This will be the last posting I make here; I want no part of a set-up which indulges in attacks on Travellers (knackers) and who allows open insults of elderly singers, no matter what mealy-mouthed excuse is given for doing so.
There is a great deal of whingeing taking place about my insulting people.
Muskett, who has consistently attacked everyone who disagrees with him, often in abusive terms and has now swamped three discussions with his persistent abusive bullying – behave like a bullying thug if that's what turns you on, but don't be surprised when you become identified as one.
By the way – you were not called a "goose-stepper" because of your ideas, but because of your 'Flashman-like' behaviour – don't suppose this will stop you from hiding behind your dishonest claims, though.
Bryan the Snail, who appears to be incapable of addressing an arguments without couching his postings in supercilious and unfriendly terms, and whose dishonest claim of my "going into clubs brandishing a copy of '54", and "selective reading" elicited my response of "arrogant little pratt"
I have always found his attitude on this forum reminiscent of all those teachers way back, who felt that their role in life was to make us understand that our opinions were worth nothing and the sooner we understood that fact, the better we would make our way through the adult world – "arrogant pratts all".
Then there's Al, who took his harp to a party and nobody asked him to play.
In revenge, he started off by describing The Grey Cock as unfriendly (debatable, but credible), then warmed to his theme by claiming the residents to be talentless messers dressed in fishermen's smocks – an utterly ridiculous invention about a group of artists and enthusiasts with an enviable track record to show otherwise
I bothered to respond, eventually angrily, to this nonsense because I was familiar with the club, I visited it on numerous occasions and I guested there once as a singer – I knew many of the people involved personally, mainly as accomplished singers and musicians who dedicated a great deal of their time to the music I love.
I find the public denigration of any fellow devotee of music distasteful at any time, even when deserved (unless, of course, their behaviour damages that music in any way), but Al's unmerited attack was beyond the pale as far as I'm concerned.
He topped of his accusations off by quoting the supposed support of one of the leading figures in folk music, Martin Carthy, by claiming to quote something he had been told IN CONFIDENCE – I wouldn't buy a used car from someone so prepared to break a confidence – but that's me!
Last but not least, we have Dick, who is still whining about my calling him a talentless moron.
Dick has stalked me throughout at least ten threads now with around a couple of dozen abusive postings offering virtually nothing else other than abuse – included in these was a threat in the finest "Stay out of Tombstone stranger" tradition.
I have requested him not to stalk, even to the extent of threatening, to report his behaviour to the thread administrators, in an effort to make him stop, which he did for a period - now he is back, larger than life and twice as inarticulate.
I'm finished with this rather unpleasant slanging match – I'll leave it with those with stronger stomachs than mine to continue, if they find any value in it.
If this is a sample of what the folk scene has to offer nowadays, I want no part of it.
Have a good day, y'all – I'm off to do a couple of day's work on recordings of people who loved the music enough to throw open their house to aspiring young singers like me (way back when) once a week for ten years of their busy lives – they are the people I like to remember as being part of the folk music scene – a million miles from all this!
Jim Carroll