Aboriginal Athletes in the World of Professional Sports :: Essays Papers

Aboriginal Athletes in the World of Professional Sports Terrence and Jordin Tootoo grew up in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut, in Canada’s arctic region. They were like other Inuit children in Rankin Inlet in many respects: They were brought up to respect the customs of their people and they enjoyed the resources the land around them provided- they learned to hunt and fish for food like the others. However, the brothers were also different from their peers in one main respect- they were blessed with a love for the game of hockey, and also with extraordinary amounts of talent which would enable them to leave their native community to pursue the dream of professional hockey. While the brothers were growing up they were inseparable; however, after leaving Rankin Inlet to pursue the professional game their respective careers took strikingly different paths. Jordin’s journey took him to the top- he was drafted into the National Hockey League and signed a lucrative contract with the Nashville Predators. However, Terrence’s road to th e professional ranks was filled with hardship and tragedy, ultimately resulting in his suicide in August of 2002. The contrasting paths taken by the brothers is an illustration of how professional sporting careers can have varying impacts on the lives of Native American and Canadian athletes and their communities. In the following few paragraphs I will outline the history of Native Americans and Canadians in sports. I will examine how successful Native athletes are able to help their communities, both financially and by serving as role models for younger Natives. Also, I will argue that their still exist barriers and challenges to Native athletes that do not confront other athletes. For example, Native athletes are often placed under increased scrutiny because of their positions as role models. I will conclude by commenting on how Native athletes fit into pro sports today, and speculate on what can be done to increase the amount of success enjoyed by Natives. Participation in sports and games has long been a part of Native culture. The most significant example of a sport invented and played by Natives is lacrosse. Lacrosse is still designated as the official sport of Canada despite the overwhelming popularity of hockey (http://canada.gc.ca). Lacrosse was one of many varieties of indigenous stickball games being played by Native Americans and Canadians at the time of European contact. Almost exclusively a male team sport, it is distinguished from other stick and ball games, such as field hockey or shinny, by the use of a netted racquet with which to pick the ball off the ground, throw, catch and vault it into or past a goal to score a point.

Health Issues in the Philippines Essay

Like any other third-world country, the Philippines have been struggling in some health issues and one of it is illegal drug use. A lot of Filipinos are addicted to prohibited drugs. However, the Philippine government has dealt with this issue and although there are still some recorded incidents of drug abuse, the number of drug dependents in the Philippines has gradually decreased. One major health issue in the Philippines, is malnutrition. There have been studies conducted and accordingly, most of the Filipinos that suffer from malnutrition are the poor ones. The Philippine government, thru the Department of Social Welfare and Developments along with the Department of Health has provided projects to help poor Filipinos from starvation. Other health issues in the Philippines are dengue cases, but then, these health concerns are only happening in the rural area of the country. Most of these cases are properly attended to by the Philippine government Health issues in the Philippines The Philippines have been struggling with some healthcare issues, one of the most noticeable being illegal drug use.There are a number of Filipinos who are said to be addicted to prohibited drugs. However, the Philippine governmenthas concentrated on this issue and although there are still some recorded incidents of drug abuse, the number of drug dependents has gradually decreased.Another serious health issue is malnutrition. Unsurprisingly, the poorer citizens are the ones who suffer from thiscondition. The Philippine government, through the Department of Social Welfare and Development and in conjunction with the Department of Health, has initiated projects to help its poorer citizens who suffer from starvation.Cases of dengue are also notable. However, most of these cases are properly attended to by the Philippine government.

