Winning vs. Fair Play Are they incompatible Essay Example Essay Example

Winning vs. Fair Play: Are they incompatible? Essay Example Paper Winning vs. Fair Play: Are they incompatible Essay Introduction The personality traits of the â€Å"winner† are embedded within each and every American. It is a nation that survived and thrived against heavy odds. That legacy shapes many of the attitudes we have today about winning and losing. The importance of winning has permeated our culture from the business world to professional sports to local youth soccer leagues. The drive to win is necessary both for our survival and for our continued pursuit of excellence. Excellence, in turn, benefits society as a whole. This is why the drive to win has an important role in our society. A worthy goal for society is to create an atmosphere where the drive to win not only co-exists with fair play and sportsmanship but also works in tandem with them. The reality is that one does not negate the other. Winning and fair play/sportsmanship can actually enhance each other. In that sort of environment we all win. Winning Winning vs. Fair Play: Are they incompatible? Essay Body Paragraphs According to Peck â€Å"It is wrong to regard any other human being as, a priori, as an object or an it† (1993). The early European colonists who came to America recognized this. Eventually, the concept of individual rights was codified into the Constitution. Even though each individual settler was driven to get their â€Å"piece of the pie†, they understood that cooperation would also always be necessary. At the same time there is a reality that each individual must face. Engh writes that â€Å"Winning is what we all must do throughout life to succeed.† (2002). Fair play and consideration for others can’t always be accommodated in the reality of everyday life. Sports are a metaphor for life. The importance placed on winning is just a reflection of society as a whole. Those who win consistently in sports, career and life reap the lion’s share of society’s rewards. Since these rewards are not infinite in supply; there will always be stiff comp etition over them. That is the way society is designed. As a nation that design has served us well. Even though most people, if asked, would see sportsmanship, fair play and ethics as good qualities; our society sends mixed messages. Individualistic, selfish behavior is often rewarded. Athletes and businessmen who cut corners to make it to the top are often portrayed as heroes. Sometimes sportsmanship can actually endanger all those involved. If an athlete in the heat of competition is distracted by thoughts of sportsmanship, injuries can result. As one young athlete put it â€Å"The football field is no place to think about ethics† (Canadian Centres Teaching Peace, 2008). Ethics come in the rule making process for the game. The game is meant to be won or lost. Vince Lombardi, the successful Green Bay Packers coach of the 1960s once said that â€Å"Winning isn’t every thing. It’s the only thing†. His phrase not only motivated the Packers to excellence; it also inspired the American culture. The statement tapped into a feeling that lay deep in the American psyche. Fair Play and Sportsmanship Winning is not a bad thing. Too often, it has been portrayed this way. It does not have to be synonymous with greed or the wiliness to indulge in unethical behavior to win. Winning has an important role in continuing a societal pursuit of excellence. Without this pursuit the culture would become stagnant and ultimately die. It is true that that the preset rules of the game, whatever it may be, do much to govern the activity and encourage fair play. There is a higher value to winning than just the superficial, though. Engh writes that â€Å"The very values we can learn through organized sports – things such as ethics, fair play and sportsmanship – are the lessons that will guide us to be the best we can in life† (2002). Winning unethically or without respect for the opponent in sports can lead to a downward process for the win ner. The harm to the â€Å"losers† in this scenario is obvious. The harm to the â€Å"winner† may be just as great in the long run. Delany states that: When someone decides to justify certain behavior in an attempt to gain an edge over an opponent, they are likely to engage in other deviant action. (2003) Fair play and sportsmanship have important societal roles to play. These traits are just as ingrained in human beings as the drive to win. An example of this can be seen in a recent well-publicized incident at a women’s college softball game. Having hit what appeared to be a game-winning home run; a player was injured and unable to make her way around the bases. If her teammates helped her in any way the run would be disallowed. Instead two players from the opposing team carried her around the bases, allowing her to touch each as they went by. The public reaction to this incident of pure sportsmanship is telling. The young women were honored repeatedly and appe ared on national talk shows. Could it be that sportsmanship and fair play are themselves forms of winning? A Meeting of the Minds Winning without honor can only bring a shallow happiness. It also invites others to treat the â€Å"winner† in the same way. Many of the human