I paid 10/21 for my son's membership and he received his letter a few days ago.

Hello.  Need some opinions on the following.  My scout just started fundraising for his Eagle project.  His goal is to raise over $5k so that he (and troop) can assemble emergency lockdown buckets for every classroom in our city public schools.  The school is also trying to pass a tax levy this November.  There's a local group of volunteers that support the schools in various ways and are also supporting the Nov. levy.  Today someone in the volunteer group expressed interest in talking with my scout.  I don't have details about what would happen but I'm under the impression that this could be one of several interviews with students to highlight their achievements or making of a video highlighting students.  I can currently only assume that this interview or video would be used in some way to encourage voters to pass the levy.  My scout could certainly use the additional publicity for his project.  It just occurred to me that talking about his Eagle project on a video that is distributed citywide in the hopes to pass a levy could conflict with the BSA policy on politics.  What are your thoughts on this?

We can certainly contact our local council for further advice when more details are available but I thought I'd  see what all of you thought.  I'm thinking that even if he can't wear his uniform in the video, they would probably prefer school apparel anyway, shouldn't he be able to talk about his Eagle project?  He will definitely not make any statements about the levy, only statements about himself, his project and his school experiences.  Worst outcome, he just doesn't mention scouting or Eagle and it should be ok.  Thanks.

not sure if this is what you mean but our troop does the following.  High adventure every other year.  Due to various reasons there is usually interest from about six or eight scouts out of approx. forty.  Troop has always done Philmont.  None of the scouts that have participated in the past have ever requested to participate a second time so there has never been a concern about excluding anyone but if that happened previous attendees would be at the bottom of the list and then oldest first timers would be at the top.  The troop offsets a portion of the adult leaders expenses for the trip and pays for the Wilderness First Aid certification.  The adult leaders have always been parents of attendees.  Because this is expensive and only a small portion of the troop attends, the Philmont crew have their own separate fundraisers to help offset costs.  These funds are still deposited in the troop bank account and supervised by the troop treasurer.  The raised funds are split evenly among the scouts going to Philmont.  The Philmont crew meets often to hike and camp in preparation for the trek.

I don't know if Covid is an excuse but there has definitely been more adult involvement in the troop lately.  We had online meetings for months and various leaders had their own opinions of what these meetings should or should not have been so of course adult feedback forced the scouts to change what they had been doing. scouts were even given a script of what they should do or say.  very sad.  I get the impression that most of our newer parents are chasing Eagle and only care about requirements.  We've started in-person meetings again and those have been better but the troop is very chaotic right now with different Covid opinions and various health requirements.

On ‎7‎/‎20‎/‎2020 at 3:45 PM, Navybone said:

You do not think there is a difference in conducting a reenactment with some authenticity such as the confederate flag and someone displaying it at work or on their car/NASCAR/on a shirt?

Its not important what I think.  What's important is what other people think.  Other people find the flag offensive to see or be displayed and that is exactly what happens at any civil war reenactment.  Earlier this month, there was protesting for the local county fair to publicly ban the confederate flag because one vendor, listed as a Civil War memorabilia seller, sold items with the flag on it.  I don't know anything about the vendor, maybe he was selling baseball hats with the flag instead of chasseuer caps but I am very familiar with the fair and the blowout was total nonsense.

I would just like to point out that Yahoo isn't even allowing comments on its articles anymore. 

"Our goal is to create a safe and engaging place for users to connect over interests and passions. In order to improve our community experience, we are temporarily suspending article commenting. In the meantime, we welcome your feedback to help us enhance the experience. "

just thinking about reenactments a few days ago.  I love history, enjoyed going to reenactments and historical sites as a child and it was usually cheap for my poor mother.  I've taken my family to several.  I've never owned a confederate flag but I wonder how any event like this can survive in a society that has become intolerant of just about everything.  The gray army gets no insignia?  But then people are still imitating traitors and the wrong side.  Blue army vs blue army?  I'm sure WWII reenactments will probably suffer because of this increased scrutiny too.  Conneaut OH has a very large D-Day reenactment that many troops volunteer at and everyone has a great time while learning.

when I saw this I thought it had to be fake news but it is not.  The National Museum of African American History & Culture posted this and has since taken it down by request.

I didnt realize that "Objective, rational linear thinking" was due to me being white.  "Hard work is the key to success" is white culture.  It goes on and on.  There are plenty of people in my family that don't follow either one of those principles and others on the list, why lump all white people together.   If it came from some other organization there would be outrage.   

https://twitter.com/ByronYork/status/1283372233730203651/photo/1

can someone explain to me how BSA would have lost $2.8m on WSJ?  This isnt sarcasm, I'd really like someone more knowledgeable to theorize or speculate on this for me.  We went for the day, it was nice.  I didnt see anything I would call lavish.  They already have the land and unpaid volunteers.  Every attendee paid a lot to be there.  Not enough attendance to meet estimated goals?  Wasnt it bigger than previous WSJs?  Anyone know of unplanned expenses BSA encountered such as security or something?

