c.c 3.2

In an article entitled "gender discrimination in sports"  posted at livestrong.com, K.J Castle, a writer for LiveStrong, claims that "Gender discrimination in the athletics industry has long been a controversial topic."


According to Castle, the founder of modern Olympics Baron Pierre de Coubertin says,  “No matter how toughened a sportswoman may be, her organism is not cut out to sustain certain shocks.” gender equality has come a long way since 1896 no doubt, but it wasn't until 1972 that Title IX was created that equality in sports really took hold. Title IX banned gender discrimination in all schools, including athletics making it possible for girls to have their own sports. If boys had baseball then girls had softball and so on.

In a recent study, statistics have shown that female sports do not carry the same weight as male sports. Men get $179 million more in athletic scholarships than females do.Additionally, collegiate institutions spend just 24 percent of their athletic operating budgets on female sports, as well as just 16 percent of recruiting budgets and 33 percent of scholarship budgets on female athletes. Although Title IX abolished gender bias in sports this still happens, I believe it should be if not cut in half, at least be close.

Castle concludes by telling us how women's sports is valued less than mens sports, meaning that women wages and television coverage is less than what men's sports is. I think that this is a result of women's sports are not as fierce as men's sports. You don't see women hitting 400 foot homeruns in front of 45,000 fans, and you don't see women hitting 300 yard drives in golf.

so let me ask you this, What if women's sports were covered as much as men's? would they feel more adrenaline and perform at a higher level? they just might but unless some one comes along to break the gender barrier in sports just like Jackie Robinson did with race, we may never know.


Work Cited

Cassel, J.. N.p.. Web. 10 Feb 2014. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/247625-gender-     discrimination-in-sports/>.

c.c 3.1

In a recent article by Dina Gachman,contributor for forbes.com, entitled "ESPN's 'The Price Of Gold' Takes A Closer Look At Tonya Harding," Gachman informs th
e reader of the Kerrigan-Harding scandal, the effects it had on TV ratings during that Olympics and why bias toward women are the reasons the ratings changed so much from the scandal.

According to Gachman "Kerrigan was attacked and clubbed in the knee and the crime was traced back to a group of men, including Harding's then-husband Jeff Gillooly. Harding denied that she knew about the attack and she eventually won the gold medal in figure skating in the 1994 Olympics, Kerrigan placed second. After Harding returned to the U.S she was found guilty to conspiring to hinder prosecution in the attack on Kerrigan.

                                                                                                                    Harding (middle) Kerrigan (right)
Recently, the major sports network ESPN made a documentary of the tragedy and attack on Nancy Kerrigan and Harding decided to do an interview for the film entitled "The Price Of Gold" "The interview lasted eight hours, Harding is often emotional in the film, and her jealousy of Kerrigan and bitterness  about the accusations aren't hard to detect" said Burstein of ESPN. Harding shows how publicly being jealous of someone can be a bad omen to put on yourself. Harding was already better than Kerrigan,so why would you do something to manipulate the results.

"because of the Harding-Kerrigan rivalry, that year's Olympic event saw record-breaking rating that still hold today." this shows how women's athletics aren't what make ratings on major television thrive. It takes a tragedy or an interesting story to make someone want to watch women athletics, Showing how bias the world is toward women.

"The film touches on themes of gender bias, class, and the media's tabloidization of what could have easily been a tragedy." says Gachman. that's just it. the media doesn't know what was going on in Hardings' head when all of this was happening in 1994.maybe she didn't know? maybe she did, she is the only one that knows the answer to that question.

work cited
Gachman, Dina. "ESPN's 'The Price Of Gold' Takes A Closer Look At Tonya Harding." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 15 Jan. 2014. Web. 18 Jan. 2014.

CC 2.1

"Earlier this week, Bernie Miklasz enumerated the Cardinals' primary off-season concerns; fortunately, there are only three:

In an article entitled "Hey, let's fix the Cardinals!" posted at Baseball nation,Rob Neyer, a sports writer for Sports Nation, makes a claim as to why the Cardinals need to fill three major holes in their team

According to Neyer the Cardinals have three holes they need to fill this offseason
1. Lack of power
2. Defense, athleticism
3. Shortstop"
thus,the Front Office,needing to fill these holes will more than likely make a trade or test the free agent market to fill the holes. As a fan, I feel like they should trade for a high quality shortstop

Throughout this past season, the Cardinals had the best offensive team in the National League but lacked in the power numbers "The Cardinals led the National League in scoring while finishing 13th in home runs." although they didn't have high power numbers they were possibly the most clutch team, having the best batting average with runners in scoring position (RISP).

