OldGreyEagle

Pack, I was rereading my scintilating prose and noticed some rather inexcusable typos and it was past the time I could edit reguilarly so I used my moderator edititng function. As you know, when I do that it comes out "edited by a staff member" but it was me and it was just to fix some grieveous errors

Well, to be truthful, Venturing "Outdoor" Crews have the outdoor as their focus, however, Religious Life, Sports, Arts and Hobbies and Sea Scouts (ok, hard to be a Sea Scout and not be outdoors, but theirs is a specialized skill set) units are not Outdoor focused. Having the new advisor and Committee Chair of the local church's Religious Life Crew do Wood Badge and learn about scout craft won't help them much in their mission to have a youth lead Religious Life Crew

Rather than reinvent the wheel, perhaps we could partner with NOLS and have them do the training, or at least mentor some adults to do the training

In the Scouting Magaizne I got today for Septemeber-October 2009 there is a format change. A new feature is to be a column from the Chief Scout Executive. The column this month is about getting youth outside and combating obesity, a good call in any magazine. The final sentence reads: "It's up to us to set the example along the scouting trail and help reduce the obesity rate of our future generations". Fair enough, I agree. Then on page 45 there is an article titled "Fat Chance" with a profile more expansive than should be. Any by profile, I mean a side view of an adult. OK, I could have been the model, I wasnt, but yes, I could have been. I admit it. In the article about obseity and fat chilren and adults, Mazzuca is quoted again, saying: "Our role is clear: We must aggressively create and promote programs that help build healthier lifestyles for our scouts". OK, I have been called out, the new fitness requirements have me losing quite a bit and I agree its time. But now to the part that wrankles my butt. On page 43 is a picture of the National Key 3, the Chief Scout Executive, the National Commissioner and the BSA President. And those three boys don't look like they have missed a meal in awhile. OK, yes obesity is an issue. Obese scouters are a poor role model. But I would have liked to have the National Key 3 launch a Weight Loss Program, like a "Biggest Loser" challenge. You know, "Take pounds off with Tico" or something like that. To make such pointed references about the need to have slimmer adults and then have 3 fat guys be our National Leadership is a tad disingenious. I don't hold that they are heavy now against them, as I am basically in the same shape. But I would have much more respect towards to the call to fitness if the National Key 3 publically took the challenge themselves. Will the National key 3 have to submit to the 2010 weight chart? Because if the Jamboree was next week, I dont think any of them would be allowed in (This message has been edited by a staff member.)

Just an Observation, we are well on our second page of dicussing what Wood badge is and what it isnt and what it should be and no one's personality has been assasinated or at the very least attacked. It's great to see ideas and thoughts exchanged without acrimony towards the poster. Make it work!

Gern, you have to decide, either "WB is held as the pinnacle of scouter education" or "My perception is that WB is the pinnacle training of an outdoor program". Huge difference in your two thoughts. As I said earlier, Wood Badge may have District and Council Committee chairs attending as well as Den leaders, Cub Masters and the odd commissioner or two. Yes, none of these may have ever worn a backpack. They don't have to be woodsmen on the level of Nathaniel Bumpo to run the Council Financial Committee or a myriad of other duties. Perhaps there should be an advanced Scoutcraft course, I would attend, but I wouldnt expect the Cubmaster from down the road to, or the Council Chairman, I would expect them to take the current version of Wood badge. Well, maybe not the Cubmaster although I would certainly encourage him to do so. I also echo Gern's fear that we allow unskilled adults in the woods with youth, yet when we talk about manditory training, such as in place in the COuncil I serve, we see many people complaining how onerous it is to mandate training, that people don't need it to be leaders. But basic outdoor skills need to be presented long before Wood Badge

Rather then asking us, have you asked the youth? I don't mean this as a flp answer, you asked a serious question that does come up quite a bit and deserve a serious answer. The problem is, what may have worked in the troop I serve may not work in the troop you serve, you can't produce a program that will have the youth like if you don't know what they like, what they are looking for. we can give you lots of ideas, be sure to run them by your youth before you invest a lot of time in something no one wants

Wood Badge is not designed to teach scoutcraft, let me say that again. Wood Badge is not to teach scoutcraft. It did at one time, but it no longer does. It's as fair to blame Wood Badge not teaching scoutcraft as it to blame a History teacher that his pupil cannot explain the Theory of Relativity. Perhaps Wood Badge should teach scoutcraft, that is another discussion, but anyone going to Wood Badge to learn scoutcraft is horribly mislead. The Wood Badge curriculum is desgined to give participants the tools do do their Scouting jobs the best they can. Council and District Committee Chairs go to Wood Badge, Commissioners of every ilk as well as Venturing Advisors, Den Leaders and Cubmasters grace Gilwell Hall. It's not a scoutcraft course, it is a management/education course. There I said it. If you want Wood Badge to teach scoutcraft, talk to the keepers of the Wood Badge curriculum. Pointing out the obvious, that Wood Badge does not teach scoutcraft, does nothing to get Wood Badge to teach scoutcraft. I have no idea why BSA did what they did with Wood Badge, but its been done. Wood Badge does not teach scoutcraft as it is not a Boy Scout scoutcraft course

