2019 GUIDE TO SAFE SCOUTING

[The Latin Scot]

Hmm. Well then I wist not what to tell thee. 

[Kryten]

48 minutes ago, The Latin Scot said:

Now now, let's not be melodramatic. The G2SS only refers to activities which are conducted under the auspices of the Boy Scouts of America. If you are in your own home, conducting the private affairs of your own life, then logically it doesn't apply. But, if you call it a Scout activity and those participating are there AS SCOUTS, not merely as private domestic guests, and if their parents know that they are sending their child to attend a Scout activity, then yes, absolutely, you need to follow the protocols as outlined in the guide. 

It's common sense, really, and it would be silly to follow and then derail that train of thought by imagining that somehow you have to follow the G2SS even in the privacy of your own home simply because you have a son or a spouse who is a Scout. The guide is for official activities only; it's not the mandate of your personal affairs. 

It's only when you are indeed at an actual Scout activity and trying to follow the guide that the pitiable lunacy of some of the regulations are made evident. 

Youth Protection and Adult Leadership

Scouting’s Barriers to Abuse

The BSA has adopted the following policies for the safety and well-being of its members. These policies primarily protect youth members; however, they also serve to protect adult leaders. All parents and caregivers should understand that our leaders are to abide by these safeguards. Parents and youth are strongly encouraged to use these safeguards outside the Scouting program. Registered leaders must follow these guidelines with all Scouting youth outside of Scouting activities.

highlighted for emphasis

 

BSA says otherwise. You cant make this stuff up.

 

[malraux]

To be fair, the inside and outside of scouting only refers to the youth protection rules like no 1 on 1 contact.

[T2Eagle]

5 hours ago, Kryten said:

so. after reviewing the new updates. in particular 

sarcasm in effect.

 Prohibited Activities (Effective 10-1-2019) 

14 .Activities where participants shoot or throw objects at each other, such as rock-throwing, paintball, laser or archery tag, sock fights, or dodgeball.
 

Most of these rules arise from an incident that occurred, and the rule is an attempt to prevent a re-occurrence.

If there are leaders out there who's judgment is so poor that they allowed "rock-throwing""at each other" as an activity, then we collectively do deserve to have this level of micromanagement.

[qwazse]

1 hour ago, T2Eagle said:

Most of these rules arise from an incident that occurred, and the rule is an attempt to prevent a re-occurrence.

If there are leaders out there who's judgment is so poor that they allowed "rock-throwing""at each other" as an activity, then we collectively do deserve to have this level of micromanagement.

Let's just remove the double-speak. The rule is there to curtail BSA being drawn into civil action from your misconduct.

BSA can say that they did everything in its power to train you, but you went rogue.

They are running a gambit that this will placate a judge enough to find frivolous a plaintiff's request to include the organization among the defendants.

[Kryten]

2 hours ago, malraux said:

To be fair, the inside and outside of scouting only refers to the youth protection rules like no 1 on 1 contact.

Yes i agree. it pertains to the whole section along with the adult supervision requirements. this is what they are eluding to in the below F.A.Q. only one registered BSA adult. As the rules do not apply to scout youth or unregistered adults. Ill certainly try to comply but its a pretty unrealistic rule given all the social interaction outside of scouts, IE sports and school pickups and such. given to the answer of the second question.

OK . done venting.

gotta run to a patrol and PLC meeting. (i am sure they will play the orb avoidance game)

 

 

 

 

Q. The Barriers to Abuse states “One-on-one contact between adult leaders and youth members is prohibited both inside and outside of Scouting.” What does ‘inside and outside of Scouting’ mean?

A. The BSA has adopted its youth protection policies for the safety and well-being of its members. These policies primarily protect youth members; however, they also serve to protect adult leaders. All parents and caregivers should understand that our leaders are to abide by these safeguards. Registered leaders must follow these guidelines with all Scouting youth outside of Scouting activities. There are careers that may require one-on-one contact with youth, however aside from those roles, volunteers must abide by the youth protection policies of the BSA even outside of Scouting activities.

This policy is in place to prevent abuse in and out of Scouting.   Adults should never be alone with youth who are not their children.

Q. Does this mean my son cannot have a sleepover if I am the only adult present?

A. Yes, if any of the children other than your own child is a Scout, we strongly encourage all adults to use the Barriers to Abuse in and out of Scouting.  

Edited September 13, 2019 by Kryten
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[The Latin Scot]

Well then, this is one of the few times in my life when I've been glad I don't have any kids of my own yet. This is perchance a bit too complicated for a simple soul like me to fully grasp. 

Edited September 13, 2019 by The Latin Scot

[Eagle1993]

I actual do practice the no 1 on 1 contact outside of scouting. There was a case where my son was going to work on a model train with an adult.   They were going to be the only two in his home so I stayed.  Yes, 99.99% chance nothing would happen, but I just couldn’t get that 0.01% or less chance out of my head so I stayed. 

I also avoid 1:1 contact with youth who are not my own.  That is to prevent any possible false accusations.  

I think in general, the no 1 on 1 rule makes sense in cases outside of scouting.

Now two deep would be nice, but I wouldn’t cancel my son’s sleepover if my wife is out of town.  

