[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Boy/Cub Scouts (Page 1 of 3)
Posted: 1/8/2008 1:03:30 PM EDT
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A discussion in the heroic Boy Scout thread got me thinking about the Boy Scouts on Arfcom. Were you a Scout? How far did you get? |
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Due to the fact that I lived in a tiny town, we did not have a leader long, so I didn't get the chance to make it far in Scouts. However, my youngest son is now a Cub Scout and my oldest is up to second class and will be first class real soon. Both are aiming for Eagle. 
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Thanks for the corrrection. I went all the way through Scouting. Tiger Cubs -> Cub Scouts (Arrow of Light) -> Boy Scouts (Eagle) -> OA -> Adult Leader. I assumed there would be a lot of Eagles. I'm curious about what percentage of Arfcom Scouts made it to Eagle, though. |
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I joined to go camping. I hated the meetings. In the basement of a church. It made me very uncomfortable. Can't put my finger on why, but I know that I have always had a real problem with anyone that tried to control me, tried to dominate me, tried to subjugate me. I KNOW that comes from Catholic school with Nuns (shudder). Never progressed very far. They didn't do enough camping for me. ETA: I know I got past tenderfoot, but I don't remember just which rank I attained. |
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I made it to Life, but not Eagle. It was a conflict between the Scouts and the Wrestling Team. Matches and meetings were at the same time. You don't miss matches on a Varsity team for Scout Meetings. That and members of my troop got pissy with me for missing meetings where nothing happened. That said I would want my kid to be a Scout. |
I did the Tiger Cubs -> Cub Scouts including arrow of light -> Boy Scout -> OA thing as well. I've been debating getting back into it as a Scout Master. |
My OA process was a joke. We voted eachother in and then we only behaved when the OA people where around. The rest of the time we did as we pleased. 
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same here Didn't help that my two older brothers earned Eagle as well. I really didn't have a choice in the matter. My parents froze my bank account and wouldn't let me get my driver's permit until I was eagle. 11 days before my 16th birthday I was done. Now I try to make it back to the meetings every once and a while to help out as an Assistant Scout Master. |
My troop got 7 Eagles at once. I was not one of them, as I got there later than everyone else. Then they promptly stopped doing ANYTHING with Scouts and I was a punk 17y/o who wondered why anyone cared about Eagle by the time anyone got around to it. No one had explained to me what an Eagle Project was and none of the other Scouts had gotten the Troop involved with theirs. Lost at sea, not having the background, I was too proud to ask for help and walked away from it. |
I lost interest after WEBELOS. Most of my buddies' Boy Scout stories involve tomfoolery, if not juvenile delinquency (early use of tobacco, alcohol and/or other drugs and other dangerous activity). They all loved it, though. I did all that stuff without being a scout  I think there's a lot of variation in supervision/behavior from troop to troop. |
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I was never a Scout, but my older brother was. Alamo Area Council, BTW, Keith_J. I don't recall how far he went, but definitely not Eagle. Now, I'm an Assistant Scoutmaster working on Woodbadge. Will have my NRA / BSA instructor certification for rifle, shotgun and black powder in 2 months. My son is First Class and I'm really hoping he'll follow through. We had 13 boys make Eagle in 2007 out of a troop of about 40! It was nice that things came together like this for the troop's 50th anniversary. |
It was for me too. It was downright bizarre. The adults I encountered in Cub Scouts were mostly jerks in a one-company town, since everybody had to get along, and not make waves, or be different, since it might affect dad's job at "the company". Therefore, a lot of stuff got swept under the rug, or people took out their frustrations on those who could least injure them. Which means: kids, and those who didn't make as much money as others in the group. My first Cub Scout den meeting I got accused of spitting on the housewife's table. I didn't but, adults were always right, even if they were wrong, in 1964. She was a real witch, with a bouffant hairdo, and painted-on Joan Crawford eyebrows, whose two kids, boy and girl, later "came out".  The Packmaster's son was a complete spoiled brat who got away with everything, icl. teasing and harassing other kids even when his dad saw it. Pops did nothing, other than say, "don't do that" which the kid promptly ignored. His dad had been a marine, and yelled at everybody at the top of his lungs- except his kid (Son was only boy in a family of eight...)  The last straw was when the pack had a game in which we tied soda crackers to our heads (hey- it was in the Cub Scout manual...) and tried to break them using brooms on each other. He hit me across the face, so I got so mad I broke the stick over his head, drawing blood and lots of crying from him, and gasps from all around. Time for me to go home, so I went home, alone. That was my last experience with Cub Scouts, which was fine for all concerned, since, in a 1960s New England town, who wanted a divorcée and her kid around? Things have sure changed a lot since then. Thank God.
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My memories in Scouting include visits to the Scout Camp in Bastrop Texas. Circa 1970-74. It included visits the Shooting Range. 22 bolt action rifles. I am sure that doesn't happen today. jj ETA: I had to google it. Lost Pines Scout Camp. Yep, good times. 2nd edit: I guess I was wrong! They still have firearms training!! jj
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Eagle, OA and currently an assistant den leader/something or other. times have changed in the cub scouts. its not like it used to be. my 7 y/o is a tiger cub. every pack/den meeting i am forced to deal with the realization that i could be the only real man in the room. my 7 y/o has more man skills that all but one other adult male. their generation is ruined. Cub Scouts and Boys Scouts could be our last hope to encourage a video game generation to get out and see the outdoors and to introduce them to shooting. |
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Eagle Scout Ordeal Order of the Arrow (I got my Eagle before I was eligible for Brotherhood) Quapaw Area Council, BSA Troop 336, Wolverine Patrol  I also attended Junior Leader Training (JLT was a pretty big deal in our council) and then served as the Senior Patrol Leader for about a year. Part of why I made it to Eagle was because of the Leadership - my Scoutmaster was very into Scouting (he had the Silver Antelope/Silver Beaver award - which I think is like a national recognition for excellence in scouting) and our troop was big into camping - so we always went camping and hiking - I remember one year we went to Colorado to go white water rafting on the Buffalo. It was worth my while - and I've always loved the outdoors/camping so it just fit. Taught me a lot of 'survival' skills too - like how to build a fire, how to make shelter in the wilderness, cook food, etc. ETA: This is the scout camp we went to in Colorado: www.rockymountaincouncil.org/RMHAB.htm |
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I was in the Cub Scouts, from Bobcat all the way to Webelos. As a country boy who could go hunting, fishing, or camping whenever I wanted to, I figured scouting would be cool. My brother was a scout and I read the scout handbook all the time. First aid, woodcraft skills, how to tie knots, lots of cool stuff. My Cub Scout pack was just a friggin day care. We would play touch football in the den mothers back yard for 30 minutes then do some neckerchief project. We didn't do anything cool, didn't learn anything, never went hunting, shooting or even walking in the woods. I could have more fun and learn more by staying home and walking out the back door. The day I got promoted to Webelos was the last time I went. I can see how scouting can be very appealing, especially to boys from the city. But with the pack I was in, and the leaders we had, it was a waste of time. Gringop |