Policies and Products of Alibaba Group, China

History of Alibaba Group Alibaba Group’s origin dates back to the late 1990s. Jack Ma who was initially an English instructor in Hanzhou established the Alibaba Group in the late 1990s together with almost 20 other members. They had a common conviction that small companies had the ability to influence expertise and novelty via the internet to develop and rival more efficiently in the local and international markets.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Policies and Products of Alibaba Group, China specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The company launched its website, Alibaba.com that assisted small Chinese entrepreneurs, manufacturers, and exporters to sell their products on the international market. Over the years, the firm has grown into a world leader when it comes to mobile and online commerce (Liu Forsythe, 2010). It had a successful IPO in the US that turned out to be the largest in the history of IPOs (Tho mas Barreto, 2014). The company runs its basic operations from China. As of September 2014, it had a market value of 231 billion US dollars. Its website is also among the twenty websites that have the highest online traffic in the world accounting for a significant portion of parcel deliveries to China. The website is also responsible for over two-thirds of China’s online sales (Liu Forsythe, 2010). The firm is currently planning to establish businesses in India, which is one of the world’s most populous countries in its expansionary plans. India provides one of the largest markets in terms of consumers. Alibaba’s Innovations One of Alibaba’s greatest innovations is Alibaba.com that accounts for the huge profits that the company enjoys. The initial Alibaba.com website listed thousands of China’s factories that offered manufacturing outsourcing services for numerous sectors within the Chinese economy. The website enabled foreign firms and business es that were looking for manufacturers of the right kind to produce the products they needed. The innovation made the orders placed for the production of goods by the Chinese run into thousands of units. Another great innovation by the Alibaba Group is Taobao, which is an online consumer portal that is closely similar to the United States’ eBay.com (Yang, 2006). Taobao is a consumer-to-consumer portal that enables clients to trade between or among themselves. However, Taobao was unique in some aspects. It was able to tap into Alibaba’s existing database of manufacturers and producers.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Taobao made it possible for factories and farmers to have a direct link with customers. Taobao allowed both consumers and producers of commodities to transact directly without the need for intermediaries via its order fulfilment services and centre s. Taobao has been proved a powerful economic engine. When this innovation is combined with the emerging middle class in China that is made up of at least 400 million potential consumers, the results are incredible. This innovative consumer-to-business model has completely changed the way businesses operate. The producers have taken up the roles that were initially played by businesses, thus making them improve on their profits. This situation has necessitated the need for manufacturers to come with customised options for the goods they offer to their clients. The situation applies with intermediaries who go to the extent of repackaging and/or mixing the product to come up with a product that meets the specific needs of their customers. Digital distribution is also an incredible innovation by the Alibaba Group. With this innovation, it is now possible to consume products such as movies, music, video games, and series over the air without necessarily having to purchase the hardcopy c omponents. With virtual deliveries of goods, unlike the traditional items, much of the overhead costs are eliminated. Digital distribution does away with physical storage or shipment of such items with no accompanying reproduction costs (Premkumar, 2003). This distribution innovation has inspired other innovative business models such as SaaS (software as a service). With SaaS, users are able to test software free of charge and/or buy additional features via micro-transactions. SaaS is a model that is becoming popular in gaming (Cusumano, 2010). It is widely adopted by business-to-business start-ups that provide basic services to their clients cheaply while finding other means of charging the top-tier accounts. To ensure success, the free trial model usually means that a developer of a given game is able to deliver frequent updates of his or her game content, including new characters, new powers, features, and levels. The company believes that to guarantee an increase in revenues, it has to lend a listening ear to its existing audiences and find out whatever it is that they desire next in relation to a given line of products.