rewards that come along with winning are lost when the winning is done by cheating. The winner may obtain the rewards of winning but without the true fulfillment winning a fair and sportsmanlike competition brings. Sports can be a good arena for nurturing qualities of future success in children. At the same time, it can be taken too far. Winning is important because it is both a process of self motivation and of cooperation. Sports teach a structure that we all need to know in order to succeed in later life. Learning how to win is a process, as is learning how to lose and how to be sportsmanlike. For kids, the pressure of a win-at-all-costs mentality often does not create the desired result. Focused, success ful individuals are the exception to the rule. Often this pressure is a distraction rather than an encouragement to focus. Parents who see other parents encouraging a â€Å"win at all costs attitude† often feel pressured to do the same with their kids. The result is often not what they had hoped for. In fact, â€Å"The likelihood is that the experience will turn a lot of these kids off to organized sports participation† (Engh, 2002). In sports and in life there is teamwork all along the way. Individual winning never comes without the support and assistance of a host of others including parents, friends, co-workers, teammates and even opponents. All of these individuals learn from each other in some way. When the competition in question is fair and characterized by sportsmanship, the winner actually enhances his chances of winning again. Winning unethically short-cuts the learning process. In that sense the non-sportsmanlike or unethical winner is only hurting himself. These behaviors also expose the winner to similar behavior directed his way. The only difference is that this time society will fully legitimize the behavior because the winner brought it upon himself. The Packers of Vince Lombardi were universally respected winners. They were a team of individuals, each striving to perform his task to the best of his ability. As a team they played fairly and with good sportsmanship – and each man reaped the rewards. Finding a balance between â€Å"winning is the only thing† and fair play and sportsmanship is a worthy goal for society. All of the skills involved in finding this balance are necessary for ultimate success in life. Conclusion In many ways sport is â€Å"a microcosm of society† (Delaney, 2003). As such it reveals the problems as well as the promise of society. It reflects the ideals we find important as a culture. Winning is good. There is more than one way to win. Winning is also a continual process, not just any o ne game or event. Yes, our society rewards and glorifies individual achievement, even when the achievement was gained by ethically questionable means. The picture is more complicated. People who win at all costs often pay a heavy price. Most of us will never be in the position of those we see portrayed as winners on television and in the media. Therefore it is easy to ignore the consequences these people face for unethical behavior. They range from criminal involvement to depression to the lack of trusted friends and family. For some, this will be a fair tradeoff for winning in the superficial sense. Most of us need a wider definition of winning. Competition of any kind will never be fully ethical and completely sportsmanlike. It is the effort to be this way that counts. This distinguishes the true winner from the superficial one. Ultimately our society is a large team of many individuals. It is dependent both on the individual pursuit of success and a certain level of teamwork. The practice of sportsmanship does not harm the pursuit of either element. Instead, it enhances both. Shortly before his death the legendary coach Lombardi said â€Å"I wish I had never said damned [winning is the only thing] thing. I meant the effort.having a goal. [not] for people to crush human values and morality (Reinharz Anderson, 2000). Sources Business Week. (2006). â€Å"Yes, Winning is Still the Only Thing†. Retrieved 5/14/2008 from:http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_34/b3998403.htm?chan=top+news_top+news . nbsp; Canadian Centres Teaching Peace. (2008). â€Å"Sports: When Winning is the Only Thing can Violence be Far Away?† Retrieved 5/14/2008 from: =http://www.peace.ca/sports.htm data-wpel-link=external rel=nofollow>http://www.peace.ca/sports.htm . nbsp; Delany, Tim. (2003). â€Å"Sports and Deviant Behavior†. Philosophy Now. Retrieved 5/14/2008 from: http://www.philosophynow.org/issue41/41delany.htm . nbsp; Engh, Fred. (2002). Why Johnny Hates Sports. Garden City Park, N.Y.: Square One Publishing. nbsp; Peck, M. Scott. (1993). A World Waiting to be Born: Rediscovering Civility. New York: Bantam Books. nbsp; Reinharz, Peter; Anderson, Brian. (2000). â€Å"Bring Back Sportsmanship†. City Journal (NY). Spr, pp. 1-6. We will write a custom essay sample on Winning vs. Fair Play: Are they incompatible? Essay Example specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Winning vs. Fair Play: Are they incompatible? Essay Example specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Winning vs. Fair Play: Are they incompatible? Essay Example specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer

