Stosh

At the centennial Jamboree I showed up wearing a 1910 uniform. No one said anything about any color of the patches. There weren't any back then. It did have the BSA collar pins and BSA buttons, which was about it then. Another boy in the troop wore a 1960's uniform with the proper pants and patches on it. It was difficult, but he did come up with the community patch which is far more useful than the council strips. His rank was year appropriate (square) and his POR was correct (square) as was the necker. We allowed others to take our picture but only if they were in full-uniform, something that was required for Jamboree. We had to tell a lot of people no, but when a fully uniformed scout asked to take our picture, we also said no, handed his camera off to his buddies and told him he had to be a part of the picture. He got a picture with the 1910, 1960 and 2010 correct uniforms. To this day, I still wear the red because it was the color of the uniform when I started as an adult and I'm too lazy and too cheap to change over. I'm still wearing the full uniform I purchased in 1993. A few field repairs, but for the most part fully functional and correct. Stosh

Nobody really tries to follow proper uniforming. Yes Tigers get the blue shirt but I'm seeing 100% of the Cubs without uniform pants on. So what's the big deal about wearing the vest? I try to wear a full uniform all the time, but if one looks closely they may find 50% of my knots upside down. I don't really worry about it at all. I also wear my Eagle mentor pins on the collar of my shirt and no one says anything about disrespect. And when all is said and done, who really cares enough to be truly uniformed? If I thought wearing blue jeans was a sign of disrespect, the scouts would never do a flag ceremony again. I even had one incident at a summer camp that had a no-uniform day and when the troop that was doing the flags that day showed up in uniform they were asked to take them off for the ceremony. My boys showed up in full uniform, unaware of the situation, turned around and went back to the campsite where they did their own ceremony in full uniform. What are the BSA rules about a camp having a no-uniform day and incorporating flag ceremonies into it? Stosh

Over the years I have been dual registered many times. Basically what it has amounted to is under which responsibility do I get the mail. As ASM in a Troop, I was primary as CA in a crew, so I would get CA mailings from council. Then when I became SM I was primary so that I got SM mailings. I'm currently UC primary, but SM of a new troop. I'll have to go to council to switch those so I get SM mailings. Other than that, how is one's POR fulfilled in one unit and credited in another? Just ask any Den Chief. I have offered troops in the area of older boys if they wish to dual register so as to help out with my new troop. Got no takers, but if they served as TG in my troop I would make sure he got credit for it in his primary troop. I'm thinking it's nothing more than paperwork, mailings, and communication that makes dual membership not really a problem. Stosh

Merlyn, What you consider is of no importance or value. I'm sure the courts do not consult with you on a regular basis. How many troops out there do background checks on everyone that shows up to their fundraisers? I am convinced that they would be surprised who comes through their doors. There are dunks out there on the roads threatening children's lives every day. And yet they get a free pass. It's all a matter of what one knows and what they are oblivious to. Knowing does not automatically give anyone the right to hassle. And for all those who ANTICIPATE what someone might do in the future, one cannot be arrested for what they think or we'd all be locked up. We are a society of people that incarcerate people for what they have done, not what we think they might do. This person paid their debt, the maximum sentence, so leave him alone. If he has learned his lesson, then one has spent a ridiculous amount of time wasted sitting around waiting for "the next time". The courts have done what we have expected them to do, even to the maximum. There's nothing more to be done unless one wants to be judge, jury and executioner vigilante style for no legal reason. One can forgive, but they don't have to forget. Stosh

It's always interesting to note how fast a person considered a low life can drag the holier-than-thou down to their level. Here's a rock, you go first. Stosh

That has to look good to the public to have the cops show up and toss people out at a troop fundraiser. How does that work out with the Scout Law? Courteous. .. Kind... I'm sure it'll play well in the press knowing the person tossed out is married to a council employee. Stosh

With a room full of people who have come to support the troop, I'm sure this guy isn't going to do anything out of the ordinary except eat a meal, bid on the auction and write a check. He's looking to find some normalcy in his life once again. I would just let him be, he has more hassles in his life with long memories, government hassles and the media, I don't need to be adding to it. Stosh

And he would have every right to have you arrested for harassment, or if you touch him or forcibly remove him, battery or at least assault. I agree it's a hot issue, but that's why I said let the law enforcement people do their job. If they aren't stepping in, then that's an area I surely don't want to step in on. I don't think anyone in the council will do anything either. He's not a registered scouter and I don't think you want the SE showing up at a troop fundraiser and making a scene with someone who has come to help out the scouts. Stosh