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Policies and Products of Alibaba Group, China specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More SaaS has changed the handling of customers for the better (Cusumano, 2010). Initially, during the product era, shipment of the final iteration took place without the customers having any real say on the products on offer. Organisational Approaches to Drive Innovations Alibaba Group has a three-pronged organisational approach when it comes to innovation. Firstly, the firm explores the desirability of a given innovative product to its consumers. The reason for this step is to ensure that it does not invest heavily in products that eventually turn out to be obsolete within a very short time due to their inability to satisfy specific customer requirements. Anothe r reason for checking out for the desirability of the product among its consumers is to ensure that the company does not suffer a taint to its image that currently portrays it as one of the world’s largest e-commerce company (Fan Huang, 2007). A disastrous innovation may serve as a steppingstone for some of its competitors who may be trying to catch up with it. Even though the firm may institute some recovery measures to revamp its image in a case of any ruin, the damage done to the firm in terms sales may be far-reaching and almost irreversible. This human-centred approach has been responsible for driving much of Alibaba Group’s evolution. The second consideration in warming up to innovations is viability. Any innovation that Alibaba Group considers must be in line with its business strategy. The firm prioritises technologies that are compatible with its business model. It has to enhance it to realise unprecedented growth rates. This certainly informed the firmâ€⠄¢s decision to buy AutoNavi, a mapping company, whose value to the company’s operations appeared strategic. AutoNavi has the potential of channelling more customers to the firm’s Taobao and Tmall (Guo Hu, 2012). As such, it avails a complement for Alibaba Group’s core business. It will also avail much more innovation relating to consumer preferences and whereabouts through its tracking services that will supplement offline data to online data that Alibaba Group has in its possession. Such online to offline (O2O) cohesion raises switching costs, consequently strengthening the network effects. In addition, AutoNavi will assist Alibaba Group in diversifying into mobile consumption.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The third factor in Alibaba Group’s innovation approach is feasibility. The company evaluates its ability to handle and implement certain innovations. Focus here is on the availability of the human resources that are needed to implement such innovation. Technological advancements usually carry with them certain minimum requirements in terms of accessibility to complementary facilities and resources, some of which may not be readily available in the market. Implementation of a technology in the absence of the necessary structure can have adverse effects on a firm since this situation incredibly increases the chances of failure. In cases where Alibaba Group does not have the required structures, it tries to explore the possibilities of sourcing for them. At times, the firm is forced to scout for talent in various areas of innovation in which it is not well endowed. All the three organisational approaches to driving innovations have guaranteed the firm success in the launch and implementation of various innovations (Qinghe, 2013). This situation has made it possible for the firm to experience unprecedented growth without any major setbacks that might have had the effect of cutting back on the already-achieved milestones. For Alibaba Group, being in possession of large amounts of extra cash does not mean it invests in just any kind of innovation without getting deep down into detailed information regarding the innovation’s feasibility, desirability, and viability. According to Jack Ma, success lies in being thorough in whatever one adopts to minimise the impact of setbacks that may come along the way. Alibaba versus its Global Competitors Alibaba Group’s main competitors in the e-commerce sector are Amazon and eBay. Alibaba Group has performed incredibly well in the face of stiff competition from both eBay and Amazon, with statistics and published reporting intimating that the Alibaba Group’s revenues surpass the combined earnings