"Not very much in my experience"
Didn't suggest they identified with the New Age Travellers Vic - more an attitude of 'live and let live' which extended to tramps and homeless people.
One worrying aspect of Travellers life was a tendency to scapegoat other groups - particularly prevalent in those who claim to be "real Romanies" - the Irish and the lesser number of Scots Travellers were the butt of much of the stereotyping in London - largely by English Gypsies - the very term "Romany" was used to demonise other groups of Travellers
THis sort of thing happens when communities are under pressure and looking for someone to pin their own indiscretions on - immigrants maybe.
Ake - we'll never agree on anything while you use such loaded and extremely reactionary terms such as "real Travellers" - there ain't no such animal and if there were, it would be as important as "real Britons" or real Anglo Saxons -such stuff are pogroms made of.
I most certainly did not say that "the old culture was a load of romanticised nonsense" far from it - I said that the outsider's view of that culture, largely based on the romantic and unattainable image of writers like Borrow was both nonsensical and harmful.
Aspects of the old culture were certainly disturbing - arranged marriages, for instance, but that happened in settled rural communities too and is still very much favoured by Royalty and the upper classes to keep thrones, estates and family firms together.
More later - must wash my hair still got it....Wheeeee!!
Jim Carroll