OldGreyEagle

You did read my Snipe Hunt story, right?

gsdad, can you give me an exmaple of a prank where no one is physically or psychologically harmed, or humiliated? I thought the fun was in watching the person realize he had been tricked and their reaction The huge wooshing sounds coming form this thread has to the be points each side is trying to make going over the other sides head. My perception of pranks is negative, we have others who say they are fine. Just as I would not expect a birther to accept the Obama presidency by anything I say, I do not expect anyone to read my thoughts and say, oh, I see, we shouldnt do that. The best I can hope for is the units that do pranks watch and make sure they are "in good fun" and "everybody knows it was just a joke". I wish you all good luck

Lisa, we need to exchnage Kielbassa, Czarnina and Kolache recipes That much Polish I know

I remember as a young child being at my grandparents in Chicago and they were talking "funny" I asked my mother what was going on and she said they were talking Polish. Her parents always talked it at home. My mother knew it and when I asked her to teach it to me, she said why? We're American, English is all you need. My Grandmother told me the samething. You are American, all you need is English. So now we have immigrants who appear do not want to assimilate and the thought is thats bad. Some troops ban electronics on Campourts because the adults dont understand why anyone would have electronics in the outdoors. And expect the youth to have the same values they have about camping, is it not also wrong to impose the values our Grandparents had on the immigrants of today? Because my Grandmother felt a particular way, does that mean all succeding generation have to feel that way? The only consistent thing I know of is change

Hey Merlyn, Knock it off Beavah is no phony Hick...

Hey Pack, maybe the two of us damaged people could car pool to the therapy we need for being such fragile children? Your analysis is what I have been trying to get across in my Snipe Hunt/Cannon Report story. The taking advantage of someone eager to please. That was and is my objection. Carry on

Personally I am just waiting to have the Mass revert back to latin as was promised here by a prominent Poster. He said it would happen and he knows all things Roman Catholic so all I have to do is wait

As the self-designated representativve of "Politeness Man" for this thread, I have to heave my steel hankie, Please, its not Quakers, its "Religious Society of Friends". I mean you don't refer to members of "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" as Mormons do you? Or Roman Catholics as Papists? On second thought, some around here probably do And President Nixon was a member of the Religious Society of Friends.

Commando Time?

Regardless of big or small, I find it disquieting that we give someone a pass who totally misrepresented what another person said

I am sorry guys, Beavah posted: "OGE asks us then to view the two hours of candid-camera pranks shot all over Canada and dismiss 'em as cruel and unscoutly" And I cant find it anywhere that I asked for people to do that. What is it called when you say something that is not true

Then again, the product has been used before...

Beavah where did I say did or did not endorse the canadian thing?

I have never been a real "Trekkie" although I do enjoy the Star Trek series. I seem to remember a quick exchange between Capt Kirk and someone about "love" and whether or not there should be emotional attachments between Officers and the enlisted. I seem to recall Kirk saying something like "Star Fleet learned years ago they could not control love, so they stopped trying" or something like that. Anybody know which episode that was?

Beavah, at times you are alleged to twist people words, well, here you lied "OGE asks us then to view the two hours of candid-camera pranks shot all over Canada and dismiss 'em as cruel and unscoutly, even though da vast majority of the viewers and the participants find 'em delightfully funny. Do we reckon that's rational?" When did I say to dismiss the Canadian film as cruel? I never said that, I did not imply it, I did not reference it. If they best you can do is lie about your opponent, then I figure I don't have to do anything Yes, you will read this story agaim, anytime somebody has a thread about "Jokes, Pranks, whatever you call it and its dismissed as behavior that we should accept. Not now, not ever. If that rubs you wrong, I guess its great to live in a country where we can hold opposing views

I wonder if we could get the guys from Mythbusters to pose for the cover of the merit badge book and lend the BSA use of some the Duct Tape projects they have done over the years

