TAHAWK

The terms seem to communicate, so why anyone would get upset over mere labels that communicate is beyond me.

Lord no. There is an activity uniform. However, a the Handbook explains, it's whatever clothing is appropriate "When you're headed outdoors . . ."(The Boy Scout Handbook, 12th Ed., at p. 33. There was an "Activity Shirt," but it went away due to lack of interest.

The written material on uniforms and insignia is hardly a model for clarity or completeness. Some people are not very good at their jobs. Becuase I saw one reference after another to the Mentor pin being for civilian wear only, I kept looking. But if you have no clue about the answer . . . .

While the one I bought was made by Johnson Western Works, other Gillwell knives were made by Wade and Butcher and Maleham & Yeomans. Johnson was purchased in 1955 and the works closed in 1956. What I would like to do is more closely date the knife, but I can only speculate at this point.

This has already been done: http://scouter.com/index.php/topic/13095-eagle-mentor-pin-on-scout-uniform/page-2 The rule on Eagle Mentor pins, whatever one thinks of it, is clearly stated in the Insignia Guide at p. 30: "Eagle Mentor pin, gold tone, No. 14123; sterling silver, No. 14127. For non-parent who was instrumental in the Scout earning his Eagle; nonuniform wear." There is no "Field Uniform" or "dress uniform" for Scouts. There is "the uniform" or the "Boy Scout Uniform" for Scouts, in all its variations. Not that our "professionals" get it right; they repeatedly refer to a "Field Uniform" when that terminology officially went away several years ago. There is a "dress uniform" for what B.S.A. calls "leaders," by which B.S.A. unfortunately means persons more accurately called "Scouters." The dress uniform for Scouters is "like the uniform worn by professional Scouters": I respectfully suggest that the human experience is that rules rarely followed create disrespect for rules in general.

Ah yes, the others are rude so its OK. That would lead to: "A Scout is no better than the others." Hardly aspirational. Mill-run Internet.

So I bought a knife: It is a knife sold by the Scout Association, evidently as a souvenir of Gilwell Park, and the sheath is marked "Boy Scouts" and "Be Prepared" above and below this image: I wondered why the spelling of the blade marking was "Gillwell" - four Ls. I discovered that when the property was purchased for Scouting , for many years before, and for about nineteen years after, it was spelled "Gillwell." This fact is supported by government property and taxation records and other formal papers. It is also supported by the recollection of a contemporary: D. Francis Morgan, Commonwealth Commissioner, in The Scouter, January, 1960. I seems that the change took place when BP was made the first Baron Baden-Powell of Gilwell in 1929. So in 1919, when the first Wood Badge course was held, it was Gillwell Park. "Back to Gillwell"?

Thank you for adding to my vocabulary. I have a word or two for your consideration: "kind"; "courteous."

I have joined an actual Boy Scout troop, and what they do is present each parent with a ribbon that attaches to Mom or Dad's clothing and holds the various pins that come thier way during thier son's Scouting career. Here is the attachment: http://www.scoutstuff.org/bsa/uniforms-insignia/insignia-metal/pins/ribbon-bar-award-holder.html#.VghXhctVhBc Rules aside, no reason it could not go on a pocket flap or above it. I suppose such a ribbon could dangle from a pocket button. Here is another idea - a loop of ribbon that goes around the neck: http://www.scoutstuff.org/rib-neck-proud-parent-multi.html#.VghYl8tVhBc https://www.pinterest.com/pin/262475484508321709/ http://www.mothers-pride.com/

Dryer lint is good if from cotton garments/linen/rugs. Lint from dark cotton items is good for starting a fire with a magnifying glass. It is harder to fluff up after being compressed as compared to cotton balls.

This http://bsahandbook.org/ leads to some interesting material, but it's not the Handbook.

