Stosh

A Scout is reverent, and does his duty to god. Where do the requirements state a scout has to be religious? If he believes himself to be a god and treats other religions with respect, he's got it covered. Stosh

With all this discussion floating around whether or not a scout is religious doesn't fit the definition of "reverent". Reverant is to show deep respect for someone or something, most often, but not limited to the sacred or divine. Reverence is what you do, not what you are. This is why I take my hat off when going into a church, but leave it on when I go into a synagogue. It is what I do to show respect, but it has nothing to do with my beliefs. Stosh

If the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, it means you're going to have to mow it more often. Stosh

I'm still Dad when I wear my uniform. Stosh

I got my beads in the mail. Stosh

I'm with packsaddle, but I apply it to the whole Scout Law. Upholding it is up to the scouts and their family, not me. I tend to let private moral beliefs remain the realm of private family matters. If it doesn't relate to just scouting, it isn't an issue I need to deal with and I don't poke my nose into it. After all, picking out one or two Laws to ignore is rather hypocritical, so I ignore all 12 equally and fairly. Stosh

Naw, they'll just extend the one they have on large bore cannon. It'll now read, no black powder even if you don't have a cannon. Stosh

It's a scout activity, full uniform! Stosh

Not only that the company I work for and the one right next to it are both looking for welders. Those students get employment application forms from both companies on the first day of class at our local tech school.

Yah-but, it wasn't liquid fuel! - There is no such thing as an accident, just stupidity looking for a place to show off. As one who has handles blackpowder on a regular basis (Civil War reenactor) I can assure you it is not a place for carelessness. Every precaution is the highest priority. Infractions are dealt with at the highest level. "I don't care that you traveled half-way across the country to participate in this event, you just wasted a ton of money and time and you can go home now." is the standard answer. Even when I was CA for a group of Venturers, they did not handle blackpowder preparation. Brass and plastic are the only materials useable when handling the stuff. I'm almost positive that in order to "test" their little experiment they would have not used a plastic, brass or glass bowl to hold the blackpowder, I'm thinking a stainless-STEEL mixing bowl, the #1 NO-NO with blackpowder. As far as what these people were mixing with the blackpowder, I am going to guess iron filings because they will add a huge amount of flame and smoke to the explosion. Steel is made out of iron. Not a good combo. One static spark drawn by steel/iron is all it takes, or one bump of a steel belt buckle to a steel bowl. Ever watch the magician make a grand entrance to a campfire and produce a huge burst of flame and smoke in the campfire? One small pinch of iron filings is all it takes, no blackpowder at all. Iron filings are extremely flammable. It's unfortunate that novices have to learn the hard way. I hope things turn out okay for these people. God has a way of looking out for fools and unfortunates. Stosh

This thread has been running now for 2 years. Is there a time limit on it or do I still have time to post? Stosh

Barry is correct in the assumption that the bullies intimidate the weaker. It has nothing to do with size or age. That is because they use their strength for their own gain, not the gain of the group. Give the bully a POR and that only adds to their "position of strength" in calling the shots. Conforming minions are forced to comply and thus one sees a bully singling out one or two weaker members to dump on. Groups as well can bully, they are called cliques. You are a nobody unless you are in THE cool group. No matter how one cuts it, as Barry points out, it needs a culture change to make things correct. One can make all the rules in the world, punish everyone here and there and it only add fuel to the fire and takes the activity to a covert level where the SM is kept in the dark. Eventually the weaker ones will quit and the SM stands there asking himself/herself why without doing any followup. Every time we take on new boys in the troop, EVERYONE goes through the youth protection pamphlet with the new boys and the overall emphasis is on: "If anyone at any time feels intimidated or threatened by anyone, they are to report it to the SM, parents, adults near by, police, or anyone else that will listen." Every incident WILL be investigated and dealt with and any offending scout will be asked to leave the troop immediately. Yes, that might sound a bit "intimidating" coming from the SM, but I have never had to ask a scout to leave the program either. Along with the annual swim test and annual Totin' Chit training, this is a process I follow diligently. Borderline issues are usually handled in SMC and are cleared up quickly before they get a chance to escalate. Normally I handle it by buddying up the bully and victim on a minor incident and the SPL and victim on a more sever incident. It's always worked well, to the point where the bully and victim have even become friends along the way. Why that works, I don't know, but sometimes it does. Stosh

"Leadership" by fear or intimidation is not leadership at all. It is bullying and manipulation, pure and simple. People who "follow" tyrants are not following leaders, they should follow because they see it as being a good thing and they want to. Real leadership needs to be measured by the numbers of those following because they want to, not because they have to. Stosh

Wax is not a liquid fuel. Stosh

I found it kinda difficult to go back and see comments on earlier threads, missed a lot. This way it keeps it more sequential. Stosh