I post my story to present an experience. If people think they can manage a Snipe Hunt for good effect, they will. I was not emotionally fragile, as an ASM son I was battered around pretty well in scouts, my father being the ex-Staff Sargeant Marine and all. Hold that thought on being an ex-Marine, they get dischaged, they are never Ex-Marines. I present my story to give a thought to people who think its harmless fun and anyone who reacts badly is just not mature enought to get the joke. Readers may want to check the quote on my profile(This message has been edited by oldgreyeagle)

"Kids are only emotionally fragile if all the adults in their life treat 'em like they're made of glass." That is correct, so, emotionally shake them up, set up situations where their trust is betrayed, let them build up layers of scar tissue, scar tissue that will serve them well in later life. Teach them to mistrust those in authority, Teach them not to tak eanything at face value, that there is always something hidden in even the best situation that will turn ugly just so other people can laugh at you All of these things are such scouting virtures, I can't beleive its not more prevalent

I tried to hold off, but the spirit is willing but the flesh weak It was a long time ago, in a place far far away, well, actually Chicago area, about 1965 or so. I was a bright young scout, really Gung Ho. I thought being a scout was the bestest thing in the whole world. On one summer campout. we drove for what seemed like hours. We got to the campsite and set up.. The Troop used an Army surplus 16X16, that thing was huge, and it was heavy and we all loved it. After the tent was up and the gear stowed, Charlie, the SPL came over and told me he needed my help. I was in like 7th heaven. Charlie was like a god to us younger scouts, he had his license and his own car. It was a 57-58 Chevy, it was painted candy apple red and roared like a jet, that car was cool. Rumor was he shaved everyday and had a girl friend. I fairly floated as we walked over to the group of older cooler scouts. Finally I was going to be part of the in crowd. I was to be the bag man on a snipe hunt. It was simple, all I had to do was stand on the Snipe trail and hold the bag open and the Snipe would run straight into it. Now, wait I said, I know what a Snipe hunt is, and I am not going to do it. I felt a lot let down that Charlie thought I was stupid enough to fall for a gag like that. So then Charlie says, well, you are right, but you know, Snipes are birds and we happened to have driven into where they live. So, I bought it. I went out and held the bag, and held it, and held it and held it. Well, back at camp the older scouts sure were having a party at my expense, they had this kid who knew about Snipe Hunts out on a Snipe Hunt, it was glorious. The adults on the trip knew what was going on, and reminded them that I was supposed to be brought back to camp about 1 am if I didnt show up first. Back at the Snipe Trail I stood, bag open. I knew Snipes were rare birds and figured we had driven long enough to get in their range. I waited, and waited. Along about dawn I figured I had waited long enough. Seems the older scouts got their signals crossed and everyone thought someone else would get me, but nobody did. I got back to camp as breakfast was being made, and when I was spotted, the whole camp cheered, laughed and hooted. I was not having a fun time. I remember thinking, remember this moment, remember how hot your cheeks feel, how angry you are, you are never ever going to feel this way again. A few months later it was the Fall Camporee. Charlie again asked me for some help. I asked him what, I was more than a little suspicious of anything he said at this point. He told me he needed the Camps Canon Report. It has the schedule of the Camporee on it and it was floating around the camp and people would get it, copy it down and pass it on. So, after being assured it was real, I went off. Gol dang it if every troop I visited had just had it but passed it along minutes before I got there. I went to over 10 troops before a kindly old scoutmaster who knew my dad from work asked me if I had ever been on a Snipe Hunt,. I almost fainted. The rage, anger, fear, humiliation just ran through me like an electric shock. He had done it to me again. I walked back to camp, slinked actually, imagining all who saw me were laughing behind my back, pointing me out as that absolute and complete idiot. When I got back to camp, I walked up to Charlie and told him I was sorry, but I didnt get it, but I would go after it first thing in the morning. I never did go after it and I never talked to Charlie again. I never did anything he said and completely blocked him and all his older buddies out. I learned never, ever to trust what a boy leader said because they were out to get me. As time went on, I made sure that no other scout ever went through what I did. I would tell all the new scouts about snipe hunts and canon reports and all that. I told them if anyone asked them to do anything that didnt sound right, to ask me first. I had a few angry older scouts, but I didnt care and I was getting big enough that nobody retaliated. I eventually was elected Senior Patrol Leader because the scouts knew I would not betray them WHat memories do you wish to have in your scouts?

