CalicoPenn

Brent, Yes, I suppose you're correct - my argument could very well be interpreted as meaning that any speech used by a scout would be acceptable. As someone who earns at least a little money as an artist, I tend to view the First Amendment as being rather sacred, and well worth defending, even if I find the speech of others to be repugnant (I'm thinking in particularly here of one "Reverend" Fred Phelps). For the scenario you've laid out, foul language or t-shirts with repulsive messages, I believe I would do my best to make sure I addressed it as inappropriate behavior for a Scou

Brent, Yes, I suppose you're correct - my argument could very well be interpreted as meaning that any speech used by a scout would be acceptable. As someone who earns at least a little money as an artist, I tend to view the First Amendment as being rather sacred, and well worth defending, even if I find the speech of others to be repugnant (I'm thinking in particularly here of one "Reverend" Fred Phelps). For the scenario you've laid out, foul language or t-shirts with repulsive messages, I believe I would do my best to make sure I addressed it as inappropriate behavior for a Scou

Eamonn, I know you'll do the right thing for this boy. Yes, at 16, he could very well know what his sexual orientation is (not sexual preference, orientation - it's a completely different thing and not something we need to go into in this thread). But that's really not important. The current policy is very much like the Militaries "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue". You shouldn't ask, he hasn't told - there should be no problem with letting him into the unit. The "evidence" against him is he is very well spoken, very polite, MAYBE a little effeminate, a cheerleader, and an exc

Dan, You're post about the dichotomy between potential responses to a flag burning scout versus a gun pointing scout got me to think of the issue in another way (excellent point, BTW, Dan). The Scout Oath says a scout will do his duty to his country (which, of course, is the USA). As most have probably figured out from my earlier post, my opinion is that the higherst duty to country is the defense of the Constitution of the United States, which is the underpinning of our whole nation. Flag burning is, like it or not, a constitutionally protected act of free speech and free expressi

It will be a purple patch with black trim and a picture of The Count from Sesame Street. CalicoPenn

As the wise old Tootsie Pop Owl said: "3". I'm going to see Michael Bourne's Swan Lake on Thursday night. I'm told the Butler did it. (For those into movie trivia, this was the ballet being performed at the end of Billy Elliot) I'm waiting for someone to come out with an all-female version of Glengarry Glen Ross or an all-male version of the Vagina Monologues (now THAT would be a kick). And I think that brings the other "G" into the discussion. CalicoPenn

My prefered pledge: I Pledge Allegiance To the Earth And to the Life that She Provides One Planet, Interconnected With Beauty and Peace for All I rarely pledge allegiance to the flag - my religion is a goddess tradition, not a god tradition. I no longer consider the pledge, as rewritten by, in my opinion, a cynically motivated Congress in the 1950's to delineate the US from the "godless commies" of the Soviet Union, to be a common statement for ALL Americans. Perhaps I would feel differently if the "God" referenced in the Pledge was neutral but too many people in this count

Packsaddle - you know someone is bound to ask so just out of curiosity, why did you take the snake along with you anyway? Why not just release it at the side of the road near it's home? Can't wait to hear the rest of the story! Back when I worked our Council's day camp (we ran a 6 week program with paid staff, just like summer camp) we had a rule about snakes - don't pick them up - all the boys were told they weren't to pick up any snakes. The site of our camp was along the Des Plaines river, in an area known historically as habitat for the Eastern Massasuaga rattlesnake. A local tave

Which kid do you want to lose? The kid who pointed the gun or the kid who was bullied and had a gun pointed at him. If I were the kid who had the gun pointed at him and you told me that you were going to give Billy a second chance because it was only an air-soft gun, I would leave your troop, likely leave scouting, and never allow my children to even consider joining scouting in the future. It's not often I consider zero-tolerance to be a guiding principle - this is one of those rare instances. The boy that pointed the gun should be gone, period, no discussion. He shouldn't have

By all means, contact your councils Scouting for Food coordinator. I know of some units in small town rural areas that drop the bags off at folks homes with publicity in the local newspaper about the program and signs up in business windows where the intention is for the bag with food to be left at various business drop points during the week (like the local grocery store, fire station, library, restaurant) so that people can fill the bag, if they wish, at their leisure and not have to worry about whether they will be home the next Saturday to deliver the bag. I'm not saying this is what is

vmpost - Thanks! I was very fortunate to have mostly positive adult role models that I dealt with directly as a youth, from this Cubmaster (who was also my Cubmaster as a Cub Scout and encouraged me to become a Den Chief) to a Scoutmaster that recognized that I was not as enthused at age 15 about the Boy Scout program after summer camp (and working as a CIT) and the start of my junior year (I was getting bored with it - my folks were that breed of adult leader known as "super scouters" - both became District level leaders - not that I'm complaining about it) and steered me to the Troop's

Having been at the receiving end of a "uniform cop's" scorn, I always side on the "put and end to the uniform police" argument. The year before I became Vice Chief of my OA Lodge, I served as Chapter Chief, and the Lodge Chief always liked to make comments about how I was never in uniform and this was a poor example to the younger scouts. No matter how many times I tried to explain to him that the blue denim jeans I wore with my blue Dickies brand style workshirt was the chosen uniform of my Explorer Post, he always insisted that as Chapter Chief, I should set an example by wearing the f

The requirement states: "Be active in your troop and patrol for at least 6 months as a Life Scout." It does not mention a specific activity level. The requirement isn't about level of activity at all, its about timing and progression. It prevents any scout other than a Life Scout from earning the Eagle, and it requires the person to be a registered Life Scout for at least 6 months, so that someone could not get his Life Scout rank and Eagle rank in the same month. It prevents too rapid advancement while prodding those who are interested in advancing to Eagle to make steady progression and

