I was fifteen years old in the summer of 1970. i walked in the back door of our camp (that's "cottage" to you Southern Ontario types) near Thunder Bay, and saw my step father quietly watching the little B&W TV. "What's on?" I asked.
"They're disbanding the Black Watch" he said.
We have more Scottish/Highland Regiments than Scotland does. We even have an Irish Regiment. We even had a Regiment with proud WW1/WW2 traditions that was NOT Scottish (the 52nd Bn CEF/LSR) become Scottish in 1949 or so (the LSSR).
So, how long before we form Punjabi, Hindi or Sri Lankan Regiments? Or was this idea limited to the original founding races (French/English/Scot/Irish)?
Is it time to re-asses? If Regiments could "become Scottish" to aide recruiting, could they now reverse to aide recruiting? Personally, I feel a Regiment's traditions should lie with the form it took to win the battle honours on it's Guidon/Colours, but what happens when we re-role?
Should the proud traditions of the 301st Bn CEF/Fort Francis Foreskin Fusiliers be maitained by the 1FFFF (reduced to nil strength) and we stand up the 2nd NBCD Regt (2FFFF) in it's place? That would still retain the mobilization capacity and traditions/history, as well as the link to the community.
Do we need a "Mobilization" thread?
Tom