The Aviators essays

The Aviators essays Summary of story: The Aviators is a historical fiction book about the Vietnam war. The book starts in the Republic of South Vietnam at the Pleiku Air Force base. Lieutenant John S. Oliver Jr. is contacted by the Green Berets, he meets a Captain named Father Lunsford they develop a new plan for extraction. The new plan is to use two Gun ships and two Skids, a Gun ship is a Huey Helicopter with two M-60s, a 40mm grenade launcher and two rocket pods and a Skid is a Huey Helicopter with no weapons and is designed to take many people, the plan calls for the team to choose two fake landing points and one real one. The Gun ships will clear each fake landing point and the Skids will touch-and-go each fake then stop to take the team on at the real one. When Oliver leads the team of helicopters to pick-up Fathers A-team the Viet-Cong manage to shoot down one of the skids, Oliver orders all the Gun ships to unload as much ammo as they can, so they will be light enough to take on the remaining p eople, however Oliver didnt make his helicopter light enough and when he tries to clear the tree line the helicopter tears itself apart, and crashes. Most of Olivers men survive the crash and the remaining members of the A-team meet up with them, Father is too hurt to command the team so he gives command to Oliver. Oliver manages to get the team home safely, but is badly injured he has been shot three times and has never taken any pain-deading drugs because we wants to be fully conscious. Then Oliver is taken to a Hospital in Germany where he is awarded the Silver star and the Purple heart with four oak leaf clusters ( the highest award for injuries suffered in combat ). Then Oliver is flown to the states where he takes a job as General Bellomans Aide-de-camp and he is also promoted to captain. Oliver is trying to h...

15 Tips to become more creative

15 Tips to become more creative Nowadays, if you are not at least a bit creative, soon a automatic robot will be doing all your job. But discovering those imaginative flourishes or inventive solutions isn’t all that simple. Sometimes that muse just won’t discuss. This is not an inspirational list designed to convince you that you’re a unique and creative snowflake. Somewhat, this is for when you’re trapped in a creative bind and need a little extra oomph to make assembling your project work. So here are 15 tricks to help get those creative juices juicing again. Get those endorphins streaming. Exercise is stress-reliever and a creative trigger, and mindless repetition is the secret to allowing your creative head wander. And remember, no subject how much you loath this job, great deal of thought is still better than stumbling your way through a home treadmill workout wishing you might have a cheeseburger. It helps to get some perspective. Take a Bathtub After all that exercise wanting to force imagination, you’re still sweating desperation. At this time you reek of it. Okay, maybe not, however the shower is a great destination to drown out the world and relax your mind enough to let it wander. And a brain with wanderlust is the fertilizer for new ideas. Sleep on It This is why you always do better on tests when you fell asleep together with the book somewhat than cramming right before the test. Your mind requires rest, and the rest actually helps you organize your thoughts and shakes new things free. It provides you with ways to check out old problems in a fresh way. Be Curious What job are you working on? Could it be for a client, or around a certain subject? Do some research. Allow yourself to get lost in your issue and find something that’s interesting for you, even whether it’s abstract. Be curious about it. A lot more intimately you connect with your subject, the more creative you will be when trying to work with it. Listen to Music Listening to music-just listening to music-helps your brain relax. It’s also evocative of images and feelings. You know, those things you are trying to speak to to make assembling your project more creative? Those. Ideas result from a complex mixture of problems, thoughts, and experiences. Allow music move over you, and pick it. Yeah, man. Groovy. Pick a Shade or Theme Sometimes creative imagination gets bogged down in the facts and the specifics. Don’t slip-up the forest for the trees, here. Online backup, take a breath, and ask yourself, â€Å"Self, what is the overall theme, concept or tone?† Insurance agencies a major picture to show up back on, you may find You’ve exposed new creative strategies. Go through the Pretty Colors Sometimes just selecting colors that would work together can give you a whole new point of view on your creative task. Maybe you hadn’t seen things in this light before. Who recognizes. Try different color mixtures or play around with the Adobe Kuler to see if you spark any new ideas. You can even check out some art or even just browse the web for things such as Deviant Art. Try informing a story about an interesting picture You’ve seen. Have no idea the storyplot? Make it up. That’s one half the fun. Clean Something Mindless tasks are great for idea era, and firm is often comforting. Besides, you do not want to clean while you’re in the throes of an creative epiphany, can you? Best get it done now. Go for a Drive. Traveling around and listening to music (or listening to silence) is a superb way to clear the mind. It’s also a little hypnotic, and this hypnosis helps you wiggle creative problems around in your mind just like a loose tooth you are wiggling with your tongue. Eventually something’s heading to break. Just don’t discuss on the telephone while driving a vehicle. It’s distracting. To other motorists. Get Mad. You know all those things you really want to inform that awful client? You know those times when you want to say â€Å"really fellas, this is the truth that you don’t want to listen to†, or write a searing email to your boss? Write them down. Let it out. Most of us have created mental blocks to saying just what we mean because, well, we don’t want people to think we’re psychopaths. Period of time those obstacles and say precisely what you suggest. It’ll feel great, and often you’ll discover (someplace) a new way to approach your problem. Simply by being honest. Spend Some Time Alone Whether you’re walking in the woods or standing on the roof of any skyscraper, only time is creativity’s favorite place to develop. I’m sure which mental or neurological reason for this, but I don’t know what it is. I just know that other folks and electronic gizmos aren’t only distracting, they actually cause anxiety. Turn your cellphone off. Kill the news headlines channel. Mentally move away from it all. It’s actually pretty well accepted that individuals who spend more time by themselves thinking tend to be creative (and, actually, more emotionally fit). Show Someone What you’re Doing I don’t indicate step-by-step, however the process of articulating your creative problem to some other person is incredibly helpful when searching for new methods to an old problem. This is particularly helpful if you are trying to clarify things to a kid (or a dumb good friend), because you have to come up with a much more accessible way to articulate your idea. Pull or Build Something Actually, doing anything repeated that requires extreme concentration would work. The trick here is to let your brain go numb. It’s actually related in some ways to self-hypnosis. It allows your mind wander. Plus the theme of the post is to let your mind wander. Doing something repeated or mindless is often nice since it allows you to start out speaking with yourself with your â€Å"mind tone†. Just don’t answer the tone out loud, and you’re good.

