Mediaboss Marketing

The Lothian MSP can make Labour relevant to the working class, writes VINCE MILLS

NEIL FINDLAY, list MSP for Lothian, began his address to the Campaign for Socialism conference on Saturday October 25 with a story that got a tense gathering laughing.

As reported in the Morning Star, the meeting was standing room-only and took place the day after Johann Lamont resigned.

There was an atmosphere of hostility toward the Westminster careerists who had manoeuvred against an expectation that the left might just field a candidate in the leadership contest.

Talking about the attitudes he had encountered during the referendum campaign, Findlay recounted how while on holiday after the vote a disappointed No-voting Scots couple lets call them Alick and Nicki surveyed the breakfast menu in a Turkish seaside bar.

See, said Alick. This is always happening to us. He pointed angrily at two options available. One was a full English two lira (56p) cheaper than the full Scottish, perhaps because of the inclusion of square sliced sausage.

Attempts at assuaging the raging Scot by the owner were counterproductive.

Findlays use of that anecdote shows why he will win the contest for the leadership of the Scottish Labour Party. He understands the psyche of working-class Scots. Everybody laughed at his story Yes and No voters alike.

Of course that is not enough. What Findlay also shows is a grasp of the seriousness of the situation facing Labour and the left in Scotland. He is a member of the Campaign for Socialism, formed exactly 20 years ago, because he understands that the unstated ambition of the Blairites was to transform the Labour Party from a party of the working class into something much closer to the US Democratic Party. Something with no affiliated unions, no left wing worth talking about and completely committed to capitalism as an ideology.

Twenty years ago the campaign warned that if Labour pursued this route and abandoned the working class then ultimately the working class would abandon it.

See the rest here:
Morning Star :: Spice it up Mr Findlay

Recently, United States Mens National Team manager Jurgen Klinsmann stirred the pot when he openly questioned the competitiveness of MLS.

Speaking to reporters in a press conference, Klinsmann highlighted the lack of a promotion-relegation system as contributing to the lesser competition:

Im a deep believer in (the) promotion-relegation system. So its not up to me to say there should be MLS and the second division should be NASL, and there should be promotion-relegation. I just wish that we had a system in place where all the young players and all the players in general know that theres a next higher level and theres a lower level. If I play a bad season, then the lower level is waiting for me. If I play a very, very good season, then theres the chance to go up and play at one point whatever you describe then as the highest level.

Some critics, including Mike DeCourcy of the Sporting News, defended the MLS and accused Klinsmann of "Eurosnobbery."

It's an ironic criticism considering MLS is modeled on the same principles as European socialism.

American sports leaguesincluding MLSemploy the opposite of the pro/rel model: Instead of demoting the dregs, they are rewarded with high draft picks. And the results are often perverse. The NBA wouldn't have a tanking problem if the Sixers had to spend the next season in the D-League.

Pro/rel leagues do not have such a safety net and are therefore more intensely competitive, especially at the bottom. Games between struggling sides have real consequences for the loser.

On the other side of the ledger, teams from the second divisiona role most likely played by NASL if MLS adopted pro/relcan dream about promotion into the big leagues.

Now, which system sounds more American?

Not only does it promote social welfare in the form of high draft picks for the poor, MLSlike the NFL, NBA and NHLcaps salaries and redistributes revenue equally among its 19 teams. Outside of the context of sports, these are principles that make conservative capitalists cringe.

Go here to see the original:
Promotion, Relegation and Socialism: Why Pro/Rel Is a Bad Fit for MLS

Demystifying Socialism
Political Activist, Joseph Segal, joins Zig, in the Zone, to discuss, the past, present, and future of our society. Ralph Tyko, who grew up on the east coast...

By: Ralph Tyko

Read more here:
Demystifying Socialism - Video

PyroFalkon #39;s Sims 4 Socialism Challenge Day 44
Let #39;s play The Sims 4! Jon "PyroFalkon" Michael, the writer of the IGN Entertainment strategy guide wiki for The Sims 4, has created a set of house rules to ...

By: PyroFalkon #39;s Let #39;s Play Extravaganza

Read the original post:
PyroFalkon's Sims 4 Socialism Challenge Day 44 - Video

PyroFalkon #39;s Sims 4 Socialism Challenge Day 46
Let #39;s play The Sims 4! Jon "PyroFalkon" Michael, the writer of the IGN Entertainment strategy guide wiki for The Sims 4, has created a set of house rules to make The Sims 4 more challenging,...

By: PyroFalkon #39;s Let #39;s Play Extravaganza

View post:
PyroFalkon's Sims 4 Socialism Challenge Day 46 - Video