost nothing of the project. The project is a time for the BOY to show leadership. The BOY is to be the one calling, organizing, etcetera. If the mom and dad did the work, I do not believe the boy earned his badge. Yarrow - "Mom, Dad, and sister worked really hard on the project along with an few church members and very few (count them on one hand) scouts. If it were not for a call from

A lot of how to handle the problem is specific to the individual boy. If the problem is "emotional" or a REAL medical problem (mental retardation, ADHD, etc.), you and your leaders need training in learning how to deal with these young men. As the father of 2 boys, one with ADHD, I can tell you it can get very trying. The best thing to do is set limits, and not allow anything beyond the limits. If pushed, either a "time out" or even sending him home (since we meet in my home, I send him to his room - no tv, no games). With one extremely disruptive boy, I sent a note home with him that he

I heartily agree with jmquillan. There are the few exceptional young men (and for that matter young ladies) that show exemplillary (sp) personal conduct, responsibility, leadership, and citizenship that deserve every recognition possible. The sad truth is that this is the exception, not the rule. Living in an area with 4 troops (2 mormon, 2 non-mormon church sponsored), I have seen several questionalble eagles. There conduct in the community, and obvious "paperwork problems" (feel free to read EVERYTHING into this) has caused a number of boys to quit scouting because of the lack of value

As a Hunter Education volunteer instructor/coordinator, (what else would a scouter do in his "spare" time), I have a number of "matchless" ways of starting a fire, without liquid fuels. Most use a method of sparking such as a knive to a flint, flint and steel, knive to back of high carbon knife. I also especially like "out of fuel" cigarette lighters. Anything that will throw some sparks. the following are items that will work well - some faster than others. 1) magnesium stick - fastest of all, burns the hottest. Make a small pile of magnesium shavings (about 2 inches in my expe

The minimum time for an eagle scout, as the previous poster pointed out, is about 2 years. 1 month for tenderfoot (physical fitness requirement), 4 months for star, 6 months for life, and 6 months for eagle. The last three all require leadership positions lasting the 4 or 6 months. Did this young man learn how to be a leader, or did his parents (or others) just sign off on papers. There are too many units that want to be "Eagle Mills" and produce boys that have not learned the true meaning of scouting. Do you remember your Basic Training (Boy or Cub) and the characteristics of a boy at ce

I absolutely agree with everyone that this is nowhere near the level of an eagle project. I see it as a tenderfoot to first class service project, and hope that it incorporates Webelos (even Cubs of all ranks!). I have been thinking about what one person said about it "being in the way". The individuals I know who are not interested will walk on by. The scouts should not be out "pulling people in", rather they should be politely greeting, and making the offer of refreshments. I suggest also having Koolaide, or other beverage for children and people who do not drink coffee. Speaking o

I have to disagree with p_swigs. I find idea of coffee and information to travelors is ALWAYS helpful. This is often what states pay people to do in major reststops, so why would it be in the way? As a community service project, is may be small, however it is the small things that make the differance. Opening a door, a friendly greeting, helping with a package. Do not forget, the service that started USA scouting would not be considered community service either by this persons standards. There is nothing wrong with giving out information about scouting, or even the "mock camp site",

As a hunter education instructor, avid hunter and fisherman, and lover of meat on the table, I also know that hunters have spent more money on wildlife than ALL the "anti"s put together. It is depressing that these people have never taken their arguments to their logical conclusion (with very few exceptions). The only way to do as they want is to destroy the entire human population. A few antihunters have actually taken to shooting at hunters during hunting season. They condemn leather, so wear synthetics. Of course they are made from oil, and oil is to be banned. We cannot pla