Hi Andy, The Scoutmaster of our troop wants to replace the Senior Patrol Leader with a Scout of his own choice, even though this SPL was elected only seven weeks ago, because, according to the Scoutmaster, “The Scout can’t cut it.” We’re now in the midst of a discussion between the troop’s adult leaders and […]

Hi Andy, At a recent Roundtable, our district’s Advancement Committee Chair stated that he has a problem with 13 year-old Eagle Scout candidates, because they’re not mature and have usually been by their parents to make Eagle fast, because the parents want high-performing kids. He went on to say that what he usually does is […]

Major Richard Winters, whose quiet leadership in WWII was chronicled in the acclaimed “Band of Brothers,” died on January 2nd. He was 92. “Easy” E Company of the 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division of the U.S. Army entered the ETO on D-Day 1944. In September that year the Company, led by […]

Dear Andy, Scouting units are supposed to do annual service projects for their sponsors. A Rotary Club sponsors our troop. They don’t have a building or any physical property (we have permission to meet weekly in a local school, even though the school isn’t our sponsor). So how do we do service projects for our […]

In my December 18th column, I made the comment, in response to a question on whether or not a Doctor of Commissioner Science candidate writes a thesis or carries out a project, and under what circumstances, that there’s no national standard on this particular issue. I might have chosen less comprehensive terminology than “national standard,” […]

Dear Andy, Have you read this? It’s from the new Advancement Policies & Procedures book, page 27: “The Scout should be neat in his appearance; however, a uniform is not required. Local boards of review may not make up their own rules about wearing a uniform.” What happened to the 8th Method of Scouting? And […]

Hi Andy, What do you do when the temperature’s minus 30! (Yeah, that’s 62 degrees Fahrenheit below freezing!) Well, while you Scouts in the upper stretches of the “Lower 48” are hopin’ for flurries so you can do your Klondike Derby, here at our Alaska Troop 230 (outside Anchorage), we load up our sleds with […]

Dear Andy, About not making Eagle, no question here, but a comment on your answer to that gal whose friend regrets not making Eagle. Many of the guys I know in Scouting are in that same category, including myself. Serving as Advancement Coordinator for my troop, I sometimes point out to our Scouts that I […]

My November 21st column on Eagle rank and Parkinson’s Law struck some chords—not all the same, either. Here’s a sampling of letters in response… Dear Andy, I just want to say well done and thanks! This is a subject several Scoutmasters and I have butted heads over. Thanks for setting the record straight. (Jack Mitchell, […]

EAGLES and PARKINSON’S LAW Writing for The Economist in 1955, Cyril Northcote Parkinson began a semi-humorous essay with this statement: Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion. This has become famous as “Parkinson’s Law,” mostly because it’s pretty accurate! It’s high time we recognize that in vastly too many instances […]