KoreaScouter

Our section OA Conclave was held in Maui over the weekend; two of the four Arrowmen in my Troop went, including little KS. A little more logistics for us than most, I'd say, what with the requirement to fly if you planned to attend (unless you're a VERY strong swimmer). I thought the $65 conclave fee was incredibly reasonable for a long weekend on Maui. Council had staffers at the airport in Honolulu and Maui to facilitate/provide transportation; no hitches. Upon his return, he said the program was good, the food was very good, he had a great time with the other Arrowmen, and to top it all off, he handed me a box of Krispy-Kreme donuts when I picked him up at the airport (they have Krispy-Kreme in Maui, but not on Oahu). Now, I had to share with Mrs. KS and sister KS, but the gesture wasn't lost on me. Oh, I'm sure there were internal staff hiccups; there always are. But, to the target audience, the thing went off without a hitch. I'm going to let Council leadership know that. Sometimes, it seems our bar is set so high, that if something goes perfectly, well, it was supposed to. And if just one thing goes wrong, then you're a bum. That's too bad... KS

OK, I've been asleep at the switch...where's he going? I hope it's Colonial Virginia; that's where we plan to hammer the tent stakes all the way in... KS

Uh, oh -- I got him fired up...sorry! KS

Bob; I agree with you in part. I was not involved in the curriculum rewrite, which is why I issued the disclaimer in the first paragraph of my last post. I also conceded that some of the lessons are universal. That said, it's obvious to any participant that the curriculum, while based on contemporary management/leadership theory, is tailored toward Scouting and Scouters, and is intertwined with our values. To remove the Scouting specific content would be to unravel the course to the point of making the Instructional Systems designer have to start from scratch. Here's some specifics: - The first learning objective is to "...View Scouting globally..." - The second learning objective is to "Recognize the contemporary leadership concepts utilized in corporate America and leading government organizations that are relevant to our values based movement." - The themes of the course include "Living the Values", to include the aims and methods. An "Aims of Scouting" worksheet completed as a class exercise is part of the curriculum. - The patrol projects must be relevant to all four programs, as must the conservation project. - Scouting-specific references that, again, presume the participants have internalized the Ideals of Scouting, are used throughout the handouts and course materials. Could the underlying theory and principles be adapted to any organization? Of course; they are every day by a myriad of training consultants who take those theories and tailor them to the needs of the organization who hired them. I think we're both saying the same thing here. Bottom line, I wouldn't take WB21 as designed and expect non-Scouters to get the same benefit as Scouters. I happen to be in the Boy Scouting program, so that's my current frame of reference; if it were Cubs, Varsity, or Venturers, I'm sure it would be different. Since WB21 is not program-specific, my comment should have been also...mea culpa. KS

I see a basic disconnect here. If I may be presumptuous, the curriculum designers for WB21 kept the their training audience in mind as they built the course -- altruistic volunteers, whose professional and educational backgrounds run the gamut, and whose mission is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral decisions over their lifetimes by instilling in them the Scout Oath and Law. If that mission statement matches, or is even philosophically close, to your businesses', then by all means use WB as a leadership training venue. Otherwise, much of the value of WB will be irrelevant to your organization. Sure, there's a little Covey, a little Blanchard, etc., but that's not an argument I use to recommend WB to prospective attendees. The staff doesn't use a bone saw to open your head and pour in enlightenment, either. That's an intangible you have to discover for yourself during the course; some do, some don't. Again, the underlying assumption is that you're walking in the door with a certain set of values (the Ideals of Scouting), that have been basted in the sweat, excitement, and reward of having spent some amount of time in the movement and seeing how it works, and more importantly, that it does indeed work. Without that foundation, it seems to me that attending WB would be like going to your first cricket game without knowing it ahead of time, as if you stumbled into the stadium and decided to stay. Some lessons in WB are universally applicable. But, the most important ones will only matter to Scouters. That's okay, since that's who it was designed for. If you want to see baseball, but you go to a football game instead, you will still see grass, uniforms, sportsmanship (hopefully), and teamwork. You won't see baseball, but you can't bash football for that. Likewise, I don't think we should criticize WB because it's not a leadership training cure-all for managers in a for-profit business. I've worked for a large Fortune 500 outfit in my past, also. The various staff organizations and operational divisions had substantial training budgets, and they often used the services of outside training pros who would design custom training courses, based on the training audience, the organization's culture/mission, time available, and so on. That's not always a sure thing, but that's the way to bet. What makes WB special? Well, as a personal example, among the countless training seminars, workshops, classes, courses, and formal schools that I've been to, one was the Air Base Defense command course. Good course, but one thing it does not do is allow one to see and understand the air base defense effort from the pespective of the 19-year old grenadier or mortarman who will ultimately win or lose the effort. Too bad. However, WB allows you to see Scouting from the perspective of a Boy Scout (if you permit yourself to do so; that caveat again). KS

