Fat Old Guy

Since Bobo Blanco failed to point this out, I will step up and do his job. It is not our jobs as unit Scouters to worry about which region is numerically stronger. Our job is to grow our units or form new units so the DE can get a good end of year evaluation and the coffers of BSA and the council can fill to overflowing.

Oh Beaver Boy, neither you nor Bob White seem to have a clue about what the original qeustion was. I don't give a hoot about the DE and his desperate need to create new units. I want to know why it is better to have 20 units of 6 boys than three units of 40 boys.

Ahhhh, a classic Bob White answer. Never ask "why?" or "what if?" Don't even wonder if there is anything outside the box. Don't ask how many other units are competing for Webelos in your area. Don't wonder if your five Scouts would be better off in a Troop of 40 or if some of your forty Scouts would be better off in a Troop of l5.

I don't know how well known Assimov was as an atheist because I've read nearly every book he wrote (I skipped the textbooks) as well as numerous articles by him and interviews with him but I never heard that he was an unbeliever until last year.

Last time that I checked, those items were spelled out much more clearly than the so called "separation of church and state." I'd be willing to bet a cookie that you think that there's no Constitutional guarantee for individual ownership of arms. Am I right?

"The problem with separation of church and state is that you can't separate the state from only those religious groups you don't like--it's really all or none." I'm still trying to find where the founding fathers included "separation of church and state" in any official document.

"Also (and scoutldr can back me up here), should does not mean shall." Reading the definitions of should and shall and the accompanying usage notes can drive a person to distraction: "should is the past tense of shall unless used in the integrated reticular case in which it is a suggestion and not an interpolative command."

Gotta love Moi-lin, he argues but when he's proven to be wrong he whines, "Well, I wuz rite anyways becuz . . . ."

Venturing Dude, "NJCubScouter, officially I do not think that a scout can wear older patches with the current uniform." What about the thousand variations of patches since the de la Hoya uniform was adopted? One of the Eisely Brothers wrote, "White spats also used to be part of the uniform for Explorers who wore a forest green uniform." Leggings! Puttees! Maybe even gaiters but NOT spats. "Has FOG changed his meds or something? He seems almost calm." Ppppppbbbbbbbhhhhhh!

"For FOG ... there are activities the G2SS restricts to chartered Varsity teams OR Venturing crews, and at least one activity (handgun shooting) restricted SOLELY to Crews." I guess I wasn't clear. The boys with dual registration are not active with the troop. All they do is send a check in once a year. That's why I was wondering why they have dual registration.

Apologies to NJ Dude, I can never remember if it was Oscar de la Hoya or Dino De Laurentis who designed the current stylish but useless BSA uniform. As for the position patches, that's a good question. They are insignia and not uniform items so I don't know how they fall. I would assume that it is okay to wear an old uniform with current CSPs and other patches. So, does it follow that one may wear old badges on a current uniform? What if a Scout had earned First Class with the old green uniform and then bought a new uniform? Would he be required to get a new 1st class badge?

Retorical, perhaps, but I don't see a metaphor or a metaphive. In any event, I am simply holding you to your own standard but it is obvious that you fall short.

Moi-lin blathered, "'Libel' and 'slander' aren't as simple as written vs. spoken; it's more published vs. unpublished, and a forum like this would probably not be considered publication." Didn't know that you were a lawyer or did you stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night? I discussed this issue with my attorney a couple years ago and according to him, the courts have held that this sort of activity is little different than publishing in a magazine or newspaper.

Moi-lin said, "You're the one who slanders an entire group based on their religious views." Tsk, tsk, tsk. For someone who puts himself up as being the be-all and end all of knowledge, you made a simple mistake. I'll leave it to you to figure it out. As for my statement, I have never met an atheist that I could trust. As for your examples, I have never met either one and it is very unlikely that I ever will but what evidence do you have that either was trustworthy.

Smells like hypocrite spirit to me, Moi-lin. You cry about intolerance but you are as intolerant as anyone.

Ed sed, "Our Troop does require all Scouts to have a Scout shirt with all the patches in the correct places." but a line earlier Ed sed, "There is no requirement to wear the complete uniform or no uniform at all! There is no requirement to even have a uniform!" At the risk of starting trouble, how can you require something that there is no requirement to have?

