Physical culture and Leisure. What does «American dream» mean?
Physical culture and sport have a considerable influence on the development of society and social relationships. In order to appreciate this, a sociological approach is essential. Sport organisations affect the separate areas of work and sport in numerous ways. The results of two Bulgarian studies of the time budgets from the years 1970/71 and 1976/77 show that the amount of time spent on sports and taken from working hours has increased. Only if this increase benefits the quality of work and productivity is it useful for the population. This is discussed with respect to the new categories of additional labour time and additional leisure time. Americans are not regularly active during their leisure time. Watching TV is the leisure activity that occupie the most time, accounting for about half of leisure time on average for both men and women. Socializing, such as visiting with friends or attending or hosting social events, was the next most common leisure activity, accounting for about three-quarters of an hour per day for both sexes. What is the American dream? The first settlers hoped for freedom of religion; in their home countries they had been persecuted because of their religious and political views. Bad living conditions in Europe and the hope for better living standards in America attracted more and more settlers to migrate to the new world. The booming US industry during the first half of the 20th century caused the myth “from rags to riches”.
American economy: from the 17 century to present times
17 century. The economy of colonial America was as unstable as its social class structure. Europeans were used to an economic system stabilized by the ancient guild system. Long-established trading houses preserved a consumer base with fixed desires. Nothing like these institutions existed in America. The economy of colonial America ranged from subsistence-level farming on a gradually expanding frontier to attempts at industry. The AMERICAN economy in the 18th century was one stricken inflation and worthlessness. After America claimed independence and fought the Revolutionary War it was severely in debt. The major focus of the first administrations was regaining economic power such as Alexander Hamilton`s Financial Program. Other countries around the world had a joke against American money of the time, the monetary unit was called a Continental and when they though something was worthless they said "It isn't worth a Continental". The major reason for inflation during the few years prior to 1920 was that WWI ended. Americans had not been able to obtain many consumer goods during the war. When the war ended, there was a surge of consumer spending, which inflated prices. After the economy readjusted in the early 1920s, prices stabilized and deflated relative to their highs after the war, though they remained higher than where they were before the war began. The Federal Reserve was not able to prevent the rapid inflation after the war because the pressures were just too strong. The same thing happened after WWII ended, and by that time the Federal Reserve was well-established. Some forces just cannot be controlled. The 20th century, continuing a trend that began in the latter part of the 19th century, brought an enormous leap in the scale and complexity of economic activity. In many industries, small enterprises had trouble raising sufficient funds and operating on a scale large enough to produce most efficiently all of the goods demanded by an increasingly sophisticated and affluent population. In this environment, the modern corporation, often employing hundreds or even thousands of workers, assumed increased importance. Today, the American economy boasts a wide array of enterprises, ranging from one-person sole proprietorships to some of the world's largest corporations. In 1995, there were 16.4 million non-farm, sole proprietorships, 1.6 million partnerships, and 4.5 million corporations in the United States -- a total of 22.5 million independent enterprises.
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