Web sites and more silly rules

[hops_scout]

Personally, I think that is crazy.

 

Several of you have seen my site. I have a lot of content on there. Some say that I shouldnt have that on there, but I do. Anyway, I get almost 600 site views a month from all over the world. I get the usual junk mail, etc but have never gotten anything that anybody else doesnt get. I have links to my school even and at one point even had a map of my town.

 

I really think they are overreacting if they do something like this.

Our school website even puts pictures, and first AND last names on the site with permission of course.

A picture is most likely not going to cause something like that. If that was so, our school wouldnt do that. Also, then we would have to basically say:

 

This is our troop page. We cant put anything on this page because we are afraid somebody might find out where we're from.

 

Common sense is in order I believe.

[Eamonn]

Have just visited the BSA National Jamboree page at the BSA site. There are a lot of photos of Scouts. Some in groups and some by themselves. None of the youth are named but many are wearing troop t-shirts and Scout shirts with the troop number showing.

Eamonn

[NJCubScouter]

Eamonn,

 

So what were you expecting from National, consistency?

[Bob White]

Keep in mind that hundreds of units with the same troop number can exist throughout the country. You can even have multiple units within the council with the same number. Seeing a troop number without any community reference tells you nothing of the scouts identity or home area.

 

Our troop website would be difficult for non members to find it does not list our troop # (the scouts and families know it. It does not list anyones last name. It has no phone #s just e-mail adresses. It has no advanced calendar dates just event desciptions and photos after the fact. Why tell strangers where the boys will be and when adults will be away from their homes?

 

We do have a list of activities advancement tips, council and national events, resource links and the like. It may not be glitzy but why tell people in Idaho about a troop 700 miles away? It's not like they are going to join?

[evmori]

Also keep in mind that while National says unit web sites should not have pictures of Scouts they have pictures of Scouts on theirs.

 

Bob,

Is your Troop site listed on the District site?

 

Someone please tell Bob this is here since he has chosen to block my posts.

 

Thanks

 

Ed Mori

Troop 1

1 Peter 4:10

[lawrencewendall]

If you back up one directory in the URL, you will notice that it says "Standards and Guidelines for Internet Publishing

and Maintaining Local Council Web Sites". This is what the guidance pertains to, Council i.e."official" BSA web pages, not Troop level webpages. Troop level websites are addressed at http://www.scouting.org/webmasters/standards/02.html

It says

Unit Sites. It is not recommended that councils acknowledge "official" sites for units. There are currently tens of thousands of unit Web sites on the Internet, and it would be difficult for a council to allocate sufficient resources to monitor all the various sites developed by units in its area. Furthermore, since most units lack adequate resources to develop respectable and safe Web sites, a vast majority of unit sites are wrought with safety and liability issues that could become problems for the council were the sites endorsed as officially representative.....

The safest course of action would be for the council to remain completely uninvolved in and, inasmuch as possible, unaware of any Internet publication produced by any group or individual not authorized to serve as a representative of the council or the Boy Scouts of America in the online medium.

 

 

 

 

[Mike Long]

why tell people in Idaho about a troop 700 miles away?

 

Service to others.

 

I get emails constantly from troops 700 miles away who want information about some of the places we camp because they would like to go there too. I do the same. It's very nice to get first hand information from someone who holds the same perspective and

[packsaddle]

What was that line from 'Pirates of the Caribbean'?...not so much a rule as it is a 'guideline'?

We seek parental permission. If not given in written form, no mention or photos of the boy. This is the way it works for the church and the university as well, and before I left industry - there too.