It’s all politics. Not actual politics, in the strict definition of the word, but clubs’ dealings with the SPFL and SFA is mostly about politically manoeuvring in the direction to win your argument.
Experienced political operators will tell you not to fight the same people on too many points; pick the important areas to win and take a few defeats on the chin. Box the SPFL into a corner by not charging season ticket holders for entry into play-off matches, and you’re onto a sure win. But all SPFL clubs are members of the SFA.
They all like being given their place. If I wanted something important from the SFA, like exemption from the rule prohibiting directors of a liquidated club from subsequently becoming a club director, I’d concentrate on that and ask politely for permission to let season ticket holders into games.
But I realise there are different types of political animal. The consensus political animal is effective in certain times, then there are those who have a self-righteous tone to rules. It’s their way or the highway. To paraphrase Bob Shankly, pure, athletic, Thatcherism. Britain wasn’t ready for Thatcherism 30 years ago. She won in 1979 and lost lots of votes second time around in ’83, but the Labour vote split. The 80s were lean. For some.
Scottish football is in for a period where a self-righteous entity will muster its forces. The media coverage will reflect what we saw in politics in the 80s. The consensus operators must stand firm and unite.
Thanks to all who entered the Magners completion for premium tickets to the Dundee game tomorrow night, the winner will be notified within the next 30 mins, so check your email!
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Where’s JAMIEBHOY 75 today??? HH
sod u hutchy
Nice one Hutchy
Paul 67,
Is there a timely message in there for the millions and not the millionaires.?
HH.
NORTHEASTGHIRL
Welcome to the madhouse!
I totally agree that voting SNP is a vote against Labour,thus likely to be a vote which helps the tories.
No-one who knows me is unaware of my utter dislike at best for both of Labour’s foes. I’ve told people to buy their own pint when I discovered they voted tory at the last election,mate or not. I never refuse my hun mates a pint.
I also agree that another tory-led administration is gonna be a disaster for the vast majority of the UK. We seem to be the only country in the world pursuing austerity in the face of economic reality. It’s a nightmare of dogmatic GTF ya pleb politics from a ruling class.
But the SNP have persuaded a significant number of Scots to vote for them. I said in 2011 on here that I couldn’t believe the SNP had a majority in Holyrood,and that I hoped people had no reason to regret their vote.
I say the same for this election too.
It’s their democratic right to disagree with me. It happens all the time. They only have the odd occasion to do the same to The Labour Party.
Frankly,Labour in Scotland deserve a kicking. But we’re all gonna suffer as a result.
PS-Swindon is marginal and I’m doing my best!
HH
Afternoon Timland from a warm hun free mountain valley.
So, have the hun monkey barstewards been paid today ?
HH
Remember, no matter who you vote for the Government still gets in.
Hahaha
1st Podium for me and 2 days in a row for us Dunblane bhoys……….. Santa Ponsa in the morning HH
If someone can point me to a political party that represents a majority and looks after the poorest in real terms … I’d be happy to vote for them.
It strikes me as it does others that there is no party that does that at the moment and in order to get that we need to vote to control our own affairs.
The green, red yellow and blues seem to forget the people in their constituency they represent. I couldn’t care less if the make up is too powdery or they look a bit robotic … Just represent the views of the people and do what is right for your communities.
Oooooops. C&P wrong post.
Meant to be this one. It contains the finest oxymoron I’ve ever seen. Kudos and hat doffed to
greenpinata
12:21 on 30 April, 2015
If nobody thinks they are being fooled, hold your nose and look at the Sun newspapers in Scotland and England. A new level of hypocrisy and challenges thier readers intelligence. Imo of course.
HH.
The 80s were brilliant, at least what I can remember of them :)
Hutchybhoy, after the abuse you gave me yesterday, I was staying well clear of a podium!