Gee, I agreed with BadenP and got this response, imagine if I disagreed? So, if the Institutional Head is a Gay Lutheran Pastor, can he be an Institutional Head? Is that the question? If a local VFW or American Legion charters a Troop, often the Post Commander is regarded as the Institutional Head. What if this years' Post Commander is Atheist? Can he be the Institutional Head? What if Gay? and openly at that. What happens? Anybody know?

Hey Guys, Sherm, Eamonn, et al, Gern is right, I think we need to stop being necrophiliac sodomistic equestrians and just agree with BadenP and Ed that we are wrong and leave it at that

Please, Please, Please, the old man in my growing up neighborhood never slaughtered the rabbits he raised, he did harvest them however

The report that 65% of priests interviwed were homosexual really scared me so I Googled the following: "catholic priests" 65% Homosexual I did not find any story that said 65% of interviewed priests are homosexual. I may have done it wrong. Perhaps someone else could Google what I did, perhaps you will find something

So, what we got is a program where some people don't want boys to earn Eagle by completing merely the minimum requirements but then again others do not wish to see over achievers go much past those same requirments. Are we schizophrenic or what?

Perhaps we would be better served if we considered the Content of ones' Charactor rather then their sexuality or theological philosophy when considering them for BSA membership

Nick, two items First, The line up of Palms is Bronze, Gold, then Silver. Next, why would you base how many merit badges you earn on a mass of faceless bits of data procured on the internet? Earn as many or as few merit badges as you want for whatever the reasons you have. If you want to stop after the Silver Palm, thats fine if that's what YOU want to do.

I think we pretty much all say something along the lines of "You can't judge a book by its cover" and we try to impress on the scouts not to prejudge others based on their appearance. So, why is it ok to do so based on the number of merit badges a scout wears or knots an adult does?

Perhaps we should remember the Ferengi Laws of Profit when watching or reading any news report.

Is there any form of healthcare delivered in Canada that is not reimbursed by the Government?

I dont know the answer to the questin I am going to ask, Does Canada have any form of private hospitals or healthcare?

Talk about an oxymoronic phrase, "best non-chocolate candy"

Well trev, I disagree But I can disagree with you without implying or outright saying that you alone are responsible for all the pain and suffering and evil that exists in the universe see, it can be done

Again with the attacks on my beloved Red beret. If I didnt know better I would think someone was baiting me with all this anti-beret talk. Hmm, I wonder if I start closing threads because someone talks bad about the red beret how that would go over?

Lisa, I was trying to explain why there is a lot of emotion out there. I was wrong, I wasnt trying to assign blame to any particular adminstration, if it came off that way I aplologize, after all we liberals should stick together. As far the Clinton's approach to changing healthcare, I thought it stopped because Hillary wanted it a certain way and would not compromise. Then again, I sould be wrong, I have been before. Had we serious discussions then, we would be nearly 20 years into a new era. Change will occur, can we be sure we understand what we are doing? Nobody walks away from the table until its done?

I may be mxing apples with oranges, I don't know. I am opposed to the health Care reform act as presently written That doesn't mean I am against health care reform. I am not sure I or any body with Health Insurance wants to be stepping over dead bodies as we make my way into the emergency dept. Who knows, at some point that could be me. But just because I want reform doesnt mean any change is good. It doesnt help that the Legislators say they support the bill and then say they havent read it. I think a lot of the reaction and emotin is less about helath Care then itis disatisfaction about the current administrations handling of past events. We had to bail the banks out by Friday or the worls would end, or some such argument. We had to by the Auto companies. It seems like major changes occur because we have to right now, no waiting. For something as deep and personal as Health Care can't we take our time? Take a deep breath and talk rationally about it? We don't need to label one idea as right wing idiocy or left wing pie in the sky. Can we be civil? Apparently not and somewhere the best solutiuon will go undiscovered PS Most you know how much stock I put into Godwins Law, the first mention of Hitler or nazis etc ends the discussion. Can you imagine how hard it was for me when we had the whole Brown Shirts, Nazi things going on? Both sides are doing it, so both sides lose, who then is the winner? Chaos? Our whole system of government is built on compromise. The Congress exisits to give more populous states a voice in the goverment proportionate to their population. But the Senate makes every state the same, 2 votes. The balance of power between the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches is marvelous. Can't some compromise be worked out or does this have to be like Conan's version of what is best? "... To crush your enemies, see them driven before you... and to hear the lamentation of their women!(This message has been edited by OldGreyEagle)

"We're a rare breed"