InquisitiveScouter

Got it, but you missed the point 😜

574 recognized tribes in US. What about native Hawaiians?? https://www.usa.gov/tribes What qualifies as a "largest nation"??

Neither the BSA nor the OA has a purpose or mission as a Native American Heritage Society. I love what the OA is at heart, and it has nothing to do with any real Native American lore. I say ditch it, and walk away. Structure it around the colonial period and a call to service for freedom. I can think my way through that set up easily.

It took me about 2 years to change the culture of the Troop. And I am retired and spend most of my time working at the unit level. It's been running OK for about 4 years after that, but it is still on shaky ground because people are lazy and apathetic... adult volunteers, Scouts, and parents. I give it about eight months after I depart to fail... unless a like-minded dedicated Scouter comes along to shepherd the process and hold feet to the fire. However, most of the principles in all this--- PLC and Patrol Method--- is the heart of Scouting, and in ALL the literature you read. You do not actually find many units who use the Patrol Method well. Best wishes!

In our lexicon, the terms "morals" and "ethics" ought to be decoupled. Without a concept of god, there is no basis for morals. https://theconversation.com/morality-requires-a-god-whether-youre-religious-or-not-42411 There is only ethics, and ethics change according to the consensus of people... The new Scout Oath: I promise do my best to follow my conscience and do my duty to my family, community, country, world, and universe, and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and ethically straight. The new twelfth point of the Scout Law is "Ethical" New Mission of BSA: "The mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Scout Law." There, BSA... fixed that for you. "As for my family and me, we will serve the LORD." Joshua 24:15

This is the route that Trail Life USA took. Scouts there can be of any/no faith. Adult leaders must be Christian. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trail_Life_USA

No survey here, and I routinely get them...

We use Scoutbook. The PLC decides our trips and events during the Annual Planning Conference. (We have two APC's per year, so we always have a minimum of six months of activities on the books...) An adult helps the Troop Webmaster and Troop Scribe enter the events in Scoutbook (due to Scoutbook edit permissions.) For "regular" events, our planning horizon is 90 days. Prior to the 90-day clock starting, the PLC has to designate a Youth Planner for the event. The Committee tags an Adult Planner. The Youth and Adult Planner use this checklist (a bit outdated, but still useful...) to plan for the event. All details go into Scoutbook, and an appropriate RSVP date is set and entered into Scoutbook (I wish there was a feature for this.) At the suspense date, the RSVPs are closed, and the trip is set. At that point, Scouts and families are financially obligated if tickets/groceries/etc are purchased on their Scout's behalf. Changes are on a case-by-case basis after RSVPs close. There is a full PLC each month, usually the meeting night following a camping trip. (No regular meeting then.) At that PLC, they review the trip planning for the next three outings (90-days out, 60 days out, and next outing) They plan activities, schedules, etc. No, they are not good at it, but remember who we are dealing with 😜 The meeting before the trip, all menus must be approved by the ASM assign to that patrol. Planning and prep for gear and meals is done by patrol. We set an overall budget (usually about $20 per person for food for the weekend) and the patrols pick their shopper. Sometimes, patrols will combine if there are only one or two from a patrol going. If the shopper exceeds the budget, their family eats the overage. The patrol shoppers buy and submit a receipt after the trip. We ask parents who take them shopping to cover the cost until reimbursement. All accounting is done via Google Drive shared spreadsheet after the trip, with the Adult Planner, Youth Planner, Troop Treasurer reconciling costs. Once reconciled, charges and credits are issued in Scoutbook. We haven't reached nirvana on this, but we are close. Rather than paying outright for every trip, some parents deposit money into the Troop account, which is tracked in Scoutbook and debited/credited accordingly. Some parents wait and float a debt... At $200 debt (for past events), your Scout is no longer allowed to participate until you clear the debt. We have had a few people skip out on the Troop, to to tune of about $30 to $50 on average. This happens about once every other year. Most of the time, we eat that cost, or count it as the cost of having that family exit the Troop, if you know what I mean. (Happy to elaborate, if needed.) This way, we almost never have to have small sums of money change hands. As it turns out, each Scout in a patrol does the shopping about once every six months. The amount credited to their account for the groceries covers their participation for the next six months... Parents can view all credit/debits/balances directly in Scoutbook. It is a wonderful tool. All these policies/procedures are in our Troop Handbook. Hope this helps... outing_planner_checklist_from_troop_leader_guidebook_volume_1_bsa_publication_512-150_2015_printing.pdf

LOL, "Chief" is an English word. And there are/were tribal chiefs (chieftains) around the world in multiple countries/lands throughout history. It is not "appropriation" to use that word. The etymology is French...

