Iowa still produces many
physically fit, disciplined and patriotic youth,
but far too many are not.
|
Physical
education has three primary
functions in a civilized society. |
-
National Security--We must
remain fit to defend our
homeland.
-
National Productivity--Healthy
and fit workers are needed to
produce goods and services for
all.
-
Cultural Evolution--When
their borders are secure and
their basic needs are met,
highly civilized societies
create amusement, recreation and
leisure aimed at guiding its
citizens toward the highest
human ideals.
|
"Fewer than three in 10 Americans between the
ages of 17 and 24
are qualified
for military service."
Reasons -- Physical, mental or moral
deficiencies.
14 August 2006 -- Army Times
Of
the less than three out of ten young Americans
who can make it into the military,
25% of those accepted into the Army National
Guard never make it through Initial Entry
Training.
NGB statistics
Dr. Richard H.
Carmona warns that Obesity affecting national
security.
Our
national physical fitness has been quietly
declining for years.
US
troops are losing the battle of the bulge.
Military Too Fat,
Female, Married, Old
U.S. leans on
fat GIs.
Unfit for combat
Even the Marines
are concerned.
Parks and recreation have been asked to assist.
Some Iowa
National Guard units are joining with their
communities to improve physical readiness
Guard recruits
are hard to find
Cyclone ROTC ranks third in United States
March 2007 -- Most youth cannot serve in the military
Iowa
ranks among the least interested States.
New
ISU Center To Test Fitness Myths
Schools push phys ed to combat obesity
China is building its military forces
faster than U.S. intelligence and
military analysts expected, prompting
fears that Beijing will attack Taiwan in
the next two years, according to
Pentagon officials.
U.S. defense and intelligence
officials say all the signs point in one
troubling direction: Beijing then will
be forced to go to war with the United
States, which has vowed to defend Taiwan
against a Chinese attack.
China's military buildup includes an
array of new high-technology weapons,
such as warships, submarines, missiles
and a maneuverable warhead designed to
defeat U.S. missile defenses. Recent
intelligence reports also show that
China has stepped up military exercises
involving amphibious assaults, viewed as
another sign that it is preparing for an
attack on Taiwan.
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
June 26, 2005 |
China's communist leaders view the
United States as their main enemy and
are working in Asia and around the world
to undermine U.S. alliances, said a
former Chinese diplomat.
Chen Yonglin, until recently a
senior political officer at the Chinese
Consulate in Sydney, Australia, said in
an interview that China also is engaged
in large-scale intelligence-gathering
activities in the United States that, in
the past, netted large amounts of
confidential U.S. government documents
from agents.
"The United States is considered by
the Chinese Communist Party as the
largest enemy, the major strategic
rival," Mr. Chen told The Washington
Times in a telephone interview from
Australia, where he is in hiding after
breaking with Beijing in May.
THE WASHINGTON
TIMES
June 27, 2005 |
More than any other American
President in the last 100 years,
John F. Kennedy understood the value of physical
fitness.
The Soft American
Recent recollections
Link to Current exhibit
American Physical Therapy Association Named Science
Partner
to the President's Council on Physical
Fitness and Sports
Kraus-Weber background info
| Kraus called for a return to rational and carefully taught restorative
exercise, but sports continued to dominate the physical education curriculum in
the mid-1950s. Kraus later wrote: At the time I simply did not realize that many physical educators had such
an ingrained dislike of exercise. I found this out in 1957, when I attended a
meeting with a number of physical educators. It was a very friendly session.
After a few minutes we got down to the main problem. I asked, "Why are you
against exercise?"
"We can't use exercises," one physical educator said.
"Why not?" I asked.
He smiled. "Very simple," he said, "Twenty-five years ago
we gave exercises to school children. And as far as I'm concerned, that's
enough. We were looked down on as the boobs of the school system. We had no
status at all. So we changed our emphasis. Now who are we? Well, we're not the
boobs we used to be. We're respected members of the academic community. We're
educators, physical educators if you wish. We're not 'exercise teachers' any
more. We're educators, coaches, and administrators. You want to know the truth?
Exercise is finished! It's passé. It's out of date. You want us to turn back
the clock. Well, I'm telling you doctor, we don't care what your findings show,
we're not going back to the old days. We've worked hard to get where we are, and
we're going to stay there." |
