Which is to say (having pressed the submit button a tad prematurely)...

The general objection to WAV is one of exasperated infuriation at his absolutism, ill-founded or otherwise. Sure we all have opinions, which are true for ourselves, but only up to a point - that is until we realise the error of our ways and change our minds. And whilst debate & devil's advocacy might be fun, I don't think there's anyone here would be so arrogant as to assume anything approaching the degree of righteous conviction that underlies WAVs pronouncements on things he obviously knows fuck all about and yet so doggedly persists in the promotion of.

Well we remember the 'English Country Dances', Please? thread where his initial position was thoroughly trounced by considered erudition from some highly qualified individuals, showing him the error of his ways. And yet in his latest Myspace Monthly Message (which I still get notice of on account of him being a friend of some of the pages I monitor on behalf of other people) he persists with his original position without having learned anything from the discussion [1]. Indeed, this is just a standard repetition of his rhetorical position formulated by way of conclusion years ago which will, no doubt, be repeated ad infinitum by way of the darker obsessive compulsion that underlies his Life's Work with no hope of ever learning anything anything new because he knows it all anyway.

Having reached his conclusions, he believes he is right about everything he has pronounced upon, irrespective of how wrong those conclusions are and have been shown to be - be it on the nature of English Country Dance, The Chinese Erhu Fiddle, Immigration, Cultural & Ethnic Purity or the English Flute. No matter what anyone says, he will not change his mind; no matter how wrong his conclusions can be proven to be, not one jot will he alter his position.

Who else is there on the fecking planet, let alone on this board, thinks like that?

_________________      


[1] Walkaboutsverse Monthly Message, December 2008:

CEILIDHS?

An English octogenarian has told me that at school - whilst one or two Scottish dances were learnt - at least 90% of their dancing was English Country Dance.

From
davidfranks.741.com

(ORIGINAL) MESSAGE EMAILED-OUT DURING 2005

To many online folkies:

Folk music IS meant to be local/regional/national. Our forebears were loyal to this when they formed the English Folk Dance and Song Society, as have been contemporary Scots by forming a Degree in Scottish Traditional Music. Furthermore, I'm told several of our earliest folk-clubs strongly encouraged participants to select from their own culture.

My usual and only complaint with our present English-folk scene is the lack of loyalty to our own good tradition. There are more than enough good English songs, tunes and dances (plus instruments) for anyone's lifetime – let's appreciate others but perform our own!

More broadly: nationalism with conquest is bad; but nationalism with eco-travel and fair-trade (via the U.N.) is good for humanity.

Yours Faithfully,

David Franks

For more, see - davidfranks.741.com