OldGreyEagle

Just besure to get the correct fundraising papers signed before you go off looking for discounts and free food

BD, I might be of the mind to have the event, not charge anything and dare the DE to do something about it. What is he going to do, refuse to charter 2-3 units because you held a group event and didnt pay a Distrct Fee? If he doesnt recharter you, you have 2-3 packs already formed for BD's Rangers or some other name. WHo knows, in the future forums may talk about what did B-D mean when he said the boys should lead themselves?

Obviously, anyone can respond, not just Kudu (like I have to say that, sic!; but to be sure)

I should have Spun this off rather than hijacking the original thread. I start with a copy of my original post "Kudu, I have always wondered about something You always talk about the natural leaders and how important it is to identify them and put them in charge or have them be in charge or however you explain it. What so you do with the not natural leader boy, what do you do to mentor him? I am not saying how do you turn him into a leader, but what do you do the less shiny lights in the troop? Some may have great potential but the boy keeps it so locked up its hard for others to identify Its almost as if you are not a natural leader, you get kicked to the curb with nothing in life to look forward to but to be a follower. I know I have missed something and would like to know what I missed"

I think its not at all accurate to say "no one else seems to think is broken.", with thinking like that its easy to lapse into the state of seeing oneself as the lone protector of the true and pure spirit of scouting. We had a guy like that around here awhile ago, got so he was so abusive to anyone who thought other than he, he had to go away. I don't doubt what BD is saying, it happens. I was on the Council's Exective Board for three meetings. The first meeting was in January, it was FOS time and I was expected to pledge my share and they had no problem telling me what that share was. I did have a problem and told them they would get what I could afford. The next meeting they announced a capital fund drive and how many of the foundations in the area they were after to get dollars wanted to see how much the COuncil Board had pledged as they didnt want to give money to an organization whose own board was not on board with their own capital fund. The third meeting I resigned from the Board when there was talk of a campaign to raise money to fix the Dam at one of the camps. The Dam did get fixed, but I certainly could not afford to help them with the numbers they were talking. LEarned in those 3 months what scouting was about and it sure wasnt outing, unless yo consider outing cash from my pocket. I feel content, I know in about 3-5 years council size will sky rocket as more states become one council, councils merge, Professionals become fewer and we see less of them. Scouting will go back to its roots, neighborhood kids doing stuff and little interference from those higher up as they will be so high up as to be invisible. So, its not a case of people not caring or thinking its not a problem, its allowing the course to be run so we can get to the way its supposed to be. (This message has been edited by OldGreyEagle)

Kudu, I have always wondered about something You always talk about the natural leaders and how important it is to identify them and put them in charge or have them be in charge or however you explain it. What so you do with the not natural leader boy, what do you do to mentor him? I am not saying how do you turn him into a leader, but what do you do the less shiny lights in the troop? Some may have great potential but the boy keeps it so locked up its hard for others to identify Its almost as if you are not a natural leader, you get kicked to the curb with nothing in life to look forward to but to be a follower. I know I have missed something and would like to know what I missed

A rainy night in camp! with the blazing logs before us, Let the wolf howl in the forest and the loon scream on the lake, Turn them loose, the wild performers of Nature's Opera Chorus And ask if Civilization can sweeter music make. From A Rainy Day at Camp WIlliam Drummond

With the changes in elevation caused by tree roots and washed out chucnks of concrete, a stroll down the sidewalks in my neighborhood is not too flat

Just a thought about JoePa and how the court of public opinion sentenced him because he should have done more. When a rape of a boy was repoted to him, he was abjectly appalled, he had never heard or thought of such a thing. He told the people he knew were supposed to take care if things like this. He never followed up because he didnt want to have his actions taken as either pressure from him to ease up on Sandusky or to railroad him. If he spoke in favor of Sandusky, he could be seen as wanting to cover things up and gloss over the incident. If he wanted something done about it, then he could be seen as exerting influence and possibly railroading an innocent man. So, JoePa becomes a victim of his own success/noteriety, no doubt no matter what he did he would be cast as the bad guy as in "Show me a Hero and I will write you a tragedy" We as a people do love tragedies, even if we create them

"Foolish Giants, don't they know what happens to those who dare enter the Frozen Tundra?" yeah, they end up winning the game and going on to the NFC Championship Game Silly Cheeseheads

the idea of a Merit Badge University or 12th night or what you will "sounds" good in concept. The offering of merit badges that normally the scout would not have exposure to should be a good thing If a merit badge event is held for that reason, its a good idea. The issue becomes horror stories of alleged abuses. Scouts who spend an afternoon and have signed blue cards for All three Citizenship merit badges, no prerequisites done previusly. A class of 30 scouts qualify for the Pioneeting merit badge in a day and when you ask a scout who attended and was given a blue card the next week to do an eye splice they get the deer in the headlight look the same as when you ask where their length of rope they made is. If a Merit Badge day is done according to Hoyle, heck forget Hoyle, done according to standards then they are a great thing, if they are done poorly, then they are not. Fair or not, Merit Badge Events do not have a stellar reputation and if you run one and do not want to be lumped in with historical experience you will have to differentiate yourself from the past. Why do some scouters get medival all over merit badge events? Because when some of us teach a merit badge and hold the scouts in that merit badge to accomplish the requirements as written and then we see scouts who we know have the skill watch other scouts who clearly do not have those skills and never did wear the same badge it tends to wrankle us. if that is a charactor flaw on our part, I guess I have to own that I am not perfect