I'd be interested to see if any council keeps any data on how many denials/deferrals were upheld on appeal and how many Eagles were awarded on appeal. I've seen an Eagle denied because the BOR decided they didn't like the project (appealed and won on appeal). I've seen an Eagle denied because the BOR thought the Scout was too young(appealed and won on appeal). My best friend in high school was denied because a couple of members of his BOR didn't think he was reverent enough because he didn't attend church regularly (appealed and won on appeal - his home church is Church of England - how

I did a web search for this story and most of it is from the summer of 2005. There appears to be another push to bring the issue up before the Supervisors, with some changes to the museum with additional exhibits planned (such as an exhibit on the history of gays and lesbians in the military which would be appropriate in San Francisco, though I'm sure there are those who would say it isn't appropriate at all - I'm not going to debate that issue (Part of the history would likely include General (later President) Eisenhower's refusal to authorize an active hunt for gays and lesbians to discharg

I've read, and re-read, and read again my post and I can't find anywhere where I said I was a liberal, though I can certainly understand how someone might get that impression from my post. Like OldGreyEagle, I'm one of those pesky independents that has no loyalty to one party or another, nor do all of my viewpoints fit only into a liberal or a conservative mold. Heck, most of my friends consider me a firebrand libertarian conservative liberal moderate socialist communist. I like to think that I take the best ideas from all to infuse my sense of political self. And like someone in another t

Water Mocassins (aka Cottonmouths) are pit vipers, as are rattlesnakes and copperheads. Coral snakes are in a different family - related to cobras. The treatments for both are essentially the same, though pressure immobilization in a coral snake bite if help is hours away, should be considered. This is done by wrapping an elastic (Ace) bandage starting a couple inches above the bite and wrapping towards the heart for a few inches, then continuing the wrap by wrapping down over and beyond the bite for a few inches. It should be wrapped about as tight as wrapping a sprained ankle. The idea

I've been teaching this method for years, ever since I became an EMT (with A (Ambulance - now generally called Basic (B), I (Intermediate), P (Paramedic) and W (Wilderness) designations)and saw a rather nasty training film on the results of some field snakebite treatments. 1) Wash the bite area with soap and water 2) Keep the site of the bite below the heart as much as possible. 3) Get to professional help as soon as possible. 4) If help is more than 30 minutes away, tie a 2" bandage above the wound to help slow the spread of the venom - not tight like a tourniquet, it

Beavah, I generally agree with your sentiments but in this case, it is too late - this is already in the legal system. It's no longer a matter about trust between scouter and scout - now that it's in the legal system, anything this lad says to an adult leader about this is subject to examination in the court of adjudication. You can be compelled to appear in deposition or in court to determine what was discussed, and what the boy said. Part of building character is helping the lads determine when its time to back away and not get involved (and I think we all generally agree that this c

Sounds like a great idea - but implementing the idea is another story. Copyrights give the writer (or publisher) rights to control the work and to protect it from any harm to it's commercial value. At the same time, the doctrine of fair use allows snippets of the work to be used without violating copyright for the purpose of criticism, scholarly applications, reviews, parody (Weird Al Yankovic songs don't violate copyright because they are considered parody)and other such things. It's generally accepted that one of the fair uses is that the end user of a CD, DVD, etc. (that's you) i

It's about Politics, Partisanship and Perception. And in the age of instant media and short attention spans stories like this get an instant boost, people make up their minds right away, then never let further reporting get in the way of their already determined opinions. Were a group of Boy Scouts booed at the DNC National Convention in 2000? Yeah, they were. Did all of the delgates to the convention boo the Boy Scouts? No - clearly not. Was it planned? Maybe - but with such a small group of people who did so (and most reports done later, after the initial hullabaloo, indicate that

Just a few thoughts, though no one gave me a penny: * What Boy Scout value would liberal's not like? The values are simple and stated quite clearly: A Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obediant, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean and Reverent. Reading the explanations beyond the words shows further that these aren't some set-in-stone mandates but that there is room for some interpretation. For instance, not obeying an order from a military superior officer to do a clearly illegal act would still be acceptable under the Boy Scout value of Obediant. Another e

I noted this which I think is a key part of the article: "The survey showed a strong relationship between analytic coursework and literacy. Students in two-year and four-year schools scored higher when they took classes that challenged them to apply theories to practical problems or weigh competing arguments." I fear that the continuing emphasis on using testing to determine success rates of schools will just make matters worse - more and more colleges are complaining that students aren't arriving with basic analytical knowledge or with basic skills. Our society became so obsessed w

The following are the requirements to earn the Mile Swim award, which can only be worn on one's swim trunks, not on one's uniform. Near as I can tell, this award is not approved for Cub Scouts. 1) Explain how regular exercise contributes to good health and why swimming is one of the best forms of exercise. 2) Tell what precautions and procedures a swimmer and escort must follow for distance swimming over open water. 3) Under the supervision of a currently qualified certified aquatics instructor, BSA or equivalent, participate in 4 hours of training and preparation for distance swim

Maybe its just coincidence (and I'm doubtful about that) but James Dale was from the Monmouth Council. James Dale, as many will recall, was the plaintiff in the Dale vs. Boy Scouts America that resulted in the Supreme Court ruling that allows the BSA to keep gays out of scouting. Coincidentally (or not), Monmouth had a balanced budget until the year 2000, the year of the Supreme Court ruling. National paid for the court costs for all of the appeals, not Monmouth Council, so the cost for the case can't be blamed for this. Could it be that the Monmouth Council community is