gblotter

As I said above, the backing of a loud minority does give one claim to popular support.

And I'm getting more than a little tired of BSA National claiming popular support for a divisive decision when they crafted a manipulated survey and distributed it selectively and won't reveal the results. Even in the non-LDS Scouting community, support is spotty at best. The backing of a loud minority does give one claim to popular support.

I am ready to criticize BSA National about many things, and I detest the decision about girls in Scouting. But I will defend separate handbooks. I support as much separation as possible.

The September-October issue of Scouting Magazine makes it clear that BSA is betting the farm on girls. Cover photo: Family Scouting Letter from CSE: Justifying girls in Scouting with claims that it was all in response to popular demand (his lies just never stop) Commissioner's Corner: How to welcome girls into Scouting Recruiting Article: How to get more girls in Scouting with Scout Me In Order of the Arrow Article: Welcoming girls into OA staring February 2019 Roundtable Article: Welcoming girls into a pack Scouting FAQ: Uniform Q&A with feature photo of

Different handbooks with different numbers. Scouts Handbook for Boys, No. 34462 Scouts Handbook for Girls, No. 39006

The Eagle Scout participation requirement is not being ignored. Eagle has been a long-term goal for them. To meet Eagle requirement #1, they would insist that they had six good active months shortly after becoming Life but not so much recently.

Interesting point. I'm reminded that the Scoutmaster conference can be held at any time while working toward the new rank, and it doesn't need to be the last requirement satisfied before a board of review is held. Would your troop would make an exception to provide alternate arrangements for a Scoutmaster conference if a Scout found himself up against a deadline (six months before turning 18, for instance)?

Adding requirements like that is obviously wrong, but I can sympathize with what this troop might be trying to do (encouraging activity by older Scouts). Right objective, wrong implementation. We have a troop of 30 boys (about half are age 11-13 and half are age 14-17). All the older Scouts are grouped into one large patrol. The lives of these older teens get so busy, and we rarely see them on a troop campout or other Scouting activities. I remind those still working toward Eagle that real activity in the troop is requirement #1, and I challenge them to attend at least one campout a year

No need. The church is rather good at program development. I expect to see greater emphasis on spiritual development. Less emphasis (elimination) of badges and awards. I’ll be very surprised if a heavy outdoor component (including frequent camping) is not included. Or I may be completely wrong. We all have plenty of time to speculate about the unknown, as details of the replacement youth program likely won’t be unveiled until late 2019.

I routinely sit on EBOR panels for our district. To my knowledge, the references listed on the Eagle application are never contacted for further feedback.

Correct. For me that will be a hard habit to break on this forum. Thanks for the reminder.

My father-in-law is a huge long-time Scouter (past council president even). Because our LDS troop is functioning so well, he has talked of continuing it intact under a different CO (he was even willing to do the legwork to find the new CO and an alternate meeting location). I doubt he will get traction - especially for the necessary adult leadership to staff an independent troop. I told him to count me out - I won’t continue as Scoutmaster under that scenario. Absent BSA’s girl decision, I likely would have supported the idea. Scouting has been a truly fantastic ride, but it will be time

I may be wrong, but I think they are referring to Scouting units chartered by the LDS church (CoLDS = Chartering Organization LDS). I think.

For many decades, the Scouting program was a wonderful fit for LDS boys. It is BSA - not the church that has changed in its values and focus. Thus, the program is not the great fit now that it was for so very long. It makes many of us LDS Scouters and Scouting families very sad. Watch this inspiring video produced by the church just a few years ago to commemorate the 100 year partnership between LDS and BSA. Then tell me that Scouting was never a great fit.