of Am azon and eBay. Sales records for Alibaba indicate that the firm’s e-commerce business is growing faster than that of its two closest business rivals for the first and second quarters of 2014 (Fan Huang, 2007). Moreover, the gap that separates its growth from that of Amazon and eBay seems to widen fast. This observation is a clear indication of how the leadership role that Alibaba Group plays is taking shape in the e-commerce Market (Filson, 2004). However, there is a variation between Alibaba Group and its competitors when it comes to market dominance. For instance, Alibaba Group’s dominance is in the Chinese market where it controls an estimated 80% of the online market, especially with its Alipay and Taobao components (Shen, 2012). On the other hand, Amazon controls much of the North American market where it competes closely with eBay. Judging by the nature of their dominance, it is rather obvious that real head-on competition between Alibaba Group and these two com petitors can only take place outside their strongholds. Therefore, these firms will be targeting new markets that have not been explored much and/or where no firm has an established presence. Alibaba Group has an added advantage over eBay and Amazon due to some of the facilities it enjoys. One of them is that it has the Chinese government’s support behind it (Qian, 2012). China is seeking to move away from manufacturing as the main economic activity into consumerism. It is counting on eBay as one of the ways out in achieving this vision. Additionally, Alibaba Group enjoys a huge market base back home compared to Amazon and eBay. This advantage serves as a good foundation in its growth and expansion plans. With efficient plans in place, Alibaba Group does not have anything to worry about competition from its close competitors. Competition in terms of Innovation When it comes to innovation-based competition, one needs to consider various aspects to analyse the position of Aliba ba Group in relation to its competitors. First, Alibaba Group seems to have copied Amazon’s business model. However, to make its product better and more attractive, it has included some extra innovative components to its models as a way of customising its products to have a more desirable response to customer needs and requirements of manufacturers and other producers of commodities. In the view of these facts, it becomes a bit challenging to come up with a clear position on this issue. If one chooses to ignore the allegations of copying on part of Alibaba Group, it is easy to say that the firm is bound to maintain dominance due to its timely and relevant innovations. Alibaba’s Entrepreneurial Model Alibaba Group’s entrepreneurial model is a great one. It has won the envy of other firms in the e-commerce industry and other industries as well. The company has a diversified model that consists of three main sites that run the different aspects of its business. Eac h site is tasked with ensuring creativity and innovativeness on its part. Tmall deals with online sales of goods that are branded such that they focus on China’s middle class that is among the fastest growing portions of the population (Guo Hu, 2012). Taobao is the second site that focuses on shopping. The third site is Alibaba.com that helps in linking firms all over the world with Chinese exporters who host millions of businesses and merchants with many users. With the addition of Alipay, Alibaba Group has a big stake in the online market and hence huge growth prospects. Conclusion: The Degree of Alibaba Group’s Success in its Approach to Innovation Alibaba’s approaches to innovation have had great degrees of success upon judging by growth in sales and the market base that the firm has gained over the years. Some of its creative business models have introduced new concepts into the market. Such concepts have helped in terms of simplifying its business. For in stance, alibaba.com was the first website in the world to enable foreign firms to connect directly with manufacturing firms that are located in China. It made it easy for them to outsource the production of goods at low costs without having to go through intermediaries that cause the prices of various goods to go up. Many firms have been attracted to do business with China. The result is an immense increase in the number of orders that are received by Chinese firms. In terms of financial innovation, Alipay has had a great success by attracting millions of subscribers (Shen, 2012). Alipay is currently offering great competition to PayPal. Alibaba Group was able to outstrip Amazon of its status as the preferred e-commerce service provider in China. It has rose to become China’s preferred online transactions firm