Who could the Cardinals pick up to help produce power and defense? I think the best answer is Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki,being a three time silver slugger award winner and a two time gold glove award winner he would fill all three of the major holes.

I usually don't miss any games during the season and I can personally attest to the Cardinals needing a high quality shortstop badly. To me Troy Tulowitzki is the answer. The Cardinals, at shortstop have havent had a quality shortstop since Ozzie Smith. they have been in between a rock and a hard place when it comes to shortstops and now they can finally fix the problem they have had for twenty years.

hopefully the Cardinals can fix these three problems this offseason and can get back to world series next season!

Work Cited: Neyer, Rob. "Hey,let's Fix the Cardinals!" Reading. 8 Nov. 2013. Baseball Nation. Web. 8 Nov. 2013

cc 1.2

In a recent article entitled, "How much credit does Jim Leyland deserve for Tigers' wakeup after lineup shakeup?" submitted by Jeff Passon, a writer for Yahoo Sports, informs us of the Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland's decision to shake up his lineup in the wake of game four of the American League Championship Series against the Boston redsox.

"The phones of the Detroit Tigers' position players started buzzing around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday. Most were still asleep, the grind of the American League Championship Series and another flaccid day of hitting leaving them weary. Torii Hunter peeled his eyes open and read a message from Mac – Lloyd McClendon, his hitting coach: "You're leading off tonight. You OK with that?" Sure, Hunter replied, even though he hadn't done so in 14 years. Once Hunter gave the go-ahead, the other texts pinged through, and Jim Leyland's plan to rouse his team from its doldrums was in motion." This occurance stated by Jeff Passon about the early morning wakeup call outfielder Torii Hunter recieved shows the inside of what many fans dont see behind the scenes of a major league baseball team that is trying to break a slump.

"He didn't gloat after the Tigers rode the new-look batting order to a 7-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox in Game 4 of the ALCS, knotting the series and ensuring a return this weekend to Fenway Park. Leyland, in fact, dismissed causation, correlation or any sort of relationship between the runs – which in the first three games had come in trickles and drips – and his fiddling: "I don't know that it had anything to do with it. I doubt it very much." This second statement by Jeff Passon proves why so many players love to play for Jim Leyland his why he does what he does. He doesnt mess around with his lineup unless there is something very wrong.

I believe that Jim Leyland is one of the best managers in the game and his win in game four of the ALCS proves that. when he shook up his lineup his players didnt gripe or moan because they respect him and his work.

cc 1.1

In a recent article entitled, "Is Jameis Winston ready for 'Manziel moment' in Death Valley?" submitted by Eric Adelson, a writer for yahoo sports, informs us of the amazing numbers that Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston has put up in his first five games at the college level.

"The Seminoles' two-sport athlete has his Florida State bio listing Bessemer, Ala. as his hometown. That's the same hometown as Bo Jackson. As if that's not enough of a buzz recipe for an outfielder/quarterback who chose the same school as two-sport stars Charlie Ward and Deion Sanders, Winston also has a non-toxic charm that's kept him from any criticism so far. He likes to lead, and teammates like to follow." what Eric Adelson has stated is a prime example of Jameis Winstons young leadership and his ability to play multiple sports at a very high level.

"In his first college football game, in a difficult environment against Pittsburgh, Winston shredded the Panthers for 356 yards and four touchdowns in a performance that looked like the last game of his senior season rather than the first of his Florida State career. He also ran for a touchdown and set the school record for completion percentage, going 25 for 27 in the game." In this statement Eric Adelson explains why Jameis is playing the way he is and what his numbers are and what they represent to the college football media scene.

I personally believe that Jameis Winston will win the Heisman Trophy if he keeps this pace of high level play up,and he has the making to be one of the greatest college football players ever if he can not get into trouble outside of the football field.

In essence, Jameis Winston has been the best football player this first four games of the season and many believe that he will win the Heisman over the defending winner Johnny Manziel and Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota.

short story blog

I am in English 11 and i have been assigned to write a short story. The idea is to create your own character and setting and come up with a unique story to tell in less than 1000 words.

