[Ansteorra] Cookies and merit badges

[Chris Zakes]

At 10:22 PM 5/21/2006, you wrote:
>Due to the long drive home this afternoon, Gilyan and I landed upon the 
>subject of "cookies and merit badges" and wondered at the negative 
>connotation associated with such things.  So we're wondering:
>
>What's wrong with merit badges?  What about the system is offensive and/or 
>wrong?
>
>Jean Paul

If someone is doing something *solely* to get the award--rather than for 
any inherent love of the activity--that's a problem. I've seen folks who 
worked hard to get award X, then once they have it, totally neglect that 
field in pursuit of award Y, then drop that field in favor of award Z, etc. 
Once they've maxed out, they drop the SCA completely in favor of something 
else, like bicycle racing or poker.

In the long run, these people aren't much use to the SCA--they don't teach 
the skills they've learned, all their work has been focused on themselves, 
rather than the Society as a whole. The best that can be said of them is 
that they make good bad examples.

         -Tivar Moondragon
         Oatmeal chocolate chip