CaveEagle

Been away from the forum for quite a while. The Gates Recommendate drew me back in to see what the Scouter community had to say about this. Full disclosure: I come from a very conservative POV on this. FWIW.. This entire issue/debate has been handled poorly. Point a) Most of the gay rights advocates are just looking for a fight to tear down an organiation with God oriented value system. Just like the Christian cake bakers. How many gay couples REALLY want their cake from them anyway? They were just looking for a fight to make the headlines and were lawyered up well before t

In 25+ years of scouting, I have encountered member of the the "uniform police" on several occasions. So far, I have always been able to respond with a 'helpfull' correction on their uniform patch placement etc. My favorite on that I often see is leadership knots sewn on upside down. Especially the Eagle knot really stands out if you know what to look for. I never say anything unless the wearer starts spouting off about 'correct' uniform guidelines. Having said that, I encourage my son's and the scouts I know to get their uniform put together as correctly as possible. Its a respect t

I can agree with your sentiment, skeptic. I don't see anyone on the right trying to use the BSA as a political battleground. This issue is being forced onto the BSA. I for one don't want to see any sort of lifestyle witch hunt. Keep it to yourself and we will all be fine. This is just a very fine line, when special interest groups are pushing the issue so hard. A "don't ask, don't tell" policy is not good enough for the gay rights community. Any I cannot tollerate the normalization of alternatice lifestyles being promoted in my scout troop. So this just sounds like we might just be

But it is the place for right wing idea-logs to promote their agenda? Why is that? I don't hear from any right-wing conservatives trying to force tranformational change to an organization that has a fairly well known and established policy. If you are currently a member of the BSA, than you have already decided that this issue is not important enough to keep you from joining. We may well find out that many people are less committed to this organization when it starts to bend to social-political pressures to change. I support the BSA because they are (or were) different. If they becom

This turned out to be a hot topic when I was commitee chair for a small start-up troop back in '02-03. We had a 13 yr old scout that had been working on this requirement for almost a year. The father (Eagle Scout) showed me proof and tracking of the scouts efforts, and he showed improvement in all other areas. The problem was we had an ASM (marine background) that thought it was his personal mission to improve the physical fitness of Americas youth. And......a SM that was signed on to his 'program'. This created a discouraged youth, and angry parent, a split comittee vote and was a major c

I really don't watch the news much anymore. Its just too darn depressing. I guess I do need to do some research to find out exactly what is going on with the BSA. I find it funny that I have been getting several phone calls and emails from my old council and my new council (recently moved states) pressing me for my FOS and 'Golden Eagle' commitments. That is just not normal. It feels like they are pushing more than normal because of some pending change that could have a negative impact on my contribution. More on-topic.. I don't beleive that all homosexuals are guaranteed to be ped

Include the '80s in that comment. I was the first scout in our troop to earn Eagle in 5 years, so I really had to figure things out for myself. My "Eagle project worksheet" was a faded photo copy that you could barely read. My first Eagle project was 50% completed when I got the letter from the council office letting me know that it was not approved. Granted, we were a small troop on an Army base in Germany, so there were not really a lot of expert resources. On the flip-side of the argument, I also did not have a overzealous council hack nit-picking every aspect of my project and

**warning... slightly off topic......maybe... Why does it seem like there is a prevailing presumtion that a scout that does not make Eagle has failed? ...Or that the program has failed?? My late Grandfather was a scout in the early 1913-15 range. His father was the scoutmaster of his troop in NYC. (Manhattan I think) Anyway, he was very small for his age and was unable to complete the requirements for the lifesaving MB. My granfather earned the rank of Star scout and went on to be an ASM in that same troop. He was always proud of his involvement in scouting and spoke to me often

Just imagine for a moment..... A news headline reading: Eagle scout stands by as child drowns! I know this sounds extreme, but whats next? "I cant perform first aid because I have a germ phobia." I know that I am straying way off the PC reservation here, but STOP watering down the value of real acheivement. CE

Well, that was a fair amount of reading to get nothing specific. Our DAC seemed to be VERY confident that this program was on indefinate "hold".

