'Blues players use Vastapol (down to open D or up to open E) and Spanish (down to G or up to A) for slide playing, and Celic/Irish/"Celtoid" players really like that DADGAD.'

I think this was the conventional thinking, Poppogator. Its certainly the one I held to - until a few years ago when I was lucky enough to go a seminar held by Ken Nicol (of Steeleye Span).

Ken helped me look beyond these assumptions. open tunings are for us all. Dadgad for example is great for ragtime and blues and more pianistic type playing. D major, G modal - these are all there merely as ways we can change the horizon - what we do with them is our affair.

None of them belong to any clique - no ore than standard tuning is the sole preserve of te classical player.