catsmasher

http://troops.scouter.com/in/troop81/ I did it all myself with no web experience. Welcome any feedback! People actually use the calendar and like to look at the outing photos. This was real basic using FrontPage - not much trouble at all. Thanks Rob

When I was in high school I was (how do you say) a wise guy. Our english teacher asked us to write a poem about a cat. I wrote about an evil villian that stalked the night called the "Catsmasher". There was a cat in my poem all right, but it didn't live long! From then on I was the Catsmasher. It is a good handle in that I can use it on almost any forum (it is never taken). PS I have two cats, neither has been or will be smashed. PSS Don't even ask what I did when she asked us to write a fairy tale. That one got me detention!

Drink lots of water, but eat lots of trail food. The stuff the kids like is loaded with salt. Whatever you do, do not tell the kids that there is a danger in drinking too much water. I have never had a problem with Scouts wanting to drink too much water. I have to practically beat them with a stick to get them to drink enough. This issue is like rattlesnakes on a hike. Sure it is a danger, but not very likely under normal circumstances. I also like Gatorade at half stength. It is also cheaper too!

On a campout, the Scoutmaster is like a ship's captain at sea. If a situation occurs that involves the boy's safety it is very much his responsibility to enforce the rules and discipline the boys. Boy led troop is an ideal - not an absolute. The adult leaders are there for a reason. The idea of the committee being responsible for discipline isses on outings is unrealistic. They should have a say in any long term resultng actions such as suspension, letters to the parents, etc. But on the campout as the porta potty is tipping over - it is the Scoutmaster who has to deal with it and he can't say "wait until the next committee meeting". This SM did the right thing. The best thing to do is set a good example, give the kids some room to be boys, but make it clear that they are to respect each other and do their fair share. Zero tolerance on hazing, bullying or physical abuse! Call mommy and have her come get the kid right then and there! If a kid punches another or is picking on another, they go home. No ifs, ands, or buts. I told one scout that he couldn't get his first class rank at the next cour of honor because he had spent the last two campout saying that "Scouts s#@k" over and over. He straighted up and got his first class badge later and is now a patrol leader.

Wow! You guys have a lot of free time!

Two options: Start a new pack - don't know how big your town is, but my guess is that many parents would be willing to follow you to a new pack if the one you are in is so messed up. Go to another pack - If you have tried your best, don't sacrifice your child's scouting experience due to a misplaced sense of loyalty to a bunch who do not care about delivering a quality program. Think of your kid first. We recently reorganized our Scout Troop. The Troop was out of control and the adults were doing a lousy job. Things got so bad that the Webelos leaders informed the Chartering organization and District Executive that they were taking all the cross-overs to another town! After a few years of that, the troop got down to a few adults and just their kids, then the district stepped in and forced the leaders out. Now we have 15 scouts, a geat program and many kids have come back from that other town. So chin up! Things can change when everyone gets together to change them. Remember - it is about the kids! PS - There is NO GRAY in the Guide to Safe Scouting. That position alone is a danger sign of a program out of control.

Not true for everyone, but a general pattern: The kids that can afford the gear and the outings are the ones that are also motivated by the fundraisers. The kids that don't have much also do not seem to be morivated at all to raise money even though we put the money into their Scout accounts. It would not be that hard to get enough to pay for summer camp, but every year we send in campership applications for Scouts who sold a whopping $20 or $30 worth of popcorn. It is not so much an affluence issue, but one of general atitude and motivation. Kids from affluent families tend to have parents who work hard and are competitive. One Scout recently sold $7.00 worth of popcorn then applied for a campership. When we informed his parents that he could get a free physical at the local clinic, we were told that it was OK since "Medicaid would pay for the physical". These same parents were out of work, but didn't have time to help out at camp. Other parents took vacation to help out. I even had to give the kid a ride home from camp when the parents forgot to pick him up. No fundraising, free camping, free physical, other parents watching the kid for a week and free transportation! What a deal! It is hard to motivate a kid when that is what they see at home. We tried real hard with him, but he eventually dropped out... Too bad cause he was basically a good kid with a bad deal. I never thought much about this before becoming involved in scouts - but I have to call it like I see it. There is only so much you can do. On the bright side. Getting to hit the scoutmaster in the face with a pie at the court of honor is always a big hit.

I would bet that we wouldn't be having all this 'discussion' if scouting could only come up with something better than popcorn for a fundraiser. We are forced to look for other opportunities and we end up getting mixed up in all kinds of schemes. I bet that the Girl Scouts don't spend much time complaining about cookie sales or looking for other fundraisers. Girl Scouts have cookies and it is an institution, a tradition and it works. Boy Scouts tried to establish the same thing with popcorn and it doesn't work the same. There is a big difference between a $3.00 box of cookies and a $15-$18 dollar box of popcorn. It is time to bag the popcorn and try something else! PS we worry about what we are teaching kids when we do scratch off cards - what are we teaching kids when we ask them to sell a $5.00 box of popcorn for $15.00?

Wow! Mention selling popcorn and us Scouting folks sure do get all worked up! My beef with popcorn is: How much it costs - I feel bad asking people to pay so much for something. The fact that every other scout is selling the same thing at the same time. Between Tigers, Wolves, Bears, Webelos, Boy Scouts and Ventures, it seems like everyone is selling and we seem to be buying from each other. The fact that every other organization is selling stuff too. We had a fundraiser for my daughters dance class, our PTO, Scouts all at the same time. I run a Scout troop and by the time the kids become Boy Scouts - the parents and Scouts are so burned out on selling popcorn that they pretty much just shut down and do not try anymore. We have kids that sell $1000 as cubs who barely sell a couple of hundred as Scouts. As a result we pretty much have to come up with different fundraisers if we are going to generate enough money. I don't sweat the issue with supporting the council - we still sell it and it isn't our fault that Cub Scouts burns people out. In addition, our council informed us that we are not allowed to solicit donations from anyone (even local businesses). They state that funds must be earned. Then I find out that the council has a program where they go to all the business and solicit donations for the council. I don't feel too bad about the popcorn sales if they do not come in very high - I feel that the pocorn is to expensive and no one ever asked us if we want to do it. The council does a great job with summer camp, but we need to help ourselves with gear, other campouts, etc.