cchoat

As District Commissioner, I noticed that council added to the November calender, right next to our regular roundtable "/FOS presentation".  Not a phone call or e-mail, they just added themselves to the calender. So to accomadate them, I rearranged the meeting plan to fit them in.  Wouldn't you know, they didn't show up.    

Anyone ever deal with the "Camp Card"?   Our council is pushing participation, requesting number of cards each unit plans to sell at $5 dollars a piece.  Problem year after year is that the discounts offered on the cards are only good in the "southern" portion of the council, and are worthless up here.  They can not understand why every year we don't (CAN'T) sell them.  They accuse us of not "doing our fair share" raising monies.   

And yes, every year the "promise" to get more merchants up in our area or make a special card just for us never materialize.

Going with Backpacking.  Troop started of with 20 scouts trying for the badge, with only two left at the end.  (The tallest and shortest scout) Yes, you can do it at Philmont, but not all scouts will get to attend.

@@cchoat, @Eagle94-A1: Had a similar comment from a highly active ASM. Wanted to know if we were just baby sitters. Have not addressed the comment yet. Want to know what's driving the thought process. I suspect they might want to see more organization or coordinated involvement (already tons) from the ASMs. Not sure.

The problem is that the parents in my troop committee are confusing thier Cub Scout experance, where the adults did everything and the boys just showed up and got a badge, for Boy Scouting, where the boys are supposed to run the show.  I have several NYLT older scouts who are trying thier best to lead the troop and I have to constantly explain to the parents why I am not "doing" anything.  It's what they don't see that they don't understand.  That's why i signed them up for the troop committee, and started training them.  If after imparting knowledge they still don't get it, the patch is still on the table, because i don't want to be a Super Cubmaster.

two weeks ago, I had this out with my troop committee, who were upset that as Scoutmaster, I wasn't "leading the boys" (sitting in the troop meeting, teaching basic scouting skills, leading the game, etc)  I once again had to explain the aims and purposes of Scouting, and the role of the scoutmaster in the troop to no avail, they knew better because in the troop in the next town, the adults run the show and the kids all advance in lock step.   

At the committee meeting, I sat through 30 minutes of parental venting.  After that, I tossed an extra Scoutmaster patch on the table and dared them to pick it up and do the job.  Needless to say, no one made a move toward it. 

I am conducting for the third year in a row, Troop Committee training to teach them.  Maybe this time they'll understand.

Sea Scout leaders can have their own personal flag like general and flag grade officers.

 

http://www.scoutstuff.org/sea-scout-leader-flag.html#.VhgaC27ig40

 

http://www.scoutstuff.org/sea-scout-flag-rating-stars.html#.VhgaDG7ig40

Sea Scouts love their flags.  The history of the sea scout position flags can be found at http://retentioninscouting.org/V_Sea_Scout_USA_Flags.pdf.  but why stop there? National could sell Commissioner flags, Scout and Cubmaster penants, the money making opportunities are enless.  (ha ha)

Stosh,

Yep.  That's why I don't get too many opportunities to wear it.  Doesnt get that cold down here in Louisiana, at least for this transplanted northerner.

Okay, I'm game..... isn't the expedition hat felt, too?      It doesn't have the vent holes, is darker to absorb more solar energy than the vented, tan campaign hat.  I prefer the campaign hat in the summer and the expedition in the winter.

Down here in the south, the weather really doesn't go well with the felt hat.  However I do own and wear an official expedition hat with the Scouter pin on front when the weather is just right.  I rock that with an A12 USAF leather aviator jacket complete with a custom name tag that under my name reads "Scoutmaster  BSA" 

Now if only I could get away with a whip at camp...

Ok, I wear three rows of knots and multiple devices that I have earned as a Cub Leader, Scoutmaster, Unit Commissioner and finally District Commissioner over the past 35+ years, but I can understand what eagle 94 is saying.

Because I work in an area that is heavy with soldiers and retired soldiers (sailors, airman and marines) I have found that these parents tend to think less of those with no knots, equating them with new privates as opposed to seasoned veterans.  Even though I have had numerous opportunities to explain that wearing them is at the discretion of the wearer, the message never seems to get through.    Throughout thier careers they saw rows of ribbons to mean that the individual has been there, done that, and sometimes to a high degree of merit. 

I find them also to be good taking points in my role as DC, because new scouters ask "what are those for?" I can pitch training opportunities. 

"Banana Republic General"   Hey now there's a new rerason for National to make a few bucks.  They could sell flags with one, to four Flur-de-lays" to signify ego. 

First off I want to thank you all for your input.  I think that CalicoPenn has the idea that i am going to use.  Have it at Winter Camp but at a seporate, away from the scouts area.  If he's finally done with his last ticket item, I'll be able to share this with my assistant scoutmaster. (Who I dragged fighting and kicking to Wood Badge, then back for the second wekend and through four of his five ticket items.  BTW, he saw the light and he's a convert now.)

BALOO taught me KISMIF, Keep It Simple, Make It Fun.  so I will print up a small program and stick to it.  No additions, and the Course SM the only one to speak. 

