"Remeber we are for the most part an amicable fraternity, all on the same side.."
AS far as folk song is concerned, I am no longer sure about sides
People I like and respect are cramming finto 'folk' things which I belive shouldn't be there
Folk is, by its very nature and origins a grass-roots music originating with the 'ordinary' (if there are such creatures) people
The songs were created to reflect the lives, experiences and aspirations of people who otherwise would have had no voice and no public identity as a creative class
People are b=now suggesting that that music be uprooted and handed to the predatory music industry to use, abuse and discard, as it has once before.
I wouldn't have bothered rejoining this if that suggestion had not been made

Folk song as researched is narrative in form, detailed in description and largely un-repetitive in structure - the direct opposite to how pop music is structured
It is word-based in structure rather than musical and is narrative in form - stories with tunes - miss a few words and you loase the plot of the songs
Electronic accompaniment can only be a hindrance to to such a form
Folk rock and electric folk may have been passable experiments for a time, but that's what they were - experiments - no different that those carried out by orchestral composers
They came and went and will have to be dug up again if they are to become a major part of any scene

Your folk scene has failed miserably - the numbers show that
Ours at least served its followers for three decades without a major decline - yours has bombed in half that time and now "nobody knows what folk song is "I'm constantly being told

I would much prefer your answering these points rather than the personal abuse, if it's ok with you
Jim