Yes, I think that is an accurate assessment

Agreed! I met you at Philmont some years ago when I was there at PTC getting WFA Instructor certified. (I'm sure you thousands of people 😜 ) I have about 50% of our unit currently certified in CPR/AED, and work to get/offer training to folks in our council. Have trained over 200+. Now, getting folks to dedicate time and effort to do First Aid or Wilderness First Aid training is a challenge. I've been pushing for an AED purchase for our Troop trailer, but that's a high-dollar pilferable item, so we have not gotten consensus/committee approval to purchase yet. (About 60-70% of our camping is car-camping.) It's always tabled for further discussion. Thanks for the input...

@RichardB I heard this recently, and it rings true, but... comments.?? "As a group, youth are more likely to be injured on Scout outings. Adults are more likely to die." LOL

How about apple-smoked pork belly? Is that a suitable substitute?

I'm going to ask my doctor for a prescription for damnitall. (Dam-nit-all). He loves a good quip, but has probably heard it before 😜

My health suggestions are more along the lines of hygiene and first aid... - Bring some wet wipes. For after toileting, or at night prior to bed for a "bath" using a few... clean in this order: 1. Face (face, neck, ears) , 2. Front (torso and armpits), 3. Feet, 4. Fanny (groin and rear), 5. Fingers (wipe and and sanitize) After wet wipes, do the Gold Bond (use gold container = body powder, do not use blue container = foot powder with much higher menthol content. Unless you like the ICY BURN 😛 Talc dust is bad for you to breathe in, so do this outside, not in your tent!) - Bring diaper cream with zinc oxide. Best for dealing with chafing (Scouts love to wear wet swim suits all around camp... after a day or two, you see them doing the "penguin walk.") The cream can also be used to cover a bad sunburn. Zinc oxide is a sun block versus using a sun screen which still allows some UV in. - Trim (do not shave!!) your armpit and groin hair before going into the woods (especially long term). - Trim your finger and toenails before going into the woods - Invest in removable shades for your spectacles. Your eyeballs can get sunburned!! (That's what snowblindness is, and it can happen when you are on the water also!! see photokeratitis ) - A WIDE brimmed hat!! Can't tell you how many sunburned ears and necks I have seen from Scouts/Scouters wearing baseball caps. - A well-equipped First Aid kit!!! The checklist in your Scout Handbook is an awesome start!! - First Aid knowledge is priceless.

??? From the Declaration of Independence: "...the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them.." "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--" "We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions,..." "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, " From the Constitution, here's one that is a head scratcher... "...done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven and of the Independence of the United States of America the Twelfth In witness whereof We have hereunto subscribed our Names..." Although you could argue they were just using the convention of the day, it does hint at the cultural background of all signatories... John Adams said, “Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” Morality and virtue are the foundation of our republic and necessary for a society to be free. etc, etc, etc...

OK, sister!! A correction... BSA has nothing for Buddhists, nor any other religion. Religious emblems are offered by private organizations from various faiths. When a Scout earns one, BSA recognizes the achievement with a knot. To get an award, you must contact those non-BSA organizations: https://www.scouting.org/awards/religious-awards/chart/ Scouts may earn different awards. After receiving an Award, you may get the knot to wear (in place of the award medal) from your Scout Service center. https://www.scoutshop.org/nsearch/?q=religious+knot Scouts who have earned different awards wear the same knot.

Brother, I wholeheartedly encourage you to practice your faith as you see fit. If any Scout, Scouter, or person has a problem with it, then they are being un-Scoutlike. BTW, have you seen the Buddhist Sangha Award for youth?? (Metta for Cub Scouts...) https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/8551291/requirements-for-the-sangha-award-national-buddhist-committee- Or the Bodhi Award for adults? https://www.buddhistchurchesofamerica.org/_files/ugd/458b11_07bacc39c7714155b86c0d9075103570.pdf

This is why participation is not required. Simply do not attend... no harm, no foul. If you choose to attend and you realize it is not your cup of tea, then leave. Again, if anyone ever requires participation, now we have a problem.

If you were uncomfortable with the format, content, or message, it would be perfectly acceptable to leave. From time to time, I see Scout Camps offer a whole menu of worship services... Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, or the "Non-denominational" catch all. I have walked out of services before, due to matters of conscience. I do not consider it rude at all...

You could contact the organizers and offer up an alternative of whatever flavor you want. If they turn you down, then you don't attend the event and report that to your SE. Become a part of the solution...

I wish life were that easy. I have seen many Scouts over the years who didn't want to be there. Their parents made them. (We have a few at the moment.) Some have changed their minds over time, and some left. Parents ultimately make the decision about joining Scouting, not the youth.

https://mattixdesign.com/marketing/how-to-target-multiple-audiences-and-ideal-customers

Um... no. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUWJ4lZ0NgQ&ab_channel=Matt"Wags"Wagner

So, if the adults are the decision-maker to sign up the kid to Little League (or Scouts), then they are certainly A target audience