Collapse of the Traditional Family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Collapse of the Traditional Family - Essay Example The first thing that immediately occurs to mind, the number one culprit, is of course the exploding divroce rates, in the Western societies as well as in many developing nations. Divorce rates have been on the rise for decades now, but they seem to be shoooting up to epidemic proportions with each passing day. The very institution of marriage which lies at the root of family and home is under assault. Out-of-wedlock births too are drastically rising. Unmarried cohabitation is becoming an increasingly common phenomenon in contemoporary society. The sporadic spread of same-gender marriages are another aspect of the problem. So, one way or other, it is the fact that more and more people are losing their faith in the sanctity of marriage between man and woman which is ultimately threatening the very viability of our society. In a more immediate sense, though, this is adversely affecting the lives of millions of innocent children, causing grave irreparable damage to their delicate sensibi lities at a very tender age. No wonder then that so many of our national leaders are seriously concerned about the need for fortifying the edifice of family, in their bid to build a more coherent and sensible society. A resurgence of early and almost universal marriage, as it happened in the postwar periods of 1950s and 1960s, is bound to revitalize our society. But what is so different between our own times and just a couple of decades ago Why cannot such a thing cannot happen today One most conspicuous difference is the tremendously greater proportion of full-time working women in today's world as compared to the 50's. This is of coure a very positive change. But could not the absence of the mother from the household for the better part of the day be taking its toll on the upbringing and well-being of the children Not necessarily, since it has its own advantages. A confident and independent mother can serve as a better role model for children of both sexes, and not just the girls. Obviously, with both dad and mom working, there would be two incomes instead of one, and this translates to better financial security for children. Also, in a way, with relatively less time available to spend with children, the parents would tend to treasure this time even more than if time weren't such a constraint. It is a universal truth in any relationship, whether between lovers or between parents and children, that distance brings people closer, making them grow fonder of each other. But only to a certain extent though, a little more distance and it can alienate people, to which point we will come shortly. Now though there may be several practical advantages to argue in favor of working women, in relation to their families, the cohesive presence of a full-time mother acting as the central force in holding together the home, with her love and mystique - is simply irreplaceable. It is becoming an increasingly rare sight these days, and evokes a kind of idyllic nostalgia in many of us. But still, if certain things have to be gained, certain other things have to be

