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gumbymaster

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Everything posted by gumbymaster

  1. I admit that I have not looked up references or sources on this in a long time ... I have understood that for the last several decades at least, circuses and the like with live animals, the animals have generally been bred in captivity. And while I understand that there have always been some horrific actions on the part of specific shows, the industry, in general, would treat the animals well and did not overtly abuse them. Generally state level inspections would check on the welfare of the animals. Now, I also understand that treated well, even if generally leading to much longer li
  2. Lesser was only intended to reflect less used, not intended to reflect less important. I generally agree with your points, and would even allow that a person might even be considered a leader simply by picking out a good team to do the job(s); even if much of the implementation was left to others.
  3. I will respect that some on the forum will hold a different view than I do. I really didn't intend to (re)start an argument, particularly one it seems I may lose (if such things were voted on), I just have a respectful disagreement of the complete separation of management from leadership. Plan and develop can be done all alone by the scout in the comfort of their rooms, so it comes down to "give leadership to others", this would, in my view, necessitate communicating and/or interacting with the others to be led and/or directed (trained if necessary) in the tasks to be accomplished. A var
  4. There's a reason I prefer to use a kayak paddle while taking newer scouts out on the river.
  5. @@Stosh, you have spoken often on your view of the difference between leadership and management; however, I, personally, view 'management' as I understand it from your use of the term, to be just one of the many styles of leadership. It can exist together with or independent from other styles such as servant leadership or delegation. I would still consider the effective management of a project to be a demonstration of leadership. I also view, terminology aside, the Eagle project to really intend to mean management of a 'large scale' (relative to the Scout's prior experience) project. Th
  6. I have my own deep routed issues with Woodbadge, which I have discussed before and will not repeat here. That said, when my son's troop selected a new Scoutmaster and he came to me for advice for what and how to do the job, I did recommend the Woodbadge course. He went and recently completed his ticket. For him, it was a really good course; while already a division manager or some such in his day job, he found the skills to be useful, and has since done a really good job, in my opinion, as the Scoutmaster. He likes that the skills fit well with the NYLT training that we send the old
  7. You and I both know from the I&P forums that there are many here, and in BOY scouting in general, that would subscribe to that philosophy if they could. I prefer the concept of have an expert teach me so I can also be an expert (gender aside); the Girl scouts seem to prefer the "Proof"/example that women/girls can do it, when they teach the girls.
  8. As you may have gathered, your problems, while very relevant to you, are common throughout scouting. One of my first recommendations is to meet with your Unit Commissioner, if you don't know who that is, work with the District Commissioner or District Executive to find out. This is a person who's job is to mentor you for your roll and challenges. They are often seasoned Scouters, whom while they may not have dealt with your specific problem before, may have colleagues who have or have other similar experiences to help you. If nothing else, it will be nice to have at least one person
  9. I can understand the sentiment - and I recommend you stay away from the I&P forums then where many of us often forget one or more of the Scout Laws we live by and teach. That said - airing grievances has a lot of good reasons: 1. It allows others to know they they are not alone and that others have similar issues (kind of like group therapy) 2. While we cannot solve many of the grievances, we feel better for having been heard and acknowledged - which is something that the targets of our grievance often miss. 3. By airing out our grievances here, we are less apt to take them out on o
  10. While I am sure that a suspicion of a predatory aspect - going hand in hand with being male , is part of the unwelcoming position. I believe that a large part of it is also that part of the point of Girl Scouts is also to teach the Girls that they can do it on their own, to empower them, to know that they do not have to have a man do things for them. So on the occasions when I have been asked to teach something to my daughter's troop (usually camping or scoutcraft related), I have always tried to be mindful of this aspect. Particularly in having the girls (or mothers) help each other whe
  11. I think you missed an earlier thread, I can't seem to find it at the moment, where the BSA carefully re-worded their alcohol policy in a way that would permit a private organization renting BSA property to follow their own rules on such matters - without actually saying so.
