DanKroh

ScoutNut, "Dan, remember that if your church charters both a Pack & Troop, the same COR will serve both units. Also, in order to be REGISTERED as a COR, they can NOT be registered in any position other than Committee Chair or Committee Member." Our CO only charters our pack. For some reason, I thought I remembered from training that the only other positions the COR cannot hold is Cubmaster (or ACM) or Committee Chair. I thought he/she could be a den leader as well. I'll have to go check on that, then. In fact, the reg you quoted said that the COR couldn't be the unit leader

Our COR is a parent and former scout leader who is a member of the CO church. This guy was Cubmster a couple of years back, although I don't think he was the COR while he was the CM. His son as now moved up to Boy Scouts, and even though he has continued to act as our COR for the past year, has asked that if we can find someone else to serve, we should do so. So we are looking at another parent who is currently our Tiger Den Leader to also be the COR. We like to have the COR attend the pack committee meetings (which is usually the case), but as far as I know, the current one, at least, d

Ok, this isn't a WB question, but.... It is unusual for a Cub Leader (I'm a Cubmaster) to take IOLS? I was signed up for OWLS, but it was cancelled at the last minute, so I decided to sign up for IOLS instead. Mostly, I'm looking to brush up on (and hopefully pick up some new ones) my outdoor skills. I do a lot of camping outside of scouts and consider myself a pretty savy outdoorsman, but I'm always interested in learning new and better ways to do things. But as the training draws nearer, I'm wondering if I'm going to out of place with all the Boy Scout Leaders. (Especially giv

OneHour, how do you tell a non-BSA kit from the offical BSA one? Last year, the PWD was the first meeting where I was Cubmaster. I'm pretty sure that a couple of boys (brothers) had cars that came from pre-cut forms, but the point became moot because the overeager Dad had grooved the wheels which made the cars ineligible. What we ended up doing was allowing the boys to run the cars (didn't want to punish the boys for something Dad obviously did), but told them that they would not be able to win a trophy or advance to the District race, since we felt that would be unfair to boys whose cars

I can't, of course, confirm my friend's story, and it is entirely possible that either he was a) mistaken about why he was denied Eagle or b) the denial came from a troop "policy" regarding religion and Eagle scouts that was not supported by national policy. It sounds like that if he had known to appeal the denial, he would probably be an Eagle today, since I feel I know him well enough to say that he embodies the qualities of an Eagle Scout. I know a couple of other pagans who *are* Eagle scouts, and they would have also been around that same time period, but I'm not sure if they we

Trev, I don't think I know the specific story you are referencing. However, I have a pagan friend who is a Lifer because he was denied Eagle for being a pagan (raised that way by his parents). This would have been in upstate NY in the early 70's. He seems to think that at the time, one had to earn a religious emblem in order to advance to Eagle, and, of course, there is no emblem recognized by the BSA for pagan religions. Anyone know if that used to be a requirement for Eagle?

Wow, thanks Owl, it's been at least a couple of days since anyone's told me I'm an idiot. I play paintball. It's a fun game, but I can't say it's made me into a "wannabee" anything. I have no desire to learn how to kill anyone. I do it because it's a form of exercise that I don't find hideously boring. However, I also know proper safety with real firearms because I learned how to fire one at a target, and don't intend to ever fire one at anything other than a target. I also shoot target archery, and have no interest in using it to hunt. But I also have nothing against people who do

"I disagree with the ACLU because I haven't found one thing yet where they argued a point that I was FOR." Not *one*, hops_scout? So then I guess you thought it was ok for school officials to prevent a 2nd grader from singing a religious song in an after-school talent show, and the ACLU should not have filed a suit to protect her freedom of religious expression? Or maybe you feel that a baptist church in Georgia should be denied a zoning permit to build a permanent house of worship, and the ACLU should not have fought for them? I think if you can't find even one point that

You know, Cary, I almost edited my post after I wrote it to say, "on second thought, I won't send you a card because I don't believe in using the good will of the season as a club to bludgeon those who disagree with my religious beliefs". Do you really think it is respectful to anyone (including your God) to use the celebration of the birth of your savior as a political tool to harass those don't share your religious beliefs?

"Also tell them that there is no such thing as a "Holiday Tree". . . . It's a Christmas Tree even in the fields!!" Actually, I thought it was a pine tree. Except when it's a Yule tree. If I had your address, I'd be sure to send you a "Season's Greetings" card. How obnoxious.