I don't know if this approaches what some would call a "Wheelerism", but here goes. Reading the immersion comments regarding foreign langauges makes me wonder how much we could accomplish in our educational system if our teachers used the immersion system to teach English... KS

FOG; Methinks you may be missing the point. Putting aside the fact that I've lived in Dayton and could dispute your assertion that it's not a danger zone, the fact is that the BDU is a replacement for, not a substitute for, the old fatigues which were technically the "work-utility uniform". Any uniform with which you tuck the shirt into the pants is a "dress uniform" combination. There's only one work-utility uniform, regardless of what you're doing at the moment, or where you happen to perform that duty today -- that's the BDU. The woodland pattern is issued to everybody in basic training; they have no idea then where you'll be stationed permanently, or what you'll be doing as a specialty. You can't tell a recruit at uniform issue "You look like the pencil-pusher type; no BDUs for you". Moreover, everybody, regardless of specialty, has to shoot, do details, augment other specialties, etc. The only efficient way to do this is to issue the BDUs in basic. KS

Counselors need to use their judgment (assumes they're trained and understand what they're supposed to be doing). Every requirement has an intent behind it. For example, if the requirement is intended to get the Scout to conduct research outside the pamphlet or his handbook, it may not matter if that research is at the internet kiosk at the library, or on a bookshelf. On the other hand, it may matter -- depends on the badge, and the requirement. Sure, counselors can't add to or subtract from requirements, but there's still grey areas. When a written report is required, is that handwritten or computer-typed? How long a report? That's just one example, and why the initial meeting between a Scout and his counselor is so important. That's where they reach an understanding of how the requirements are expected to be met. I have always recommended meritbadge.com as an online resource. But, I've noticed lately that their updates haven't kept pace with BSA Requirements changes. All references that aren't official should be used with a caveat... KS

Ditto to Purcel; there's not a BDU color scheme with the muted tones of greys/blues, that would enable the military office worker (they're in all branches, not just the Air Force) to blend in with his cubicle environment, making him safe from paper cuts and coffee scalds. I don't understand the "part of a uniform" rationale. We've jawed this one to death (then again, apparently not). We would think someone was a lunatic if they only used part of the Advancement method, or the Outdoor method, etc. Yet, in some circles, it's okay to mix/match the uniform... KS

I'm with most of you, that we should do the instruction under strictly controlled conditions, for those Scouts who have the emotional/physical maturity, and manual dexterity to pull it off. I've always been amused, and sometimes amazed, at the number of Scouts who have to be hounded to expend the energy to clean their rooms, but will enthusiastically burn the calories required to turn logs into chips and cordwood in an axe yard...something primeval here. KS

Ah, splendid, another uniform complaint thread! I love getting in on these! Here's the latest pro-change anecdote from the KS household: Not long ago, little KS went camping. In the course of their capture the flag game, he ended up on the business end of a fairly steep slope with his buddy, and they both slid (his estimate, not mine) about 150 feet to the bottom. Not quite like Chris Farley in "Black Sheep", but he did take most of the trip planted firmly on his whoops-a-daisy. Now, that normally wouldn't be a problem, except he was wearing his uniform trousers, and that one slide (albeit a long one) wore two holes exactly where you'd expect them to be. So what, go get another pair, right? Well, I had gotten these trousers from E-Bay, and they were unused when I got them, but they were the older design, with the real cargo pockets on the outside of the thigh instead of the chiclet-sized ones sewn on top of the other pockets. Those things are virtually irreplaceable! What's my point? Well, two of them actually. One, sturdier materials. Two, put the cargo pockets back where they belong, and make them big enough to hold more than a book of matches. Thanks for the opportunity to vent...and to think I almost missed this thread.... KS

In our Troop, we try to schedule the entire Webelos den, with their parents, to come to a Troop meeting about this time of the year -- they're normally eager, since it's an AOL requirement, too. In this meeting, my CC and I tag-team the parents. He gets them first (admin stuff), while I do SM conferences with the Scouts. I then turn them over to the SPL, and it's my turn with the parents. Among other things, I stress the differences between the programs, and try to ensure they understand the transition their sons will go through, and that they'll go through especially in terms of who will communicate with them. I also give them a ding-dong school on the Boy Scout Handbook -- how it's laid out, where the equipment lists are, how to keep it in one piece, how important it is to "surgically attach" it to their Scout, etc. I've found that doing this cuts down on misunderstandings...doesn't eliminate them, just cuts down on them. KS

