CBA and strike talk heats up in MLS

So one has to wonder why after announcing that their talks with the league and mediator are going OK and will continue that Nick Garcia stated talking strike, then out comes some results of an authorization to strike vote(which I have some questions about).  We know that the MLSPU has been tight in their control of who can talk to the media, what media they can talk to and what they are allowed to day.  Then after the genie it out of the bottle, comes this statement from MLS:

In response to comments made by players after the labor negotiations in Washington this week, MLS President Mark Abbott told the Insider on Thursday that "the meetings were productive and we have scheduled a number of additional meetings. While I can't discuss what takes place across the bargaining table, I can say that the players' comments do not accurately reflect the proposals that we have made to address the players' concerns or the productive nature of the discussions between MLS and the union."

There's more.....

Abbott also said: "We have an understanding with both the union and the mediator that we will not publicly discuss what takes place during these bargaining sessions. As such, we were disappointed to see comments from a number of players characterizing the status of the negotiations and the possibility of a strike."

Abbott declined to comment any further.

and in the hours following that statement it has gone strangely silent.  So was this a premeditated "strike" by the MLSPU?  Was this an attempt to see which way the all important fans are leaning, how would the media would react?  Would their coverage be positive or negative?

To find out check out some info after the jump:

Ginge talks the footy is in full support of the players(as he admits he is pro-union):

Yesterday the Union took step one, with a vote that authorized the ability to strike. Should the players decide this is the route they wish to walk, there will be another vote actually authorizing the strike. Nothing to now but wait and see what happens.

Clearly he knows what he believes, but he doesn't offer up anything but blind support for the union as it is part of pro sports.  He is entitled to his opinion but I would love to see him weigh in on specific issues, he says those on the opposite side "spew useless verbal diarrhea all over the place".

ABC Action News in Tampa Bay asks "Are they Nuts":

I never thought I'd see this. Now that it was laid before me in print, there is no doubt in my mind MLS players are either very rich or very stupid.

The soccer players gave its union authorization to strike for the first time in MLS history if a new deal isn't reached.

Two words from the peanut gallery - Who cares?

Will someone please tell these nincompoops that if they strike, no one will notice, except for the 16 city's the league is comprised of.

For a guy from a city without a team, he seems to have strong opinions about where the league is and the reality that it really is still a fringe league.

Footiebusiness.com, a blog dedicated to the business end of the beautiful game, takes a quick look at the situation:

This provides the sides with a two week window to finalize a deal or face the the prospect of losing the nationally televised openers in Seattle and New York and full slate of opening week games.As these are pretty big showcase events for MLS, a strike could do real damage to the new season.

3rd Degree, a FC Dallas blog, says we are making too much out of the vote:

People that know about these things tell me that any union strikes takes two steps. First, a union has to vote to engage the ability to strike and second they then hold a vote to actually strike. This 350-2 vote is the former one. The MLS Player Union had a vote to allow themselves the ability to hold a strike if the members so chose. To make an analogy, they voted to flip the cover back on the doomsday strike button. The union gave themselves the power to hold a strike if the union membership chooses to strike.

It is clear that if the MLSPU, or just some rogue players were behind the comments and "strike vote" news getting out, the responses are about even.

I have some questions about the vote and the results, was this a paper ballot or a "raising of hands in the locker room"?, who and where were the ballots counted?  Whenever you see results in a vote that resemble those of Hugo Chavez's elections, one usually ends up with more questions than answers.  Of course I don't expect that the players or the MLSPU will respond on how "the vote" was conducted. 

We are now less than two weeks away from the start of the MLS season, or what is scheduled as the start of the MLS season.  In the next few days the future of MLS, and professional soccer in the US could either get a boost or could get yet another nail in the coffin of failure that so many other sports fans have been waiting for.

OFF MY SOAPBOX