Susan Wolf s Article Moral Saints And John Stuart...

Both Susan Wolf’s article â€Å"Moral Saints† and John Stuart Mill’s book â€Å"Utilitarianism† will be discussed here. These works offer expositions of and opinions on the philosophical issue of the moral worth of adhering to a certain set of values, and how a person’s motivations for doing so can change their worth and the desirability of their way of life. Wolf offers the position that leading an extremely morally good life is undesirable, while Mill’s opposing position is that if morality leads to happiness, then that behavior is preferable. To determine which of these stances on the value of morality has the most pertinence, these two arguments will be outlined and consequently analyzed. Their differences and similarities will be enumerated and described, and consequently their merit will be discussed. Finally, Wolf’s moral theory will be proven to be inferior to Mills’s, due to its prejudice, lack of supportive evidence, a nd its inability to be universally applicable. In â€Å"Moral Saints†, Susan Wolf defines a moral saint as an individual who is as morally good as it is possible to be. Wolf suggests that there are two types of moral saints, utilitarian and Kantian (Wolf 420). A utilitarian saint is a â€Å"Loving Saint†, one who simply finds their own happiness in the happiness of others and performs moral actions for their own sake (Wolf 420). A Kantian saint is a â€Å"Rational Saint†, who is inherently different from a utilitarian/loving saint in the sense that they do not necessarilyShow MoreRelatedStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 Pagesmechanical, photocopying, recording, or likewise. To obtain permission(s) to use material from this work, please submit a written request to Pearson Education, Inc., Permissions Department, One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458, or you may fax your request to 201-236-3290. Ma ny of the designations by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and the publisher was aware of a trademark claim, the designations

Developmental Development Erik Erikson ( 1902-1994 )

There are five stages of the developmental lifespan, within each stage there are five different areas of development. Erik Erikson (1902-1994) believed that psychological development continues throughout a person’s life, he went on to develop his eight stages of psychosocial development. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) on the other hand believed that childhood experiences affect adult personality and by the time a person reaches adolescence their psychological development is set, his five stages of psychosexual personality development was established. The lifespan begins in infancy (0-2years). Physical changes are experienced by the child during this stage. They begin to sit without any assistance, move around and also grasp on to objects†¦show more content†¦The second conflict occurs between 1 and 2 years of age; autonomy v shame and doubt. A child will begin to emphasise their independence, the caregiver should be supportive and encouraging in this stage to aid with the child’s growing confidence. Freud’s theory of psychosexual personality development states that different areas of the body called ‘erogenous zones’ take on specific importance at each of the five stages. The first year of life is known as the ‘Oral stage’. At this stage infants get pleasure from putting things in their mouth and sucking. If a child gets fixated at this stage Freud believed that later in life they would be dominated by feelings of helplessness and be incapable of personal love for other people. The second stage in Freud’s theory is the ‘Anal stage’. Toilet training occurs during this stage and Freud emphasised the process and control of defecation as the source of pleasure. The next lifespan stage is childhood (2-12years). A child’s emotional development is continuing as the child will be developing a sense of self awareness as well as establishing their personality and gender. Social skills will develop greatly as friendships will be formed and a child will take on a certain role within the new group setting. A continuation of primary socialisation occurs during this period of time in a child’s life. Cultural development also occurs at this stage as children will be deciding whether or not to take part in

