Stosh

Maybe this is why bending the rules to accommodate the boys isn't such a good idea. If one does bend the rules, he had better have thought it through to the end. If this boy becomes PL does that mean his dad will in fact run the patrol and decide when and where their outings will be so his wife won't have restless nights? This has train wreck written all over it. Stosh

Maybe Emergency Prep requirements ought to be reviewed. Directing traffic in the parking lot might give a sense of prep, but seems more like a waste of time. Can they lay out a helicopter safe landing site and direct down the chopper in the dark? Might come in handy if the evac is needed in the backcountry. Scouting should be more than just a game maybe, someone's life may depend on it. Stosh

Unfortunately with every "draft" system, the one choice that is never offered is to have the NSP remain together having bonded for their first year. Unless all options are offered, I would suspect a problem in the boy-led department. It is a big choice to choose from staying together or breaking up into the older patrols. Too bad the NSP boys will learn quickly that they don't always have a choice. Stosh

Always makes one wonder how we have re-interpreted the conflict between A Scout is Thrifty and Do a Good Turn Daily to justify current practices. Stosh

I see no need to carry anything more than a personal first aid kit, adult or youth. If the kit is incomplete in some fashion, they all need to be made complete. As a former EMT-A I carry nothing more than what any of the boys carry and after 20 years have never found a reason to need anything more. First aid is more knowledge than equipment, one can "make-do" with a variety of different things as necessary. Stosh

Priorities: 1) God/Church 2) Family 3) School 4) Scouts It's always worked for me. I just make opportunities, it's up to the boys to take advantage of them. Stosh

I don't own a pair, never will, because I have yet to see a pair that looks like it fits. With the zippers in the thighs and cuffs, it is extremely difficult to make modifications to make them fit properly. They look sloppy and more often than not the boys seem to walk around on the back of the cuff. A regular pair of pants, cuffed to fit will always look better than the switchbacks. But given that, I went to a Eagle COH yesterday and only 2 scouts were in full uniform and the Eagle candidate wasn't one of them. The ill-fitting switchbacks would have done wonders to improve the situation. A Life Scout in uniform shirt with sweatpants just doesn't do much for me. Stosh

How can a troop host a camporee and still win when if it's boy run they are ones running the stations? Sounds like the host troop isn't doing much hosting and leaving it up to the troop adults to run the camporee. Of course when dads' are doing the judging, the host troop will always win. Doesn't sound much like boy-led, patrol-method to me. Stosh

Unlike the required positions in the adult level of the troop, there is no requirement to fill positions on the scout level and if all are going to be chiefs does that mean that unless you have a patch on your shirt showing a POR you're a nobody and don't have to provide any leadership to the unit? That would be a reasonable conclusion that could be drawn when there are more boys than POR's available. Sorry, I still stick with a legitimate functionality to the positions. 5 boys - 1 PL should be sufficient. If there is a pressing need for someone to wear the QM patch to keep an eye on 3 tents and a Dutch oven. Stosh

If it's an individual's activity alone, I guess I don't as SM have to sign anywhere either. It's none of the unit's business, nor should it be the SM's business either. The troop doesn't approve the project nor acceptance of it's completion. Maybe the DE ought to be signing on the project and leave the troop out of it as long as it's not a troop activity. Stosh

All chiefs, no Indians? All Generals, no privates? All POR's no scouts? I kinda like my boys to actually function in these positions, not just wear the patch. Stosh

The nationally recommended ideal program might be good for some of the troops out there, but when there's only 5 boys in the troop, that means one is the SPL, one is the PL, one is the ASPL another the APL, that leaves the last scout the Scribe, Historian, TG, QM, OA Rep, and Bugler. Sometimes the nationally recommended ideal program has to be adapted to meet the needs of the individual troops. (Which I'm going out on a limb here and say that this involves the vast majority of troops out there today.) Sometimes common sense needs to overrule the recommendations or at least remember that they are just that, recommendations. Stosh

Ok, what part of an Eagle's "personal" life isn't covered by one of the 12 points of the Scout Law? If I ever serve on a BOR and am told I cannot ask anything other than knots, first aid and building fires, I will decline. I have more important things to do with my time than waste it in that forum. Just have him tie a square knot, hand him his medal and let's quit worrying about whether or not he's qualified to be an Eagle. Stosh

The name on the title, certificate, etc. is valid only as long as the unit exists. If the unit ceases to exist (which is the focus of the thread) then all bets are off. If John Smith dies, who owns his assets? If the unit folds, who owns the assets? The title, certificate, etc. expire at the "death" of a unit. Stosh

Wisconsin situation: Our Venturing Crew has it's own tax exempt number. The council set it up for us when we formed. Stosh

Wisconsin situation: Our Venturing Crew has it's own tax exempt number. The council set it up for us when we formed. Stosh

