John was right in saying that a thread with a non-specific title like "us and them" probably belongs in the non-music section. We require thread titles to reflect the contents of the thread, so I changed the title, and asked Jerry to approve it or suggest another.
But let's stick with the topic of the discussion:
I think I once read that the UK folk community thrived and the US folk community died, because the UK folkies kept politics out of their music. I don't know that I'd say that folk music in the land of Ewan MacColl is universally non-political, but perhaps there is some truth in the contention.

-Joe-