Causes of Spectator Violence in Sports free essay sample

Causes of Spectator Violence in Sports As a season ticket holder for all Philadelphia Phillies and Philadelphia Eagles home games, I’ve seen my fair share of spectator violence over the years. The fact that Philadelphia has a reputation of having some of the rowdiest fans in sports has given me the unfortunate ability to witness spectator violence right before my eyes. There are many different types of spectator violence, as well as many different causes for them. As spectators, we must not only think about the instant repercussions of this violence, but we also need to think about the future repercussions of these actions. As spectator violence is becoming more prevalent in sports, the children spectators are going to start to believe that this is normal, and the violence will continue to worsen. In order to begin to rectify this issue of spectator violence, we must first identify the causes and warning signs. There are many different types of spectator violence. According to Tamara Madensen and John Eck, authors of â€Å"The Problem of Spectator Violence in Stadiums, these are the six most common forms of spectator aggression: 1. Verbal – singing, chanting, taunting, etc. . Gesturing – signaling to others with threatening or obscene motions. 3. â€Å"Missile† throwing – throwing items such as food, drinks, bricks, bottles, broken seats, and cell phones at particular or random targets 4. Swarming – rushing the field or court trying to gain entry, typically resulting in trampling of spectators 5. Property Destruction – either personal property or venue property 6. Physical – spitting, kicking, punching, stabbings, and shootings (1-2) All of these types of spectator violence can be highly dangerous. The â€Å"Missile† throwing and the physical violence are the most prevalent. Spectators are not always the only participants in these altercations. There have been instances where stadium personnel or athletes have been involved in altercations with fans. When this occurs, the wrong message is sent out to the rest of the spectators. The second an athlete or security personnel become involved in an altercation, the situation immediately worsens because fans begin to think it is acceptable. According to Stacey Hall, Associate Director of the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security, â€Å"there are six event characteristics associated with spectator violence, including alcohol intoxication and availability, crowd demographics, event significance, performance quality, crowding, and performer behavior during duration of the event†(18). In order to come with a solution to spectator violence, it is important to identify the causes of these altercations. The most common cause of spectator violence in sports is alcohol intoxication. Everywhere you look in a professional sports stadium, you will see a kiosk, vendor, or bar selling alcohol. We all know that alcohol intoxication leads to poor decision making. When thousands of passionate fans are crammed together in an arena with alcohol being consumed, altercations are bound to occur. Often times, spectators arrive to the game early and â€Å"tailgate† with large quantities of alcohol and food to get ready for the game. If the Eagles are playing a 4PM football game, you will find hundreds of spectators in the parking lot at 8AM with kegs full of beer and music playing loudly. Drinking all day, along with watching a violent sport like football often times leads to violence. An angry, drunken sports fan, aggravated by the difficulty of getting to the event, parking, dealing with crowds, stirred up by a support group of pals, is easily provoked by the very presence of other violent behavior, namely that on the field,† Stanley Cheren, M. D. , of the Boston University School of Medicine wrote in â€Å"The Psychiatric Perspective: Psychological Aspects of Violen ce in Sports† in the February 1981 issue of the Journal of Sport and Social Issues (Appelson 404). The aggression that many spectators exhibit is often times connected to the aggression that they witness in the sport they are watching. It is no coincidence that the sports that have a higher level of aggression also have more incidents involving spectator violence. Hockey, Soccer, and Football are the three sports where we hear about