Our Winter camp runs from the Friday night before Thanksgiving to Wednesday morning.

Just 1.1 miles by road, .9 if you go as the crow flies. Most of the districts units are within 15 miles of the roundtable, concentrated in the northern half. But we're currently pushing to start units down in the southern end, and if successful, we'll rotate the roundtable locations. 

First of all, thank you for the replies. 

I do not want the "full MGM production ceremony"  I am looking for short, sweet and to the point.  Since my fellow patrol members are drawn from three different councils, doing it during "winter camp"  (Council sponsored, five day event in November) would be in a centralized location and an excellant opportunity for all of us to be there, while offering a public arena.  I don't plan on going over 10 minutes from start to finish.  Bury the axe in log, a few minutes about what is WB, my ticket items, necker and bead, one chorus (BEAR) of wood badge song, remove axe from log.  That's it. 

Too much?

I have just completed my last Wood badge ticket item, and have recieved the blessings of both my ticket counclor and course scoutmaster.  The question is this, I would like to have my beads presented during winter camp, as it is the most central site for my fellow patrol members to gather, but my ticket councilor and scoutmaster would rather I wait and do it at the district dinner, (I am the District Commissioner) which in my case will be held at the far end of the council (the camp is in the south, the dinner in the north) and would be hard for my fellow critters to come up. 

Also, winter camp is in November, and the dinner not until March of next year.  Either way, I don't want anything spectacular, but I don't want to upset my councilor who was extremely helpful in getting me through the ticket.

Any suggestions?

Personally I am happy to see the LDS Church stick with Scouting.  After a career that has taken me around the world in Scouting (The US Army), and now as a District Commissioner in Louisiana, I have had the honor to work with the LDS Scouters in my community.  These outstanding leaders give of thier time to form the backbone of my District staff.  Without them, we would have been in a serious rebuilding stage. 

The world is changing, and althouigh many of us may not like where it is going, the BSA is one place where traditional values are still held.  National has read the tea leaves, and has tripped into a compromise that hopefully will put the whole damn mess behind us.  This issue does not belong in scouting, and as long as National upholds the rights of the chartered organizations, all will clunk forward.  Politics and scouts are not suppose to mix, so as long as the LBGT movement doesn't use scouting to advertize their policies, and national upholds the ban on using the uniform for political activities, we'll make it through

If not, all bets are off.

Scouting is for the boys.  Let's keep it that way.

As a retired Army Training NCO and long time scouter (thirty plus years in various positions all around the world) and currently serving as a Scoutmaster and District Commisioner, I am fully aware of the impressive "chosen one's" that we all run into in our scouting careers.  Many of these "Enlighted one's" coudn't light their own farts, but that's another story.

I finally took Wood Badge this year, the course is not offered around here but one every two years, and I was finally able to move my schedual around to attend.  With a Masters Degree in Organizational Leadership, I was surprised to find that many of the topics I had spent long hours decomposing and regurgitating in college being taught in tight, concise little packets.  I came out of the course invigerated not so much because of the material, but because of the high level of energy that the staff pumped into us, and my fellow patrol critters. 

My point, good traininers can take a dull program and make it sing.  Poor trainers can take good material and turn it into trash. 

I proudly wear a Bear patrol patch on my Scoutmaster uniform.  Helps that in addition to being already known throughout the council as a "Loud and Proud Bear", I am also a District Commissioner, in charge of the uniform cops.  So everyone is "Cool" about it. (Or they hear me growl...) 

I used to be a BEAR and a Good 'ol Bear too... And now I'm finished Bearing... I don't I don't know what to do... I'm growing old and feable and I can Bear no more... So I am going to work my ticket if I can... Back to Gilwell.. Happy Land.. I'm going to work my ticket if I can.

Song loudly by a proud Bear!

S1-205-15-1

I have always said that what you do in the privacy of your own bedroom is your own buisness. Your right to believe in what you want is your right, my right to believe what I want is mine, and we should not try and impose each others views on another. Live and let live. If this projected new course of action would satisfy the vocal critics against Scoutings ban on homosexuals, then I'm all for it. I agree that we should let each unit decide on it's membership, and the gay community should respect that decision. If no troop exists, they now can now start one. If it is so core to their agenda that they should be able to participate, then let them, so long as they don't change the program they so dealy fought to join. In the major cities, this may be a boon time.

These are my personal beliefs. But as a Scoutmaster in a rural troop deep in the south, who's CO has stated that we will continue banning those with a gay orientation from serving in leadership roles, I am consulting with a lawyer to check my legal exposure. How many adult leaders will now have to decide if they want to risk being named in lawsuits for following the CO's policy?

The media will focus on those troops that continue the ban if it's pushed to the local CO's. You are only fooling yourselves if you think otherwise. There are going to be lawsuits against individual troops and the leaders, because they are the public face of the troop\pack\crew. The main issue that CO's will face is not "Does this conflict with our moral teachings" but "What is our legal and financial exposure if we continue to sponcer a Scout troop?"