Ilm Leadership

Title: Assessing your own leadership capability and performance (M5. 29) 5 6 Assessment criteria (the learner can) 1. 1 Review the prevailing leadership styles in the organisation Assess the impact of the prevailing leadership styles on the organisation’s values and performance Level: Credit value: Learning outcomes (the learner will) 1 Understand leadership styles within an organisation 1. 2 2 Be able to review effectiveness of own leadership capability and performance in meeting organisational values and goals 2. 1Assess own ability to apply different leadership styles in a range of situations Assess own ability to communicate the organisation’s values and goals to staff in own area Assess own ability to motivate others and build commitment to the organisation’s values and goals 2. 2 2. 3 3 Be able to adopt an effective leadership style to motivate staff to achieve organisational values and goals 3. 1 Justify the most effective leadership style to motivate staf f in own area, to achieve the organisation’s values and goals Implement the most effective leadership style in order to motivate staff in own area to achieve the organisation’s values and goals . 2 Additional information about the unit Unit purpose and aim(s) To develop understanding and ability to lead teams to achieve organisational values and goals as required by a practising or potential middle manager. 31/12/2014 Links to MSC 2004 NOS: A2, A3 Unit expiry date Details of the relationship between the unit and relevant national occupational standards or professional standards or curricula (if appropriate) Assessment requirements or guidance specified by a sector or regulatory body (if ppropriate) Support for the unit from a sector skills council or other appropriate body (if required) Location of the unit within the subject/sector classification system Name of the organisation submitting the unit Availability for use Units available from Unit guided learning hours Ad ditional Guidance about the Unit Indicative Content: 1 †¢ A range of leadership theories and different leadership styles, such as: the trait approach to leadership the behavioural school (McGregor, Blake and Mouton) the contingency or situational school (Fielder, Hersey-Blanchard, Tannenbaum and Schmidt, Adair) leaders and followers (Servant Leadership, Team Leadership, Transactional and Transformational) dispersed leadership The key responsibilities of the leadership role in terms of: taking responsibility contributing to overall vision and goals setting and providing guidance on values setting direction for significant programmes or projects stimulating innovation and enterprise anticipating, planning for and leading change overcoming obstacles delegating setting objectives for teams and individuals communicating and motivating supporting and developing programmes, projects, eams and individuals modelling appropriate behaviour representing the team and feeding back its experi ences and views protecting the team and its members Assessing the impact of different leadership styles Organisational values and acceptable standards of behaviour in the organisation Organisational values and organisational purpose, vision and mission Management Standards Centre (MSC) Business Management Institute of Leadership & Management Private 01/01/2008 15 †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ 2 †¢ †¢ †¢ Theories and principles of delegating responsibility and empowering others The critical importance of the leader gaining the motivation and commitment of others Critiques of the main theories of motivation, such as: Maslow’s Hierarchy McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory Vroom’s Expectancy Theory McClelland’s 3-Needs Theory Motivational factors that are available to the leader (e. g. safety and security, sense of belonging and common purpose, respect, recognition of achievement , empowerment and self-actualisation, sense of fulfilment, personal and professional development, material rewards, sanctions, job roles and employment conditions) How to evaluate motivational factors and select those that are appropriate to different situations and people Effective communication of values and goals Leadership to support the achievement of the organisation’s goals by encouraging common and acceptable norms of organisational behaviour 3 †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢The concept of emotional intelligence as developed by different theorists and how it applies to the leadership role The importance of understanding one’s own strengths and limitations Using and interpreting different techniques to identify their own characteristics, strengths and limitations The importance of continuous self-development and how to identify opportunities to develop oneself in the leadership role The importance of leader s: displaying confidence and self-assurance by playing to own strengths and showing a readiness to take calculated risks being socially aware (empathy, organisational and ‘political’ awareness, service to others) managing relationships (inspiring, influencing, networking, conflict management) displaying self-leadership (controlling own emotions, particularly when under stress, being open and honest with others, showing integrity and trust worthiness, being flexible, setting challenging but realistic objectives for themselves and others, taking personal responsibility for significant challenges, seeing setbacks as opportunities rather than threats) communicating overall vision and goals and how to win and maintain the commitment of teams and individuals to these Effective techniques for communicating, persuading and negotiating both directly and indirectly with teams and individuals How to select communication, persuasion and negotiation skills appropriate to different s ituations and people The importance of being able to use a repertoire of leadership styles in different situations and with different people How to develop vision and goals for significant projects or programmes of work The importance of being aware of and analysing the internal and external environments in which the leader operates The leader’s role in supporting and mentoring team members