the most fights and altercations in the stands. Yes, there are incidents in other sports such as Basketball and Baseball, but they are few and far between. When fans see the athletes acting aggressively, it quickly elevates the aggression level in the stands (Adamson 404). Hockey is the only sport where fighting is actually NOT frowned upon amongst the athletes. In fact, it’s almost glorified. If you ever watch a sporting event, other than hockey, where a fight breaks out or there is an altercation in the stands, the camera quickly pans away from it, or the station goes to commercial. In hockey, the announcers begin announcing the fight as if it were a boxing match. It’s no coincidence that hockey also sees a large number of violent interactions amongst fans in the stands. Another issue that tends to lead to aggression and violence in the stands is the overcrowding of stadiums and the seating arrangements. Often times, fans have spent time in traffic on their way to the event. They’ve spent time finding a parking spot and waited in line while trying to get into the stadium. They have most likely already had a few alcoholic beverages as well. All of these small â€Å"speedbumps† on the way to the event can tend to frustrate the spectators. Combining these small annoyances with alcohol can only frustrate them more. So, when they finally make it to their seat and realize that they are almost sitting on top of the person next to them, tension levels begin to rise. There are also venues that offer general admission tickets. These tickets don’t guarantee a seat for the spectator. There are many times where the spectator must stand for the entire event. Just as Madenson and Eck write, â€Å"One of the most consistent findings regarding higher levels of aggression in stadiums relates to the type of seating available to spectators Individual seats are related to lower violence levels, while general admission seating requires spectators to stand, often generates higher violence levels† (3). The tight crowds, as well as lack of order in the general admission area, lead to the higher level aggression. The easy entrance and exit flow of assigned seating also helps to lower the amount of altercations amongst spectators. Just like with any other problem, knowing the cause is the first step to finding a solution. In the case of spectator violence, there are many causes. As previously stated, one of the most common causes of spectator violence is overindulgence in alcoholic beverages before/during the games. The venue should begin patrolling the parking lots for â€Å"tailgaters† before the games. Since the parking lots are on private property, the venue has the ability to control the alcohol consumption. Once the event has begun, alcohol should only be served in plastic cups. Many overseas sporting venues have switched to plastic cups in order to minimize the use of glass bottles and even plastic bottles as dangerous missiles. All sports should increase the penalties for fighting during the game. Instead of small fines which barely put a dent in the athletes’ pocket, each league should institute large fines and suspensions without pay for fighting. This will definitely lower the amount of fights and hopefully will lessen the levels of aggression in the stands. As far as the seating situation in venues, there is not going to be a way to get rid of the general admission area. However, limiting the amount of general admission tickets sold will leave more room in the general admission area for the spectators. This will lower aggression levels and keep the spectators from getting to crowded. Sporting events are supposed to be a stress-reliever for spectators in today’s busy world. We should not have to worry about our safety while at these events. We spend a large amount of money for our tickets and part of this fee should be going towards security in the stadium. There are always going to be isolated events anytime a large group of strangers get together, however, making sure all precautions are taken is the most that we can ask of the venue. Spectator violence can become deadly, and in most situations can be easily prevented with just a few precautions. Works Cited Appleson, Gail. Spectator Violence: What they see is what they do?. American Bar Association Journal 68. 4 (1982): 404. Business Source Corporate.