Yes, it all comes down to money. The minority is using it's high profile (Hollywood) money to push down the throats of the Scouts it's agenda, it's lifestyle. Believe what we tell you or else. The threat has worked at National. CO's will see the writting on the wall and bail. Who will want to take on unnecessary legal risks?

And for those who may say that I should leave this troop and start another, why should I abandon the boys I promised to serve when I took on this responcibility? In the long run, the fallout of this will effect the boys.

I have a scout who is under seeing a psycologist for a water phobia issue that according to the doctor will take a few years to work out. If I were to seek an alternative event, does anyone have any suggestions? He will go in the water, canoe and rowboats with a life jacket,but will not even go near shore without one.

"I woke today, I was crying

Lost in a lost world

So many people are dying

Lost in a lost world

Some of them are living an illusion

Bounded by the darkness of their minds.

In their eyes it's nation, against nation, against nation

With racial pride

Sounds...

Thinking only of themselves

They shun the light

(shun the light)

They think they're right

(think they're right)

Living in their empty shells."

Now that's a more apppropriate Moody Blues lyric to fit this issue. Personally, what two consenting adults do in the privacy of thier own home is thier own buisness. When they bring it out of thier home and try to tell me that I have to accept it is another.

We are truely living in a "Lost World" were right is wrong, up is down, and if you don't agree then your a racist. What ever happened to agreeing to disagree? Why must a private organization like the Boy Scouts have to change to meet the demands of a small vocal group?

My 2 cents.

Our troop in Louisiana didn't get any press, but we helped make our community ready, just as we did when Katrina and to a greater respect, Rita came through our back yard!

Now, as to earning service hours, we have done other service projects for the community. One of which was recognized with the 2011 First Place level, National Award for Beautification & Community Greening, given by Keep America Beautiful.

http://www.kab.org/site/PageServer?pagename=2011_Nat_Award_Winners

But helping in an emergency is what Scouts do, and only if you've never filled, or moved alot of sandbags, can you say that this was not a worthy service project.

I usually access this site during my lunch break at work, so i don't see the ads. instead i get the message:

"Access Denied (policy_denied) Your system policy has denied access to the requested URL."

Very dull, but then I don't come to this site for the ads.

You say that the neighboring Troop has been of little help, so you most likely won't get any help from it's OA members. (I don't know what the situation is, but...) I am of course stumped as to why the Troop is ignoring your Pack, as that is an excellent recruiting sourse for new members when your boys age out of Cubbing.

Don't just limit yourself to the OA. If you need Scouts, then why don't you just ask for help from another Troop at your District Roundtable? Scouts require service hours for advancement, and helping at Cub events are great ways of killing two birds at once. (recruiting and service)

As for the OA, just contact the local Lodge directly. they will most likely be happy to provide assistance.

I am concerned that this new form is too cluttered. With two laguages crammed onto each page, it's harder to quickly scan in an emergency.

While it's a nice idea to make the form bi-lingal, I don't recall going on too many trips in the United States that required a form in Spanish because the hospital\doctor\camp heath lodge\etc did not read English.

What, if any confusion is this form suppose to remedy?

Lisabob posted:

"...yet sleep-around-Sam who cheats on his wife and gets divorced 8 times and fails to pay child support, all while running a grow op, is considered a potentially fine leader under national BSA policy, so long as he's hetero and a theist."

Good point. I can't speak for any other Pack\Troop\Post\team out there, but I can say that "Sam" wouldn't be a leader in our unit. The troop committee would not consider him a good role model, and reject his application.

Isn't that why the CO and unit committee appoint unit leaders, not National?

Actually Moose, both do have an opinion on Chic-fil-A. Both eat at chic-fil-A.

"While gay activists have staged boycotts of the chain since then, expenditure records at Political Moneyline show that on June 29, 2012 Obama for America spent $62 at Chick-fil-A in Atlanta, Ga.

While the money the campaign spent is pittance in comparison to Obamas overall re-election expenditures, it clashes with the presidents recent endorsement of gay marriage and Chick-fil-As foray into the gay marriage debate."

"Romney for President Inc. has spent over $500 at Chick-fil-A this election cycle."

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2910706/posts

As to Romney supporting gays in scouting, his actual quote says that although he persoanlly feels that anyone should be able to join Scouting, he supports the BSA's right to exclude whomever it wants.

"In contrast to Obama, Republican candidate Mitt Romney does have a public position on the Scouts' policy -- he politely disagrees with it.

Back in 1994, during a political debate in Massachusetts, Romney said this: "I support the right of the Boy Scouts of America to decide what it wants to do on that issue. I feel that all people should be able to participate in the Boy Scouts regardless of their sexual orientation."

http://www.the-daily-record.com/ap%20lifestyle/2012/08/03/as-eagle-scouts-return-medals-gay-ban-still-firm

So while both may agree that LBGT should be allowed to join, one disagrees with the BSA's right to choose whom it associates with, one supports the BSA's right.(This message has been edited by cchoat)