that controls more than 80% of the country’s online business. Considering the degree of success that Alibaba Group has recorded over the years, it is clear that it is headed for greater heights. Reference List Cusumano, M. (2010). Cloud computing and SaaS as new computing platforms. Communications of the ACM, 53(4), 27-29. Fan, S., Huang, Q. (2007). Networked Manufacturing and Mass Customisation in the E-Commerce Era: the Chinese Perspective. International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing, 20(2/3), 107-114. Filson, D. (2004). The Impact Of E-Commerce Strategies On Firm Value: Lessons From Amazon.com And Its Early Competitors. The Journal of Business, 77(S2), S135-S154. Guo, M., Hu, W. (2012). Tmall Incident – A Legal Problem or Business Operation Dispute. Advanced Materials Research, 472(1), 3455-3461. Liu, C., Forsythe, S. (2010). Sustaining Online Shopping: Moderating Role of Online Shopping Motives. Journal of Internet Commerce, 9(2), 83-103. Premkumar, P. (2003). Alternate Distribution Strategies for Digital Music. Communications of the ACM, 46(9), 89-95. Qian, G. (2012). Psychometric Analysis of Validity of Trust Evaluating Indicators in C2C Online Markets: A Case Study of Taobao. Sensor Letters, 10(1), 124-130. Qinghe, Y. (2013). The online shopping change the retail business model: A survey of the people use online shopping in China. IOSR Journal of Business and Management, 15(5), 77-110. Shen, W. (2012). Deconstructing the myth of Alipay Drama. Repoliticising foreign investment in the telecommunications sector in China. Telecommunications Policy, 36(10-11), 929-942. Thomas, D., Barreto, E. (2014). Alibaba’s choice of U.S. IPO spurred by rivals, Hong Kong impasse: sources. Retrieved from https://www.reuters.com/article/us-alibaba-ipo/alibabas-choice-of-u-s-ipo-spurred-by-rivals-hong-kong-impasse-sources-idUSBREA2I0OA20140319 Yang, B. (2006). Some Personality Correlates of Using EBay. Psychological Reports, 99(7), 762. This report on Policies and Products of Alibaba Group, China was written and submitted by user Rihanna Key to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

How to Answer the Interview Question What Makes You Unique

How to Answer the Interview Question What Makes You Unique More and more people are getting the question, â€Å"What makes you unique?† in an interview setting. It can throw even the most prepared job seekers off their guard. What does the hiring manager want to know, exactly? About your personality? About your skills profile? A general rule of thumb would be this: an interviewer is trying to see what you choose to emphasize in your answer, and also how well you think creatively on the spot with a question you may not have prepared. But you can prepare! Download this list of 10 toughest interview questions and prepare your answer before heading into your next interview.Stick to Work Stories, Not Personal StoriesThe answer is not to talk about your leisure activities, no matter how interesting, but to script yourself an answer that is both true and tailor-made to the job you’re interviewing for. Figure out, based on the company and job description, what that company seems to prioritize, how you are particularly suited to deliver , and why you are valuable in this respect.Then, draw on any of several possible pieces of your own experience to make your answer: your background, your past experience, your specific skills- hard or soft, your personality, your in-depth knowledge of the brand or industry, your involvement in issues beyond the office, and, yes, even a few things about you personally that can be peppered in for extra emphasis.Prep Beforehand With Talking PointsIf you’re stuck, make a list of personality traits or skills that show you best and most accurately. Of that list, pick the things that seem to link up best with the particular focus of the job description. Then start scripting.Choose specifics. Instead of saying, â€Å"I’m a fast learner† or â€Å"I am reliable,† find a way to cram more convincing detail into your answer. As in: â€Å"I really hit the ground running and can handle almost anything that’s thrown at me and get up to speed fast.† Beef it up. Really sell yourself. The more specific the better.Why are You and You Alone Perfect for the Job?Remember, the trick is to make yourself memorable. Stand out from all the other answers from other interviewees. Find something tangible that you can deliver, that’s exactly what they’re asking for on paper- then broaden it out with a few personal flourishes that make you the unique candidate. When in doubt, focus less on the â€Å"uniqueness† aspect of this question, and more on the particular- or â€Å"unique† value you will bring to this and other jobs.