21 hours ago, David CO said:

The FBI has really tarnished its reputation with conservatives.  I don't know if citizen academies (Jr. G-Men) has any great appeal.

I'm not sure if I'm misinterpreting the posts from Troop75Eagle and David CO.  This program is nothing more than an attempt for local community leaders to see what the FBI does.  It's a glorified ride along.  I dont see anything in the provided link that says otherwise.  Where is this recruiting and Jr-Gmen coming from?  I live in a suburb but the nearest metro city PD has a similar program.   Anyone in my community can also request a ride along with my local PD.

edit: I referenced FBI b/c that was part of my initial posts and jr g-men, the link is actually ICE related but the intent of my post remains the same because its basically the same program.

1 hour ago, Troop75Eagle said:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.newsweek.com/ice-launching-citizens-academy-course-how-agency-arrests-immigrants-1516656%3famp=1
 

seems we have the offer of Posse training available.

I don't know anything about ICE but this just sounds like media spin.  FBI.gov FBI Citizens Academy  says "Our Citizens Academy programs are engaging six-to-eight-week programs that give business, religious, civic, and community leaders an inside look at the FBI. Classes meet in the evenings at FBI field offices around the country. The mission of the FBI Citizens Academies is to foster a greater understanding of the role of federal law enforcement in the community through frank discussion and education. Candidates are nominated by FBI employees, former Citizens Academy graduates, and community leaders. Participants are selected by the special agent in charge of the local FBI field office. To find out more about an FBI Citizens Academy in your area, contact your local field office"

edit: I'd like to add that with regards to the FBI, it's not a new program created because of the current unrest.  I can only assume that many civic leaders have had the opportunity to attend the program if they chose to.

I think it's a great idea because I had it too.  I thought it would just be fun and educational, wasn't thinking of any rank or MB. Never actually got around to suggesting it because the cost of the flares discouraged me.  We live by open water so my thinking is that the troop would have done it on land but by open water to prevent chance of fire.  The troop would have notified and gotten any necessary approvals during planning.  It sounds like you've thought things through.

I traveled up and down the east coast and have carried road flares in my trunk for the past 20 plus years.  We live by the water and it's my understanding that every boat requires a flare gun.  Flares are supposed to be replaced every few years so if the cost is prohibitive and you plan ahead, you may be able to find marinas or boaters willing to donate.

wife just told me about this story below. not the first time, emt/fire gets attacked too but it seems relevant to this.

"Virginia Beach firefighters attacked while trying to save motorcyclist’s life, officials say"

http://www.pilotonline.com/news/crime/vp-nw-first-responders-attacked-20200701-tm2vicd7tjel3okvueonj46sju-story.html

20 hours ago, qwazse said:

The year before last, 23, if you include clergy and such (https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cftb0326.htm). Maybe a littleness arrive training could help them lower that stat.

I didn't notice any deaths by violence by persons under religious workers.  Nothing in that column comes close to Protective Service Occupations that encompass law enforcement and others.  Considering the column includes violence by animals, if you exclude jobs such as Farmers which is more likely to be animal related, at a glance the other top contenders appear to be managerial/sales type jobs.  Workplace violence is always tragic but I doubt most of those individuals felt that they were knowingly putting their lives in danger at the time.

2 hours ago, qwazse said:

 

• The warrior-police movement gained traction after terrorist attacks, but chief of police only recently realized the fallacy of that approach. So suddenly that gets rolled back. But officers who preferred to be warriors in many communities were allowed to carry on. Who can blame the officers? Most aren't that good at social work.

 

I pulled this data quickly but here's what I've got.  Every day a law enforcement officer goes to work they are at risk of losing their lives, hit, spit on, bit, pissed on, puked on, etc... One officer in our area approached an occupied parked car at a walmart and passed out before even reaching it because the drugs in the car were so potent.  A hazmat team had to be called.  Police are at risk just breathing the air or touching a car door these days.  How many social workers in the U.S. were killed in the line of duty last year?  As far as I'm concerned law enforcement are at war every day.  My political position is really simple, I'm anti-stupid and anti-crime.  

damage is done, too late as far as I'm concerned.

9 hours ago, David CO said:

Don't get upset.  Learn from it.  I know you don't want to hear me say it, but if your son can't recruit a few friends to help him with his eagle project, then he is not ready.  He hasn't developed the necessary people skills.

I don't know why he asked the scoutmasters to contact scouts to work on the project.  The scoutmasters aren't supposed to recruit volunteers.  Your son is.

Most of all, don't blame it on other people.  They don't owe it to your son.  They don't have to help your son if they don't want to.  If you are seeing a pattern (that people don't seem to be willing to help your son), find out why and fix it.  Then your son will have learned a valuable lesson, and can be a true eagle scout.

