As a Shellback and also an individual member for almost 30 years all of us who are interested in folk music should join so that we are no longer regarded as a small number of strange people who either sing with a finger in their ear or who dance in silly costumes but so that the outside world may take notice of campaigns to change the stupid laws relating to numbers singing in pubs etc. The more members in the society the more power to their elbow in discusions with authority