Free Republic

NEWARK, Del. — Finding character witnesses when you are 6 years old is not easy. But there was Zachary Christie last week at a school disciplinary committee hearing with his karate instructor and his mother’s fiancé by his side to vouch for him. Zachary’s offense? Taking a camping utensil that can serve as a knife, fork and spoon to school. He was so excited about recently joining the Cub Scouts that he wanted to use it at lunch. School officials concluded that he had violated their zero-tolerance policy on weapons, and Zachary now faces 45 days in the district’s reform...

EC just returned from an adventure in the wild with Pack 21, an overnight adventure that left EC grimy, exhausted, and with a better understanding of WHY our fight to keep America free, and to preserve our liberties is so important. Will our generation be the first in American history to leave a world of LESS opportunity for our children?

Overton, Texas (AP) -- An 82-year-old man has been charged with reckless driving after being accused of barreling his pickup truck into a Cub Scout troop at a Christmas parade in Texas. Overton officials say Charles George was arraigned Tuesday and has relinquished his license as a condition of his bond. George is accused of going around a barricade near downtown Overton on Monday evening and ramming into the lined-up Scouts.

Remember, nothing is final until the electoral college votes and the Senate certifies next month. With all of the lawsuits and challenges that are sure to come, along with the probable riots, this may be long and drawn out. Support your local Cub Scouts by buying some popcorn to support their mission and promise to "do my best, to do my duty to God and my country, to help other people, and to obey the Law of the Pack." They will be selling door to door, at shopping centers, at your work, etc. for immediate consumption, or for later delivery.

We can always count on China. Just when the place seems filled with normal people going about their happy business, the government reminds us that its paranoia reaches every aspect of our lives. Take the baseball game in Beijing last Saturday. It was the first in China between two American pro teams, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres. Even though the contest was an exhibition, it was historic. Baseball is America's national pastime because it's a link between generations and a touchstone of the nation's culture. That baseball wants to extend to China, that China welcomes the...

FORT HUACHUCA — Cub Scouts braved the cold weather Thursday and Friday at the lower Garden Canyon picnic area for winter day camp. Eleven packs of Cub Scouts from throughout the Catalina Council’s Cochise District participated. Activities and workshops included first aid training, color guard/flag-handling training, astronomy, sports, crafts, hiking, outdoor lore and a BB-gun shooting range. A first aid station staffed by a U.S. Army medic was available, just in case. “We’re very fortunate to have this facility,” said day camp director Ken Robinson. “We use this area quite a bit in Scouting. It’s really a good place to...

Cochise District Boy Scouts of America would like to thank the following businesses and individuals for their support of the Kiwanis Club Scout Fun Fest held at Veterans’ Memorial Park on July 21. To be thanked are Sierra Vista Kiwanis Club, Sierra Vista Parks and Leisure staff, Kmart, Fry’s Supermarket, Lowe’s, Pepsi, James Gross CPA, Huachuca Astronomy Club (Jeanne Herbert, Andrew Herbert, Calvin Hoyt, Gary Myers, Tony Maslanka and Bob Gent), Huachuca Rock and Mineral Club (Ingrid Baillie and Linda Czyzyk), Robert and Sonja Stoner, Mike Crownhart, Claire Clemente, Stephanie Schroer, Marla Stoner, Adam Thrasher, Dwayne Smith, and Mike and...

Map reading proves tough test for Britons http://uk.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUKL0616568420070806 http://tinyurl.com/yoyfhc Mon Aug 6, 2007 8:51AM BST London (Reuters) - As many as 11 million British motorists are unable to read a basic road map, according to a survey released on Monday. The poll revealed over three quarters of drivers were unable to identify the motorway map symbol, while only one percent of motorists would pass the Cub Scout Map Reader badge test. "It's pretty embarrassing the majority of Cub Scouts have better map-reading skills than the majority of the adult population," said Colin Batabyal, head of underwriting and business development at...

Actually, the article is from the 95th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America. But I just wanted to note that today is the 97th birthday of the Boy Scouts of America.

Boy Scouts plan uncommon hike to celebrate scouting's 97th birthdayhttp://www.mywesttexas.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17747008 01/25/2007 Midland Reporter-Telegram Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to church they'll go. On Feb. 3, Boy Scout Pack 84 and Troop 84 will set off on an unlikely hike to celebrate scouting's 97th birthday. That's when they'll set off on a nearly two-mile hike with stops at six Midland churches. And at each, clergy will teach the boys about one or two of the Ten Commandments. "They are going to spend five minutes or less on each commandment," Brad Connel, field director of Boy Scouts of America, Buffalo Trail...

We're hearing from the family of a young boy, who died after falling off a float at a New Hampshire Christmas Parade. On Monday, Thomas Fogarty's family spoke for the first time about the 9-year-old boy who was celebrating Christmas with his fellow Cub Scouts. The float -- being pulled by a trailer through downtown Portsmouth, New Hampshire -- pulled Thomas Fogarty to his tragic death. "At this time, we believe that Thomas somehow fell from the float and was run over by the trailer's double-axle wheels," said Chief Michael Magnant of the Portsmouth, New Hampshire Police Department. Thomas' family...

