The body of songs that interested the collectors, the so-called Folk Songs, are no longer of any relevance to these people because they have moved on to a new body of songs

What new body of songs? There's a huge difference between songs that "everyone knows" because they sing them or hear them sung and songs that "everyone knows" because they're on the radio all the time.

she will weep to the remix of Unchained Melody, or dance her ass off to The Jeps giving their all in 500 Miles.

And those songs won't change. Unchained Melody will always be Unchained Melody, and 500 Miles will always be 500 Miles. Folk songs are different, because they're produced differently, transmitted differently and preserved differently.

the defining elements of human life as oppose to The Philatelist approach of those hung up on The Old Songs alone

Come down off that horse, you'll get altitude sickness. All we're arguing about - well, all I'm arguing about - is a label. I can appreciate an acoustic night or a covers band or an MC crew or whatever without feeling the urge to say that they're singing "folk songs". God knows they don't think they're singing folk songs - they'd probably find it more of an insult than a compliment.