This thread was spun from another thread.Matua laments some of the "tyrrany of distance" inherent in their District being Aloha Council (my current Council also), but having more in common with (and being closer to) Far East Council, my former Council, HQ at Camp Zama, Japan. I never understood that either. FEC takes care of Taiwan, the P.I., and Thailand, in addition to Japan and Korea, and does a fair amount of direct service to small units at diplomatic outposts in Asia. Guam's a lot closer to Camp Zama than Bangkok is... It can be very frustrating to be so far from the Council Service Center, literally and figuratively. Supplies, information, pubs, popcorn, uniform items, everything takes forever to get to you. And, you really feel like you're on your own sometimes. On the flip side, we had some fabulous opportunities to interact with Scouts from other countries, and experience their cultures too, without the expense of a World Jamboree. I'm sure it's the same way in Europe with Transatlantic Council. KS

You know, with any flawed human, you're taking a gamble. Here's a case in point. As you all probably know, the NFL Pro Bowl has been played in Hawaii for the last 25 years. Much like the Super Bowl, there's a week's worth of appearances, festivals, cheerleading clinics, and whatnot to hype the thing. On Saturday morning, 6:30 a.m., there was a prayer breakfast at Pearl Harbor, with coaches and players there. All devout, "clean as a hound's tooth", positive role-model types. Delivering inspirational messages, signing autographs, the whole package. That afternoon, just hours after the prayer breakfast, one of the players who was at the breakfast, Simeon Rice from the Bucs, was sent home by Andy Reid for missing practices and team meetings. As comedian George Carlin has said, "If your kid needs a role model and you ain't it, you're both in trouble..." KS

OK, here's a few more to add to the list: - Tent stakes are pointy and inflexible. It doesn't matter whether they're lying flat or pounded into the ground; they just make marks on different parts of your body. - If you're driving somewhere and the conditions tell you to slow down, you may be going slower than you would be ordinarily, but it's still faster than walking. And if it isn't, it's probably time to re-think the whole thing. - When you're done cooking, and you have hot grease or oil as an end result keep this in mind: hot grease is not only hot, but everything around it is now also slippery -- bad combination. - Physics lesson: impatience is absolutely useless for overcoming resting inertia of fixed objects. - Snapping the chin strap on a bike helmet while riding the bike is harder than it seems. What is precisely as hard as it seems is the mailbox you run into when you take your hands off the handlebars to snap the chin strap. KS

I'm not aware of any process to "annul" the decision of the BOR. (In the balance, that's probably a good thing.) There are a number of checks/balances built into the advancement program. Look, if a Scout is able to bamboozle his PL, Instructors, Guide, SPL, adult leaders, and the BOR, as this one appears to have done, that's as much the Green Bars' and adults' responsibility as it is his. I know there's split opinion on allowing youth leaders to sign off advancement. Heck, in some units, ASMs don't even sign off advancements. There's obviously a variety of approaches to this. If the SM and SM alone signs off advancements, you know you don't have a standardization problem. If this responsibility is to be shared, however, everyone involved must know and understand what the requirements mean, and apply them consistently. As a knee-jerk reaction, I'd consider appointing the lad as a Scout Skills Instructor -- the whole schmeer; knots, first aid, lashings, map/compass, plants/animals. Have him teach that stuff to your first year Scouts, and I guarantee you that at the end of his tenure, there'll be no doubt he knows his stuff. KS

I got my campaign hat, new and unworn, from a military surplus place on the Mainland. $32 versus $80 from the catalog. I did get the rain cover, leather band, and chin strap from BSA. I had the same question about where to position the buckle on the band. I put mine to the right side, so the BSA logo on the band is centered in the front. I haven't gotten a flattener yet -- I'm thinking of making one with wood and wing nuts. It's slowly shaping to my head and getting more comfortable. I like the shade and protection from the elements (with the rain cover on. I wear it level to the ground, with the strap behind my head. It stays put just fine. I'm trying to figure out how to store the rain cover inside the hat, up in the attic -- lots of wasted space up there. I'd spray it with a stiffener and water repellent, but I don't want to ruin it...if you guys say it doesn't mess up the hat, I'll do it. Call me corny and old-fashioned, but I think the campaign hat should be required wear for SMs, at least for ceremonial occasions. It's pricey, that's true, but I think it completes the picture. How about this: the SM position patch costs $50, and includes a free hat? KS

