FScouter

"... the SM wants to review it with the first boy before signing it." "The "man-Scout" Master has a war story to support every departure from the program. If the problem is an incompetent counselor, delete that counselor from the list. Adding another layer of administrative review is not a solution, it'a just another problem.

"Can someone please point me to something official stating when the badge is earned?" You won't find anything more specific that what you already quoted. It's obvious that a MB is not earned until the work is done and the counselor signs the card as complete. You might politely ask the SM to point to where there are additional MB requirements beyond what is in the book. Or ask why he needs to question the competence of the counselor.

I don't get it. Who got paid for that theatrical performance.

I would even go so far as to suggest that a moderator consider locking this thread before someone really gets mean. You know, it isnt we moderators that really have the control. It is all YOU folks that post. It is YOU that determine the direction of the discussion, the knowledge imparted, and the tone and style used. It is YOU that make the choice to berate institutions and individuals. It is YOU that ultimately determine the character of these forums, and their long term success. When a moderator steps in to stop the ruckus, it is only because YOU have failed to moderate yourselves. So whats it going to be? (This message has been edited by a staff member.)

This sounds like a no-brainer. I've always thought it was simple common knowledge that polling places are for polling only and nothing else, no exceptions.

I'm not sure what difference it makes whether a new member knows all about all the various and sundry rules, procedures, memberbship polices, and whatever when he turns in his app. If he runs afoul of anything he'll find out soon enough.

Pray tell, why would you think anyone want to take away a boy's merit badge sash?

I have a number of shirts with spare buttons. PM me your address and I'll send you some.

I'd hazard a guess that if the SM had a little more communication with the Life Scout, he wouldn't be surprised that the project was already completed.

"Fortunately, our troop has come a long way since those days." Does the troop still have "bylaws"?

"If National has another view it is for the same reason that they define 'active' as 'registered.' $$$." It's fun to be cynical, kinda gives one a warm fuzzy feeling. But BSA doe not define active = registered. We hear that a lot around the ol' Scouting water cooler, from cynics. What pray tell does $$$ have to do with being either a definition of active or a definition of registered.

"It appears there is a whole lot of messing up of the Scout Law and Oath going on here and wisdom is needed. " "... they will all be suspended from the Troop for 30 days." It's always easier to slap on the cuffs than it is to fix the problem. The boys haven't fixed it on their own. When things get off track like this its time for the SM to do a few Scoutmaster conferences. Suspension should be a last resort option involving the SM, the boy, and parents, with concurrence of the committee. Boys have no business suspending other boys.

"$$$ for council." Council shoulder patches was part of a devious and nefarious plot by fat cigar-chomping evil big wigs at "council" to suck ever more money from poor innocent boys. Either that or it was an idea to avoid raising the annual registration fee to $50. I can't remember which.

The first clue in these kind of touchy-feely e-mail chain letters is they invariably instruct the recipient to forward it to everybody and their brother.

Gold Winger / Merlyn: It is not the purpose of these forums to provide the means for participants to engage in mutual poking at one another. Its childish for Gold Winger to engage in petty name-calling. It is hardly magnanimous though for you Merlyn to respond tit for tat. Your audience may find this mildly entertaining for a time, but the novelty quickly wears off. At some point it becomes annoying and detrimental to the success of the forums. Post editing and deletion is effective for a post or two and the purpose is done mostly to send a message to the poster to clean up his act. Ed got the hint and has backed off. You two have both already been publicly warned by Terry. What are you both trying to prove by continuing? FScouter, moderator team member

They probably haven't been around long enough for a volunteer to compile a history of what the program was back in its early days.

"Of all of LNT's principles, packing out your used TP gives me the greatest heartburn." Though there is a place for that, such as in steep walled river bottoms, that practice is almost never recommended or required to follow LNT principles. It's a favorite poke at LNT by cynics, probably an attempt to discredit the entire LNT ethic. We're talking about teaching little kids. Toilet paper disposal not part of it. Not for Boy Scouts either. See http://www.scouting.org/cubscouts/resources/13-032/ http://www.scouting.org/boyscouts/resources/21-105/

I don't like how Uncle Sam has been spending my tax money the last few years. Can I quit paying? How do I go about withdrawing my membership?

It makes sense to place the first knot of a row in the center. That's what your picture shows. It provides no instruction for the 2nd and 3rd knots. For the 2nd knot in a row it makes no sense to remove the 1st knot and center the two as a group. For the 3rd knot in a row it doesn't make sense to remove the first two and then repositon all of them. The website cited is somebody's personal website and the opinions therein are the opinions of that individual. They may or may not have any basis on BSA policy or publications. That is the big problem with using third-party Scouting web sites for guidance: one never knows what is BSA guidance or how up to date is is, and what is personal opinion. In this case the instructions on how to position knots 1, 2, 3, 4, etc. are only the opinion of the webmaster.

That's one I never heard of. And I thought I had the Insignia Guide memorized.

Don't feel intimidated. People put stuff on their uniform for others to look at. If you want to know how he earned the silver buffalo, ask him. "Uniform police" exists only in the mind of the uniform scofflaw.

Done.

Enough! Exchange your personal e-mail addresses and continue your "debate" in that manner. Leave it out of the forums. Closed subject.

Yes, since the other thread got closed it is now fashionable to bash the other side. It'll pass.

"Let me tell ya, everyone else notices these things... " We've noticed a few pots too, calling the kettles black.