"Native" is going to be a problem because no one was born here. "Behaviors" is going to be a problem because the only people available to respond to the questions are the people here now, who maynot have been here long enough to have their own,m indivuidual view of long-term trends, and who, if they were here for a long time, were immersed in the activity and not detached observers, and even if they WERE detached, they cannot and do not speak for the whole."Society" is going to be a problem because its active make-up changes every day.

The longer people have been here, the more I think they are likely to tell you this thread is not interesting, helpful, accurate, or relevant, and the less likely I thgink they will be to participate.

This leaves you with "now," with people who are foolish enough to think they can capture Mudcat, and that studying a community of which they are a part is fun and entertaining.

DW, let me ask you this-- if what I describe above were true of an island community to which you traveled for a study, would you conduct that study while a member of that group, and how?

Finally, and most obviously-- would you limit your population sample to the island's local bar habitues for all of your observations and interviews, or would you hope to be allowed into other venues? Because this is THE BS SECTION, and the whole purpose of this site is THE MUSIC SECTION. Lotsa folks who participate actively in that section never venture down here, quite intentionally.

~Susan