What is possibly going motivate our political heroes to spring into action and produce a solution, any solution, to the latest eleventh hour U.S. debt crisis? It is bringing back flashbacks to college in the 70’s, and the panic that would set in to finally pull the all-nighter necessary to complete a term paper. In those days it was clear what would happen if I didn’t get to work at the last minute and provide a viable submission to my professor. Today, it is less clear. Will government cease to function, and if so – how will we know? I’ve heard late night show hosts pondering whether we will have to temporarily move into a smaller rental country, or go north and crash on Canada’s couch until we figure out how to print ourselves some more money. I’m sure that whatever happens, the mass inertia in this case won’t be as catastrophic in the short term than if I had not turned in my term paper. The government will not fail, as I would have. But considering that the government’s checkbook is 311 million times more complicated than mine, there will be a long trail of peeved creditors until resolution is completed.
In the meantime, on debt ceiling day (August 2) we will still have our weekly troop meeting, come resolution or no resolution. However, with the majority of the PLC either at Philmont or at band camps, we will NOT be having PLC at 6PM, and we will NOT be having tenderfoot training at 6PM, only the troop meeting at 7PM.  Let us instead plan to have the PLC meeting on 8/9, a tenderfoot meeting at 6PM that night, and an assistant scoutmaster meeting the following Monday on 8/15.
Please ensure that you begin to provide input to your patrol leaders on the types of outings they should represent for you – locations (Angel Basin, Hell’s Hole, etc.) or types of outing you want to ensure occurs (backpack, canoe, mountain bike, shooting sports, base camp with fishing, etc). They will be meeting on 8/20 to plan the entire year’s calendar. Remember that we have an outing coming the weekend of 8/26 – a hike in to Fossil Springs – a terrific opportunity to get that 5+ mile hike with map and compass requirement signed off! (this will be about 7+ round trip).
I have received no subsequent updates from our Philmont crew, likely due to the remoteness of their trek, so I have unfortunately not been able to pass along any further GPS coordinates since the one from early last week. Fortunately, I suppose, there are places on God’s green earth where you can still go to truly get away from it all!
See you Tuesday night
Mr. Cole