HH
From previous
Here’s a genuine question…. who do we think the vast majority of ordinary Rangers fans will vote for in the GE next week ? SNP ? No way. Tory ? Highly doubtful as nobody in Scotland votes for them. Lib dems ? Probably not, it’s hard to understand more than 1 word at a time. That leaves Labour as the choice of the majority of the people. With that in mind I assume most would see themselves as socialists ? Taking that leap of faith 1 step further, if they are socialists then how can they support a club that gave the rich (in the form of EBT’s) players and staff a way to deprive the ordinary folk of taxes ? How can they support a club that refused to pay tax and again deprived ordinary folk of schools, hospitals etc ?
Hypocsisy on a grand scale ?
Or is it ok as it was ra gers what were doin’ it ?
A name and shame podium!
Sooperbamundo!
Apparently MA visiting the recently refurbed SD store in Gla today.
HH jamesgang
Paul
Memo to self. Don’t read the article first.
Arrogance, hubris, glibness, self-righteousness, mendacity…
Guess who’s back in town?
HH
northeast ghirl
12:16 on
30 April, 2015
========================
I live in NW England and can’t believe there’s good Tims even considering voting SNP.
However, we are where we are and there will be the look of shock in Scotland when Cameron gets a Tory majority.
I will rip up my Labour Party card if Ed even considers talking to Salmond, I watched Andy Marr on Sunday morning and I am convinced Ed would never countenance a deal.
I was so so lucky to be in that first year of comprehensive education, I got a chance, 6 ‘o’ levels changed my life, Labour gave me what I have today.
4% of the population 20 years ago got access to university, again Labour gave access to 40% of our kids. That’s a huge burden that they (my kids) sadly have to help pay but they got the chance.
Remember folk dying on waiting lists, falling down hospitals, schools, Uni’s, morale of the public sector through the floor…………..we are going back there.
SNP has been in power 8 years, they cannot blame Labour for the state of Scotland.
Hutchybhoy
Santa Ponsa? You have my sympathies.
Maybe you’ll get parole for good behavior.
The longest two weeks of my life was the one week I spent in Santa Ponsa.
The local Spar store was our first stop to get some basic foodstuffs in.
The sign on the entrance door was written in a scrawl. It said
“We sell Buckfast.”
Ponderosa CSC
BMCUW
Just caught your early hours post. Thanks bud. Will pass on your supportive wishes to young Chris when I see him later today.
Hail Hail
Robcfc11
12:29 on
30 April, 2015
========================
They used to use the full name in Scotland to get the vote, Conservative and Unionist (in the NI context) Party.
However, even they couldn’t go Thatcher and her hatred of Scots. The Tory’s had 19 MP’s at the time in Scotland, now they have 1. It’s not a big leap to guess where they voters went now, is it?
Robcfc11
Irrespective of the Rangers fans supporting a club we knew for years where cheating, that should not be used as an argument to not support Labour.
Mr Salmond claimed they were an institution and tried to get them saved, even speaking to Cameron about it but Celtic fans still voted SNP in the referendum.
PAUL67
Two wee points. Thatcher continually won from a position of strength despite her divisive GIRUY approach.
And in 83 and 87 there was no united consensus against her as the opposition was split. Indeed,some major newspapers openly championed The Lib-Dems or whatever they were known as then.
It wasn’t even subtle,it was an obvious attempt to fracture the anti-tory vote.
I’m not sure the same rules can be applied in Scottish football. We all loathe the huns yet their placement are still in power. Even in minor positions like Bryson,they become important. Problem is the rest of Scottish football isnae too keen on us either!
I’m not sure how you square this circle. The huns have cheated everyone else for years and years yet most clubs treat us the same,two cheeks.
Heyho. Kill the hydra. See where it gets you.
DENIA- Thanks
Jamesgang- Still can’t beleive he did it…….
RWE- Only going for 5 days but that Spar store is now on my MUST visit list :-)
HH
jamesgang
“Apparently MA visiting the recently refurbed SD store in Gla today”.
Is it on Edminston Rd Govan,to pay the wages.
However, we are where we are and there will be the look of shock in Scotland when Cameron gets a Tory majority.