When it comes to burning things down, I like boring. Stosh

??? People have been using aluminum mess kits for years and not died from cancer. What carcinogens are there in aluminum? By the way, most troop pots are made of the same material..... And I've been to Philmont and it is obvious the menus are designed for calories, not flavor. I just don't like to suffer that much and tend to want to enjoy the meals on scout activities. And when seriously doing the hiking thing, I leave the stove, fuel and cookware at home anyway. I'll trade the weight of good food over the flavor of freeze-dried any day. Stosh

I don't buy from any scout either boy or girl, unless the scout is in uniform...period! The last purchase I made was GS cookies from a young gal standing outside of Walmart in freezing weather bundled up to the hilt and her vest over it all! She got a good sale from me. I had one boy in my former troop ask me to buy a Christmas wreath. I told him to come back when he has a full uniform. The troop didn't require a full uniform and I wasn't under any obligation to buy either. I guess he didn't want to make the sale very bad. If one is in full uniform knocking on my front door, they can expect a $50 sale to start. Stosh

In our state the community colleges work closely with the state colleges and the impact is minimal. As a matter of fact I took Computer Science on the community college level and the classes were full of state college students. It would seem that at the state college level they taught more theory and on the community college level they focused more on practical application. The state college students wanted the more practical application and thus took their studies on the community college level. At the state college level they were expected to write 3 programs in the intermediate programming class for one semester, but on the community college level in one quarter they wrote 17 programs. The system seemed to work out pretty well. With both colleges in the same town, jumping back and forth between the two was no problem. As a matter of fact it worked so well, the private college in town had to make arrangements with the two to stay competitive. I had very few problems transferring all of my state college credits down to the community college level and thus had half my AA degree completed before I even started. My wife's state college (different state) credits readily and completely transferred over to the private college in town with no problems as well. Packsaddle is correct, make sure you check out all of this before taking any classes. When I started I had only one problem and that was in English. The state college was on a semester basis and the community college was on quarters at that time. My 2 semesters of state college English (one year) only transferred to community college as two quarters and I needed three quarters to make the full one year. In the end they did give me credit for the third quarter, but it was a hassle. Stosh

I don't think the example of adults using flammable liquids is a good message to send to the boys. Lead by example. And the comment reads any fire, not just fire started by the youth. I think the message getting out means in certain circumstances adults as mentors and teachers can say one thing and do another. I believe that's the definition of hypocrisy. There are ways far safer to have a ceremony for the boys that don't open the door to burning something down or starting the woods on fire. If these are Cub leaders doing this for AOL, I don't think I want to be around to testify in court when something goes horribly wrong. Maybe YOU are safe when you do it, but that doesn't mean the next guy trying it out is safe. I've been in scouting for 30+ years and have never found the need to burn up a necker to put some wow factor into any ceremony. I find it far more rewarding as a SM to simply put the new guy's necker on him for the first time, looking him in the eyes and welcoming him into the troop. But then again, I might be too old fashioned to do else wise. This kind of thing always reminds me of the lady that was burning her garbage in the back yard years ago, poured gas on it and then realized she didn't have matches. It was a hot day and by the time she got back most of the gas had vaporized. When she finally did get the match lit, it would have been a far better outcome if all she lost were her eyebrows. Then there are the campers I have witnessed that didn't think the embers in the bottom of the charcoal were growing fast enough so they poured some white gas on things to speed it up. Yep, worked big time! Stosh

Here is just as good a place as any other place. Otherwise, put the link in the Scouter announcement section and ask the moderators there what they think. Stosh

Didn't say that. But in an emergency, I don't have any rules and may have to answer for that in court when I get sued. I just know that when I have been in that situation, I know I'm running a risk. It's a call everyone has to make on their own. I know how to do a tracheotomy. I'd do it in a heart beat on my own kid if necessary, but I would definitely think twice before doing it on someone else's kid. Knowing how to do an epi-pen may save a life, but I'm surely not going to teach a layperson especially minors. Check with the laws of your area and the areas you may be camping if there are rules for such things. Sending kids into the woods with an epi-pen and an allergy is a call every parent makes every time they send their boy on an activity. But it's the parents call, not mine. I figure if I save a boy's life, the parents can sue the snot out of me and I won't care one bit and neither will the boy. I may win in court but it's going to cost me $$ to defend myself. Stosh

Yep, the local 2 year college to pick up a trade is what I was referring to. Very cheap if that school happens to be in your home town. You can also go cheap for two years at the community college for the basic education then transfer to a 4 year school and pick up the rest. At least it's a ton cheaper than 4 years at a university. Stosh

Here's a classic example of management vs. leadership. While the "eagle" has managed himself to the rank of eagle, he has taken on no understanding of what leadership means. A common fault in today's program. Stosh