Strategic Reward Key Models and Practices Essay

Strategic Reward Key Models and Practices - Essay Example For example, it is possible to create a plan for performance related pay using different strategies such as the following: (1) merit-based pay plan; (2) job- or skill-based pay plan; (3) competency-based plan; and/or (3) job-evaluation-based pay (Heneman and Werner, 2005, p. 45; Baldwin, 2003, p. 45, 70). After examining the potential impact of introducing a performance related pay in a German public service, Shmidt, Trittel and Muller (2011) found out that the use of different types of performance related pay schemes can lead to different effects in terms of public sector employees’ work motivation and performance and that a highly selective performance related pay will never work in government offices. It simply means that depending on the type of performance-based appraisal used by each government office, there will always be the risk wherein the public sector employees would perceive the type of assessment and evaluation process used within the government office to be inef fective, inconsistent, and unfair to some government employees (Shmidt, Trittel and Muller, 2011; Rayson, 2013). Another possible reason behind the reluctance of the public sector employees in integrating performance related pay is the fact that most of the non-performing government employees would fear that their superiors would be closely monitoring their overall work performance. Because of the on-going tight government budget, Weiner (2013) reported that the public sector employees may no longer have the opportunity to enjoy so much of work-related flexibility options. Since there is a need for the government to cut down their unnecessary fixed operating costs, some of the underperforming public sector employees may think that they can be one of the candidates in case... It is the duty and responsibility of the public HR managers to design and implement the performance related pay effectively within the UK government offices. As a common knowledge, the public sector employees will be affected by the new pay and reward scheme. Therefore, the reservations made by the public sector employees should be considered legitimate. The use of performance related pay is a good form of pay and reward strategy particularly in terms of increasing the quality service provided by the public sector employees. For this reason, the public HR managers should exert more effort to effectively address all reservations made by the public sector employees. It is also necessary to create a S.M.A.R.T performance-based criteria that could guide the public sector employees on what they are expected to do. In the process of removing the reservations of each public sector employee, the HR professionals can easily win the support of all affected individuals.

Emission Reduction Essay Example for Free

Emission Reduction Essay In every economic activity, both positive and negative implications compound such activities. The positive implications include employment increase, supply of goods and market, supply of public goods, environmental control above others. However, every economic activity is as well a compound of negative implications. These are called negative externalities. They include pollution, environmental degrading, increase in crime, and social evils above others. Emission reduction like any other negative externality calls for a very dynamic tools of control. Generally, the basic control of negative externalities by corporations in the economy is through the government taxation imposition. The government would impose a corporate tax levy which is substantially equivalent to the cost of the emission to the environment. Through such levy, the government uses passive methods of compensation to the community over such impacts of the emission. Through the tax levy, the cost of operation to the plant is increased. (Prencipe, Davies, Hoboday, 2003) Economically, taxation provides two cost related variables with which the plant should choose from. Firstly, through higher cost of production which may perhaps outweigh its level of market profits, the plant may be forced out in the market. This is because high tax levy is synonymous to an increase in the cost of production. With high cost of production the plant is at a competitive disadvantage in the highly competitive market. It may then opt to choose an alternative method of investment. (Prencipe, Davies, Hoboday, 2003) Elsewhere, such tax is a disincentive in the choice of production method. From the broad alternative of energy production e. g. use of electric turbines to generate power. Use of environmental friendly method would then call up such tax levied formerly. The basic purpose of higher taxes by the government towards negative externalities is to provide a disincentive in specific lines and methods of operation which are harmful to the environment. It is a tool for choosing alternative methods of production.

The Role of John Proctor in Arthur Millers The Crucible Essay

The Role of John Proctor in Arthur Miller's The Crucible Arthur Miller wrote the play 'The Crucible' to show the historical parallel between the Salem witch trials of 1692 and the McCarthy 'witch' hunt of the late 1940' and 50's. The character John Proctor seems to represent and show the viewpoint of a real man, unaffected by hysteria; a difficult thing to portray during the 1950's in the USA, due to the fear and hate of Communism and the 'witch' hunt for communists. John Proctor is the central character of the play. He a realistic character, the audience can relate to him and sympathize with him. He is a somewhat strong character and is described by Miller as "powerful of body, even-tempered and not easily led", the last comment perhaps being the most important. His character earns respect throughout the play as the audience sees the moral arguments he has and internal conflicts he has to deal with. John Proctor is a man with a guilty conscience, which makes him indecisive until it is too late, audiences can relate this to their own, maybe far less dramatic lives. John Proctor has made a mistake; he has slept with his former servant girl, teenage Abigail Williams. It is also shown in Act 1 that he still lusts after her - when she asks if he looked up at her window for her, he replies "I may have looked up", this shows his characters weakness, but he remains strong willed. He does not give into what he obviously thinks of as great temptation, again. This shows the audience that he has recognized his mistake and is not repeating it. John Proctor is an honest man, but has undermined himself with his one act of dishonesty. ... ... parallel, as he knew himself what height the communist hysteria had reached. Like the witch hysteria in Salem, he knew that he would be persecuted for writing about fear and conscience if he were to set the play in contemporary America. Miller uses John Proctor to almost play himself and to show what he would do if put in the position of being on trial. He later proved his point by not accusing any other people of being in communist parties when he really was put on trial, to get himself off the hook, like so many other people did. John Proctor plays the crucial role in 'The Crucible' of being the man that is on the brink of giving in but stands strong, even though he knew that one individual would not bring down the hysteria. Works Cited: Miller, Arthur. The Crucible: A Screenplay. New York: Penguin Books, 1996.