Engineer61

I came across a problem on the ball field last week with another team's coach. In 13 years of coaching youth baseball, I've never had a coach get into my face before, during or after a game....until last week. I didn't lose my cool but I probably would have been justified. His claim was idiotic, he didn't like my response, he was itching for fight and he made a butt of himself in front of 50 people ... kids and adults alike. Here's my point....as adults, we don't have the *right* to work with kids. Regardless of our knowledge, abilities and training it is strictly a privilege bestowed onto us by the parents of the kids we work with and the kids themselves. I see a lot of people losing sight of that little point. -E61

Depends on the attitude of the Scouts I suppose. Without remorse ... "you got us this time, but wait till the next" ... lower the boom. Remorseful ... maybe not so harsh.(This message has been edited by Engineer61)

Mom and Scout definitely shopped around with a group of other Cubs. 3 or 4 of them picked the current troop....one decided to drop and play baseball...much to the glee of the parents...who were fed up with Scouting. The trick was finding a non-LDS troop with the program they wanted.

I think for the backpacking and other long outings, you have a pretty big challenge. Finding non-perishables without nuts, soy and wheat is going to be tricky. Does he have any issues with dairy products? My only real suggestion is to find your local freeze dried food supplier and read the heck out of the labels. Granola (even nut free) is out, protein bars are mostly out, jerky is out. I think for Scout camp, you'll probably be ok for the most part...but he has to be able to identify the foods and be assertive enough to ask questions (even being rude about it) until he gets answers. The longer more isolated trips should be the bigger concern...if you have had to use the Epi-pen in the past, do you recall how long it is effective? That would dictate how far from communications your Scout can be, how many Pens have to be carried. Depending on how fast he reacts, all the adults in the troop and most of the Scouts have to be trained on the Epi-pen...assuming that your boy cannot react fast enough to self-inject. Good luck.

I vote find a new troop. Sounds like the SM's a {oouch!...bit my tongue}.

But in the Oregon Case, the CO (LDS) did end up paying out, right? ... Agreed to by settlement, but the CO paid out as well as the BSA...the CO was a named Defendant.

"Every weapon I have ever seen, I have treated as loaded until I cleared it, every time." I treat them as loaded even when after that. My Grandfather told me once that there is no such thing as an unloaded gun. "Even if there's no bullets in it, it's still loaded with air."

Here is the rub on the BSA Liability Policy ... did you catch this Beav? http://www.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/512-018_WB.pdf "The general liability policy does not provide indemnification or defense coverage to those individuals who commit intentional and/or criminal acts. The Boy Scouts of America does not have an insurance policy that provides defense for situations involving allegations of intentional and/or criminal acts." This is where the CO's are put at risk. Since CO's select/approve certain adults that may engage in "intentional and/or criminal acts", the CO's are on point should such acts occur.

Oh heck, now I see the liability issue... Even though BSA provides insurance, the CO's are responsible for selecting/approving the adult leaders. The puts the CO's on the hook, regardless of the BSA's insurance.

Hmmm...I would think that part of the reasons that PTA/PTO's got out of being CO's is the share liability imposed by the BSA. A "Parent's of" organization would seem to be similarly exposed....since the BSA wants the CO to "share" in the liability, perhaps they realize that a "Parent's of" CO can't cover it.

Boston/DC/Baltimore/Philadelphia ... Comon' already...send him someplace like no other in the USA. Try Cleveland! {snicker}

Microsecond - have used those time units in a long time! {pun}

"Many parents look to the BSA to provide their son with the "Eagle Scout" BSA "Good Housekeeping" seal of approval in the belief that it will help with college entrance or future employment opportunities." Yep...so do some Scouts. Why is that? How about because the SM pushes it that way....heard him say it. I think it's rubbish...especially this day and age.

So now, Scout has done another 180. Until last night, Scout gave a flat "no" to summer camp. Last night the list of OA eligible Scouts came out... he wasn't on it ... supposedly because he'd not done any "long" campouts in a couple of years. So he about faces and demands to be signed up for summer camp. I think there's only two or three MB's left open for the week. Not sure what he'll do the rest of the time.

My preferred sleeping pad is my Stearns & Foster, but if I need something mobile, Winnebago works. Sorry...couldn't resist.

Hmmm...have never had a "good" experience sleeping in a tent. Always managed to get hot or cold or wet.

"The lawyers run the world." "And they are running it into the ground. " Hmmm...depending on the setting...I hear the same about doctors, teachers, politicians, PAC's, big business, small business, oil companies, lumber companies, military dictators ... Humanity would be a great thing, if it wasn't for all those people.

Interesting getting a boy's perspective. So, if you have a boy-led troop...and they say, "We're dumping the uniforms as of now!" ... What happens?

Based on my experience with watching my Scout take this test...it's largely a rubber stamp anyway. SWIMMERS TEST: Requirement: Jump feetfirst into water over the head in depth, level off, and begin swimming. Observation: Stepped off side feetfirst about 2 feet, frantically thrashed back to side of pool, then pushed off and started swimming. ===== Requirement: Swim 75 yards in a strong manner using one or more of the following strokes: sidestroke, breaststroke, trudgen, or crawl; then swim 25 yards using an easy resting backstroke. Observation: Swam 25 yards breaststroke strongly, floundered 50 yards using various unrecognizable strokes. Had to stop and bounce off of the bottom several times. ===== Requirement: The 100 yards must be swum continuously and include at least one sharp turn. Observation: Stopped and bounced off bottom several times, stopped at side of pool twice, did no turn, let alone a sharp one. ===== Requirement: After completing the swim, rest by floating. Observation: Did not perform. ===== Grade: PASSED. By Certified Lifeguard at YMCA.

I think it will be a close election, because there's no real difference between them. I'm thinking that if Obama wins, we have no more than 4 more years of him. If Romney wins, we could have 8 years of him. Just a couple of out of touch rich guys who never really worked for a living. I might just flip a coin in the voting booth.

I made the mistake of seasoning my cast iron skillet with Canola Oil. Looked good to start...then the seasoning went rancid...stunk up the cabinet till I figured out what was causing it. (I don't use it often.) I had to cook off that seasoning (Dawn dish liquid, water, boil) and then used Corn Oil....much better.

"So when mom calls and wants to know what's goin' on, it really should be junior who tells her. " Bull. When I (a parent) asks the responsible adult in charge "What is going on?" I expect that adult to respond. Venturing and Scouting be damned. If I want to talk to my kid, I'll ask to talk to my kid. Just another example of adult leaders not respecting parents. If you don't respect the parents, you don't respect their kids.

"BTW E61 - I am not a hiker so I have no idea what that means. Could you explain please? " At higher elevations, you don't get as much oxygen per breath. Your endurance will drop significantly if you aren't acclimated to the altitude. So you have to lighten the load. My first experience with this was in Colorado Springs years ago....was there on an interview, walking the local mall in the evening. Went up two flights of stairs and nearly passed out. If you have newbies and are not acclimated...I'd say stay on the rim.

As a divorced parent, I can see where the parents consider Scouting an impingement on their time with their sons. If the outings occur biweekly or monthly, there is a good chance that the same parent is losing all of their time with their son on the weekends. My son wasn't interested in Scouting, but had he been, I probably would have steered him away from it, especially if it was always my weekends with him that got interrupted.

When hiking the canyon, remember to de-rate your loads based on the elevation. Min elevation is a bit over 2000 ft, with the rims above 7000.