We'll have 8, from two local packs. That number's down, but I don't know why. What I do know is that the pack (our feeder pack, actually) to whom I assigned a Webelos Den Chief has all of theirs crossing over; the other pack is about 70%. I don't think it's a coincidence. You_Betcha: Welcome to the forum; you from Minnesota? Quick advice: Use a Troop Guide and Instructors for that many new Scouts; assign an ASM specifically to work with the Guide/Instructors and NSPs (I didn't say exclusively, but specifically). Use Troop Program Features to plan, then carry out, your meetings and activities. If you do, even if you have to tweak them slightly, you'll help ensure all the Scouts in your Troop get the program they need and want. Retention? Read the "Welcome to Scouting" list of promises on Page 1 of the Handbook, and make sure your program delivers what BSA promises. Good Luck KS

NJ: There is something you need to be concerned about. The same people who use throwaway cell phones to mask their activities use library computers to communicate with each other, again in an attempt to mask their activities. Right out of the AQ tactics manual. Here's an example of how they do it, open source: Person "A" establishes a web-based e-mail account, doesn't matter with which service, there's many. Person "A" shares his username and password with everyone else he wants to communicate with. Person "A" goes to a library, or Internet cafe, or kiosk, creates a message, either in plain text or encoded using a simple cipher. Person "A" doesn't transmit the message to anyone, but saves it as a draft, then logs off. Person "B", in some other location, uses the now-common username and password to access the e-mail account, reads the draft message, then deletes or continues to save it as a draft. The message hasn't been sent, hasn't been delivered to another mailbox, and resides only on the mail server. The best, perhaps the only "bread crumb" to link these two miscreants together is to track the IP addresses of the computers from which the message was drafted, and accessed, then try to find out who used them. Obviously, it's not in our interests for the subject to know they've attracted the attention of the authorities. That's why the "no disclosure" rule is there. Don't bother looking just for middle eastern males planning terrorist acts to be doing this; it's a commonly used method of communications by a variety of fringe groups who don't want to be traced or identified; environmental terrorists, various supremacist groups, and yes, sex offenders. Anyone interested in learning about prisons from a sociological standpoint can get a brief tour; preferable to committing a crime and getting a long tour. Likewise, anyone interested in learning more about any form of child abuse can get a policeman or prosecutor to come to a committee meeting or Roundtable; preferable to possessing the material. Concerns about the Patriot Act? Read it; then contact your Congressman with the specific section(s) you're concerned about -- they voted for it and can amend it. Before anyone goes off the deep end, please remember that the authorities don't have the resources to go to every public library computer and "data mine" -- it's only going to happen on a lead of some sort. KS

Favorites (not already mentioned): - Giant freezer-thickness Ziploc bags to put your map in - Those long lighters that look like anteater snouts for campfires, lanterns, anything at camp. - Little packets of coffee mix from the Asian market that have the coffee, cream, and sugar in one pouch - Coleman propane trees - a little $30 radio from Radio shack; has AM, FM, and TV bands on it; keep up with current events - Rubbermaid Roughneck containers - Match Light Charcoal Not so favorite: - those tent stakes that look like metal, but they're really coated plastic - big heavy canvas tarps that require the skills of a tall ship sail rigger to get up correctly - leaders who snore, and won't use strips or get the elective surgery - anyone who beats on a pot to wake people up...all I can imagine is flocks of birds taking flight in panic, and herds stampeding all over the savannah...enough already, what is this, boot camp? Why don't you boil some water in that thing instead? - the notion that camping is synonymous with suspension of good personal hygiene - BSA belt buckles and trouser snaps that always seem to find the paint job on my truck KS

Roger that; I try to get with a different one, too. It's difficult to characterize the nature of our relationship as a Scoutmaster/Scout overlaid with the father/son relationship. It's delicate (to me), but not awkward, and it certainly seems to be in equilibrium. If it wasn't, one of us would know and tell the other. He's almost 14 and I'm waiting for the time when he gets non-communicative and aloof (like they say teenage boys are supposed to around their parents), but we still get along fine, and communicate and relate to each other well. KS