Actually, what I meant was does the patrol group get to choose their patrol symbol/name, or is that assigned to them? Honestly, the desire to be a Beaver is not so strong that I would buck what appears to be a well working system, judging from the enthusiasm of (almost all) Woodbadgers I have seen. I'm sure that I will be happy no matter what our patrol name; as someone said, it's the people in the patrol who matter most.

mk9750, I don't think you can really proceed until you've had a further discussion with the boy as to the particular flavor of his agnosticism. Beaver's excellent post pointed out that agnostics are not *automatically* atheists, many of them still have a belief in God(s), but simply feel that such a belief can never be proven or disproven. In fact, the minister of my church is a self-proclaimed agnostic. This is a man who went through Harvard Divinity School, was ordained as a UU minister, and continues to this day to believe in the mystery of God. However, I think the boy's own

SueM and Beaver, As I said, I am partial to the beaver as my college mascot (Nature's Engineer), so maybe I can be an honorary beaver no matter what our patrol mascot (is that the right word? or is it totem?). I'm assuming that the patrol members get to pick, yes? As far as other advice, no, I'm not in an LDS unit. And no, I'm not in a union, as I am self-employed in the health care profession. And while paying out of pocket would not be an outrageous burden to me, the feeling of the committee was that "well, we pay for everyone else's training, shouldn't we pay for this, too". I li

Gonzo, just a couple of pieces of friendly advice about netiquette that you might not be aware of. Typing in all caps traditionally denotes shouting. And it's hard on the eyes to read. If you want to set apart what you are writing from something you are quoting from someone else, try putting quotation marks around things written by someone else. That way, what you are writing will stand out without having to shout. Not trying to moderate you in any way, just trying to pass along something you might not be aware of.

Thanks, everyone for your thoughts. Now I feel like I can go back to my committee with some data for them to make a decision. And to Lisa'bob and John-in-KC, a special thanks. It's exciting to see the enthusiasm for your patrol and patrolmates. I can't wait to experience it, no matter what animal I get. Although I'm partial to Beavers, since they were my college mascot....

Hunt, "While I agree that a teacher shouldn't try to convert grade school kids to a particular religious view, I think the complaint here is that a teacher also shouldn't try to convert grade school kids to one side of a controversial moral, ethical, or political issue." Agreed. But that also includes not trying to "convert" to the other viewpoint, that homosexual is "immoral" and "unnatural". "While I don't think such a teacher should necessarily have to hide his marital state..." But do you think that the homosexual teacher should have to hide his orientation, or is it s

"The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions that I wish it to be always kept alive." --Thomas Jefferson "To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." --Theodore Roosevelt What does it gain us to have our young men and women die abroad to secure our freedom if we willingly sacrifice our freedom, including our freedom to dissent, at home? "They who would give up an essential liberty for t

I'm about to sign up for Wood Badge this Spring, and this question came up in our latest committee meeting. Do units usually pay for the cost of Wood Badge for one of their leaders, or does the leader usually pay for it out of pocket? In our unit (a Cub Scout Pack), we usually pay the nominal costs that may be associated with leader training, such as at University of Scouting, although most training in our Council is usually free. But given that the cost of Wood Badge is more substantial, should the unit pay for it? One concern was that for one or two leaders, it would not be a

"If the class (I'm talking about grade-schoolers here) had to read a book titled "It's Normal to be Christian" and then the teacher came out and told the class "I've accepted Christ into my heart and it's made my life better... but that's your choice" the country would be up in arms. Why? It crosses a line that violates a parent's right to raise their children." Zahnada, it's an interesting analogy, but I see several key differences that may make the analogy flawed. First, being a Christian is a choice. Being a homosexual isn't. (Unless, of course, you are one of the deniers about th

Actually, Gonzo, I was pretty much agreeing with Hunt's point, so I don't think I missed it. As to your point, I might agree with it if I knew what "teaching homosexuality" means.

Hunt, Since in the three pages of discussion so far, no one has vociferously defended or advocated the actions of the teacher in the original article, I'm not sure who "those of you think it's OK" are. I do agree with you that it is a fine line between acknowledging/respecting that there may be students in the class whose families include same-sex parents and teaching a particular moral stance about the same subject (either way, for or against). I don't think it is the place of teachers to teach that a parent is wrong because of their stance on this issue. A teacher can present that

"DanKroh mentions twin studies (a small and badly confounded sample if there ever was one), which nevertheless demonstrate that homosexuality does not have the same congruence as other genetic disorders. As DanKroh says, none of us are genetic, neonatal, socialpsych or psych researchers, eh? So talkin' about mechanism is the blind leadin' the blind." Actually, Beavir, that was packsaddle. However, the congruence of homosexuality among twins is similar to the congruence of many other genetically influenced traits and disorders. If homosexuality is genetically *influenced* (and I do believe

"It [homosexuality] often leads to violence, anti-social behavior, and disease, especially among men." Maybe in your mind and limited experience with real people who are homosexuals. But not in my world.

Excellent! What kinds of things are you going to have the SCAdians do? One thing we've discussed is that we don't really have room for a real heavy list demo, but I figured letting the kids touch and try on the armor, weapons, etc. would still give them a big kick. Fencing takes up less room, so I think we will be able to have actual demonstrations (probably highly choreographed to be more fun and interesting). What sorts of arts are you going to showcase? My concern is that most stuff would either take too long to demonstrate (metalworking, leatherworking), be of little interes

"It's not a slippery slope." That type of argument of "if gays get marriage rights, then next it will be the polygamists, and then the people who want to marry animals, blah, blah, blah" is called the "slippery slope" argument. Any it doesn't fly with anyone who can see it for the hyperbolic and fear-mongering strategy that it is. "Marriage isn't a civil right, it actually is a priviledge. You have to get a license to get married, that means permission." Actually, the Supreme Court in 1967 reaffirmed a 1942 ruling that marriage *is* a right (From Loving vs. Virginia): "The