"Its not long since belonging to the wrong tradition got you gassed in a large part of the world"

So then belonging to that tradition, or any other tradition, is somehow discredited? Then the bad guys really did win after all.

We've wandered from the topic of our discussion, but we're still talking (generally) about either sticking close to home or wandering afield regarding music, etc. Now, what bothers me about Guest Jim's argument that we should act as "individuals and (resist) the efforts of those who seek to group us" is that he seems to be implying that being an 'individual' is liberating and belonging to a tradition is stultifying or even oppressive. If I understand Jim correctly, he has set up one hell of a false dichotomy. The fact that I enjoy hillbilly music and American ballads like my grandfather and fiddle-making great-grandfather does not limit me. Far from it, it gives me a connection to the past and my own family history which I could never get from either pop-culture schlock or 'high-culture' namby-pambyism. I can still listen and enjoy any music I choose (and I do, often enough). Traditions are a foundation, but you can build what you want upon that foundation. Innovation and tradition ideally should complement each other.