I kinda shudder as I type this as I am not sure of the responses I will get but here goes Gee BD, those are the skills I would expect of a First Class Scout,

"Foolish Giants, don't they know what happens to those who dare enter the Frozen Tundra?" If memory serves, the last time the Giants were in Green Bay for a play off game, they emerged the victors.... Just sayin'

Follow-up thought Why would the COR or Scoutmaster have to sign a merit badge counselor application? Merit badge Counselor is a District/Council position. Many merit badge counselors are not members of a troop, why would a troop have to approve a merit badge councilor? That is a function of District or Council.

Just so we are all clear, getting merit badges is not the only requirement for Eagle. There are Positions of Responsibility that also have to be done sucessfully and it is the Scoutmaster who gets to determine that. Just because you have 21 merit badges does not mean you are an Eagle Scout, the merit badge program is only one of the requirments.

One has to remember, that FOS Targets, Goals, or whatever Corporate Bablespeak your Council uses is true Pirate's Code "Guidelines"

And religious persecution is not limited to Catholics certainly, back a few years Sen Joseph Lieberman took a brief run at the presidency and actually had to answer questions on if he would "work" on Saturday (The Sabbath)He had to answer if a decision was needed on Saturday, would he make it or delegate it to aomeone else. Who thinks of this crape? We have to attack a a candidates culture or relgious background because we can't find a flaw in his politics or policies?

The Knights of Columbus was originally formed to help protect Catholic Priests and provide support to Catholic widows and families who had lost their fathers as in many communities Catholics were seen as subhuman and not derserving of help. It was not unknown for Catholic Priests to be assulted and insulted and Catholics to be barred from work. Alfred E Smith was a governor of New York and Presidential candidate, the first Catholic Presidential Candidate, a Democrat, in 1928 and the Democratic southern voters, the "Solid South" of Democrats, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee all voted for Republican Herbert Hoover rather for that catholic. He fought religious bias ever step of the campaign. JFK was vilified as a "Papist", it was claimed in printed material, that I have read, that as a Roman Catholic JFK's first allegiance was to Rome and he would do whatever the Pope told hin to do. Electing JFK would actually make the Pope the de facto president of the US. Or so it was claimed. It wasnt all that long ago being Catholic was not accepted in High Society

My parents always had a book in their "library" Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey. As a kid I would look at it and wonder what sort of tales it held. For some odd reason, I never did read it. Then in the late 90's my mother was dying of Pancreatic Cancer and I was out of work. I was with my father as my mother's condition worsened. I started to read the book. It was an escape, but I have to say it is one Anti-LDS book thats for sure. I don't see why that is never mentioned, at least I havent heard it.

heck, for that matter, the sign itself makes a pretty fair target for .22's and heck any size shell. After you shoot the sign away, then you make tent stakes, a scout is very thrifty. PS make sure the youth understand you are not shooting at the "name of the candidate" cover it if you think it may be an issue

First of all, I love the idea of the "boose way", although I had never heard it that way before but since its a contraction of the word Bourgeois, anything goes, the "boose way" is the boss of the Rendezvous, or Ronny Voo or what ever that has de-evolved to The Bourgeois, the clerical employees of the fur trading companies, Hudson Bay and the like were the first middle class, not affluent as the owners, but still a cut about the Voyageurs, the Trappers and the like because they could read and write. Somehow Bourgeois thinking had a "bad" reputation when all not that long ago, being a member of the Bourgeois was the goal of most North Americans. To have a little money beyond that needed for subsistence. Ah, but times change, do they not? Then again there is Pierre Aloyoius DuMonde, son of Cafe DuMonde, well know New Orleans restraunteur. A Frech Voyageur turned trapper who is know to inhabit yours truly and even has his own Face Book page although he is not to active right now. Pierre throws 'hawks and has a Flintlock and two percussion cap rifles, (NRA Instructor). The youth love to have Pierre tell them stories and teach scoutcraft in Tuque and leather pants

You know that Michael Moore of Movie "documentary" fame is an Eagle Scout...

" I would not look a gift horse in the mouth..." (Ding Ding Ding) Looks like we have a winner here...

or all three not that things could not be improved of course

You guys do know that Spellcheck is already available for the forum, right? WHen you compose your post, you see the phrase "format this post" to the left, underneath the phrase "Your Message" When you click on that you get a HTML box where you can bold things, put a word in italics or even underline something You can even change the size of the font the color of the text, or all three