Describing Friend’s Character

I have a friend, his name is Dima. I know him about five years. He amazed me by his intelligence and brainy. He knows the answer on any question. Even if he doesn’t know the correct answer, he’ll find the way to explain it. I appreciate his optimism and indifference at the same time. When something bad has happened, he is always determined. He says that next time he would be more sense and had learned a lot from that situation. And next day he behaves as if nothing has happened. Moreover he looks indifferently at some situations that help him not to work up.Dima has got a unique humor; I can’t stop smiling when he begins joking. He is unconventional. He looks differently at the world. I can’t even imagine what is going on in his head. Also Dima is broad-minded, he is keen on travelling. He visits different places four times a year, moreover he adore snowboarding, that’s why the main part of his trips includes mountains. Dima is easy-going, he can ea sily find common ground. Nevertheless each person has negative sides of his character. Sometimes Dima is brusque and impolite. His straightforwardness spurns people.If he doesn’t gain person, he will deal shortly with him. I don’t think that it’s bad behavior, but sometimes it goes over the line. However he is frank and open-hearted. He enjoys having heart-to-heart talk with family and friends. In spite of his imperturbability he is vulnerable deep in his mind. But he won’t show it, because he thinks that it points out man’s weakness. In conclusion I would like to add that I’m proud that I have such friend. Dima is goal-seeking and ambitious. He knows what he wants and secures his object in any case.

The Sixties Cultural and Counter Cultural Movement Essay

The Sixties Cultural and Counter Cultural Movement - Essay Example The term was popularized by Theodore Roszak in his book The Making of a Counter Culture (published, in 1969), and remains with us today. Roszak was himself much influenced by Alan Watts, the Anglican priest with a deep interest in Asian thought and culture. Watts was hugely influential in the religious face of the 60s counter-culture. He Watts taught at the School of Asian Studies in San Francisco and was fascinated with Hinduism and especially Buddhism; and his many books, such as The Way of Zen (1957) and Psychotherapy East and West (1961), were widely available and read. Hehad been drawn to the Beat movement, which defiantly rejected organized religion as practiced in America at that time, and their appropriation of Asian thought is clearly seen in Jack Kerouac's autobiography, The Dharma Bums, dharma being a Hindu and Buddhist term for 'the teaching of right living.' Gary Snyder and Alan Ginsberg were other beat poets who came to California in the late fifties and became involved in Zen Buddhism as a result of Watt's teaching. The San Francisco's Zen Center was established in 1959 largely as a result of the influ ence of Watts' and a Japanese Buddhist scholar, Daisetz Suzuki, whose son later became the spiritual inspiration behind the growth of the center and the Zen community in the States. Watts used the term "cosmic consciousness" in his 1962 book, The Joyous Cosmology, to describe the high states of consciousness which a person can achieve with meditation and other spiritual practices. The term was eagerly taken up, but there is nothing new under the sun, and in this case, as Camille Paglia (2003) points out, Watts was simply recycling a term used by Richard Bucke in 1901, when he compared Asian and Western religious teachings by various leaders, including Buddha, Jesus, William Blake, and Walt Whitman, all of whom Bucke thought had attained spiritual enlightenment. The overlay of Eastern religions, Hinduism, and Buddhism, was accompanied by a deep and new interest in the beliefs and practices of the Native American religions. It was as if at least some of youth of western civilization had suddenly awakened from the dream of White supremacy. The University of California became the first in the nation to offer serious studies into the traditions of those that had been so brutally repressed over the previous century. The huge antiwar protests of 1967-1974 were always accompanied by huge masks, music and painted demonstrators reflecting the curious mixture revolutionary politics, ecstatic spiritual practices and free sex made possible by the newly developed contraceptive pill. The 60s counterculture was committed to political change, and to a truth about life outside religious and social institutions. The political movements of that era, of which the Vietnam War protests were only a part, had their roots in THE great liberation movement of the 60s, the civil rights movement, which was sparked by the Supreme Court's 1954 decision to declare segregation in public schools unconstitutional. The fact that ordained ministers like Martin Luther King,