  12. This is an interesting idea, and could have a lot of potential. I do not mean to discourage your idea or effort, but there are some real concerns for safety depending on the scale of the effort. If you are looking for just your troop and/or oa lodge, where you have some way to verify each member, and are willing to moderate or at least review the content you will probably be fine; however, as soon as you start opening this up to Scouts whom you have not met or do not know well, then all the other problems with these types of systems come into play. For one, if any members are younger
  13. [ sarcasm on ] Yes I can clearly see that we would rather not meet at the same time, and risk our scouts being in the same area as those degenerates who are actively working on improving their lives and not drinking. Maybe we could replace them with a nice book club, where they sit around and drink wine (or other beverages) while discussing their books, and then get in their cars (in the shared parking lot) and go home. [sarcasm off]
  14. This may very well be the best use of FoS $ I have ever heard of. A mechanism for unit(s) to force change at a district or council level when needed. I guess that means my units would need to have a decent level of giving to make this a credible and effective threat. Thankfully, I haven't yet encountered these types of horror stories that would require this type of response.
  15. Find another pack that might like to partner with you and go.
  16. My understanding is that the PWD is supposed to be a parent and child working together effort. For my son's cars ... He chose the shape and design and draws in on the block We use the pack's pinewood debry cutting event, most years and adult would cut to the lines and/or use the belt sander. His Webelos year, he did some of the cutting and most of the sanding. I operated the tools to cut into what remained of the car for adding weight He did the painting, although I did help put down tape so the paint went where he wanted it. We both sanded the axle nails to remove the barbs I usual
  17. Unless the membership form actually has the words "from your Birth certificate" (I haven't checked recently) on it; then it would seem to me, for better or worse to default to at a minimum the legally recognized gender. I do not know the details of NJ anti-discrimination law, but based on that they apparently allow a person to indicate their gender of affiliation on the legal document of a driver's license; that would imply that at least there, the parents would not by lying, but in compliance with NJ law when completing the form. If the National had truly cared about this issue, then
  18. While all the above is correct, and that section need only be filled out when the merit badge is a "partial" ... 1. If the merit badge is not completed in a single meeting, it's a good idea to complete that section and return the card to the scout - so that the scout can move on to a different counselor if something happens. 2. In many areas it seems to be tradition (both what I saw as a youth, what I did with the summer camp staff that worked for me, and what I see on most of my son's merit badge cards now - different councils, different decades) that if all the requirements are completed,
  19. Like you, I wanted to step away from my son's boy scout career as much as possible (although some recent medical issues have necessitated more involvement than I wanted). I am on the committee to try and make sure the troop stays functional. I'm trained as an SM and could step in if needed, but only if it was that or the troop folding. I stayed involved with the pack, because a strong feeder pack is one of the best ways to keep a healthy troop. And I became a commissioner, to help other units. Even if you don't want a district committee type position right now, and that is comple
  20. When my son crossed over to boy scouts, he did not choose the troop I would have chosen. Before he made his choice, I reminded him of how significant the cub scout pack had become in defining our entire family - from the events and activities we did, to the timing of trips, vacations, etc. And since I had become a leader, the limitation on skipping events. I then asked him to think carefully about his choice in troops, because it too, would influence not just his life and development, but that of the entire family. When he made his choice, I asked him why he chose that unit. In this
  21. @@Gwaihir, The nice thing about cub scouts is that in two years, you will be the old guy, no one will remember that you were the new guy.
  22. I feel like all of us who have been suckered into the position are standing around you in a circle chanting "Drink the Coolaid!" In all seriousness, as long as you are confident that from the start you will not have to do the entire thing yourself (i.e. you have at least some reliable support), then that will give you the time you need to draft additional help and leaders to support your vision. Sometimes, having this type of change (committee changes after the CM change or vice versa) can be good - if you have a strong vision of what you would like to accomplish. In my case, I loved
  23. Setting up a "typical campsite" and asking the scouts to identify all of the failures to leave no trace (trash, even discarded food waste, dumped water erosion, disturbed grounds, poor fire ring, etc) makes it a little more visual for them; this is often done in conjunction with general instruction on how to set up a campsite, etc.
  24. http://gizmodo.com/what-knives-you-can-carry-where-in-the-united-states-1697091171 for a general overview http://www.knifeup.com/ Seems to be a more accurate site for official rules/laws.
  25. For me, it was a wonderful experience; however, I also had a great pack committee and seasoned (multi-sons) den leaders to support my efforts. If you can find any remnant of your inner child, and have a desire to improve the scouting experience for your son(s) and the other boys in the unit, then I strongly recommend you accept.
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