Back when the Troop I used to serve actually did Backpacking trips, I developed a pretty good base dish. Couscous and tuna, or Couscous and spam or whatever else was in a foil packet and on sale. First time I brought out the spam, all the youth stood around and asked for a taste, there were so many of them, I had to say no, but I suggested at the next campout, the patrols put Spam on the menu. And there was spam and eggs, fried spam and baked spam. The whole campout was spam and the spam song courtesy of Monte Python was song continuoulsy. Odd thing was SPam never came back and I could never get them interested in it again. I guess what they say is true, the proof is in the tasting and singing about spam is a lot better than actually eating it

See, the problem is, its real easy to see some action we disagree with and label it Nazis like, throw around terms like "Brown Shirt" or Gestapo Tactics and the youth hear them and before you know it, kids are changing Nazi Nazi at recess or anyone they dislike is a Nazi and the words lose their meaning. And the absolute horrors perpertrated by the Nazis are not something we should forget or make light of. Until a political organization mobilizes its own "security force" which acts in impunity with the law calling them Nazis is inaacurate. Until a political force accomplishes a national prescence and develops concentration camps, its a little premature to call them Nazis Throwing around terms such as Nazis, Gestapo, SS and Hitler-like demean totally their victims experience. A group of people may be dumb, stupid, ignorant, mean and immoral but that doesnt make them Nazis, it makes them dumb, stupid, ignorant, mean and immoral

OK, lets be frank, well, actually I will be OGE If the idea is we need to have time requirements in the early ranks because kids are advancing to fast and the youth don't have time to truly learn he skills, the question is, will a rule, a law, a policy written on paper have any effect? Why do we want to have time requirements? Because of the heavy influx of 13 year old Eagles? (I think I saw one once, but I am not sure). Youth do not determine the speed at which they advance, no matter what we think the program says. Youth advance at the rate the adult leaders of the unit approve measures to sign off requirements. Adding time requirements to early ranks assures us nothing but having time requirments for early ranks. The amount of skill learned, mastery retained, and so on will not change. If a Unit is content to have a 14 year old Eagle who can't tell the difference between a square knot and a granny, why do you think their 16 year old Eagle will? Its not the youth that fail in delivering the program, that is something that is absolute

Not everyone has the style, confidence, grace, elan and panache to successfully wear the red beret. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers that pull it off don't hate you because you can't, don't hate us because we can

I have a rather emotional attachement to the Red Beret and all I can say is "Curse you Curtis Sliwa"!

The topics of Scouter Forum are as varied and diverse as the members of Scouter Forum, which is to say varied and diverese. There have been Scouting related forums where the moderator(s) have been heck bent on keeping threads "on topic" and for the most part, those Forums are inactive. Others have the Moderators clearly steer the discussions in specific directions and although my opinion may be a tad biased, I think the moderators here do a good job of not steering threads, heck yeah we will give our opinions, but rarely are threads closed. Cito, I am not sure if you are old enough to remember the movie "Forrest Gump", in the very beginning there is a feather that gently floats down and lands next to Forrest. Threads here are very much like that feather, they may have a general sense of direction, but it doesnt take much to alter their direction. Once a discussion starts, there is no way to determine where and when the discussion will end. There are times when I see what someone has poated and the words of the Immortal Bette Davis as Margo Chaninng burn in my head, "Fasten your seatbelts, its going to be a bumpy ride" Given it may be a bumpy ride, I would hope no one would ever not post their thoughts because of what they perceive the reaction to be. If we cannot be honest and forthright here, then where is that place where we can express ourselves? Within reason of course and I get to choose the boundaries of reason and I think I better think this out again(Ron Moody as Fagin)