Pranks or YPT Issue?

[John-in-KC 311]

Beavah,

 

That post got to a lot of what I was saying. Thanks.

 

 

 

 

[evmori 11]

Most, no, all pranks will cause embarrassment. That's sorta the purpose. And all people have different levels of embarrassment. Do these need to be reported? Doubtful. If little Jimmy is embarrassed because he has to shower in a big room with other boys then he is gonna have to figure out a way to get over it. The majority shouldn't have to bend over (no pun intended) backward to accommodate the minority.

 

Ed Mori

1 Peter 4:10

[OldGreyEagle 5]

I am not sure what part of the scout oath and law is ok with causing embarrassment but that may just be semantics.

 

Prior to leaving for summercamp the troop is assembled and scouts are reminded that for the week, they will be living together in a community just as they live in one at home, and that a persons tent is just like their homes. No one is to go into another's tent unless invited and no one is to touch anothers property without permission, just like at home. So, given that as a backdrop, these are my answers:

 

*Haulin' my bed up a tree -

I am not going to laugh, the boy is going home. Simple as that, they were told personal property is off limits and its meant. I dont want to have to worry whether or not my stuff is going to be where I left it. What do we teach the scouts, that adults stuff is ok to play with? If they want to haul something up a tree, ask me for suggestions, if they want a quick trip home, screw with my stuff

 

*Haulin' a first-year scout's bed up a tree

Why would a first years stuff be any less valuable than mine? You mess with other peoples property, you can't play with us, just that simple. And I am not sure how a scout's reaction to their stuff being violated should enter into the situation. So this year, a couple kids haul Timmy's stuff up a tree, Timmy laughs and thinks its funny, the perps are contratulated and there is an air of frivolity all around. The next year they haul new scout Tommy's stuff up a tree and he goes ballistic, he thought that scouts respected other peoples property and here he finds out they dont, are this years perps treated differently because the object of their humiliation reacted differently?

 

*Gettin' in a minor fight with your tentmate on day 4 because you're tired and grumpy -

Depends on the situation and level of violence involved, many things maybe the right course

 

*A prank that goes awry, and causes minor hurt feelings or extra work, but was without malice -

Not sure how a prank is done without malice, at the heart is the thought "We are gonna GET whomever", not sure where the scout oath and law are in the "gonna get" mentality

 

*Settin' fire to your tent with the fireworks you smuggled from home, or doing anything else that's deliberately mean, malicious, or destructive gets you delivered home by your parent that same day. And then some serious conversations the next week

Agreed--- hey it had to happen eventually didnt it?

[Lynda J 10]

Taking prank pictures has been going on ever since I can remember. There is one of one of the girls in my old scout troop sitting behind a tree taking a leak. She is now an attorney. These pictures are in the scrapbook that my mother

put together 45 years ago. The boys in my troop have almost every summer taken "shower and latrene" pictures. I don't know that you will ever stop it totally.

[LongHaul 10]

LyndaJ,

Taking a picture of someone "out behind a tree" and taking a picture of someone inside a latrine or shower area are looked upon very differently today. Agreed, that back in the 60's when I was a scout it may have been funny but today it is a felony, at least in the state of Michigan. Before I took over as SM we had an "incident" at camp involving this very issue. One of our scouts told the SM that while the scout was sitting on the can someone had taken a picture of him. Our Kybos have a screen area about 6 inches wide at the floor level. Upon questioning a few of the older boys we found that this was not an isolated incident. A quiet discussion with the SM from the troop which shared the Kybo resulted in the admission that one of his scouts "had a history" of this type of behavior. Cameras were found and destroyed before the Camp Director could be notified. In the State of Michigan this is considered a sexual offense and every adult has to sign a form stating that they agree to abide by Michigan law while at camp. When the Reservation Director was informed, we had a meeting among the adults involved and only because we could 100% assure him that the parents of our boys would not make it an issue was he agreeable to not calling the State Police and having the boy, his SM, and the boys that destroyed the "evidence" arrested. I walked out of that meeting feeling that the Reservation Director and the Camp Director needed to seek therapy for being sex-a-phobic. After speaking with another leader who is an attorney I learned that our actions could have resulted in the Camp being closed by the State of Michigan. Stealing your skivvies while you in the shower and running them up the flag pole is one thing, taking a picture of you while you remove them is another. Is it worth becoming an accessory after the fact by not reporting.?

LongHaul

 

[Hunt 11]

I think there is a difference between "mooning" and simply being unclothed in front of others. I think it is perhaps like the difference between holding and "brandishing" a knife. I personally don't see mooning as particularly awful--certainly not a sex crime--but I agree that it's inappropriate as a Scout behavior, especially if it's known that others don't like it. As far as sensitivity about being seen with no clothes, or seeing others with no clothes, we have to remember that this may be a cultural or religious issue for some boys, and we should respect that. If it's just a particular sensitivity of a particular boy, I'm not sure it's our place to try to make him "get over it." Or rather, maybe he's more likely to get over it if he knows that he can trust his fellow Scouts to treat him with respect.

[local1400 10]

I suspect in a shower house one may get more moons than Jupiter. As far as a Captains Mast, I do not want to know what that is! My wife told me about a colleague who was driving around one night a few weeks ago behind a car with five teen-aged girls in it. All of a sudden the girl in the center rear (yah, you know whats coming!) gets up, drops trou, and goes full pull with all exposed. The wifes colleagues profession? State Trooper with dash board cam working.