slaugli

Yes, Social Security numbers are supposedly widely available. However, it takes some work and possibly some money to find them. It is somewhat like locking a car. The lock will not stop a professional thief, but it will stop an amateur. I am a tax professional, and have worked with two individuals who had amateurs (friends or family) steal their SSNs, and then use those numbers for employment while claiming an exemption from withholding. The IRS came after the taxes, and it took years to convince them the SSNs had been stolen. Putting a SSN on an Eagle Scout application creates too much of a moral hazard.

Is an Eagle Scout charge a necessary element of an Eagle court of honor? I have found nothing official that specifies the elements of a court of honor. I have found many sample court of honor programs that include Eagle charges. However, I have a sense that these sample programs were developed in antiquity by persons with a flair for pageantry. The fact that different sample programs include different Eagle charges suggests that the charge is not a necessary element, or at least that we are free to develop our wording for the charge. I certainly do not remember any sort of Eagle charge when I received my award 35 years ago. I am not opposed in principle to an Eagle charge, but I do not want to blindly follow a tradition or practice without understanding the origins of the practice.