I do understand budget issues. Probly' why I'd be no good in government. ^___^ $7.49 - 10.xx elsewhere today. ( Google Doan fire starter ) Buying the ferro rods separately and using WPJ-slathered cotton balls would also be worth a look for the budget-conscious. The cotton balls are much more forgiving as tinder. They catch nearly as well and burn much longer, whereas the magnesium shavings flash off in mere seconds. Pardon me if I state the obvious. Others come here besides yourself.

The real deal is made by Doan Machinery and Equipment Company in Eastlake, Ohio. It costs more than the imitations since it has a higher proportion of magnesium (easier to scrape shavings) and a better ferrocerium rod embedded in it. http://www.oldjimbo.com/survival/doan.html The real deal is called the "Doan Tool" by the military, who have used it for decades. If you REALLY need a Doan Tool, you may regret the couple of dollars you saved by buying the imitation. "There is nothing in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and he who considers price only is that man's lawful prey.†John Ruskin

The district is an administrative subdivision of the council. "Most" councils have districts, says BSA. Districts act by delegated authority.

After consolidation, the new district that contains the area in which I Scouted for thirty years has had no Training Chair or Scout Training Chair for almost four years and no Roundtable Commissioners for the same period. The vast majority of units have no Commissioner service. Correcting this situation seems to have no priority.

I too learned from volunteers, including leaders (Scouts), but what they were teaching was in the 1950 Handbook for Patrol Leaders. One of the few "professionals" that I acknowledge wrote that book, so we were all learning from one of the few Scouting professionals who was drawing a salary. (Strangely, Bill does not make it into the lineup for the Scouting Heritage Merit Badge, and BP is also absent. Waite Phillips was more important to the growth of Scouting in the U.S. than BP or Bill? There were 99 troops in Cleveland when BSA arrived, and each one was formed on the sole basis of Scouting for Boys.)

BSA does not explain what makes up the Patrol Method in any coherent way. My source at corporate told me he felt that many of the upper-ups didn't really know what it is supposed to be. They had, he said, "mislaid" the Patrol Method.

Arbitrary rules are simpler. 0___0

Leadership is always the thing. Poor district leadership produces poor results. The weak district I mentioned several times is headed for the third year by a business executive recruited by Council He has no clue how to deal with volunteers. He expects to rule rather than lead, not a good approach even with employees.

I asked how you "propose to make things better." We got a lot of good ideas from unit Scouters. I didn't expect them to focus outside their unit. In fact, the best ideas came from the Scouters in good units, and in those unis is where we needed them to be.

So? I too have seen clueless WBs. Reminds me of Carlin's comment about the "average" person. "Half are worse than that." How do YOU propose to make things better vs cursing the darkness? I prefer to keeping trying.

