________________________________________ Several weeks ago, a discrepancy in the descriptions of the points of the Scout Law was pointed out to me. The online versions (verify these for yourself at https://www.scouting.org/about/faq/question10/). You’ll notice that these tend to take all self-determination away from Scouts; instead, they’re much more like “rules” and, as such, they eschew Scouts’ self-evaluations […]

________________________________________ Hey Andy, How do I search all 638 of your issues a specific topic without having to open every individual issue? (Tony) There’s deliberately no index. That’s because there are rarely “blanket” answers that will apply to every nuance of every situation folks have been writing to me about these past 19 years! And […]

________________________________________ Hi Andy, I’m sure this has been asked before, but I just can’t find the answer… We’ve been told that a Scout can’t ask for a board of review until after he or she has been active in current rank for six months. So, if that six months starts on, let’s say April 20, […]

________________________________________ The story below is originally from NorthJersey.com and NBC Nightly News, and I’m thrilled to included it here (I was raised in New Jersey and earned my Eagle rank there). Our friend “Bryan on Scouting” also published this. Enjoy! “Sometimes music can say more than words. “When a 13-year-old New Jersey Scout learned that […]

________________________________________ Looking for a new way to talk about Scouting to a friend, a co-worker, or a possible major donor? Here’s a brilliant video that describes the essence of Scouting as an EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION. It’s narrated by a personal Scouting friend of more than 30 years—Mr. Bruce Davis, Eagle Scout, major Scouting contributor, and a […]

________________________________________ Dear Readers, I’ve seen various “gallows humor” emails floating around, and the occasional wry comment on social media, and these have impelled me to consider today. As many if not most of you already know, I’ve been writing special “April Fool’s Day” columns for you since 2007. Maybe it’s “writer’s block,” maybe it’s a […]

________________________________________ Remember my “Rule 26”? Here it is: A bought neckerchief slide is gonna get lost; a hand-made slide, never! I’ve seen lots of photos of Scouts recently. Some are of boys in their Scouts BSA troops, and some are of girls in their Scouts BSA troops. Most are in pretty good uniforms—especially the girls, […]

________________________________________ These are the times that try our souls (Thank you, Thomas Paine). Everywhere, we’re hunkering down, staying safe, staying clean, staying as healthy as conditions and our constitutions allow. Bluntly, our country is in lock-down. This is the wise decision and the right thing to do. Schools and higher education facilities are using the […]

________________________________________ Hi Andy, We have a troop of some one hundred Scouts, all active and involved, and we’re still growing modestly every year. But this year, we gained twenty new Scouts all at once! They crossed over from two different packs and so creating three new-Scout patrols was pretty easy. We’re a Scout-led troop and […]

________________________________________ I believe I’ve got the sharpest gang of readers on the planet! Thank you! Here’s some solid information that came in only a few hours after last week’s column was published… Hi Andy, Always enjoy reading your articles and advice. You weren’t wrong, but I have a little bit I’d like to add to […]