Well, that was a fair amount of reading to get nothing specific. Our DAC seemed to be VERY confident that this program was on indefinate "hold".

I was just informed by our District Adv Chair that the new Historic MBs are on hold. I was not given any other info on this. Any other info out there on this?

1. no..... however, I don't get too worked up about it. I had by Eagle BOR just before turning 18 and never wore the rank patch. My son just also completed his Eagle rank (barely made it as well). I would have like to have been able to wear the rank patch and maybe earn a palm ot two. I did not manage the calendar well enough to accomplish that. 2. yes... 1987

My son's Eagle packet just came in the mail and I was surprised that the 'honorary' President's signature was not on there. I am tagging onto an older thread, but I was just wondering if this was a permanent change?? CE

I was a scout from 1981 to 1987 and earned most of the skill awards. I still have my old belt with the awards. I was surprised to find out they had been removed from the program when we got back involved in the late 90s. I wish we still had them. Our new scouts seem to get a big let-down when they transition from cubs. They are used to getting tons of recognition from the pack in the form of pins, belt loops and activity awards. Now, many of them will walk away from a COH without much recognition at all. Before moving a few years ago, our troop in NY awarded patch segments for

Wow that is cool! Interesting that the "Wehrle" family had 10 cars make it into the top 50. Just like NASCAR, where the big race teams have have the advantage. CE

I am now SM for a troop of about 70 scouts. We have an older scout with a peanut alergy that has not ever posed an issue (that I am aware of). We have a new scout that is joining soon and I am starting to be confronted with more questions on this ussue. Word from the committee is that I am going to be asked to make this a "nut-free" troop. I am really not sure how I should respond to this. I am weighing the pros-vs-cons of my possible reactions. Option 1- BAN ALL NUTS:.... Can I even enforce this realistically? My first reaction is that I don't want to do that. I like my occasio

Make it very adventure focussed. Imagine the intro scene to the Indianna Jones movie, where young Indy thwarted the bad guys in his scout uniform. Cool!

Been away for a while! (busy scouting) Here goes... I also am a fan of the TH using parachute or thin climbing cord. The high quality climing cord makes a really nice slide. I periodically keep an eye on the clearance tables for such things. Bass pro also carries this. My favorite story was a our councils "Tiger Growl" campout. I brought a few pre-cut lengths of cord in my pocket and tied them into a TH to avoid boredom. I gave away two to tigers that had lost there tiger slide and a third to a cub that showed interest while I was tying the TH. I have gotten a wise crack fr

Our troop takes an international high adventure trip every 2-3 years. In July of '06, we took 21 scouts to the Kandersteg International Scout Center, in Switzerland. Our scouts have voted to make our next Intntl trip to the UK (probably in the summer of '08. Do any of you have experience with scouting opportunities in the UK? What would be your Top 3-5 "Can't Miss" items? We will usually plan a 14 day trip. We like mostly scouting/high adventure activities, with a little sight-seeing mixed in for good measure. Ideas? Experiences? Thanks, CE

Here is the Error message that I get when trying to update my email address. ******************************************************************* Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers error '80040e14' [Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver] Line 1: Incorrect syntax near ','. /members/modify/process2.asp, line 19

Wow, I was just checking my profile information and noticed something strange. My email address on file is not (and never has been) mine. It is: greg*******@***.com My nake is not greg, and I would never have used that for an email address. I tried to update to my correct address, and the system gave me an error. I suggest that you all check your profile email addresses. Could this have something to do with the recent problem some have had getting registered here? Terry?? CE

I would not give the dad a "pass" because of the traveling issue. I have heard this excuse before and don't buy it. I have had a heavy traveling work schedule for the last 5 years. I spend an average of 85 nights / year out of town. (many more day trips) I have always have always been one of the more acitve adults in our units. It comes down to priorities. If it is important enough, you will find the time. Let the older brother have his cross-over. It will be good for both brothers to have a little space. CE

Great! Welcome aboard!! We are getting ramped up for next weekends canoe trip on the Peace River. I think it is somewear south of Ocala. later... CE (mark)

'sorry for the stupid question......but.... Where is the chat room? CE