Tough crowd. I should have mentioned that the goals were selected by the unit leaders assembled at a Roundtable held for that purpose and publicized as such. (every unit leader and SPL was sent a letter inviting them. Even the lone Varsity type appeared. My theory was that the "customers" should have the major role in deciding what the district should try to accomplish. 1. There is training for many, if not the vast majority of jobs. Now this may come as a shock to those who know better than everyone else, but it is generally believed in the real world that properly training a person for the position in which they are expected to perform will result in better performance. Trained Scoutmasters, trained Cubmasters, trained Den Leaders, trained Committee Chairs, trained baseball umpires, trained lawyers, trained carpenters, and trained doctors, in my experience, perform better than those without training. I have just ended five years trying to work with an SM who has taken no training for his position. No one has ever had the opportunity to try to convince him: a) to use the Patrol Method; b) that advancement is not the sole and only purpose of Scouting; c) that anyone other than him has a single useful idea or experience; d) that there are no BSA policies or practices that he has an responsibility to follow; and e) that the troop should go camping (Summer Camp at a merit badge mill is, of course, the exception). Nice guy. Clueless. For those of you who think that all Scouting and BSA training is inevitably a waste, there is no need for further discussion. No changing received wisdom. 2. The DC decided that UCs should represent the unit to the district and the district to the unit. They keep units informed of opportunities for program, training, recruiting, fund-raising.and those $1.00 surplus A-1 condition Army surplus duffle bags that appeared why nylon replaced cotton canvas. They act as resources for the leaders and adults. They counsel the adults as required ("counsel" being a word of art). They are especially the primary resource if the unit is having problems rechartering (Council thought the DEs had this job, but they came and went so frequently that we regarded anything they did as a supplement.) They respect the role of the adults in the unit. Sometimes their job is to just listen. 3. Please see point 2 above. Rechartering is now done annually. A Roundtable should probably be devoted to that goal. But the UC should still be the lead helper so the roundtable can be a celebration and time for more program-oriented stuff. Strong units have little need for district program. Program is to primarily take place on the patrol level in Scouts and the Den level in Cubs. District program is offered to assist the weaker units and to give a view of Scouting as more than just patrols, The district also directly assists programming in units and their operational components by training their leadership and adults (inclusive of program ideas and leadership of program), by offering program ideas at Roundtables (please see point 10), and by UCs acting as resources and facilitators of networking with successful adults and leaders. Your 1 already addressed. Like others, you must have been bitten by a trainer when young. Your 2 already addressed. ditto. Although old UCs are usually too old to have sharp teeth. Officious attitudes? Your 3 - I supposed a unit gets no great joy out of rechartering, but they are no a BSA unit otherwise. Your 5 - Recognition of desired behavior is a standard tool to encourage that behavior. I don't think this is even debatable. Your 8 - If the district is useless, this does not matter. If, on the other paw, it is useful, depth in leadership helps insure effectiveness when life interferes with the Happy Land. Your 9 - For those that have found training of leaders to be useful, insuring that no leader is left out due to financial considerations is a good thing. For those who believe training is useless, never mind. (I believe one of the bright spots in my oldest council, for all its failures, is consistently insuring that there are scholarships as needed for the week-long leader training, more lately NYLT.) For those with better answers, I wish you had been at the annual meetings when the leaders and adults decided what were were aiming to do.

Title 4, Chapter 1 is addressed to the U.S. Flag. not a particular class of persons. There are no penalties prescribed in Tile 4, Chapter 1, Does that make it non-binding on BSA volunteers?

Scouting happens in the unit. The district cannot replace that, but it can help. In my case, the goals finally agreed-upon were: 1. At least two trained commissioned leaders and a trained committee chairman in every unit. To that end, training to be excellent with staff to be gathered from the NE Ohio area (multi-council) and not just our district. (As it developed, most of the learners, did not want to go home on Sunday after lunch. Most stayed for two or more hours beyond the end of the course.) To that end, recognition of leaders completing training 2. Functioning UC's for every unit. 3. All units chartered on time. 4. Day-long JLT twice a year with best possible adult and Scout staff. 5. Recognition of troops using the Patrol Method. 6. Patrol Method training at two or more Roundtables. 7. Youth-planned and led district camping events (camporee & klondike derby) with all events sponsored, planned, and carried out by units. 8. Back-ups for all key district leaders. 9. Scholarship fund to insure that no leader missed week-long JLT for lack of funds. 10. Outstanding Roundtables largely focusing on unit program. Savage curtailment of announcement. Our DE wanted - desperately wanted - goals about FOS. (No popcorn then or he would have wanted that too.) He didn't get a single vote. We nevertheless led the council in FOS even with honest presentations about where the $$ would go. In fact, we led the council in every metric for three consecutive years. JTE, IMO, could be a good tool to encourage stronger units but it has been badly implemented by having too many goals, goals administered so as to not reflect actual good Scouting, and reliance on the honor system to keep the junkies in line. The result is that, in the councils where I volunteer, the results are relatively meaningless.

Good districts have good volunteer leadership- leaders who can develop a consensus about district goals and can convince others that they - the others - want to cooperate to achieve the district objectives. Selection of top district leadership in our latest round of reshuffling focused on leadership by "community leaders" (i.e. business executives [$$$$]). The results for Scouting have been weak at best. The results for Council have been acceptable.