A History of Adinkra Symbols

A History of Adinkra Symbols Adinkra is a cotton cloth produced in Ghana and Cà ´te dIvoire which has traditional Akan symbols stamped upon it. The adinkra symbols represent popular proverbs and maxims, record historical events, express particular attitudes or behavior related to depicted figures, or concepts uniquely related to abstract shapes. It is one of several traditional cloths produced in the region. The other well-known cloths are kente and adanudo. The symbols were often linked with a proverb, so they convey more meaning than a single word. Robert Sutherland  Rattray compiled a list of 53 adinkra symbols in his book, Religion and Art in Ashanti, in 1927. The History of Adinkra Cloth and Symbols The Akan people (of what is now Ghana and Cà ´te dIvoire) had developed significant skills in weaving by the sixteenth century, with Nsoko (present-day Begho) being an important weaving center. Adinkra, originally produced by the Gyaaman clans of the Brong region, was the exclusive right of royalty and spiritual leaders, and only used for important ceremonies such as funerals. Adinkra means goodbye. During a military conflict at the beginning of the nineteenth century, caused by the Gyaaman trying to copy the neighboring Asantes golden stool (the symbol of the Asante nation), the Gyaaman king was killed. His adinkra robe was taken by Nana Osei Bonsu-Panyin, the  Asante Hene  (Asante King), as a trophy. With the robe came the knowledge of adinkra aduru (the special ink used in the printing process) and the process of stamping the designs onto cotton cloth. Over time the Asante further developed adinkra symbology, incorporating their own philosophies, folk tales, and culture. Adinkra symbols were also used on pottery, metalwork (especially  abosodee), and are now incorporated into modern commercial designs (where their related meanings give added significance to the product), architecture and sculpture. Adinkra Cloth Today Adinkra cloth is more widely available today, although the traditional methods of production are very much in use. The traditional ink (adinkra aduru) used for stamping is obtained by boiling the bark of the Badie tree with iron slag. Because the ink is not fixed, the material should not be washed. Adinkra cloth is used in Ghana for special occasions such as weddings and initiation rites. Note that African fabrics often differ between those made for local use and those that are exported. The cloth for local use is usually replete with hidden meanings or local proverbs, allowing locals to make particular statements with their costume. Those fabrics produced for overseas markets tend to use more sanitized symbology. Use of Adinkra Symbols You will find adinkra symbols on many exported items, such as furniture, sculpture, pottery, t-shirts, hats and other clothing items in addition to fabric. Another popular use of the symbols is for tattoo art. You should further research the meaning of any symbol before deciding to use it for a tattoo to ensure it conveys the message you desire.

Drinking and Driving (Cause and Effect) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Drinking and Driving (Cause and Effect) - Essay Example Nonetheless, the adverse effects of alcohol, when it is already time to take a drive to some other place or back to home, cause people to be susceptible to vehicle – related accidents which lead to injuries and deaths. Alcohol is a major cause in vehicle – related collisions that lead to injuries and deaths among people (Hingson and Winter 63). The numbers of recorded alcohol – related traffic deaths have declined since the early 1980s. However, even if this is the case, in United States, alcohol is still a significant factor which contributes to vehicle – related fatalities. In fact in 2002, alcohol had significantly contributed about four (4) out of ten (10) fatalities due to vehicular accidents. Among all the alcohol – related clashes, about 42 resulted to injury while about 4 percent caused death. Whereas the case of non – alcohol – related vehicular clashes, about 31 percent resulted to injury while only 0.6 percent led to death ( Hingson and Winter 64). ... Since the younger population are much more engaged in drinking alcohol than the older segment, the young people are more likely to get injured or die in vehicular accidents. This is supported by Maskalyk in the account of â€Å"Driving and Drinking† (313) and Hingson and Winter in â€Å"Epidemiology and Consequences of Drinking and Driving† (63 - 78) which are both written in 2003. Apart from that, Hingson and Winter claimed that more males are probably involved in alcohol – related vehicular accidents than females (64). This is for the reason that males are more involved in alcohol drinking as well as they are much heavier drinkers than females. Alcohol does not only put the lives of those who are driving while drunk at risk for it has also seriously endangered and destroyed the lives of other people than these drunk drivers. In fact, there are many people other than the drunk drivers who get injured or killed. Hingson and Winter stated in 2002, that about 44 pe rcent of the deaths in vehicular crashes had involved some drunk drivers. In these numbers of fatalities, about 22 percent were the drunk drivers’ passengers; about 13 percent comprised the pedestrians; about 7 percent were the drivers of the other vehicles which had been hit by the drunk drivers; and about 2 % happened to be bicyclists (64). On the one hand, Blum has written an article entitled â€Å"Drunk Driving: How it Hurts† which talks about a teen activist named Jackie Myers struggle against drunk driving (14 – 16). Myers has lost five of her family members on a vehicular collision with a nineteen year old drunk driver. At first, Myers had considered that driving while drunk is just normal until she suffered from the effect

Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment Paper Research

Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment - Research Paper Example Presenting complaints For the past five years Mrs.Rozario had been having an increasing memory loss and difficulty to move around for her daily functions. Previously she could walk or board the bus to town for shopping or to church. Her memory too became poorer. Executive functions slowly dwindled and she was unable to do many things herself. Help was needed on occasions. Sleep became disturbed. Moreover she seemed to withdraw from her friends and family whom she used to meet frequently and spend her time laughing and conversing with in better days. Recently she had a fall and had broken her femur. This had upset her further though that phase had been successfully passed over. Winter aggravated her mobility problem. Even with multiple complaints and problems she had been reluctant to approach anyone for help. She attributed her complaints to aging. It was at the behest of her son that she had now agreed to come. With the son’s assistance, the problems were all hopefully reveal ed. Past Medical history It said that she had been taking anti-hypertensives for the last twenty years. She used to be regular in her appointments with the physician but had lost that regularity of late. Previous medical history did not reveal any significant issue. Her pregnancies terminated normally and she has two children. Significant childhood diseases or history of immunizations were not remembered. Hospitalization had been only for her deliveries and her recent fracture femur. With no history of allergies, she could take any medicine. She was on 25 mg. Atenolol daily and had antacids occasionally. Analgesics and pills for sleeping comfortably had been prescribed at the local care center as and when she found it difficult to walk because of pain or could not sleep. She had ill-fitting dentures as she had lost weight recently. Cognitive impairment was present. Nutrition Her diet included more of cereals and porridges with small quantity of fruits and vegetables. Her dentures di d not fit well due to her loss of weight and so she would rather have a diet easily swallowed. She was having a diminished appetite. The history of constipation was elicited. Her son claimed that financial resources were not a hindrance to nutrition as he was looking after her. However she was staying alone and inability to cook her meals and have them could be the reason for the limited nutrition. Current weight was 50 kg. while her expected weight was 65 kg with reference to the Body Mass Index. Recent change in body weight had been noticed after she recovered from the fracture of the femur. Her current medications could have affected her appetite or digestion. Loneliness could be a factor which had limited her nutritional status. Vitamin or mineral supplementation was not her habit. She had mild depression for which she was not being treated. She used to read widely but her vision was failing and she had not met an ophthalmologist for assessment and reading had been stopped. Ther e were no independent transportation facilities unless her son arrived. She was not motivated enough to look after herself. It could be due to her failing cognitive functions. Consumption of her anti-hypertensive drug or other medicines was irregular and consisted of more than 3 drugs. The nutrition assessment was completed with a checklist. Mrs. Rozario agreed to most of the suggestions in the checklist. She ate less than two meals

There Has Always Been Wars and There Will Always Be Wars Essay Example for Free

There Has Always Been Wars and There Will Always Be Wars Essay When we think of war we think of torture, cruelty, suffering and hell. Indeed, there is no denying that war is terrible. The desire for war is generally caused by mans ego, which is part of the physical man, as opposed to the spiritual man. Physical man is another way of describing mans human nature. Man naturally has great tendencies to do according to his desires, and has other people act in agreement to his desires, cultures, and philosophies. As a civilization of a particular culture grows, it is a part of that civilizations nature to dominate the choices of surrounding peoples, in an attempt to bring these peoples into less than one great rule. If need be, man will wage war to forcibly bring others to the awareness of a more enlightened way of living. The only way to truly have peace is for man to ultimately strengthen his spiritual side. When living with true virtue, man is able to have patience, understanding, tolerance, love, forgiveness, gentleness, and goodness, even in the face of fear, intolerance, hate, and anger. Self-defence is