Visiting family up north, have to say you would have been hard pressed to know that the Forces existed where my family live. What makes that even more disappointing is that it is home to a former infantry barracks, the former Pay Corps HQ and currently home to a TA unit and a Regt museum.
That said, on an individual level, I think there is still a degree of respect and understanding from the sections of society who think there is more to life than benefits, bingo and Greggs Bakery and I had several long chats with family friends who I hadn't seen for a long time but were keen to learn about what we are up to these days. Unfortunately that seems to be concentrated in the older sections of society; once we draw down from Afghanistan and the older generation start to disappear, I can see many of the younger generation thinking that the Battle of Waterloo is just the name of a pub.
Last edited by Melchett01; 1st Jul 2012 at 21:27.