packers ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- > From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Mon Jan 27 11:39:47 1997 > Date: Mon, 27 Jan 1997 11:20:19 -0800 (PST) > Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Originator: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > From: "Rosser Jr, John Barkley" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: [PEN-L:8350] The Pack Is Back > X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas > X-Comment: Progressive Economics > > The Pack is back! > Well, after that eruption I should confess that I > was a long time resident of the state of Wisconsin and > thus possess a certain regional chauvinism regarding > yesterday's victory by the Green Bay Packers over the > Boston Patriots in the Super Bowl. But, I think that > there may be something of interest here, especially > for those who advocate reading the bourgeois press in > order to communicate with the workingclass. > The issue is the rather peculiar ownership > structure of the Green Bay Packers, unique in American > professional football, and I suspect in major > professional sports in the US period. It rather > resembles one of the cooperative form variations of a > Chinese town and village enterprise. The team is > owned by a non-profit corporation whose stock is owned > by the citizens of the City of Green Bay, Wisconsin. > Now, this is not local socialism a la the power > company owned by the City of Cleveland. Nor is it > worker-owned or worker-managed. But it certainly > raises a lot of questions about the role of > billionaire owners and large corporations, and its > ownership structure has gotten a lot of attention in > the mass media. > Many are attributing it as a factor in the team's > success, certainly to the enthusiasm of its > "cheesehead" fans (I note that Green Bay is a very > workingclass town). > Keith Jackson, tight end has been quoted as > saying, "In Green Bay, you aren't working for an owner > you don't like." This Super Bowl was marked by a much > larger attendance by workingclass people than the > usual wealthy glitterati that attend these events, and > most of them were "cheesehead" Packers fans. > I think that this is a mind-opening issue for a > lot of people, who take sports more seriously than the > stuff discussed on these lists most of the time. The > increasing alienation induced by market capitalism in > sports has really disgusted a lot of people, and there > are commentators noting that the ownership structure > of the Green Bay Packers may be a way for cities to > "stand up to the greed and power of large > corporations." > Barkley "Cheesehead" Rosser > > -- > Rosser Jr, John Barkley > [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