Ten ways scouting outranks televisionhttp://www.auburnpub.com/articles/2006/08/30/news/lake_life/lakelife03.txt http://tinyurl.com/pex7t By Don Grillo Wednesday, August 30, 2006 10:12 AM EDT Any time of the year is a good time for parents to enroll their sons in Scouting. But most boys join Scouting in September and October. During this period, annual recruiting programs are conducted by Cub Scout Packs and Boy Scout Troops throughout the Cayuga County Council. Boys are attracted to Scouting for the obvious reasons - camping, hiking, uniforms, pinewood derby races, earning badges and awards, making new friends, learning new things and having fun. Parents want their sons to join Scouting because...

Scouting survives: Even in high-tech age, youths learn to 'Be prepared'http://www.herald-mail.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=144116 Sunday August 6, 2006 by CANDICE BOSELY candiceb@herald-mail.com TRI-STATE - These are a few of their favorite things: Cell phones and cookies, iPods and pop-up tents, video games and wilderness badges. Seeing teenagers - and children even younger - talking or sending text messages on cell phones, fiddling with mp3 music players and playing video games are common sights. Girl Scouting and Boy Scouting might almost seem passé, given the associated images of camping, surviving in the wilderness and sleeping in wooden cabins at camp. But it's not antiquated...

Decades of files that the Boy Scouts of America compiled on sexual abuse allegations can be used in a lawsuit claiming the organization was ineffective at preventing abuse, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday. About 1,000 files, with names redacted, have been given to the lawyers for three men who say their scoutmaster abused them from 1971 to 1983 when they were Boy Scouts. The files are sealed by court order for now but could be made public at trial, plaintiff's attorney Tim Kosnoff said. The files include court records and news accounts, as well as rumors and tips from...

Scouts played large part in Fossum's lifehttp://www.themonitor.com/SiteProcessor.cfm?Template=/GlobalTemplates/Details.cfm&StoryID=14170&Section=Local http://tinyurl.com/ru9qt July 12, 2006 Marc B. Geller Monitor Staff Writer McALLEN — One of the biggest influences in Mike Fossum’s life growing up in the Rio Grande Valley was his experience in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. Beverly Alleyn, who like Fossum’s mother is a nurse, was his Cub Scout pack leader. And her husband, Mickey, led the Webelos program that Mike needed to complete with other Cub Scouts to transition into Boy Scouts. The Alleyns’ son, Rob, now a McAllen physician, was one of Mike’s classmates and rose with Mike through the...

History and religion lift boys in downtown Detroit heritage tour http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060521/NEWS01/605210727 http://tinyurl.com/pzwed Scouts explore beauty, diversity and freedom BY DAVID CRUMM FREE PRESS RELIGION WRITER May 21, 2006 Detroit often draws visitors for sports, casinos and music, but on Saturday 200 people headed downtown for a rare opportunity to glimpse some of the crown jewels of Detroit's religious heritage. "It's great to be involved in any first, and today is our first-ever Boy Scouts of America Walk with God in Detroit," Ron Pelley, a Scout leader from Allen Park who coordinated the event, told the crowd of scouts and adult...

Hi folks--I have an issue... My 7 year old son is in Cub Scouts. The den leader is my neighbor. Nice enough guy, but he is liberal. No big deal. Except yesterday I saw him at the gym and he tells me he is going to the anti war rally. This really bothers me. I really don't want my son being in this den with a leader who is (in my opinion) anti-American. Am I overreacting? Am I putting my opinions ahead of friendship and being a good neighbor? I like this guy, but I can't consider him my "friend"...

Rob Rescues The Cub Scouts NEW YORK, Feb. 27, 2006 Rob Mariano pitching in for the Cub Scouts. (CBS/The Early Show) (CBS) This week's Rob to the Rescue taught The Early Show a thing or two about Boston Rob. Deep in his past, long before he made his mark on "Survivor" and the "Amazing Race," he was a Cub Scout. So when a call for help came from Pack 101 in Waterville, Ohio, he packed his bags and hit the road. The call was from Annette Gustafson, who volunteered to be an assistant scout leader for her son's Cub Scout...

I apologize for a vanity posting. Had a flashback this afternoon and it just made me go back through the years and I was left wondering if anyone else remembered their scouting days so long ago. For some unknown reason I remembered the very first time I ever had a Cub Scout uniform. We were so poor that just to buy it meant others in the family went without. I can remember like it was yesterday how great it felt and how proud I was to have the complete uniform. My mom sewed my badges and troop number on, and...

TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif., Sept. 13, 2005 – For more than 140 years, the Armed Services YMCA continues to increase quality of life for service members and their families by offering support to communities and families. For director Anita Neu-Fultz and her staff at the Combat Center ASYMCA, that goal is paramount and unwavering as they volunteer to help others year-round. "Many people do not even know the Armed Service YMCA even exists," said Neu-Fultz. "They hear YMCA, and they think of sports programs and hotels and gyms and pools. But not many realize what we actually do here. We are...