I agree with everything wordy said.

What's wrong with folkdom in England seems clear to an outside observer - IF the people in the clubs are represented accurately by those in this thread. You have a tiny number of disdainful, vicious, obsessively hateful people who don't know when to stop talking (or posting), and THEY are the ones who get the attention.

If people are in it for the love of the music, they're pretty much squashed like a bug by the overwhelming volume of scorn a very small number of determined people can spew.

For example, 50 posts in 5 days, in just this thread, all about who and what a person hates is just the teensiest bit over the top. Not only that, the ones who sneer, belittle and insult their perceived victims sometimes travel in packs. I've met warm and generous English people, or I might believe the vicious ones were representative of English folk club attendees. Ambassadors, if you will. I'm sure some of the people in countries across the world who read Mudcat have surely developed the same opinion. Based on what I've seen in this thread (and a few other heavily hit threads) I wouldn't go anywhere near a folk club where there was any possibility of running into anyone who was so focused on putting others down. They take over.

The truth of it seems to be that one mean-spirited ranter can usually be avoided, but even the gentler souls follow where the bitter and judgemental lead until the whole music 'scene', as well as each thread they may try to dominate, becomes about them - about their hatred, their disdain, their sneering ridicule. I have a feeling there's an example (or several) about to be provided, but I've said everything I'm going to. This is only how the discord looks to one person who's outside of it, where love of folk music of all kinds usually tends to be more encouraged than ridiculed.