Near and dear to my heart, this one. I was his Cubmaster, was his SM before, and am his SM now. I've done it because I was asked to in every case, not so I could use the position to provide special treatment for my son. I'm aware of the potential human dynamic, and how my position could cause some to think he's getting a break because I'm his SM. To strike a balance, I operate so that if an outsider were to observe a Troop meeting or outing, and didn't catch the family resemblance (handsome lad, but he gets his looks from Mrs. KS's side), that outsider wouldn't be able to pick my son from the crowd. He follows the same youth leader "chain of command" the rest of them do, gets program information from his PL (unless he overhears me on the phone or in conversations before/after meetings -- he's "first-in, last-out" with me, after all), etc. I don't hover over him, and he doesn't hang around me. What does he call me? Why, "Dad" of course. Scouting is something I do; his father is what I am, 24/7. We don't chat very much at meetings/outings, though. He's a Webelos Den Chief, so I don't have much reason to chit-chat with him at Troop meetings -- I'm usually talking to my ASMs, committee members who show up, or the SPL & Troop Guide. At outings, he's hanging with his patrol. Do I sign off his advancements? Mostly not, up to First Class -- his PL and/or SPL did. For Star/Life, I signed off the leadership, participation, MBs, because I have the records -- ditto for all my other older Scouts. I've done several of his SM conferences, too. And, he understands that when it's Scout business, there's no nepotism. Case in point: I didn't do his Life SM Conference, one of my ASMs did. He told me later on the way home that Mr. "X" was a lot easier than I was. I try to stay away from MB counseling as a rule, since I have enough work to do. I'm not currently a MB counselor for anything, although in the past I have counseled the Citizenship badges, and Personal Fitness, Wilderness Survival, and Cooking. I think I counseled those for him, but most of his MBs, he earned with other counselors. Again, no nonsense. For Personal Fitness, his 12 weeks of workouts turned into 17 because he planned them during the winter in Korea, and had to skip workouts because of the weather. He took a year to complete Basketry, becuase he didn't get his stool done at his first summer camp, and I had him haul it back with him the next year to show the counselor, same one from the year before... In all this, nobody I've been associated with has even hinted at favoritism, and I'm not worried about it, because it's not there. I don't walk around all the time on eggshells, either. I do this because I enjoy it, in part. If I thought I was under a microscope, or he was, the enjoyment would be gone. I'm not going to screw that up by greasing the skids for him. I've known Scouters who did show favoritism, but they're a very small minority of the many I've known. KS

I made it to First Class, then drifted away and was, presumably, DFR'd next recharter. Why did I quit? There were a few reasons, none of which are anything more than excuses, in retrospect. We were chartered to my elementary school, which was K-8. Once I finished 8th grade and moved on to high school, the elementary school was no longer a part of my life. I saw my SM perhaps twice a year. An ASM actually ran things, and he seemed to be a one-man show (and as I recall, he seemed almost constantly annoyed about virtually everything). If we had an SPL or patrols, I couldn't tell you who/what they were. The ASM called all the shots, just like a Cub den. I loved our council camp, Camp Miakonda. But, it was the only place we went, and we only went 3 times a year. No other outdoor program, and we were an urban troop. Here's the real kicker. When I started high school, the commute and the homework took a lot of time, and I'm sure I used that as an excuse not to go to Scout meetings. But, there was certainly a period of time during which I was on the fence, and would have come back if I thought somebody cared. But nobody called and asked where I had been or why I wasn't coming. So, I figured they didn't care. The advice I give Scouts in SM conferences is to set a goal and stick to it, don't let temporary demands on your time chase you away permanently from Scouting (we'll always welcome you back, whether it's two weeks or two months), and if you want your program to deliver something you're not getting now, get some green bars and make it happen. I also tell them that when I look back on it as an adult, leaving Scouting was the biggest mistake I ever made. And, more importantly, it's one of the few mistakes you can't go back and fix. Once you're 18, it's too late to play "make up". When my son completed his Star BOR, I told thim that everything he did in Scouting as a youth from now on would be something I never did, and would never be able to do. KS

The sleeve design is intended for areas where you'll get snow load, since the sleeves distribute weight more evenly across the fabric than clips do...time and hassle is the tradeoff. If you don't get snow where you're going, the clips are the way to go. I have a Timberline, use it all the time, and like it very much -- mine's a 4-man, the heavy-duty version, and is a little heavy for backpacking. Other Eureka products are tailor-made for backpacking though; in my experience, anything by Eureka is a good investment. KS

I didn't realize my idea was that similar to JLTC as you've seen it. Our council has JLTC scheduled in June; I'm going to check with them and find out if it follows that model, too. I might be trying to reinvent the wheel here... I agree that training efforts should be focused where you need the most improvement. However, that focus may be on completely different things, depending on the leadership team you get each time you conduct Troop elections. Maybe that's another argument for a dynamic, modular youth training curriculum. Thanks for your ideas and input... KS