I'm going to agree with evmori. I don't think the question is inapproopriate and I do question how BOR's are going to go about avoiding people who others might think inappropriate. In this day and age of political correctness, and supposedly diversity sensitivity, I see many areas of growing intolerance of others and what others might think, say or do. Unless the BOR's are going to be staffed by like-minded people, all thinking in the same veins, there's always going to be differences of opinions on what's appropriate and what is not. If carried to the end, this thread idea can easily result in BOR's consisting of a single person. The forum has had a long-running thread about asking God questions at a BOR, now political questions. Before long the Boards will not be able to ask any citizenship and/or ethical/moral questions to the boys. As a result one will pull out two of the major foundation blocks of Scouting. This is a slippery slope that BSA may not wish to pursue, nor should individual councils/troops. Stosh

I also have a tendency to ignore the comments of those who find it necessary to pick at other peoples' postings. I drew flack for saying such things as, "I advise my Eagle candidates that it is expected that the assisting scouts show up in uniform and go home in uniform, but while working on a messy project they can wear coveralls or other protective clothing." This of course gets translated into getting one's uniform messy (like a week at camp isn't going to do that anyway?) Unless the boy spills something on his uniform coming or going to the project, he shouldn't get it dirty. If the project requires messy work, then he might consider covering it up or taking it off and putting on more appropriate work clothes. Not all Eagle projects require this protection, however, and the boys can proudly wear their uniform while doing their good turn activity. Not all those working on the project will be scouts. Those not wishing to indicate being part of the scout workforce by leaving their uniform at home are evaluated as such. I also indicated the Eagle candidate should be identified by his uniform so that he can be sought out by others who may wish to consult with whoever's in charge. Not everyone onsite will be able to tell from all the boys running around which one is responsible for the project. If the Eagle candidate is going to be doing the work and getting dirty instead of coordinating, supervising and inspecting the work, then maybe he ought to rethink the purpose of his project. At one project an elderly man stopped by and complimented to me how nice it was to see all the scouts doing such a nice job and asked me if it was an Eagle project. I smiled nicely, pointed to the boy in full uniform standing over by the project doing some inspection and said, there's the man you need to be talking to I'm only the SM. He did just that. Later the Eagle candidate related to me how neat it was that a man had stopped by and was very interested in his project and how well it was going. It would seem that this man had done his similar Eagle project many years earlier. The project was at a church and if it hadn't been for the uniforms, this project could have appeared to being done by a church youth group. But for two people, the uniform had made a difference. Stosh

I have attended plenty of EBOR's and not all the questions asked were related to the boys' advancement requirements. And I would find it rather difficult to believe that someone is going to base a decision on a candidate's political choice for president. I guess I would assume a far less sinister reason for asking the question, relating it to the scout's citizenship understanding, which is of course part of the boy's advancement requirements. Stosh

"4. Participate in an approved (minimum of one hour) service project. (page 88)." Who approves community service hours? BSA? Troop Committee? the SM? the parents of the boy? his PL? the organization receiving the benefit????? As long as the requirement doesn't specify, it really is a rather empty requirement. Participating in service hours could in fact mean helping mom with the dishes as the any one of a thousand other opportunities for service. Surely the one making the assumed approval isn't going to place any expectations on the "project" so approval becomes a moot point. Therefore the requirement is met anytime a scout lifts a finger to help someone other than himself. Stosh

Yep, when I buy a belt, I pick the ones with buckles. My pants stay up better with a buckle and my friends are less likely to poke fun of me. When I was a kid there was a dress code at school and we all had to wear belts. Most of my friends had the ones with buckles too. I don't know if it was a scouting thing or something picked up on our own, but it worked for me. :^) Stosh

The key to the question is "...and why." If the boy is to take his citizenship seriously, the ...and why is the rationale for the question. If the boy only spouts off a name with no thought, research, or reasoning, he obviously missed some of the vital education of the citizenship MB's. Good question for an EBOR if the tag "...and why" is always present. Stosh

"The belt is okay but not the buckle, at least in my reading of the insignia guide. Neither a Philmont buckle nor a Goshen buckle is an "official BSA buckle." " High adventure belts ok, but not the buckle? How does one affix a web belt buckle on a leather belt? I do believe that when one goes to the closet looking for a belt they automatically assume the buckle comes with it. If a high adventure belt is BSA approved so is the buckle, it is part of the high adventure belt. I would much have a boy not wear any belt at all rather than show up with his new Philmont belt and no buckle. Looks kinda bad to have those two ends flopping around out the front of his pants. :^) Stosh

I had a boy in my troop that was "big" for his age. No matter how much he tried he could not do a pull-up to save his soul nor after 30 days show any improvement on it. After trips to Philmont, Sea Base and many other high adventure activities, he has now gotten a full ride football scholarship at one of the Big 10 schools. At his Eagle Court of Honor I asked him if he had ever gotten his pull-up done. He smiled and said "Nope." It's all relative, and it's not the requirement, but what is learned that is most important. Stosh

I advise my Eagle candidates that it is expected that the assisting scouts show up in uniform and go home in uniform, but while working on a messy project they can wear coveralls or other protective clothing. If the person is not a scout but a friend coming to help out they don't need to be in uniform of course, but if the worker wishes to receive scout credit for service project hours, they need to be in uniform. The Eagle candidate will stay in uniform throughout the day so that he can be readily found by the workers for further instruction and direction as needed. Stosh