What is Socially Acceptible?

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/exclusive-broken-arm-boy-cheerleader-threatened/story?id=11753915

Ohio 11-year-old Tyler Wilson wanted to join the traveling cheer team. He was successful in doing so, and was told by his mother that he would probably be picked on and he should be ready for it. I am not sure he was ready for what happened next. The football players at his school did pick on him and they ended up getting to a fight and breaking Tyler’s arm. Now that he has told on them they are threatening to break his other arm. The society we live in today is all about social norms and if we step out of those “norms” we will be seen as different. Just because a little boy wanted to do cheer instead of football he was seen as different, to be different in today’s society comes at a price. Males have to be seen as strong and aggressive, so to do something like cheerleading which is seen as “feminine,” goes against the idea of what a male should be and act like. Sports is not helping this stereotype either, it continues to push the idea of “proper behavior” and attitude of men and women and how they should fit into their roles in society.

Kin338I. S6
Ben Ott

Has Title IX struck again???

The University of California, Berkeley has eliminated 5 intercollegiate sports programs. These programs include baseball, men’s rugby, men and women’s gymnastics, and women’s lacrosse.
It is very much a possibility that this event could be spun and Title IX could be blamed for the removal of athletic programs, as it has in the past. The blame, however, most likely lies with the fact that there was a financial issue that needed to be recognized by the school. This issue comes from the fact that we, as a country, experienced an economic recession and the fact the California’s funding of schools has been reduced in recent years. Eliminating the sports is estimated to save the school $4 million dollars in the next fiscal year.
Sources at the school have even stated that the school will be committed to REMAINING compliant with Title IX, DESPITE the reduction in the athletic department, which affected both male and female sports.
This is not an issue of Title IX, but an issue of money.


-Nick M.
KIN 338I Sec 1

How student fees boost college sports amid rising budgets

I found this article to be very interesting and eye opening. I have understood that we as students at CSULB do pay a "University Fee" that is nicely labeled within our account inquiry. I admit however that I do not have the slightest idea of what these university fees are going towards. I do know they contributed to the new Rec Center and I am completely content with this. Also I am sure some goes towards the upkeep of the various gyms, racket ball courts, pool, etc. which I am also OK with. How much of that total university fee is going towards athletic programs however is another story. I do not necessarily feel comfortable paying for the athletics of other students. I rarely go to 49er games regardless of the sport. Perhaps if we did have a football team I would get my cut by having a huge homecoming game to go to but this is nonexistent. I feel that many students on our campus are blind to this "University Fee" which we have been paying since our enrolment including myself. I feel that the university should let us see the breakdown of the university fee and let us know exactly where our money is going.

-Nick H.
KIN 338I Sec 1

Reggie Garrett

Well i read an article on the AOL news.

http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/reggie-garrett-star-texas-high-school-quarterback-dies-after-collapse-in-game/19639051

It was a surprising event that happened in Orange. A young seventeen year old with a bright future in football collapsed on the field after throwing a touchdown to his teammate with a huge smile on his face. As he walked to the sidelines to celebrate he collapsed over and wasn't breathing. Shortly after he arrived to the hospital, he was pronounced dead. He was such a beautiful kid as well as a very talented and loved one too. they were just celebrating on the field for they were winning the football game. The doctor said he died of a seizure. His medical records show that he had suffered convulsions when he was three when he had a fever but didn't have one since. Apparently this one, he wasn't able to overcome. He passed his yearly physical exam with flying colors but still had a seizure. Is there any way we can prevent this from happening? Are there any tests that could be done to predict these events and tragic moments? Do we need to raise our standards for physical tests to be cleared to play sports? When I have a physical done, it is very simple, quick, and sometimes I don't even feel like it is enough. I have permanently sprained both of my knees from sports, but I still get cleared every time to keep playing and do what I'm doing. When I'm on the field or in the dance room, I can feel myself not being okay but the doctor said I was. I am cleared from a car accident I was in four years ago, but I still feel the repercussions of it. I fell at work and filed a workers comp claim, but couldn't get permanent disability because they tested me and said I was fine. I can still feel the pain and limitations I now have from the injuries. Are there more tests they can run to see the in depth injuries or unknown repercussions from previous injuries? Reggie Garrett isn't the only football player this has happened to. There are other players too who have suffered from things like this. One had a heart attack and his heart stopped for two minutes after making a touch down. He made it to the hospital and his life was saved for a cardio doctor was in the stands and came to his rescue. He was lucky, but what about Reggie? Will there me others like him? Should be raise the standards for physical exams and research their medical past more diligently? YES! We must! To keep our athletes safe and alive, we must do more tests, be more honest about our medical history, and do more in depth research into their medical past. It is a must or there will be more like Reggie Garrett, young athletes with dreams and futures. R.I.P. Reggie Garrett. You were loved and admired by so many. Heaven has a great quarterback now. Keep reaching for the stars!

Chelsea Castaneto
KIN 338i
Women in Sport
T/TH 9:30am

Female Kicker Wins Football Game

Detroit High School earns a win. Click here for the article.

Female phenom pitcher

Click here for the link to the article I mentioned in class on Thursday 9/9/2010.

Why Female Athletes Pose in the NUde

Some opposers say that the necessity of females posing in the nude is so the sales of their magazines or other products will sell more or have more ratings. sex sells. yes it does but why? why do we have to sell ourselves to the media through sexual appearances in athletics instead of by our talent? professional athletes are in the pros as a career, as a way to make money, but why do they have to expose themselves provocatively? it is because people are more attracted to sex than to the actually media of sports when it comes to reading say a magazine or an article online. people don't want to read these days unless it is something "interesting" such as sexual poses or nude pictures. it may be debated that the professional athletes make so much money that they should do whatever they want to i.e. pose nude but when it comes to female athletes, is that down grading our sports and our abilities to prove that we are professional and athletic? i think that it is unnecessary to pose nude to gain ratings from the media that women should just prove themselves professionally to be taken seriously in the athletics department of their careers. some other women may pose nude as their career on porn videos or even as models for say playboy but that "is" their profession. they are paid to do that and that's the career they went into. athletes get paid to do it as well but if women are trying to promote our athletics as well as that we have the ability to be as successful as men's sports then we shouldn't have to "sell" ourselves to the media to get support. we should be supported because we are great athletes as well as for that we, as women, have fought so hard to have women sports so we should support it! what do you think? do you take female athletes seriously when they pose nude in a magazine?
-Chelsea Castaneto
KIN 338i
T/TH 9:30am-10:45am
CSULB