Fat Old Guy

"FOG, it's a fact from the Movie trivia that I read about the movie." The point is that all of your evidence is hearsay. You have no firsthand knowledge of her singing ability.

"The big picture people see the overall Scouting program and how it works. The little picture people see the little pieces and become preoccupied with the details, unable to comprehend the larger overall structure." The "big picture" people that I know disregard the G2SS, think that "close enough" is "good enough" for advancement requirements and that the patrol method is just Dens with older boys, and are primarily interested in their son getting Eagle to enhance his college applications. Most, not all, of the "little picture" people that I deal with realize that the big picture is a mosaic and that each little picture is important. It is important to meet advancement requirements so that everyone is playing by the same rules. It is important to follow the G2SS so you don't get your swinger caught in the door. It is important to use the patrol method properly so that the boys make decisions and mistakes and by doing so learn. It is so simple to wear the uniform properly that by refusing to do so means that you simply don't care.

I remember an Olympian being publicly denounced for using the flag as a shawl after winning a gold medal. I also remember him apologizing and explaining that he meant no disrespect. I don't remember who it was.

"I tell my son and the scouts 'Don't carry a grudge their heavy'." It's not a grudge, it is voting with my dollars. I don't like Disney's current policies so I don't give them my money. Not much different than not voting for Al Gore because I didn't care for what he stood for.

I would think that before that would happen, there would have to be a fair number of aviation oriented Venture crews. How popular is aviation in the Venturing world?

Women also expect us to be their defenders, going forth into the night armed with a 5 iron. We also are supposed to be the ones who deal with all forms of technology. It is a plus if we can dance, sing and recite poetry but only if have calluses on our hands. Men expect us to be honest and loyal unto death. Women expect us to lie when necessary to protect their feelings.

"The most current for a brand new Boy Scout would be his Webelos badge. He can leave his oval Webelos Rank badge on his tan shirt untill he replaces it with his Scout Rank badge." Noooooo . . . . Webelos is a Cub Scout rank (or Webelos Scout Rank for those in the New World Order) and is not worn on the Boy Scout uniform. Cub Scout . . . Boy Scouts. You see, they are different programs. BTW, his highest rank should be AOL at that point.

COnsidering that I no longer support Disney, it will be a cold day in the 6th circle of Hell before I buy that movie.

"For sports, proper uniforming may be crucial. In a sport like football, even what numbers one wears is crucial. Having a team dress uniformly provides easy distinction between "friend and foe." " Is the number worm by the QB that crucial? Not really, hundreds, housands of football games are played without numbers. Could that QB pass as well if his number was randomly chosen? In baseball, all the players may wear the same number (yep, it's true). The point is that the uniform restrictions imposed in sports are gladly met and followed by players and parents alike. The coach doesn't give a hoot if you want to wear jeans, it's white baseball pants or you don't play.

Cliff, Cliff, Cliff, you need to do some better research. My 1962 Scoutmaster handbook lists "Uniform" as #8 of the TEN methods of Scouting. Uniform was removed in the 70's and returned in the 80s. Let's look at sports, one of my favorite analogies since Scouting is a game. If your son plays baseball in a county recreation league, the uniform is pretty relaxed. Usually, rec leagues give out a colored t-shirt and the pants can be jeans or baseball pants of any color and the cap is usually the cheapest cap that can be found. If he forgets his uniform, he can still play in that game. After all, they are there to play baseball and the uniform doesn't have anything to do with the game. If you son moves up to a travel team, you'll find that the uniform is much nicer with a nice shirt and that baseball pants of a specific color are required as are team socks. If you forget your uniform for a game, you get to ride the pine pony for six innings. Why? After all, they are there to play baseball and not make a fashion statement? Wearing a uniform properly shows a commitment to the program and its goals and objectives. Forgetting your uniform or not wanting to wear it properly says that you aren't taking membership in the team seriously and that the game and the team are not important. It is very strange that we accept this in the sports world but not in Scouting. I know parents who brag about the uniform standards of sports teams ("We have to buy matching warm up jackets and the team requires everyone to buy a team duffle" but find the suggestion that their son wear a full Scout uniform to be bordering on insane. Why is this? Sports are important but, after all, Scouting is just . . . well, Scouting.

