I thought that there are supposed to be more Morris dancers now than there has ever been? It certainly seemed like it last time I went to Straw Bear in Whittlesey.

These 'traditions are dying out' threads always seem to follow the same lines:

1. Tradition X is dying out!

2. Tradition X must attract more young people!

3. Tradition X must be changed in order to make it more acceptable to young people!

Trouble is, if you change it it's not Tradition X any more, is it?                                                                  

It seems to me that the long-term survival of a particular tradition is not, primarily, the responsibility of its current practioners. Their responsibility is to carry on the tradition for as long as possible. The responsibility for long term survival of the tradition falls on to the shoulders of the young people. If they fail to take up the tradition, for whatever reason, then it is, surely, their loss?