Really the only think that has been easy for me was actually creating the character because i based him off my little brother Carter,the characters name is Carter Alan and his superhero name is Captain Carter.

The most difficult thing about writing this story has been coming up with the setting and the supporting characters such as the antagonist and other supporting roles. Another thing that has been difficult was figuring out how exactly the story would play out from beginning to end.

As i said earlier the main character is based off my little brother Carter and the characters name in the story would be Carter Alan and Captain Carter. Carter Alan in the story is an 18 year old boy who dreams of being a soldier in the army but is to small and weak to do so. He is always daydreaming about what it would be like to be looked up to by others,and how it would feel not to be pushed around by bigger people.

this has been a very interesting experience writing this short story and i have enjoyed it.

blog of choice

There are organizations in place who's objective, through research and education, is to strive to bring the wolf back to healthy populations in the wild. The goal of these efforts is to offer refuge for captive wolves and wolf hybrids, and to offer communities education about the part of the wolf on our environment's ecological systems, along with ways to co-exist with wolves and the wildlife that we share with them.

Wolves once populated all of North America with numbers ranging about two million. Today there are less than five thousand, with all subspecies facing extinction. This is because of destruction to their wild habitats and extermination by humans. Research shows that this extermination has definite effects on the ecological system. "In 1930, the last known wild wolf in Yellowstone National Park was shot." The absence of wolfs was seen even in the vegetation. Herd animal populations rose to unnatural levels and some plant species were brought to near extinction. Wolves were brought down from Canada to the park and shortly thereafter, scientists began to see the return of herd animals and endangered plant species return to healthy numbers.

"The decline in wolf population in the wild has also had an effect on the ecological system in cities, especially along rural boarders," stated research director Jean-Jacques Maleval for the Wolfgang Schlichting Research LLC. Coyote populations are drastically rising. Coyotes are not as shy as wolves and are scavengers, traveling into cities for food. Incidents have been recorded of coyotes attacking children in parks and eating neighborhood pets. The decline of the wolf has also effected deer populations, causing them to rise to levels that are out of control. The increase in deer activity is causing automobile accidents, destruction of vegetation surrounding homes, increased risk of rabies, even the occasional story of a deer being stuck inside of a shopping center. If there were more wolves alive in the wild, predation would allow nature to control these outstanding populations.

In 1980, a study was done by the Wolf Conservation Center (WWC) that declared the red wolf extinct in the wild. Re-introduction program was started by captive breeding of full blooded wolves and releasing them into the wild. Today there are still only about one hundred and thirty alive in the wild. WWC also reported that the Mexican Grey wolf once highly population the south western United States and Mexico. This species has also suffered in numbers with their re-introduction program being even less successful than the Red wolf. Both species of wolves are still critically endangered but were removed from the Endangered Species Act last April. Today, there are an estimated four thousand wolves alive in the United States and Alaska and they only live in four states in our country.

A study by the WWC that started in 2004 has stated that because of the merciless extermination of the wolf, "DNA reveals a severe decline in the genetic diversity of Grey wolves." This is important because it means that with less separate blood lines in the wild there is more inbreeding. This results in lower immune system health, skeletal deformities along with a multitude of other defects that will effect the survival of the species. An example is the necessity for the wolves elevated immune system to perform their role as disease control. Wolves control disease by eating weaker or sick animals, because of this, their bodies are exposed to contamination. Their immune systems have to be strong enough to fight off any threats and keep the individuals healthy. This is just one of the many problems that may result from lower genetic diversity.

WWC reports an alarming increase of breeding wolves in captivity. Here they are hybridized and sold in the pet trade. "Today there are over a quarter of a million wolves in captivity, most living under less than optimal conditions." People buy them and realize they cannot take care of them, leading to the possible death of that animal. Wolves and hybrids are illegal in several states, yet people disregard the laws and buy them anyway. Owners of wolves often do not even know about the regulations of having a wolf or knowing how to keep them healthy in a domesticated environment.

It is obvious to me that there is a great need for wolf preservation and conservation. Research and scientific study could lead to a better way for humans and wolves to co-exist. Sadly, these facilities are limited at best. The need for education on these issues is clear and appears to be the only way for people to be enlightened about the wolves plight.