Davos, Switzerland, where the world's movers and shakers gather to network, share ideas and make deals.

This conference has proven to be valuable to the Island, not perhaps in terms of concrete results, but in the intangible which come from meeting and talking with some of the world's brightest minds in the worlds of business and government.

This year, Government has decided to do something different; gone is the black tie dinner hosted by the Premier for select friends and potential friends of Bermuda. Instead, Bermuda will hold a reception where guests will be entertained by the Gombeys while sipping rum punch and fish chowder -- all made by Bermudians brought to Switzerland for the occasion.

The idea, apparently, is to show the synergy between tourism and international business.

Opposition Leader Pamela Gordon may be overstating the case when she says she fears Bermuda may be made into a laughingstock as a result, but it does seem that this idea is one which should have been left at home.

This newspaper, which admittedly has never sent a reporter to Davos (it's too expensive), understands that the conference's mood is a serious one, in which low key, quiet talks are punctuated by speeches by luminaries ranging from Nelson Mandela to Bill Clinton.

After all of that, people may be ready to relax with the Gombeys. But many may find it bizarre. If there is tourism business to be done at Davos, it is with people who build hotels. Tax breaks, not the Gombeys, are what they want to see.

The much-travelled Tourism Minister, David Allen, has done and spent a great deal to add interest and colour to the Island's tourism road trips -- but Gombeys and the Regiment Band should be saved for meetings with travel agents, not meetings at Swiss ski resorts with Presidents and Prime Ministers.

REGIMENT'S ROLE EDT Regiment's role Some 160 young men began their military careers yesterday morning.

As usual, their induction to Warwick Camp was rapid and loud. The pace won't let up very much for the next two weeks, as they are worked from dawn until after dusk with drill, arms lessons, first aid lessons, physical fitness and more drill.

Many people today question the value of the Regiment, and particularly conscription. But the Regiment continues to serve a purpose, both as a deterrent to civil insurrection and for its ceremonial role.

Its greatest contribution is the sense of confidence and discipline that it gives to its members. Few recruits regret Recruit Camp, and most leave with a sense of strong achievement. Some, although not all, potential wall-sitters receive a sense of purpose from their army careers.

The Regiment also remains one of the best instruments of class and racial integration on the Island, forcing rich and poor and black and white to work together as teams and to put their individual beliefs and stereotypes behind them.

Recent moves towards having the Regiment take on a wider marine role should be welcomed; it is important that its role be re-examined periodically and Bermuda now has more demand for drug interdiction and air sea rescue services than it does for a riot squad.

But that should not mean that the Regiment should be scaled down. But it would be better if all young Bermudians were required to perform some kind of service to the community, instead of just a random few.