InquisitiveScouter

If you see that as the point, then please, follow your beliefs and never go into the woods again. Also, please stop using electricity, because the windmills are killing far more birds... As for me, until something more conclusive than your concoction emerges from scientific study and observation, I'll happily bring out my laser pointer to educate Scouts. Happy Scouting

From post yesterday...

And btw, I am a Leave No Trace Master Educator. Never in any syllabus item or class of instruction have we discussed laser pointers. Just did a quick search of ALL my Instructor materials issued by BSA and LNT.... how many hits for 'laser'?? Zero. And, you can use "Mr. Google", too! (and it is rather sexist of you to assume Google is a 'Mr.' 😜 but we will allow it ) Search the lnt.org site for the word laser, and you know how many hits you get? Zero. OK, so I'll go another mile in those shoes... https://www.sfvaudubon.org/a-guide-to-bird-locating/ Laser Pointers:

I'm not gonna do the heavy lifting on your argument. If you actually have a position to support, then support it. Thanks @qwazse! And the dispersal method is actually to aim the laser at the birds! https://biglasers.com/blog/2022/08/16/understanding-green-laser-pointers-for-canada-goose-control/ Of course I would never do this... And, if you've ever used one responsibly, you know it only takes a second or two of pointing at your star to have everyone know exactly which one you are talking about. It's nothing like the duration of say, those Christmas laser light displays peopl

Citation required.

Your house lights, and the lights in your neighborhood and city disorient migratory birds more than any laser you will use in the wild... Physician, heal thyself... https://www.birdconservancy.org/lights-out-for-birds/#:~:text=Light from big buildings%2C street,visibility of the night sky.

LOL, that's for those inconsiderate people who point them at animals. Certainly check the rules for wherever you are going. And I recommend adults only handle the pointer.

Actually, looking at Scoutbook to refresh my recall... There are THREE dates recorded for a rank: Date Earned Date Approved/Recorded Date Awarded The clock for advancement to next rank starts from Date Earned.

Ahh... our procedure is to "Approve" as soon as the BoR is complete... same date. And OP did specifically ask about what happens in SB. BTW, @Alec27, you can go back in SB and manipulate an "Earned" date to match the BoR date, if that is an issue.

Approved. You can accumulate several ranks in Scoutbook "to be awarded". But, you should not be waiting until a Court of Honor to award a rank or badge. You should be doing this as soon as possible after the rank or badge is earned. Read your Scout Handbook, approx page 414. "As soon as possible, you are recognized for your achievement at a troop meeting where you recevie your badge. (You'll later be recognized again at a special ceremony call a court of honor.)" Once we "award" at a troop meeting, we mark it in Scoutbook. Then for your future Court of Honor, you can run

Concur, to a point... We had a Scout who was working on Tenderfoot. He did not take good care of his book, and his requirements page ripped out, and he lost the page with his progress. I sat with him, read through the requirements, and asked him if he could remember which requirements he had completed, and with whom. I was going to help him verify, and was prepared to take him at his word for many. For some, he said he could not remember. He asked me if he was going to have to re-do the requirements, and I told him yes, for the ones you cannot remember or that we cannot verif

All great ideas... - You do not need a flag pole. You can make own. Pretty easy with some staves, rope and stakes. Check out the Scout handbook Woods Tools Section for round lashings. Lacking staves, you can throw a rope over a tree branch to raise a flag. (My preferred method.) Just need a long rope and a flag for that one... - For your astronomy, recommend you invest in a modest pair of binoculars (instead of a telescope) and/or a green laser. I use the laser all the time with Scouts to point out stars. Be careful not to use when aircraft are in the area you are pointing.

Could Mom stand on her head??

If the registrar likes you, you will have no problems with recharter 😜 Want to get the registrar to like you? Complete your paperwork properly, file it in a timely manner, and have sufficient funds to cover registrations... Pretty simple recipe.

Agreed. That is the primary resource for the Scouts. Scoutbook is the primary tracking tool we adults use, as it provides much more utility.

After reading the memo, I cannot help myself... Duck, Duck, Moose!!

It is best if you can get Scouts to "take care of themselves" as @mrjohns2 indicates. However, this requires a few things: 1. The Scout must have an email address to have their own Scoutbook account. (Many parents balk at this for 10.5 - 12 year olds... don't get me started there.) 2. A parent who is connected to Scoutbook and can reasonably navigate the application. 3. The parent must invite the Scout to connect to Scoutbook and finish creating their account. 4. The Scout has to find out how to enter logbook activities, which is not an intuitive process. 5.

Check your roster in my.scouting.org ---> MENU ---> Your Unit ID ---> Roster Once this is updated, your Scoutbook roster update should follow within 24 hours. Any youth who aged out may linger on a bit longer. Our recharter went very cleanly with 52 Scouts / 28 Leaders. The absolute key is to have all your roster updates / applications processed BEFORE you submit for recharter.

Putting bling on their uniforms is gonna be tough!

And, if you are paying someone to create a good program, do you think they are going to come back to you and say, "The solution is less programming, and and more emphasis on unstructured fun in the outdoors!" ??? https://childmind.org/article/why-kids-need-to-spend-time-in-nature/

Mad props to that Scout!!

Define religion... you could make a statement that Boy Scouts is your religion, and that you worship Lord B-P. If the state gives tax breaks to a "religion" but not to other non-profits, then that is a state "establishing a religion"...

Could you enter this in a will? Disposition of a settlement in your favor, that is?

We offer an orientation to parents, and spend a great deal of time on "How do we keep your kids safe?" Removing adults without children in the program is a recipe for failure. They're the ones with the "bandwidth" available to make such an admittedly complex program as Scouting work (well). We encourage our new parents to camp with us. We require YPT, and background checks (usually free) per our state law in PA. We did have a parent wish to camp, without sufficient time to complete the above. We allowed it, but said they must, at all times, be with one of our registered adult

When we disguise our feelings as thought, we make all nonsense possible.