Trevorum

I think Merlyn might point out that the school is treating all religious organizations in the same manner. It sounds like they are drawing a difference between organizations that restrict membership versus those that are inclusive and open to all children.

Diver, welcome to the forum! As CM, you have an issue, but I'm not sure this is a scouting issue; you might get better advice from Dear Abby or someone like that. Have you asked your spouse for her perspective? That said, my opinion is that the issue may be more the lack of bathing (this is a medical problem for some) and associated odor than her choice in undergarments or lack thereof. After all, that IS her personal choice. If she keeps the uniform buttoned. In any event, I suspect that the solution may involve another woman in the pack - and not a man - speaking to her.

jr56, Is that a joke of some kind, because it isn't funny at all. From my perspective, our society is becoming increasingly conservative! I'm offended. harrumph!

Our unit meets at our CO (a church) so of course we are not charged. For years we also hosted the monthly district roundtable as well as training sessions, until last year when the church realized that those meetings were not for us - their chartered unit - but were for "some other" scout group. When the church decided to charge a users fee, the district decided to move elsewhere.

Humor is a funny thing... It may be unique to Homo sapiens. Which makes us wonder why do humans laugh, tell jokes, and giggle? Some evolutionary psychologists have speculated that as humans developed bigger brains and became more cognitively aware, humor evolved as a device to avoid emotional and psychological meltdown. Seeing someone chased and eaten by a leopard is traumatic, but learning to laugh at misfortune displaces the emotion. As a result, we all laugh at tragedy, as long as it happens to others. That's why slapstick works.

(oops, sorry!)

Thanks for that clarification! I was baffled. (For some, NEPA is the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.)

Thanks for that clarification! I was baffled. (For some, NEPA is the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.)

Thanks for that clarification! I was baffled. (For some, NEPA is the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.)

hmm... I guess we missed the boat with Haley Joel Osment. He would have made a great Cub Scout!

I gave this minute after Katrina but before Rita. Living here in Texas, I hope that it got a few scouts to think about getting prepared. ---- When I was a scout, we lived in Los Angeles. We never had hurricanes, but we had earthquakes. I remember there was this disaster movie - "Earthquake". The special effects were pretty cheesy by today's standards, but at the time it was a scary movie, especially for those of us who had actually lived through a couple of earthquakes. Of course today, disaster movies have much better special effects. There was this one about a volcano, and one about a comet that hits the earth, and one about the start of a new ice age. People seem to like disaster movies. I'm not sure why we like disaster movies so much, 'cause we sure don't like disasters! Watching the terrible news about the recent hurricane in Louisiana got me to thinking about the Scout Motto. I started thinking about what I would do if there was a disaster here, in our town. Do I have the stuff I'd need? Does my family have an evacuation plan? Am I prepared? Are you prepared?

resqman, that's a great idea! The perfect way to recycle old uniforms! However, my suggestion is NEVER use glue to affix patches. It's the fast way, but glue immediately ruins any collector value (you may think the patches are nothing special - and you may be right - but sometimes old scout patches are more valuable than you know). I'd suggest lightly attaching them with a few loops of thread.

Our troop has always done well with popcorn. Usually, about half the guys pay for summer camp that way. However it is not popular with the scouts themselves, except perhaps the youngest ones, and we always supplement with our annual spring BBQ fundraiser. That is much more popular with all ages of scouts and is an easy sell to boot. For whatever reason, I think popcorn is well suited to Cub Scout packs, but is not quite as good a fit with troops.

The email addresses for folks in Irving are closely guarded secrets ! (I could tell you, but then ... well, you know ...)

The observaton of the link between religion and calendars got me to thinking ... Is there any legal requirement in the United States to use the Gregorian calendar ? For example, could a devout Muslim who objects to using a Christian calendar, write a check using a Hegira date (eg. 1426) or can an observant Jew use the Hebrew date (eg., 5765)? For that matter, could someone use an Anno Urbis date (MMDCCLVIII)?

How about a nametag in Klingon? kg'rg'thh!

Also not in the East, but I highly recommend the cavalcade offered by Buffalo Trails Council at Buffalo Trails Scout Reservation. An EXCELLENT horseback trek!

"Perhaps an actual definition of religion would help-I know some who worship government and money maybe these too are religions." I don't know if there is a broadly accepted definition of religion, but anthropologists - whose job it is to study and compare human societies and their institutions - accept that religions must contain three key elements: 1) a belief in supernatural beings or forces; 2) a system of ritualized behaviors; and 3) a system of ethical rules. Under this framework, the "worship" of government and/or money are not religions.

Sue, while I am picing up the new JLT training (thanks for that, by the way!) I'll have to get the new G2SS also ... So... are there any OTHER new versions of critical pubs that you know of and which our local professionals may not have told us about? (evidently we need to discover this stuff via word of mouth!)

Thank you both! I didn't know there was a revised training available (I'll have to grouse to my district training coordinator!) We have 6 months now until the next JLT, but I'll get the new stuff now

I just finished leading our troops Junior Leader Training (JLT) this afternoon. I think this has been the fifth or sixth time for me, and by now I know the scripts of those videos by heart! And they sure seem dated to me - they must be 15 years old. Even my younger son, who was watching them for the first time, later commented on the stiff acting and stilted dialogue. Does anyone know of any BSA plans to update this important training material? Does anyone NOT USE these videos?

I believe these strips are used by scouts whose primary language is Klingon.

Uniforms which are no longer wearable? Toss 'em out or recycle 'em as rags. They're just clothes, not flags. Unlike a flag, you don't need to show a uniform any special respect. It's just a piece of cloth

I agree with Torveaux. There will not be a consensus on this issue. In my view, BSA adopted Native American costumes and began emulating ceremonies at a time when American society was not as sensitive to ethnic slurs as we are today. We were unintentionally racist. But the imitation was done, as still is, not with malice but out of respect for Native American society and beliefs. What we can do is continue that tradition of respectful honoring our Native American heritage. I think the OA does a fairly good job of respectful imitation.

The campaigns of extermination carried out against Native Americans were strategic, systematic, and were sanctioned by governmental authorities at local, state, and federal levels. They were fueled by a widespread belief that these peoples were not even human beings, and they were motivated by economic expansionism. There are those who, unbelievably, deny the Holocaust. Even today, Turks will deny the Armenian genocides. For what ever reasons, some Americans choose to deny the well documented atrocities committed by US military personnel against Native Americans. FWIW, my "agenda" is to remember the mistakes of our past so that we are not doomed to repeat them.