How we reply

[dlearyous]

moosetracker,

 

Okay, sure you and I and others on occasion start a post to someone else in the thread with their name. Go check the rest of the threads and you won't see that happening on a regular basis.

 

Other forums will allow you to respond to each post, not the entire thread. It shows up indented and all responses fall along that invisible indentation.

[Scoutfish]

Well....I think of the discussions in here as if we were standing around a campfire or if we were assembled in the staff quarters at camp and having a meeting. We do not always have to specifically adress any one person.

 

Sometimes, our comments are just thrown out there in general and are to shaow what we think/feel and to also draw out anybody elses thoughts or opinions.

 

But just like sitting around at a campfire ; where I do not specifically adress one person each time I speak...If I mean for my comment to go to a specific person, I will call them by name.

 

And just like a real life warm bodies campfire...there are sometimes 3 or 4 conversations going on at one time. And of course, those 3 or 4 conversations breed other conversations.

 

Now here's another thing to look at, and some of us need to take it to heart more than others:

 

No matter how long you have been doing something, so matter how much you know, and wether it's ingrained so deep that you'd forget how to breath before forgetting this...somewhere, somebody else is not as familiar, has not done it as long, and may be totally new to and not completely understand how something works.

 

To say somebody is a troll because a "sensitive to YOU" subject is brought uyp only shows ourt own shortcoming.

 

For example: Baement, Beavah, rat and a few others have probably been active scouts and scouters since before I was born. Gosh you guys are old!

 

And add also, the fact I have only been doing this 3 years AND that I was NOT a scout as a youth..then the "common knowledge" you have ingrained in your body as a part of your DNA does not exist to me.

 

Think of this too: Maybe at one time people did not ask the kinds of questions that are asked today. At one time, none of you sat around on a computer at your house discussiong scouting at all. You either called somebody on a phone or you talked face to face. Maybe you wrote letters and waited an entire week or ( gasp) two to get a reply, at which time you read it, and wrote back to continue the conversation.

 

THis site does make it easier for ANYBODY to bring up, discuss, and argue anything and give our point of view.

 

So instead of having to suck up some pride and just follow what a leader in your unit said or have to ask a fellow scouter, you can now ask anybody in the world , any question about any scouting thing you want, and can get an answer faster than you can physically walk to your mailbox.

 

And since I don't have to personally face you in the warmblooded body, I have no pause or embarrassment to keep me from asking anything...including wether my patch falling off ( hey, badge magic, anyone?) is a big deal or not!

 

Simply put and as one of my nascar.com buddies said once.....sometimes what we read and how we take it is really a reflection of us and not the one who posted a comment

[MapleScouter]

I'll say quite frankly that I'm not a troll (although I'll also admit that I'm also biased, haha.)

 

Anyways, certainly "well spoken" teenagers have to exist, yeah? For there to be the whole discussion about failing and sub par education, somewhere people have to be doing better since it's all relative, right?

 

If you still think me a troll, then perhaps you have trouble imaging an academically successful kid in scouting? I'll admit the two passions aren't too well associated. Take the scholarship merit badge, requiring "satisfactory" behavior, grades of 80% or more (and, if not, just have improved them since the grading period prior), and be aware that school will help you in the future. Granted, there's more, but it's all stuff that's pretty simple and not too much is expected. Scouting isn't really an activity to stress academics too much.

 

The (indigestible) demographic information was originally there in that post to make my qualifications more digestible, which in turn would give you a better idea of who I am as a student, scout and person to lead my massive patrol. My problem was over-qualifying myself to the point of condescendence and inconceivability, which I still apologize for.

 

Although, where did, "few social skills" come from? Of course I value all of my patrol as friends; but, at the same time, as with any extracurricular, there's both a time for business and pleasure, yeah? In terms of experimenting to develop efficient organization, I view that as something of business (which I separate distinctly from the "fun" parts of scouting). The whole deal isn't mutually exclusive.

 

And no, I'm not necessarily 16; don't go making too many presumptions. へへ

 

ーMaplescouter(This message has been edited by MapleScouter)(This message has been edited by MapleScouter)

[Basementdweller]

Scoutfish and others......

 

 

Hey I troll, freely admit it. I will ask an harsh, inflammatory question I have an interest in seeing where the discussion goes. My intention is not harm or chaos, but adult discussion and education, my T21 thread is an example, I was and currently very ticked off at the camp counselors our SM about what happened, We agree to disagree and he feels I am adding to the requirement, if they get signed off on a bowline, well I expect you to be able to tie it.

 

 

 

Maple, nothing personal, None of us know you from Adam, your post is way out of character from any teenager I have ever dealt with. I will err on the side of calling you a Troll, an adult looking to stir the pot and not participate in the thread.

[moosetracker]

Sorry Maple - the social skills comment was to simplify the whole thing about your first post sounding like there was no personal interaction between you and your patrol mates that could be concieved as friendship. Rather they are an expirement, your boys, a large group to organize and divvy up leadership tasks to, more into the analyzation on the computer then the interaction within the group.. There was no warmth when talking about the group, no references to a friend or friends within the group.. etc..

 

Also as stated in the other post, you remind me of my own son. So some of my personal image about the type of kid you are comes from that comparison. His attempt to be an adult before his time, made him more hang out with the adults on outings and he had a hard time dealing with his own age as they did not always act mature. Though he did have social skills with the adults, they always needed to shoo him back to his own patrol, where he would stay for a while, then meander back to the adults.. He has finally grown into both being able to socialize with his age group as well as adults, as his age group matured and he is accepted as an adult in most groups now, so can mingle with all ages.

 

As stated you smoothed over your rough first entry in your following posts. Although in the first post you mentioned that the APL you are going to mentor as your replacement is young, and not taken seriously be the older scouts yet (giving us the mental picture of a patrol with varying ages).. In your second post, I got the idea that the majority of your patrol are very young scouts.. So that explains somewhat the more paternal attitude, and why maybe although you see yourself as a good leader for them, you may not quite see yourself as their friend.. Too much of an age gap.

(This message has been edited by moosetracker)

[desertrat77]

Scoutfish, that is true, I'm old!

 

As much as I like to reflect on scouting days from the past, we need adults like yourself that have fresh perspectives. Keeps us from being hidebound. Balance between heritage and new ideas is good.

 

Re the topic at hand: to butcher a pop song from years ago "everybody plays the troll, sometimes...."(This message has been edited by desertrat77)