"The parents unfortunately dont remember the council but I have traced to him the Midwest." Things are very fishy. I still remember the Council that I was in as a Cub Scout which was 35 years ago. If nothing else, can't they look at the patch that was on his left sleeve? The comment that you traced him to the midwest is very curious. I can guarantee you that if you gave me a Scoutmaster's name and the town where the troop was, I'd be in contact with that SM inside of a week. The town can lead you to Council and District. With the name, the DE can find the troop and even give you a phone number. Very strange. I wouldn't be surprised if this whole thing is a scam to get the kid an Eagle with no effort so he can put it on his college applications.

Man from Oz siad, "In the rest of Scouts Australia I think that the deliberate inculcation of manly virtues" Don't you know that manly virtues are no longer Politically Correct? Shell, how do you know that Natalie Wood had an awful singing voice if you never heard her? The fact that they used a voice double is meaningless. Audrey Hepburn had a voice double for My Fair Lady but I've heard the original soundtrack with her singing and her voice was nice.

" FYI "beleive" is spelled exactly as such. I even checked by typing it into Microsoft Word and no red squiggle appeared beneath it. Perhaps the Canadian spelling is different, like with color(colour)." I checked that source of all thing English, the OED and it doesn't have "beleive." When I put that into MS Word (American version), it changed it to "believe". As for human rights, we need to look to the UN for guidance and which country was chosen to chair the commission on human rights.

If we look at the blue card we'll see "demonstrated to my satisfaction that he has met all the requirements . . ." If a counselor signs a blue card knowing that the Scout hasn't met the requirements, I'd argue that the blue card is fraudulent and void.

Actually, if is the Ukes, it would be four boards. The Poles are Catholics and use the standard Catholic crucifix. You just agreed with me. The cross out of any material is the symbol and should be revered. ("You don't revere the material, you revere the symbol the material was used to make.") The flag is the symbol and deserves to be treated with respect.

"He may have done violence to the piece of cloth, but really not to the symbol, in my opinion." The piece of cloth is the symbol just as those two boards nailed together are the symbol of a religion. As for your opinion, we all know what I think of most of your opinions.

Gee, I'd like to be a doctor but I don't want to go to medical school. This is an indicator of a problem with our society. This kid and his parents probably think that he "deserves" to be an Eagle "just because."

He showed disrepect for the flag by cutting a hole in it and draping it on his sweaty body.

"Actually, for rank badges, if the boys have chosen to wear the oval Webelos badge they can wear that until they have earned their Scout badge." Huh? Reference please? The AOL is the highest Cub Scouting award and as such it may be worn on the Boy Scout uniform.

Ch-ch-ch-changes . . . Pretty soon you're gonna get a little older, Time may change me But I can't trace time. How to change things. First you need to get the Advancement Chair on board. Having spur of the moment BoRs at troop meetings does no one any favors. Usually, the Committee Members are ambushed, "Hey! Wanna do a BoR?" It also drags the Scout out of his Troop meeting. Once you have the Advancement Chair on board, you simply set up standing nights for BoRs. We use the 1st and 3rd Sundays of each month and schedule a group of adults for each night. If no one requests a BoR for a Sunday, that group gets a free night. If someone complains about "missing football," ask them "What's more important, the NFL or this Scout's advancement?" Bring the SPL into the picture as well. Ask him to come or have an ASPL come, not to sit-in but to make sure the candidate is sqared away, talk to him before hand as a mentor, and introduce him to the BoR. It adds an air of formality that emphaisizes the importance of the proceedings.

" I understand even less about how young people watch a game. A few of them were happy to lie on the carpet and do something on a laptop." It speaks volumes that young people need entertainment while they are being entertained.

There's the rub, Ed. Sometimes, finding out what the current requirements are can be difficult. Middle of last year, I went to get a copy of the requirements book and found that the Scout Shop had none. What to do? Often the merit badge pamphlets don't have the current requirements. We know that the handbook doesn't. Are we supposed to use unofficial web sites for our information?

" Does it not seem logical that he would have launched an investigation and made 100% certain that his reasons were valid prior to invading?" No. Do you think that Kennedy launched an investigation before the Cuban Missile Crisis? Do you think that Ike launched an investigation before D-Day? W had no reason to doubt his intelligence sources before he started. Now he wants to find out if why he was given bad gouge, if indeed he was.

That recruiter question is a good one. It isn't necessarily a Cub Scout or Boy Scout award. Award of the strip is a local option from what I've read so maybe the best resource is your DE or SE.

If that is what your council is selling then it is perfectly legal providing it has the required elements on it.