[awanatech]

On 9/13/2019 at 9:22 AM, Kryten said:

so. after reviewing the new updates. in particular 

sarcasm in effect.

 Prohibited Activities (Effective 10-1-2019) 

14 .Activities where participants shoot or throw objects at each other, such as rock-throwing, paintball, laser or archery tag, sock fights, or dodgeball.
I must now also prohibit ultimate Frisbee,baseball and other similar activity's.

oh and no more water polo or volley ball

Hold on a minute. I have to tell my son that his friend (who is a scout) needs to leave because I am the only adult(registered leader) in my house, and I do not have 2 deep leadership outside of scouting.

OK.  potential lawsuit avoided.

 

In #14, it mentions activities where participants shoot/ throw objects AT each other.  In frisbee, baseball, etc, you're not throwing the object AT another player.  You are throwing the object TO them.  The goal is not to hit them with the object, but rather for them to catch the object.  There is a difference in throwing something AT someone instead of TO someone. 

 

And yes, according to GTSS & YPT,  if you are a registered leader, you'd have to cancel the sleep over if a 2nd registered leader is not present. Then consider the implications if your 8th grade son is in a Troop.  Your 3rd grade daughter is in a Pack.  Your son wants to have a Scout over for the night, but not as a Scout event.  Your wife is not a registered leader.  Since your daughter is also in Cub Scouts, you need to have a registered adult female present to spend the night also.  Try running that one by your wife so that your son can have a friend over. 

[qwazse]

On September 14, 2019 at 10:30 PM, awanatech said:

In #14, it mentions activities where participants shoot/ throw objects AT each other.  In frisbee, baseball, etc, you're not throwing the object AT another player.  You are throwing the object TO them.  The goal is not to hit them with the object, but rather for them to catch the object.  There is a difference in throwing something AT someone instead of TO someone. 

 

And yes, according to GTSS & YPT,  if you are a registered leader, you'd have to cancel the sleep over if a 2nd registered leader is not present. Then consider the implications if your 8th grade son is in a Troop.  Your 3rd grade daughter is in a Pack.  Your son wants to have a Scout over for the night, but not as a Scout event.  Your wife is not a registered leader.  Since your daughter is also in Cub Scouts, you need to have a registered adult female present to spend the night also.  Try running that one by your wife so that your son can have a friend over. 

Well, now that dodgeball moved from ideal opening activity to pariah sport, let's have a gues at which "throwing TO sport" will be stricken from the record next year.

Let's be clear, again, the BSA is not concerned about the potential abuse that could occur in your home as a result of needing a house guest in order for you to comply with YPT. It is concerned that it will be held liable decades from now for should you, your spouse, your son, or your daughter turn out to be predatory. Should that happen, they want to be able to say, "We told them so, go sue their church, school, or other civic organizations who condoned sleepovers."

[scoutldr]

Now that my annual registration fee has moved above $50 per year ("council program fee") in order to volunteer my precious time and talents, this Scouting stuff is quickly moving into the "just too hard" category.  How many other volunteers will just decide, "screw it, I don't need this any more."  Especially those of us whose sons aged out 20 years ago.

[Eagledad]

Archery tag? That sounds like a game everyone, except the winner, only plays once. 

Barry

[desertrat77]

6 hours ago, scoutldr said:

Now that my annual registration fee has moved above $50 per year ("council program fee") in order to volunteer my precious time and talents, this Scouting stuff is quickly moving into the "just too hard" category.  How many other volunteers will just decide, "screw it, I don't need this any more."  Especially those of us whose sons aged out 20 years ago.

I'm getting to that point.  My Venture daughter is off to college.  Now that the leaders/outdoorsy types are all in college or moved away, the crew we are associated with doesn't want to do anything more adventurous than stare at their cell phones during meetings (if they show up at all).  I'm also working at the district level but finding it less and less fulfilling. 

In addition to the raised fees, the deal breaker for me is National's quest to transform the entire BSA into one big Tiger Cub den. 

I'll always be grateful to the BSA for what I've experienced as a scout and scouter, but I'm getting more than a little weary of the tone-deaf decision making by councils and National, red tape and the shift away from the outdoors.  I'm starting to look for other ways to invest my time and treasure.

Edited September 16, 2019 by desertrat77

[qwazse]

I get that "on the brink of throwing in the towel" kind of feeling. Then my stupid PLC says "We'd like you to present Venturing to the troop, some of us are thinking we want to reboot the crew."

Who do these kids think they are?

The challenge will be finding replacements leaders willing to pay the cost of registrations. I might point out to the Son #1 and Daughter-in-law the weekend spent helping on a really nasty remodel job. Plus, next year, the cost of registration fees to have gramps babysit during meetings may be worth it!

[awanatech]

6 hours ago, scoutldr said:

Now that my annual registration fee has moved above $50 per year ("council program fee") in order to volunteer my precious time and talents, this Scouting stuff is quickly moving into the "just too hard" category.  How many other volunteers will just decide, "screw it, I don't need this any more."  Especially those of us whose sons aged out 20 years ago.

I am just about at that point now. I'm not sure about rechartering myself for next year.