99% of the people out there do not realize that on any given day they walk right by registered sex offenders, thieves, murderers and various felons of all sorts and don't even know it. It would seem that Mr. Dundas fully served his debt to society, is not on probation, is part of the public and public was welcomed and no laws were broken. So what's the problem other than one happens to know this person is a sex offender? I had such a person living with me for 2 years while trying to get their feet back on the ground after coming out of prison. I have neighborhood children living on both sides of my house. I live right across the street from a city park, and there were no problems. It would seem that one is expecting the BSA and everyone else to extend the punishment that was established in a court of law. Such vigilantism is not part of the Scout Oath and Law. At this point I would suggest MYOB and let the law enforcement people do their job. If one is worried about such things, just remember the trained killer living next door has proven himself/herself to be a person capable of taking another person's life without too much or any remorse at the time, has very little or no interest in ever killing again....but could if provoked. And by the way, thank the veteran for serving his/her country this coming Memorial Day. Stosh

One of the very first things I teach my boys when they come into the troop is that failure is what Scouting is all about. Most boys at age 11 are terrified of failure and will sit on their hands and do nothing if faced with a difficult problem. That in itself is failure, but they won't admit it. I tell my boys to step up to the plate and try something. If it works, fine, wait until next time to learn something. If it doesn't, figure out why and then store that information away so it doesn't happen again. My more timid boys get the extra lesson, "If you have a problem and your efforts to solve it fail then figure out how to fix it. The reason you do this is you're going to meet someone some day that has a similar problem and unless you have figured it out on your own, you will never be able to help them. You'll never be a servant leader." This was sent out by our DE to all SM's of the district within 20 miles of this boy's home. Hi All, I spoke with a La Crosse family today whose son got out of scouting a bit ago and would like to join again. M____ T____ is in 7th grade. His mother's name is K____ T_____, 123-555-8506 ______@yahoo.com. Feel free to contact him and invite him to visit your troop. Tammy Schmitz | Seven Rivers Senior District Executive I forwarded it to my PL just as it is stated with no comment. (I do it with all council emails.) This is what he responded: _______@yahoo.com Stosh Hi my name is H_______ S________ our boy scout troop is at Trinity Lutheran Church on the north side we meet on Monday nights at 7:00 pm. We are a new small Troop that is boy lead. Please come check us out . Thanks, H______ S_______, Patrol Leader 123-555-4911 NEVER underestimate your boys! This response was done with no prompting on the part of the SM, no lesson/guidance/mentoring on the part of the SM or ASM, Nothing more than a "situation" (opportunity) handed to him directly from the scout office DE. Remember, this boy is 11 years old, and was a Webelos II 3 months ago and has been PL for 2 weeks. It is experiences like this that totally convince me that NSP's only need an occasional tweak from a TG's and can run their own patrols right out of the gates. Believe and trust in your boys! Worse case scenario? The boy picks a different troop. Not really a failure, but still a disappointment that will need to be addressed for next time. Stosh Oh, and yes, I had to fight the urge to do some recruiting on my own as SM. But I waited and it finally went away.

The old WWII mess kits are steel. I use mine all the time and they are shaped such as to handle storing the knife, fork and spoon. The cup/boiler was added to the WWII canteen bottom. It's a nice setup if you can find them. Stosh

I do believe it was once combined. I got my entire training under a program called SM Fundamentals, ran from Friday night through Sunday morning. I could be wrong, it was 20 years ago now. Stosh

Welcome to the minority. Stosh

Out of my entire WB group, I know of no others who are still in scouting. The main reason I'm still around is because I was an outdoorsman long before joining scouts as a Cub and I'll still be long after I wrap it up as a leader. 40 years of working with kids is just a perk to the opportunity to be out in the woods. My daughter has informed me I'm responsible for teaching my granddaughter how to hunt, fish and camp. I guess I'll be at it for a while. Stosh

My Webelos den met every Monday year-around. Summer is the best time of the year to go camping with the Webelos boys, why would anyone consider dropping the program for the summer? Stosh

Maybe it's time to add to the EDGE training, a bit of Lean A-3 training. Actually for project planning, it's not a bad option. Stosh

After 40 years, nothing the boys do surprises me anymore. After 40 years, nothing the adults do surprises me anymore. It one is no longer fit enough to lead, it's time to step down and let someone else take the reins and the rains. Stosh

We really don't have a full background on this situation so I'm not going to jump to any conclusions. The offer to be the DL might be a good idea, but Webelos is a transitional time for the boys and takes a bit more than just being an artsy-crafty kinda person. A bit of the outdoors person goes a long way with Webelos. Not knowing your personal situation, i.e. single mom, couch potato dad, etc. it just may be too much to step up to the plate. Is there another parent that can co-DL with you? Maybe doing the inside stuff and having a co-DL do the outside stuff or vice-versa? As a last resort, one can always check out the other Packs in the area. They all run things differently and if you find out they are all as bad as the one you're at, it might be worth it to stick with the pack where at least he knows the boys. Then HELP the DL become a better DL. Offer to do what you can to make it nice for the boys. The current DL might be in over his/her head as well. Stosh