Certainly no church prohibition for girls in BSA. The church does not prohibit participation in GSUSA, either. Sunday collisions with scheduling of Scouting events in a non-LDS troop may surface as an issue, however. Our son avoids many sports teams for the same reason. But that is a separate issue that affects both girls and boys. Boys are different than girls - period. Boys learn differently and develop differently than girls - period. If this is not obvious, then let's just end the discussion here. My son faces this reality on a daily basis at school where his behavior a

In our council, Sunday collisions with scheduled Scouting events is very common. I don't view it as being hostile to religious observance in any way - I just think the organizers are unaware because the faithful don't speak up (go along to get along). I have chosen to speak up whenever I am presented with a Sunday collision in scheduling. Each time I have been graciously offered an accommodation by the organizer that works for all. BTW: I agree that a Scouts Own religious observance is insufficient for my personal belief system, so that is not the kind of accommodation I'm talking ab

Yep - no argument. Some, but certainly not all. My experience is that program quality varies widely between LDS Scouting units. I'd like to think that our troop of 30 Scouts can hold its head high when comparisons are made. Just next door is another LDS troop that is barely functioning and struggling to even maintain critical mass. Generalizations are hard to make. You have a strange perspective if you believe that LDS is the only opposition to BSA National on these divisive issues. In terms of program purity and consistency, I agree. The accommodations for LDS Sc

Based only on our troop of 30 boys, the crossover into non-LDS troops will be less than 10 percent. There may be some initial interest by Scouts seeking to finish off Eagle, but even that level of participation will wane within a year or two. Scouting among LDS families will be an esoteric interest like oboe lessons or fencing. I can't speak for Cub Scouts - there may be more interest in Cubs for LDS families, but I doubt that too. Church activity programs keep LDS families quite busy - too many balls to juggle at times. Very few LDS girls in our area participate in GSUSA, so I can't

Simple. He realizes that girls in BSA is a radioactive topic and he is trying to avoid stirring controversy as he encourages LDS families to continue on with Scouting. Dahlquist doesn't want to remind people of more reasons to dislike BSA and their recent decisions (even while he himself helped craft those decisions). Nobody should assume that having daughters or granddaughters makes one a supporter of girls in BSA. Nobody should assume that being female makes one a supporter of girls in BSA. I dearly love my wife and three daughters, and we all disagree with this decision to include girl

The quote below is from @CalicoPenn posted on March 9, 2018 telling me to quit Scouting.

Agreed. Admittedly, individual viewpoints shape our overall vision of future trends. I personally see a large number of Scouts who plan to complete their march to Eagle and then quit BSA altogether. Many folks are in denial about the impacts of co-ed Scouting on existing boy membership. Boys are not stupid and they will easily discern that the program focus has shifted away from them and their needs. BSA can't bully and shame people into staying with labels like "unScoutlike" and "conditional Scouter". Most who leave will walk away in silence rather than loud protest. The "get done and ge

And how many boys are headed to the exits in reaction to program changes that ignore their needs and opinions? I predict more boys will be lost than girls gained, for a net loss in overall membership.

No doubt there are plenty of agitators and activists who would agree. However, open defiance and boastful disobedience is definitely not how I define good leadership in Scouting. Some Scouters on this forum are quite particular about following every guideline and regulation issued by BSA. This scrutiny and hair-splitting can sometimes reach levels of absurdity (e.g. to wear a neckerchief over the collar or under the collar). Then I read threads like this where other Scouters brag about breaking fundamental rules. Such a fascinating discussion. In truth, it doesn't matter to

From a different forum thread, a Scout has been denied Eagle by BSA National because he missed the age deadline by two months. There has been community outcry and petitions over this. See https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/greenburgh/2018/08/15/boy-scouts-no-eagle-rank-greenburghs-hari-channagiri/996348002/ So if the CO, CC, and SM have a thoughtful organized dissent with BSA National over this issue, I guess it's ok for them to just go purchase some Eagle badges on eBay and award them to the boy anyway, right? We are justified in disobeying BSA National (over any is

At least the Scout is handling this with honor and maturity. "I knew from the beginning that I might not get to be an Eagle Scout because of the timing," the 18-year-old said Wednesday, after the Boy Scouts of America's (BSA) National Council reaffirmed its decision not to promote Channagiri. "I wanted to build a bridge, and I decided to do it anyway. That was my choice. I did it for me, not just because it might help me become an Eagle." Bravo to his attitude. See https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/greenburgh/2018/08/15/boy-scouts-no-eagle-rank-greenburghs-hari-