I will rip up my Labour Party card if Ed even considers talking to Salmond, I watched Andy Marr on Sunday morning and I am convinced Ed would never countenance a deal
Bawsman.
So your position is ,if it came down to it,you would prefer a tory govt instead of a labour govt supported by the SNP?
Bawsman…. why should what football team you support dictate the way you vote?….Aw,lots of good Tims Will vote SNP…Believe That…
It looks like the SNP are going to win a lot of seats and I personally will be delighted if that happens.
The only way Scotland can see change is by getting rid of the Labour Party and the career politicians who thought they had a job for life and that us mugs would vote for them regardless of what they did.
What delights me is the fact that MANY people thought they’d easily win the referendum and everything would be business as usual. May 8th will tell us if that was one of the grossest miscalculations in political history.
Change is inevitable now.
I will make 2 predictions based on who wins –
1. If the Tories win Labour will blame the SNP and not themselves, their inept politics, their awful leadership, their similarity to the Tories, their previous record in government or their partnership with the Tories during the referendum campaign. Like 1979 it will be all the SNP’s fault in their narrative and not theirs. The media will of course amplify this at Labour’s behest in Scotland to attack the SNP and the nodding tigers will continue to agree but to no avail in 2016. The SNP will win next year’s election as well.
2. If Labour can form a government with support from other parties across the UK instead of the Tories and don’t take that offer and thereby allowing Cameron back into office after saying he needed to go then it will be the end for them in Scotland and in many places in England for the foreseeable future.
I could be wrong but whatever happens this is going to be worth watching.
Glad I have next Friday off.
What will it be like here when the season finishes………..?
rwe
12:31 on 30 April, 2015
Paul
Memo to self. Don’t read the article first.
Arrogance, hubris, glibness, self-righteousness, mendacity…
Guess who’s back in town?
——–
That’s a bit harsh of the podium Bhoy from dunblane!
HH jamesgang
Northeast girl….Nobody voted SNP inthe referendum….nobody…
Baseman,
You’re my kind of Celtic fan, stick to your beliefs because that’s how we were brought up.
My mother used to say if Scotland got independence we would another NI and I still believe if the SNP have their way that will sooner rather than later.
We need a Labour government to reunite the country and start improving everyone’s life no matter who they vote for in local elections.
KTF
Leftie
I said ‘refurbished’!
Ipox would get sold to you as ‘a significant development opporchancity’ ….or a cowp as we know it…..
;-)
HH jamesgang
Bawsman
East Renfrewshire used to vote Tory in the Thatcher years and for decades before that.
More recently they’ve voted for Murphy.
Hmmmmmm
Bawsman, the Scottish gov get their money from the UK govt. The SNP have chosen to control that money and service the cut by centralising. How would a labour govt in Scotland do things? Increase council tax only gets you a few percent of the budget deficit. What about the rest?
bgx your only agenda here is to proclaim for an independent scotland. You don’t care how to get there just so long was we do. You don’t care about the consequences just as long as you get your wee nationalst dream.
Therefore you attack anything which may threaten that dream. For example anyone pointing out Scotlands corruption and shame. We can’t have that can we?
So you resort to calling opponents Huns, you try to argue but you can’t win one so you resort to obscure pedantic arguments. You remind me of Rangers fans saying there was no sectarian signing policy because catholics did sign for the, (ignoring the fact they kept their religion secret). It pathetic.
I don’t remember you being around before the indepdendence issue appeared. Where were you?
mullet and co 2
Labour used to send back money to Westminster because they couldn’t think what to do with it.
Northeast girl beware of BGX he can only argue in technicalities and not on the issues.
Bawsman
12:32 on
30 April, 2015
I live in NW England and can’t believe there’s good Tims even considering voting SNP.
==================
That may depend on your concept of a good Tim, of course.
There is a belief that a right of centre Christian Democratic Party of sorts would win in an independant Scotland. I’m not sure that the majority of the 45% that voted yes would agree.
What that majority want is a chance to create a better life for them and their neighbours, even if they need to vote for tartan Tories to get there.