When I go along on an adult outing as their GrubMaster, I have a plastic bin just he right size to fit into one of the old BSA Yucca packs. In that bin I have all the fixin's for a camp kitchen. Bowls, spoons, light-weight cooking utensils, etc. I have even taken it along on backpacking treks and worn it on the chest. Works really nice for weekend treks, but I'd leave it hope on an extended trek. There's also an ulterior motive for taking it. The other guys carry the heavier food items and I take the light-weight kitchen. Stosh

Why should everyone suffer for the sins of a few? This sounds like a rule some adult would impose. If I as a scout had a beef with someone I could always get the adults to take it out on them by not doing my job. Sure, I'll get punished too, but for some it's worth it. This process of punishing everyone does nothing more than allowing the offender to not take responsibility for their own actions and impose the punishment on everyone. Let the chips fall where they may, the boys will figure out a solution in the long run. I had an outing where the boys cleaning up after supper did not secure the chuck box of food and left it sitting out on the picnic table. An adult wanted to put it away, but I had them leave it, we had plenty of other food so the boys wouldn't starve. Went to bed and the next morning the boys were in a tussle about who left the food out. Racoons ate well and the boys foraged off of everyone else for breakfast. Fortunately it was Sunday morning so it wasn't a total loss and no one starved. Anyway, the point being, it never happened again as far as I know. Should everyone else be punished? Technically it should have included the adults who saw the problem and didn't enable the boys in their irresponsibility. Lesson learned? Don't leave things lying around, Mom and Dad aren't here to pick up after you. It also reminds me of the story where a family camping in bear country would leave their dirty dishes out on the table after every meal. They would go off and return, wash the dishes and then leave them again until the next meal and wash, eat and leave again. They did this for a whole week and the bears were really happy about it all. Well the next week a young family came in and did things right. Now the bears didn't get a freebie meal. They tore the camp to shreads looking for food. This is why punishing one group for someone else's stupidity isn't really a fair way of dealing with any problem. Stosh

I had my boys in my previous troop down at the fire department where they did the REAL water fights. Dressed up in the gear, had the hoses and went after the barrel. I made sure the council was not notified, we didn't need a tour permit, we were only two blocks from the meeting room. The funny thing was, the boys now asked to borrow my smart phone so they could see what the weather was going to be like on Saturday. I asked them if they were going to postpone the event if it rained. I didn't want them to get wet. They were not amused. Stosh

Again, it's up to what the boys feel they need out of their leadership. Heck, if the boys are all lazy and have a lazy PL, then there's no real problem. They just miss out on a lot of fun stuff along the way. Once they realize this, they'll change their ways. Activity amongst youth ebbs and flows over time. Something might come there way that gets them all excited and they'll do whatever it takes to make it happen. A few days later, they are bored to tears and whining about nothing to do. Welcome to real life, boys! Plan another activity, any activity that sounds like fun, and start making choices, the solution to your problems is in your hands. How is it beneficial for me as SM to assign them a leader. It's not the SM's problem, it's the boys'. Let them figure it out, it's all part of learning leadership skills, solving problems, and making sound choices. My new scouts just got done with their first outing, swimming at the local pool. They had a good time. No problem. Now they have organized a "water fight" at a local park. I have no idea what that is, but come Saturday, I'll find out. Would I rather have them go on an outing? Sure, but they aren't to that point quite yet and neither is the weather for a first outing overnight. But they are working on advancement and having a good time. I'm bored to tears, but things will improve. Stosh

I start my new boys thinking about their Eagle projects right away when they cross over from Webelos. This way, it gives explanation to why their are organizing a camporee, or why they are doing what they do to get the boys to summer camp, or why they line up and lead a service project, etc. All of these "training" exercises go well in identifying what they are capable of doing and what they might like to do for the big one for Eagle. Secondly it focuses the boys on a long-range plan and the multiple steps along the way that are necessary to learn to lead a project like that. Is there money involved with your project? How well do you like fundraising? Not at all? Then maybe you need to consider something else. You like the service projects? How about doing a really big one because you've learned how to do the small ones. Third, they learn to do the paperwork for each of their little projects so that when the big paperwork comes down the line it's no big surprise. Fourth, through the various service projects and other activities they take leadership on, they network with people who have some really good ideas for Eagle projects. My boys generally are ready to turn in their Eagle project proposal the day after they get their Life rank. Stosh