I was never a boy scout. But I was in the the Order of Malta cadets which sounds like kind of sinister military organisation but was in fact just the junior branch of Order of Malta ambulance corps. It was organised on military lines, it was after all related to the old Order of Malta knights.
We learned first aid which was just as well because most weekends we went to the forests or beach lead by a 16 year old. It usually ended up as a form of battle between two groups. One group would take over and attempt to enslave the other. This always led to a rebellion which either ended up as a pitched battle with stones and sticks, which is where the first aid came in useful. Or the stronger group would track down all the rebel slaves one by one and torture them in the usual schoolboy way. Hilarious fun at the time but imagine how it would be seen by the litigious people of today?
My brother was in the Cub scouts and they spent the day with the army. Great fun was had by all. That is what it was all about. There was a definite religious aspect to it too. It was called the Catholic boy scouts of Ireland which is not to say you had to be Catholic to join. My brother's troop was led by two Jewish scout leaders. Which is really funny because they often led them to mass.
I'm surprised that there is nothing in America like the British Combined Cadet Force which has RAF, RN and army branches for teenagers 13 and up. This is very much part of the military and the kids get weapons training and tactical skills or learn to fly gliders etc etc. Many schools have a branch. As a military minded teenager I often wished we had something similar here in Ireland but sadly no.
Air Cadets