I'm in danger of losing my license to operate as a know-it-all. I made assumptions based on my time in the Navy. On a ship, a call comes over the 1MC (PA system to you landlubbers :-), "Reveille, reveille, all hands heave out!" To me, that wake up call was Reveille. Looking up stuff about bugle calls, I find that that to soldiers, "First Call" is the wake up call and that "Reveille" is the call to muster for roll call with the flag being raised at the end of Reveille. I'm guessing that "To the Colors" is played whilst the flag is being raised since the Navy plays that tune while raising the colors. Pershaps there is a Naval influence in Scout camps that we don't even know about. As it is, I hang my head in shame for giving out bad gouge.

I think that my district lost 2% last year that doesn't show a trend yet.

Why not just wear one of the official red vests sold for that purpose OR make your own red vest out of an old red blanket or some red felt? I keep all of my patches in a big box and pull a different one out each week. I'm getting to the point that I'll have enough patches to go for a couple years without repeating.

Sorry Moilin but you're way off base. White, pampered, upper middle class teenagers are lazy. Jew are among the most generous people that I've ever known. A Jew will never let you go hungry. Still, I've never known an atheist that I could trust.

My troop pretty much has a lock on Scouting for at least a good 10 miles. We're not big, but we're not small. I beleive that we currently have about 50 registered Scouts with about 35 of them actually showing up on a regular basis (some of the others carry a dual registration with the local Venture Crew for some unknown reason). Reading stuff here and talking to Scouters at RT and at Summer Camp, I have come to realize that some areas might have two, three, four or more troops all competing for the same pool of boys. Consequently, some of these troops are only 8 or 9 Scouts. It seems that having a number of small troops instead of one larger troop is self defeating. When you have only 8 Scouts, if two drop out, you're in BIG TROUBLE. If we lost 13 Scouts, we'd have to do some juggling but we wouldn't be in trouble unless that became an annual trend. I guess the question here is, "Why do so many little troops exist?" Rather than forming a new troop and struggling, why not just join a bigger troop and take advantage of what they have to offer?

Proud Eagle, I would hope that the Army doesn't salute during Reveille because most soldiers would still be asleep. Reveille is the wake up call (ya gotta get up, ya gotta get up). "To the Colors" is played whilst the flag is being raised. "Retreat" is played as the flag is lowered in the evening. "Taps" of course, is played at the end of the day.

We would have our last pack meeting in May and then in June, before school let out, we'd have our campfire ceremony. Our campfire site was deeeeeep (at least to little kids) in the woods and they'd have to gather at the edge of the woods, on the far side of a creek. The CM would come out of the woods and ask who was ready to cross the bridge to the next level of Cub Scouts. In the old days, Tigers would go first and do the necessary stuff (Promise, shake, sign) and be welcomed to Cub Scouts. The rest would follow. The path to the campfire would be lined with uniformed adults and Boy Scouts holding the Cub Sign up as a call for silence. After everyone was seated at that camfire, it would be lit in a dramatic fashion. Skits, songs, and jokes would be scattered throughout the night. Last minute awards and ranks would be presented. Adult recognition would be given. Finally, the fire would die and Scout Vespers would be sung and everyone one would file out, feeling kinda sad that another year had ended. (sniff) We always had a fairly ambitious Summer program including hikes, picnics, swim parties and other activities but not many Cub Scouts would show up. I never understood why. Kids spend most of the summer sitting around saying, "I don't got nuttin' to do." Do stuff. Don't limit it to the weekends. Go to minor league baseball games. Visit a Navy base. Go on a bike hike. Fishing tournements are popular. Star gazing is also fun.

If you decide to stick with voting in the future I have some suggestions. Control the ballots in some way. Get a number of rolls of the "Keep this stub" tickets in different colors. Give each person who comes in one ticket of each color to vote for different things ("Best design", "funniest," etc.). No replacement ballots if they claim that they lost theirs. Print up ballots on a sheet with one line for each category. Pass out the ballots when they come through the door. Let them mark the ballots with all choices and then drop it into the ballot box. Again, no replacements.

One Hour said, " I and everyone else know that you meant well and with great intentions." Please don't inlcude me in that group.