necessary, but more times than not, war are waged by men who fight against the free agency of others, and men who will the dominance and manipulation of others. This stems greatly from pride and selfishness, but it can come from any attitude that is against the spirit of true virtues, those virtues which are of God. Most Christians believe that war and fighting are wrong except in the most severe cases. They base their views on Jesus’ teaching about love, ‘a new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another’ but depending on the situation, would it be our fault for self-defence? If one was to strike at our family, would you strike him/her with a weapon? When Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, his disciples wanted to defend him, yet Jesus claimed not to fight and put away the swords, ‘When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, ‘Lord, should we strike with our swords? ’ And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. But Jesus answered, ‘No more of this! ’ And he touched the man’s ear and healed him. ’ In the statement it suggests that because of war in the past we should fight, it is our human nature to fight. Like other animals, humans have an instinct to survive. If this suggests to them that fighting and killing will help, then they will usually do so. Many also fight for pleasure, a rough game of excitement and competition which appeals to most of us. Yet, if we look at the whole of human history, we find that the use of physical force against other animals (including other humans) is a practically universal feature. Now that women have begun to be recruited into the front-line of armies, you might find that you yourself are killing people in a war. Yet simple aggression, or love of fighting, or desire to survive, cannot be seen as the main reason why most individuals have been caught up in warfare in the past. Most wars for many centuries have involved unwilling soldiers. The politicians and generals decide for the troops, through fear, need, loyalty or hope for treasure, apply themselves to capturing or killing the enemy. Clearly wars would not happen if humans were actively planned against the use of all physical violence. On the other hand, no animal would survive for long in this competitive world if they were so planned. Muslim attitudes to war and peace are based on the teachings of the Qur’an. One idea in Muslim that relate to war is Jihad. Jihad is the word used to describe personal struggle of each Muslim against evil as they try to follow the way of Allah. There are two types of Jihad: greater Jihad and lesser Jihad. Greater Jihad is the personal struggle to obey Allah, spiritual struggle lasting a lifetime, winning the struggle gets you to Paradise. Lesser Jihad is the struggle to make the world a better place, against poverty and injustice, and involves defending against enemies only in self defence. When the Prophet Muhammad was asked which people fought in the name of Allah, he said: The person who struggles so that Allah’s word is supreme is the one serving Allah’s cause. The idea of Jihad is often misread by non-Muslims who then see Islam as not being a pacifist religion. Another idea in Muslim that relate to war is Harb al-Muqadis, which is Holy War. Muslims are allowed to fight in self-defence, however they are forbidden to begin in a fight. Therefore, the aim of fighting is to create a circumstance where Muslims are free to worship Allah and live in peace. One aim of Holy War may be to create equality where people are free to live their lives without beliefs and politics being forced on them. There must be no hatred or vengeance in the fighting. As soon as peace is offered, fighting must stop. Once peace has been re-established the differences between people must be resolved. â€Å"Hate your enemy mildly; he may become your friend one day† suggests that we shouldn’t hate our enemies so much as they could help us in life-saving situations. People never know that sometimes your worst enemy can be your friend. We should put aside our differences are combine our thoughts and feelings, and resolve an understanding. On the other hand, even though there have been wars, should we be the ones to continue with them? Should we be the ones who strike our swords in the face of peace? Can’t we be the ones who make peace and shake hands with one and another? Even though there were wars before, there were also non-violent ones. Non-violent is showing disapproval with damaging property or causing any threat, this could be done with sit-ins, strikes, petitions, and peaceful demonstrations. In my opinion, I think that non-violent methods can work. Using a non-violent protest is taking some action to stand-up against and resist oppression, injustice or to make a difference. These people who use non-violent are called Pacifists. There are many famous pacifists: Jesus, Bishop Desmound Tutu, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King. These inspire others to fight in non-violence, therefore commit no wars. If we commit no wars, it won’t be human’s nature to fight. As Jesus should us the human qualities he had like forgiveness and mercy, we would know that violence doesn’t solve everything. If the world tried to act as the commandments teach there wouldn’t need to be war. One commandment