Should the central bank aim for zero inflation (Economics) Essay

Should the central bank aim for zero inflation (Economics) - Essay Example rcent inflation rate would not be in line with the natural rate of unemployment in the country therefore targeting a zero percent inflation would not serve the interests of the economy. A dominant economy phenomenon before great depression was the fact that there was a deflation in the economy as the prices tend to come down rather than go up however after the happening of Great Depression, a new phenomenon of inflation emerged under which prices showed the tendency to increase over the period of time rather than decrease. Increase in general price level or inflation have very threatening impacts on the economy as it not reduce the purchasing power of a consumer but it also reduce the competitive advantage of the countries as rising inflation would make the goods and services of that country more expensive hence less competitive in international market. Thus the question arise for the monetary policy experts of the country as to what level of inflation within the economy can be achieved in order to keep the competitiveness of the economy intact. The argument which is often brought forward in order to bring the price stability is the fact that price stability can not be achieved without sacrificing the employment level in the country. Thus there is a negative relationship between the inflation and unemployment in the country. If policy makers tend to contain the inflation down, the unemployment levels in the economy would increase and similarly if fiscal and monetary policymakers aim to achieve the low unemployment level in the country, inflation is going to increase. (Gramley). â€Å"Economists label the relationship between inflation and unemployment the Phillips curve. According to NAIRU, the Phillips curve is vertical; its verticality indicates that if the central bank (i.e., the Fed) increases inflation, there is no reduction in the unemployment rate. Similarly, lowering the inflation rate also has no effect on unemployment. This means that the inflation rate

The Battle in Seattle Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Battle in Seattle - Essay Example The organizations that participated in the protest represented a sea of different interests; they ranged from labor movements, environmental groups as well as human rights organizations. The protest had taken months of planning and organizations working together to plan the protest events (Belmonte 2005, 423). This protest came to be known as the Battle of Seattle since it was the first large demonstration. Before the battle of Seattle, many people were unaware of the disadvantages of free trade. Many free trade agreements had been made in America and the rest of the world before 1999. According to Belmonte, the world trade organization was charged with the responsibility of supervising and liberalizing global trade as established by the 1994 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Moreover, in 1993, the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) had been passed, and trade officials assumed that the next move was to expand the free trade area to cover all of North and South Am erica. More so, many cities vied to play host to the FTAA secretariat, and many planners laid out expanded transport systems meant to bring in goods from South America to the U.S and Canada. They faced huge opposition from protestors and delegates who were opposed to free trade. As a result, they failed to reach an agreement and efforts of reviving the free trade efforts died (Belmonte 2005, 311). In addition to that, many of those against free trade based their criticism on economic grounds. As a result, the World Wrade Organization, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund faced many protests. However, contrary to their opposition to globalization, most of the protestors use the Internet to mobilize people of common interest disregarding the fact that the Internet is a form of globalization. During the battle of Seattle, approximately 50,000 people met in Seattle to plan the peaceful protest. The labor movements represented during the protests were steelworkers, longshor emen, public workers, farm workers and building trade workers (Moberg 1999). Some protestors stated that there were efforts to marginalize the developing nations. However, some delegates attending the conference were also opposed to free trade. Some delegates from developing nations felt overshadowed and sidelined by the developed nations and feared that labor rights would be violated by the inception of free trade. Free trade would lead to incurrence of huge costs by developing nations since they could not afford to apply the changes brought about by free trade, considering the poverty rate and dependency on the developed nations (Moberg 1999). The groups that demonstrated in Seattle were of different interests ranging from labor groups, human rights groups, animal rights groups, and many others. Moberg says that, although the protest was against globalizations, some protestors showed their support for rebels in Chiapas, human rights in Burma, and ethical treatment of animals. Howe ver, the issues that were raised by all protestors through their banners and placards were related to the World Trade Organization in a way. For instance, the WTO had rejected U.S. laws regarding them as trade barriers, and as a result,