 

My son is working on eagle project ideas and considering inviting other local troops when he's ready.  If he decides to do so, I'd imagine his first step would be to contact those SMs after getting their contact info.  Those SMs could notify their scouts of a local eagle scout service opportunity and the scouts choose to show up or not.  I dont see anything unreasonable about this.  I'm sure my son would also be willing to do a brief presentation at another troop's meeting to recruit volunteers if the SM and PLC agreed but this seems less appropriate to me.  

I hope the project was a success for Mashmaster's son.

Just this past weekend my son's Law Enforcement Explorer leaders emphasized to the post youth to keep their opinions to themselves and not wear anything identifying them with law enforcement for their own safety.   Got a lot of feelings and thoughts about all of this but I'll just keep them to myself.

53 minutes ago, Sentinel947 said:

When my council absorbed a nearby struggling council in the 90's, the struggling council's camp was considered redundant, and had not been hosting summer camps for a few years anyways. It was decided to give/sell it to the local metropark system under the agreement that they would waive the usage fee for Scout groups. Today it is a beautiful and oft used public park. My favorite parts to visit is the old camp outdoor chapel which is still standing, as well as the transplanted Oak Tree from Gilwell Park. 

It's my understanding that LEC contacted our metroparks and they did not have the funds either.  I could not find the email or facebook post where I read this but am confident in what I read.  Scouts aren't using the camps.  I don't see how giving the camp away helps the council or the scouts.  If attendance at the camp was active, the camp would have been profitable.  It also doesn't make much business sense to me to have two council camps requiring resources that are within fifteen minutes of each other. 

10 hours ago, David CO said:

I don't think selling off a scout camp should be regarded as a feather in his cap.

I don't have an opinion about Ryan, I guess that's good.  No opinion is better than a bad opinion.  Stigwandish was a loss but it was inevitable after the local councils merged to create Lake Erie Council a few years ago.  It was advertised as the rustic camp for a reason and it's a fifteen minute drive from Beaumont, at that time the only camp of three that was making money.  Beaumont will continue to be a convenient camp for the east and Firelands for the west.  If I'd had $1.6M laying around I would have gladly bought Stig.

"Another conclusion reached by the assessment team is that two of the three camps — Stigwandish and Firelands — have operated at a deficit in recent years."

"Combined losses for the camps ranged from a high of $235,000 in 2017, and then improved to a shortfall of $150,000 in 2019."

https://www.news-herald.com/opinion/closing-of-camp-stigwandish-makes-financial-sense-but-still-evokes-sadness-editorial/article_672f7296-54d9-11ea-be61-6b9ae4618f38.html

For most of the parents I know or meet, Eagle is the goal.  It doesn't matter if the scout likes camping, the scout is in the program because mom and dad want him to get Eagle.  I've seen parent comments online wanting nights at home to count for Camping MB.  A leader just said a few nights ago said that she thought those nights should count and she's the MB counselor so it should be her discretion.  She was not referring to the rank advancement changes.  If BSA's main attraction is Eagle, then many parents would be happy if camping was eliminated because it just means their scout has one less obstacle to achieving Eagle and moving on to the next item for the college application.

This group has always been very informative.  So what kind of timeframe are we talking about for these changes?  I don't know much about lawsuits, I assumed it would drag on for years. Now it sounds like my 15yo scout will have been a Boy Scout, Scout BSA and To Be Determined by the time he's aged out?

Our council has camperships to assist scouts with summer camp.  We've never used one so I'm not familiar with the details but our council is very vocal about trying to support scout families that could not afford camp.  Maybe your council has something similar?  

I like sst3rd's suggestions.  I think every scout should try summer camp but I don't see any harm is delaying it.  Do what you can, have fun with what you have this year and save camp for the future. 

below are links for councils that I'm aware of.  various degree of details provided because people are still sorting things out.  Public Health is offered.  I've glanced at the stuff but haven't dug deep.  I know one of them is using Zoom.

https://scoutingevent.com/083-OnlineMB?fbclid=IwAR0OlD9MG5A2lsmjLoVqPw12BaXojfg_sNBipWyUo92Syo4igF-GH6D-BUo

https://www.piedmontcouncilbsa.org/mbuonline?fbclid=IwAR35r0wBZGyDUWlJg8VXQAj2pbRIqxAJqaSbxoepvjr378tQFaY94Am80ow

https://lecbsa.org/at-home

https://www.facebook.com/HeartofAmericaCouncil.BSA/photos/pb.192070054202737.-2207520000../2839205596155823/?type=3&theater

I usually go to bed about 1am during the week.  The adults in the troop are in tents by 11pm.  We have several leaders at every camp so I just tell them I'll be going for a hike so they know where I disappeared to.  I enjoy the peace and quite of walking through camp or wherever we are and I see things others don't get to.  I might hike for hours and eventually I get back to camp tired enough to lay down.  I walked through an entire small town one night that the troop just drove through.  I also use ear plugs sometimes.  I'm a light sleeper and someone snoring three tents away can wake me.  I keep my phone close for wake up.  I'm good on about 4 hours sleep so only suggestion I have is to start the coffee early.