InquisitiveScouter

Agree with much of this. If Instagram is a public forum (and it is, because government officials use it to engage with the public) then people can say whatever the heck they want. Now, BSA tagging and reposting IS a problem. But that is on BSA... And yes, adults should tell their Scouts to ignore posts that BSA has tagged for their Troop, exactly because they (as you say) seem to allow people who make hateful comments. Your Scouts need to learn to speak up to confront, or ignore, just as you and I do. There are a lot of hateful people in the world... you are not going to shield

Let's be careful here... Rules (and rulemakers) cannot perfectly address all situations. Just like laws (and lawmakers) cannot. There has to be room for judgment, common sense, and matters of conscience. For example, take something simple like the speed limit. It is the law. Day to day, I obey it, even though it is really inconvenient. (Yes, I am that guy on the road, in the right lane with cruise control set to the speed limit 😜 ) But, if I am transporting a Scout to the emergency room, you can bet your boots I am speeding. I will break that law. The situation demands it.

The line for bullying and harassment is at the point where someone is addressing comments at youth, and you ask them to stop. When they don't, it crosses the line. If you just don't like what they are saying, or if their statements are general, and not directed at anyone specifically, it isn't bullying... it is just them being a horrible person. In a public forum, people have the freedom of speech. In a public forum, you have the right to not listen. The forum you spoke of in your OP was not a public forum. (And this is not a public forum either...) Could/should someone have

P.S. We adults do have to limit their appetite. The Scouts ask to do many more activities than we adult volunteers can support. But, I have noticed their eyes do tend to be bigger than their stomachs. That is, the more activities we added, the fewer the average number of Scouts who participated in those activities. A bit of scarcity in supply seemed to increase the real demand/uptake.

Target program is negotiable. Start maybe with identifying how many program elements the adults can support, since that is now the limiting factor. Side note: I think this is one of the things killing Scouting. Back in the day, we got together as a Patrol without adults. We did hikes, service projects, meetings, or just hung out. Scouts are not allowed to do such things now. After you determine what the adults can support, present that to the PLC. You saw my earlier post with what the Committee together with the direct contact leaders can do. We have an ASM assigned to eac

The SM and ASMs mentor the Annual Planning to help the PLC meet their targets, constraints, and restrictions. (Restrictions like that they cannot plan to do skydiving, hot air balloon trips, parkour, or a Troop boxing tournament... you know, prohibited stuff that they would love to do!) And, for clarity, please, what do you mean by TLC?

Sounds like you have a continuation of the WEBELOS program. Leave immediately. DM me with your state and city... if you are near, come visit to see what Patrol Method and Scout-led looks like. Fair warning: it is messy, and adults can do it much better... but then it would not be Scouting; it would be WEBELOS again.

Parents and Committee members should never do something that Scouts can do for themselves. The Scouts choose their program and capture it on the calendar in their "Annual Planning Conference". Do not let the name fool you. We have at least two of these each year... one per Senior Patrol Leader tenure. And they are challenged to look out at least twelve months, so that we always have six months of program on tap. Once the Scouts choose their program, it goes to the Committee for "approval." It is not really so much an "approval" as it is a "yes, we can support this, with the adult

We had a discussion along these lines some time ago in our unit committee/parent meeting... The parents of our Scouts support having a girl Troop, but there are not enough to sign up to create one (youth and adults alike.) If we were allowed to have a girl patrol, we would, just from the siblings who would like to be in the program.. And just like all of our other activities, we would have that patrol grow separately. Patrols make up a Troop... a Troop is not made of patrols. IMO, this mindset is critical to understanding the Patrol method, and how girls patrols would function

Heretic!

You have described this correctly. Thank you.

And how's that working out for us?

But, but, but... we can use these as FUNDRAISERS! 😜 Do you remember when your lodge and council had ONE flap and CSP? smh

God forbid? 😜

I think the best approach would be to give the CO's options, and let them decide how they wish to structure their Scouting program... Just like they already do with selection of adults, religious and character requirements, and whether they have a girl Troop under their umbrella. There are many that would wish to stay with the single-gender approach. There are many that would integrate.

No, they do not. Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States. Just like a Texas Flag on a uniform does not make sense for Scouts from Texas.

And not enough, or quick enough punishment of the offenders. We are seeing the rate of our decline increase... coming to a neighborhood near you...

This

A Scout is Obedient ..."He obeys the laws of his community and country. If he thinks those rules and laws are unfair, he seeks to have them changed in an orderly way." Is that who you are?

Love the idea, but... trademark violation.

The price mark-up is a lot less. Gotta fund those salaries! That whole "A Scout is Thrifty" thing... nah, BSA doesn't mean it.

Still waiting for a coherent answer to the post above... Meanwhile, I asked this question at our last Roundtable, as one topic of discussion was recruiting and transition. This went up to council, and the word back through our District Commissioner from our SE (we have no DE) was that youth who meet the criteria for joining Scouts, BSA, may camp with a Troop, and they are covered by insurance if not registered. (and I have the email trail...) Our Caesar has spoken. And common sense has prevailed. In my opinion, the more nonsensical restrictions we (the BSA) impose on families

Funny how we discuss these things here, and voila! National starts "testing the waters" on this...

100% Also 100% Commissioner has correct picture... it's about best opportunity for those Scouts. Let others worry about the other unit. They can work to either save it, or transfer their Scouts to you. Be open and supportive to their coming over, but focus on your unit and Scouts. My hunch is, their CM will bring them over.

I would say to anyone who is making a decision about Scouting to not pay attention to posts on a website that is not official. And that ALL Scouting is local. So check out your local Troop to see if it is a good fit. I honestly do not believe anyone is so naïve as to think that way. We can (and do) have any number of people here who are not even involved in Scouting, yet post their ideas in conversations about topics. Just because you do not like people's opinions, or how they express them, or the way they pose an idea or question doesn't mean you are the hall monitor who has