like ‘Thou Shall Not Murder’ is one that suggests not hurting any living thing. Muslims believe to not hurt living things as foretold in the key concept of Ahimsa. Ahimsa means trying to fight injustice and evil but without using any physical force. It is the key concept that prevents a Muslim from causing harm to any creature, and therefore, many Muslims avoid violence aside from most severe cases. Christians believe Jesus taught that people should not seek revenge when wronged – they should ‘turn the other cheek’. But this doesn’t mean being submissive victim – just that we should base our response on the principles of love and forgiveness. For example, most Christians don’t believe that if someone commits a crime, we should do nothing. They believe punishment can be more constructive. Punishment can be used to reform an offender and to deter others from offending, as well as for retribution. ‘Love your neighbour as yourself. When we love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, we grow to recognize that everyone is part of His creation. If we love the Lord God with all our heart, soul and mind, loving our neighbour is the natural result. Love thy neighbour is not as hard as it looks on the surface. It simply means respecting others and regarding their needs and desires as highly as we regard our own. Keeping this commandment, however, is likely to require the supernatural assistance only God, through Christ, can provide. How can we learn to love the guy next door with the barking dog, especially when we dont even like him? Perhaps the secret is to recognize that our neighbour, whether its the guy next door, or the cashier at the local supermarket, is someone as worthy of Gods love as you or I. Its human nature to follow those we admire most, so in getting to know Christ, well discover a God worthy of our whole-hearted love, and our neighbour will see that love in us. In conclusion, I think that it is not our human nature to fight, and even though there were wars in the past it is not our responsibility to continue with them. Many inspiring people taught us to love and not hate, and to speak out with non-violence. These inspiring people like Jesus, gives us teachings and quotes for us to base our lives on. Teachings like not to seek revenge when wronged, teaches us that we should forgive and forget, and not remain bitter. If the world tried to act as the commandments teach there wouldn’t need to be war. So, love thy neighbour as he or she may be your friend or save your life. And we should renew friendships and rebuild relationships, and make up after quarrels, and work together again.

Birth of Venus by Boticelli Essays -- painting analysis

In this article we will discuss the â€Å"Birth of Venus,† a well-known painting by the artist Alessandro di Filipepi Botticelli; completed in 1857. The reason why I chose this painting is, because of the fact that I wanted to give you a bit of information on this painting. Some of the examples I chose are; where did it come from, who originally wanted the painting, and why it came to be? I chose these examples because I have always wondered about these things myself, and hopefully I will be able to answer them for you too. However you may now wonder why I am even talking about this piece or what my intent behind this article is, you shouldn’t. The reason I am writing, is because I have always been fascinated by this piece and the calming effect it has on me. I remember whenever I saw it for the first I thought of the figure Pomona as a motherly figure and wanted to be beautiful like Venus, but that couldn’t be. Instead, I began to do research, since I wanted to learn a bit more about the piece myself. My main goal here is to try to and make you understand some of the things that I’ve already learned about the piece. So let’s get started and I’ll tell you some examples of the things I’ve learned while studying this piece. One that the piece was not originally released to the public, two it was not the most original piece out there, and three the piece was originally a commissioned work. Now, you might be wondering who commissioned the piece, the answer to that question is that the painting was commissioned by Lorenzo di Pier Frencesco Di Medici. He commissioned the painting, because he wanted it for private use in his villa and not for public domain. The second thing you might wonder now is why the piece was not original; the reason... ...re that if you just type in the Birth of Venus you will find a few pictures that make fun of or use the image again; but all of the imitations always keep the same theme so I would prefer not to discuss it anymore. ¬ While writing this paper I enjoyed telling you a bit about the things that I’ve learned about this piece and hope that you have enjoyed them too. I think that you should feel a bit better about knowing the fact that the piece is safe today and will continue to be, along with just knowing a few more things about this piece. Works Cited â€Å"Botticelli’s Birth of Venus†. Italianrenaissance.org. Italian Renaissance.org 2013 web. 12-6-2013 â€Å"Sandro Botticelli Biography†. Artble.com Artble 2013 web. 12-6-2013 â€Å"The Birth of Venus By Sandro Botticelli†. Uffizi.org 2013 web. 12-6-2013 Nicolas Pioch, â€Å"Botticelli, Sandro†. ibiblio.org. Jun 19, 2006 web. 12-7-13