Firebug

[OldGreyEagle 5]

So you allow scouts to destroy property and face no consequences because you cant or choose not to do anything,,, does not sund like you at all BD

[Basementdweller 608]

Nothing I have done in the past has resulted in a positive learning experience when dealing with a scout who has done wrong. I am trying to improve.....

 

I am frustrated with the situation.

 

Mom and scout don't have any money, they were fishing with borrowed fishing poles.

 

Oh the CC will not allow us making his attending the intervention program a prerequisite for camping with the troop. It would be singling him out. CC suggested we have the entire troop attend the program.

 

 

 

(This message has been edited by Basementdweller)

[eolesen 10]

My oldest son was a firebug in his first couple years... got busted on two different campouts for it by other SM's, and had to endure the Ride Home of Shame after being kicked out of NYLT.

 

They eventually outgrow it, so don't run them off. Now he's off at boot camp proving he has what it takes to be a Marine.

 

Guys who get caught wasting matches around me wind up cleaning out firepits.

 

What's hand sanitizer?...

[Basementdweller 608]

alcohol based germ killer. Very flammable, the better one's are 60% gelled alcohol. not very expensive but very flammable.

 

With every first aid kit having some and it being used regularly on troop camp outs it is a problem if he sneaks it away and burns it up every chance he gets.

[eolesen 10]

I was being sarcastic. Aside from bleach and soap, chemicals have no place on a campout.

 

Next thing you know we'll be packing chemical toilets on Philmont treks.(This message has been edited by eolesen)

[shortridge 184]

Actually, hand sanitizer is both recommended for use as part of the WFA program and included on Philmont gear lists.

[qwazse 4345]

A bottle of 200 proof is cheaper and has more flexible uses.

 

But seriously, BD, you have a right to sit a boy down with his mom and say "you have a problem, it is ..., you need to fix it, here's how to start [hand out diversion brochures] ... if you make the effort to do this, it will help me to work with you to be a better scout ... if you want to do this with your patrol, I'll see what we can do to help ... if you only want to do this with your mom and maybe your little brother, that's fine too. I will do my best to support you and make it happen.

 

We'll talk about how it works out at your next scoutmaster conference."

 

You can tell your committee that ...

a. you strongly suggested -- not required.

b. you offered the patrol method.

c. you gave the family an opportunity they may have otherwise missed.

d. you will enforce discipline on activities according to the safety needs of all boys. That will include having your best adult "shadow" any boy with a proclivity to light fires in all the wrong places by all the wrong means, and arranging a "drive of shame" home on the first infarction.

e. you expect practical help from the committee (e.g. gas for the mom if she needs to drive her son, etc ...).

 

If this boy is giving you that "hair on the back of the neck" kind of feeling, this is an opportunity to spare a household a world of grief (trust me, this isn't a camping-exclusive behavior), and not singling out the boy may cause this household to miss that opportunity.

 

BTW - "positive learning experience" is a long term goal. Hopefully in a few years rumor of a few of those from your attempts so far will come back to you!

[perdidochas 658]

A 32oz bottle of hand sanitizer is about $5. Don't know where you can get 200 proof for that price.

 

Hand sanitizer is great for a survival kit for several reasons, one being firestarting.

 

Don't know what I would do with a boy who was that obsessed with fire. I think the Fire Safety merit badge (taught by a firefighter) would be a good start.

[Eagle92 110]

Next thing you know we'll be packing chemical toilets on Philmont treks.

 

Actually the girls in my old Sea Scout Ship wanted a chemical toilet on the island we were camping on, as well as a GP tent to put it in. I kid you not.

[Basementdweller 608]

hmmmm, I believe the scout book also suggests it being put in first aid kits.

[Nike 94]

Seems you have two problems:

 

1. A Firebug

 

2. A CC that doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings and is willing to put that before the well being and safety of others and thier property.

 

Going to fire intervention is absolutely the proper thing to do with this boy. Otherwise you can count on him continuing to endanger himself and others.

 

And, as for the CC, I'd ask him what he's going to do when this boy causes serious damage to property and/or injures/kills himself or others.

[Tampa Turtle 1011]

I say if in doubt direct the kid to intervention. If it is overkill no harm done. He will be none the worse the wear.

 

I knew a kid in 6th grade who was a firebug. One day tried setting fire to a 1/2 gallon of gas or paint thinner in the field across from school before classes. Exploded, burning him over his face and torso. Darn near killed him. I was a safety patrol and I remember the screams a couple blocks away.