The Latin Scot

That is a good idea; I know getting leaders into our groups is like pulling teeth lately, but this is a situation where it would be HUGELY beneficial if somebody could step in to be his special mentor. I will put that idea forward; thanks @ItsBrian

Here is a link to the full announcement: http://www.ocbsa.org/news/2018-insurance-fee-announcement/

Honestly, I have never heard of a "three meeting model" being pushed as essential. Perhaps if one felt beholden to the Den Leader Guides, but really, does any body really use them that much? I will occasionally glance through them for ideas, but I don't base my meetings off of them. I prefer to simply pull requirements from the book and go through them at meetings for as long as it takes or as long as the boys are interested. The problems I see with the "streamlined" versions are centered around two main issues. First, it can easily be looked at as a way to simply blast through the requi

Thanks for all the suggestions. We have our den meetings the exact same time as his future troop meetings, so I have to plan carefully if I am to arrange any visiting by either the boy or his future leaders. They can't get me as an ASM either because of that time conflict. My main concern is getting the future leader trained; he is very hands-off and somewhat distant with his boys (the running joke is that he always seems more dead than alive). This particular boy needs a leader who is going to be invested in his growth and progression, and I have a hard time seeing the leader give that.

Aye ... ¡alboroté el avispero!

Well, as Cervantes wrote, "la verdad adelgaza, y no quiebra ... siempre anda sobre la mentira como el aceite sobre el agua."

Well, hence the Council's decision to add a $12 insurance fee to every participant's registration, starting with new members this year, and all members in 2019. I know there will still be angry voices complaining, but considering it's still only $45 per year, I think that's a fair alternative. Certainly preferable to charging the one group of boys we most want to keep!

I'm about ready to go all Don Quixote on these darn rumor mills.

Except that despite how desperately some people seem to wish it were true, the Church has no plans to leave Scouting at this time. Mercy, people just can't let this one go, lol.

Gah! My heart! LOL

So, any opinions on this matter would be helpful. I currently have a boy in my Webelos den who has a number of challenges. The primary challenge is that he is about midway up the autism spectrum; he functions well, but there are enough triggers and whatnot to set him off somewhat easily unless he gets special attention. The other problem is that his family speaks very little English; they came up from Mexico only a few years ago, and communication is a challenge for the family. There are other socioeconomic challenges they face on top of all this. Now, none of these are problems at

Wait ... they made a BLUE ONE?!?!?!? As a Cub Scout leader, I would ABSOLUTELY have bought one! Augh, now I am going to live out my days ruing the fact that there were blue ones produced a decade before I was born ... oh cruel twists of fate!

Wait ... what?!? But, we constitute a MASSIVE portion of the Scouting world! How can they just exclude our position like that? Where did you hear this? I am shocked and appalled, lol.

What's frustrating to me is that the GSUSA is touting their "single-gender model" as being so superior, while either ignoring or remaining ignorant of the fact that the BSA is not going co-ed, but rather creating a new, separate program for girls that will be distinct from their boy's program, despite the ranks and requirements being the same. One of the basic premises of their argument, that the single-gender model is better for development, is actually still being followed by the BSA, but they continue to put us down for straying from it, which isn't true. I have read many articles late

Mine too, I just barely got it - looks like they will be adding a $12 "insurance fee" to the $33 registration fee. I think that's much smarter - still regrettable that we have to charge more, but sports groups and SAT prep classes charge FAR more than Scouting does, and we deliver just as much content to the kids in our programs. It's much better than punishing our top achievers with a pointless fee, that's for sure.

By the way hikeoholic, what district are you in? Saddleback District here, nice to have a neighbor on the forum!

OFFICIAL NEWS FLASH! My District Advancement Chair just called me to let me know that this motion has been officially DROPPED. Most districts never even heard about it, which is good seeing how short-lived the proposal was. Some people just jumped the gun though. In any case, the matter has been resolved, and they are exploring different alternatives. It seems our Friends of Scouting numbers kind of plummeted this year, which caused the need to look at new revenues - but luckily this idea was killed before it ever took off. So there we go! There are no Eagle application fees happeni

Ah, gotcha. Thanks!

Wow ... Scouting sure did affect my generation's outlook. All of those things sound either completely irresponsible or recklessly dangerous to me, but I still had fun doing Scouting - even with all the safety and conservation practices in effect.

What's cubtrails?

Thanks for the link @TAHAWK! I just wish I could try one on in my size before buying it ... Scouting apparel always run appallingly large on me, so who knows if even the small would be too large. I love shopping for clothes, but NEVER online if I can help it - you gotta' try things on before you buy them! For example, I finally got a new Scout shirt last month - and ended up having to get a youth-sized shirt since they were the only ones that fit me.

@RememberSchiff Well, I acted at any rate. I must have sent out a dozen e-mails, and I sent a very strongly-worded warning to council asking them to consider the ramifications of such a move. But I try not to worry while I am acting - it keeps me from thinking clearly, and affects my larger perspective. For now, I will wait until there is more definitely information. Undue concern avails me nothing while I wait.

Our Scout Store has tons of them. But none in my size (I wear an adult small/slim). :-(

@Hawkwin that certainly would have helped! In any case, I just now had a long conversation just with my District Advancement Chair. While discretion prohibits me from divulging all the information this early on, I will share what I can to allay any concerns you all may have. At an Orange County Council meeting on Saturday to which select board members from the various districts were invited, it was proposed by the Council Executive Board (not Scouters for the most part, but professionals hired to increase profit in the council) to charge a $120 fee to Eagle Scout applicants upon the

I think that's ultimately the key here - educate the Scouts on the traditions, the peoples, the cultures and the controversies - and then let them decide. I don't think National - nor any one Native American nation - should have the right to dictate what they can or cannot do from there.