If folk clubs were expected to post "trigger warnings" the list would be a long one - murder, rape, incest, domestic and other forms of violence, racism, sexism, celebration of tobacco and alcohol, hunting, shooting and fishing, and of course whaling. Not to mention a wide range of political opinions.

There is much to be offended by, and from time to time I hear things which make me uncomfortable. However we don't have a right not to be offended. I don't set out deliberately to offend anyone myself, and I hope my previous posts haven't given the impression that I don't think carefully about what I sing.

My point is that songs with outdated language are not necessarily racist in intent, and we should be careful not to jump to conclusions just because modern sensibilities are different. Of course we cannot ignore those sensibilities either. I would be very cautious about singing songs with such language, but I would not go so far as to say they should not be sung.