Racial Discrimination Tacoma an Example of the Topic Government and Law Essays by

Racial Discrimination Tacoma Introduction Racial discrimination, ethnicity, sectarian violence, religious animosity, tribal clashes and nepotism are rampant forms of racial segregation in most communities. Where such kinds of vices are common, civil strife and animosity are manifested, and often-bloody clashes and tensions result. For peace to prevail in any given community tolerance amongst the different races in a given community is required (Albert, Peter, & Ronald 1990). In addition the law enforcement agencies are required to keep vigilant as traces of racial strife still manifest themselves in any given society. In this autobiographical paper I will discuss the challenges facing the Tacoma community in terms of racial relations. Need essay sample on "Racial Discrimination Tacoma" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed I am a Caucasian with familial ties to Irish and Scotch, a native of Tacoma, Washington and my community is predominantly Caucasian. There are however many race related problems in the Tacoma community. Police profiling is a major problem in the community as police often discriminate against the racial minorities. Police in Tacoma Washington have in many occasions been accused of harassing and arresting at will people from some races without clear reasons and on baseless grounds. The Tacoma community is approximated at 200,000 people according to the census report of the year 2002. The community of Tacoma is comprised of several races. About 69% of the total population of community comprise of whites. Therefore, the whites form majority of the residents in Tacoma. African Americans constitute approximately 11% of the Tacoma community, while Asians constitute about 8% of the total Tacoma population. The other races which comprise the Tacoma community include American Indians about 2.0% and others which comprise of about 3.0%. Major economic activities of the Tacoma community include agriculture, manufacturing, forestry and fishing. Racial discrimination at Tacoma is evident in all spheres of life such as education, and job opportunities. The whites being the majority have at sometimes been accused of being discriminatory to the racial minority, mainly the African Americans and American Indians. In Tacoma community, opportunities in the social arena, political arena, educational opportunities and even economic opportunities have largely been disproportionate and based on race and ethnicity. Evidently, in the Tacoma community racial minorities have continued to be treated differently. There are also some incidents whereby some students are unable to access scholarship and sponsorships due to the fact that they belong to the racial minority groups. Where this happened, action has been taken and corrective measures followed include the legal procedures, this shows that, despite presence of racial discrimination, efforts are being put at the community level to fight the vice. Social life in Tacoma has been boosted in that all residents regardless of their race have an access to religious meeting places, amusement parks and are free to visit any place regardless of their race. Although there is a high crime rate in Tacoma, the communities live in harmony and rarely are any incidences of racially motivated crime reported. The other less often spoken about discrimination that happens in Tacoma is that of non-heterosexuals such as homosexuals, bi-sexuals and trans-genders. The above groups have occasionally been treated unfairly leading to a new form of discrimination. Traditionally, the non-heterosexuals have been a minority group and have therefore been viewed as a minority community. The above has become an issue of human rights that needs to be addressed from the legislation point of view. Efforts to fight discrimination have included the setting up of a website, in which reconciliatory information is posted which serves to educate the general public on the evils and disadvantages associated with discrimination. There is a need for law enforcers to be firm in their implementation of the federal anti-discrimination laws so as to promote a mutually beneficial interracial existence. Such efforts in Tacoma have constituted the establishment of the Tacoma human rights and human services department that is solely concerned with resolving racially motivated human rights in the Tacoma area. This program has proved to be an effective way of promoting co-existence in the Tacoma, Washington area. There is also a need for more programs from both the state and federal governments to such as race-based hiring quotas and race-based education programs. Although the above can be a cause for bias towards the white majority, it is nevertheless a right step towards correcting the racial discrimination currently being experienced in Tacoma community. The leadership in my community is comprised of leaders from different racial background. However most of the leaders are whites given the fact that about 70% of the community members are white. Unlike in the past when leaders would openly downplay racial discrimination, today things are different and the leadership is keen to eradicate racial discrimination from the community. The leadership of the community continues to address the racial discrimination issue in that every time such cases are reported the leadership is committed to applying justice and condemning the act openly. This has been very helpful in the fight against racial discrimination in that leaders are viewed by many as role models and people are more likely to obey what they perceive as being the wishes of the leaders. Inspite of the efforts from the leadership in the community to fight racial discrimination, the vice continues to be manifested in the daily lives of people. I interviewed Grace who is an African American, about her efforts to secure a chance at a medical school. The lady complained that despite the fact that she had all the relevant qualifications, she passed her admission test well but it has been over 3 months now and she has not heard back from the college. She suspects it is a case of racial discrimination since most of her colleagues from other racial backgrounds with whom they applied together have received a feedback from the college. Grace is worried because she was denied admission to the college. She is now worried that her career dreams of becoming a medical doctor may be shattered. She blames all her misfortunes on what she terms as deep rooted racial discrimination in Tacoma Washington. Graces case is an indication that a lot needs to be done in order to fight racial discrimination, tension and suspicions that exists in the Tacoma community. Despite the isolated cases such as those cited above the residents of Tacoma community have continued to collaborate in many areas. There are many joint community projects whereby members participate regardless of ones racial background. There is a growing evidence that any member of the community can apply and get a job in any place in Tacoma as long as one possess basic qualifications. There are many interracial marriages happening, which all point to the fact that, the society needs to collaborate and overcome the racial challenges. In terms of the texts addressing the racial discrimination issue, there are many scholars from all races that have addressed the issue of racial discrimination. For instance, to carry out this research I referred to articles written by whites who condemn the vice. No single author seemed to support racial discrimination, a good indicator that this war is close to being won. Of all means of fighting racial discrimination the media is a strong avenue. Careless media reporting has fueled racial, ethnic and tribal clashes in countries like Rwanda. However, in Tacoma community the media has shown great responsibility and professionalism. Most programmes aired are sensitive to all races. The FM stations and the print media have all shown commitment to diffusing racial tensions where they suffice and have tended to promote racial co-existence. Conclusion Efforts should be made to investigate all cases that are reported on racial discrimination. Where one is found guilty, proper legal steps should be taken to address the matter. More stringent laws should be introduced to fight remnants of racial discrimination. The Tacoma community is on the right track in terms of inter-racial relations, if the ongoing efforts are continued, racial discrimination shall be totally eliminated in the community in the foreseeable future. References Albert, Peter J. and Ronald Hoffman. (1990) We Shall Overcome: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Black Freedom Struggle. New York: Pantheon Books in cooperation with the United States Capitol Historical Society Personal Interview with Grace, community member. Tacoma Washington.