Jihad: Moving Beyound Cultural Biases and Misconceptions Essay

The concept of Jihad was not widely known in the western world before the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. Since then, the word has been woven into what our media and government feed us along with notions of Terrorism, Suicide Bombings, Hamas, Al-Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden, and now, Jihad. Our society hears exhortations resounding from the Middle East calling the people to rise up in Jihad and beat back the imperialist Americans. Yet, if we try to peel back all of these complex layers of information we can we attempt to find out what Jihad really means. Webster’s Dictionary defines Jihad as â€Å"a holy war waged on behalf of Islam as a religious duty or a crusade for a principle or belief† (1). Often, media depicts Jihad in the same manner—as a vicious clash between two very different peoples, each of whom believes that righteousness, and in many cases God, is on their side. From this interpretation and our daily media intake, one may re asonably assume that Jihad refers to nothing more than violent acts, or â€Å"holy wars.† While there is no precise definition of the term, the meaning of Jihad is far more complex. In fact, the term Jihad generally refers to the struggle one must undertake as one â€Å"strive[s] in the path of God† (Church 110). That struggle is defined both externally and internally. As so, they are classified in terms of an external struggle with enemies or non believers, or an internal struggle with oneself to reject greed and temptation. While popular opinion has been misconstrued to see Jihad as a malevolent, violent action; a serious investigation of the term’s historical and religious background reveals a multi-defined word. An examination of the Jihad’s etymological context will lend a k... ... As Americans, we must approach Jihad with sensitivity, an admission of our ignorance on the subject, and an earnest attempt to properly educate ourselves. Works Cited Church, Kenneth. â€Å"Jihad.† Collateral Language. Ed. John Collins and Ross Glover. New York: NYU Press, 2000. 109-123. Engineer, Asghar Ali. â€Å"The Real Meanings of Jihad.† December 2001. 1 October 2003.Husaq, Nina. E-mail to the author. 19 October 2003. Juergensmeyer, Mark. Terror In The Mind Of God. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000. Merriam-Webster Dictionary. (6th Edition) Springfield: Merriam-Webster, 1999.Rogers-Melnick, Ann. â€Å"Jihad Misused, Misunderstood.† Post-Gazette 23 September 2001. 2 October 2003. The Qu’ran. LXI:11, p.398; IX:41, p.149. Witham, Larry. â€Å"Muslims See Wordplay as Swordplay in Terrorism War.† The Washington Post. 24 July 2002. 3 October 2003.

Pros and Cons of Managed Care

Care Some of the pros for managed care are; Preventive care — HMOs pay for programs, they are set up and are intended at keeping one healthy (yearly checkups, gym memberships, etc. )The idea is, so they won't have to pay for more costly services when and if one gets sick. Lower premiums — Because there are limits set as to which doctors one can see and when one can see them, HMOs charge a premium and usually they are lower premiums.Prescriptions — As part of their precautionary retreat, most prescriptions are covered by HMOs for a co-payment that also can be very low. Fewer unnecessary procedures —doctors are given financial incentives from HMOs , to provide only needed care, so doctors are less likely to order costly test or surgeries that one does not need. Limited paperwork — While healthcare professionals and facilities have more paperwork, under managed care, HMO members usually only has to show their membership card and pay a very low co-payme nt.Some of the cons for managed are; Limited doctor groups — To keep financial burdens down, HMOs tell one which doctors’ one can see, including specialized fields. Restricted coverage — one cannot expect care on command because ones primary-care physician must justify the need based on what benefits ones plan covers. Prior approval needed — If one would like to see a specialized doctor or go to the emergency room, one would need permission from their main physician.Possibility of under treatment — Because of the incentives given doctors to limit care, the doctor may try to hold back on good care management he would give. Compromised privacy — HMOs use patient records to keep an eye on doctors' performance and efficiency, so particulars of one’s medical history could be seen by other people. Getting medical care used to be thought of as trouble-free. One would go to the physician of their choice, get great care and their health insura nce would cover the cost of seeing the physician and cover tests needed.These networks should stand for better earth care for less money. But as they work hard to keep out of pocket expenses down, the scary tales it causes are frightening: â€Å"drive-by† mastectomies, when women are not allowed facility stays after harrowing breast removal; As network bureaucrats who deny a claim for coverage to the emergency room when heart attacks turn out to be indigestion; doctors who get year-end payoffs to give constraining care and don't communicate to patients about better costly treatments.Those against managed care aren't so kind. It can be said that the system that once commended physicians for working too much for the patient now, are given an incentive for doing a lot less. â€Å"The incentive now is to put bounds on care,† says (Dr. Donald Hanscom, a Beverly gynecologist. ) â€Å"Everything is money. â€Å"After a decade of wining and dining the public with lower premi ums and a wider spectrum of benefits, the inexperienced period for managed care is noticeably over. Those opposed are uneasy by the idea of unethically abuse.They are apprehensive members, many are not getting the care needed, the specialists they want, or the coverage one should get to have, especially in health urgencies. They also are concerned about issues that come up that have plagued the healthcare system elsewhere in the nation, such as stifling guidelines set up that keep doctors from suggesting more costly treatment choices. Although they say their far reaching goal is to provide a greater healthcare, the business has brought forth an unwelcoming talk that seems to challenge that.Patients who choose a doctor that does not participate in a â€Å"The† network, either at their own expense or with restricted coverage by the network, are considered â€Å"leakage. † Doctors who go against the networks system to get better treatment for their patients sometimes risk being blackballed out of and the network. It's reassuring to know that some networks are doing a good job, but lawmakers are dealing with a weary opposition that isn't frightened by what the nation thinks. Those up on the hill have responded with a charge of state and national bills pointed at bringing in a booming healthcare industry that's pretty much free-for-all.For their part, the networks don't see what the entire objection is about. They say productiveness and peoples request will keep their guidelines just and within ones means. â€Å"The networks are trying not only for cost, but also for class and peoples’ satisfaction. It's a patron service industry when you get right down to it. The network points to their absolute success in bringing down costs and keeping the mass of network enrollees happy. Each month people across the nation join a network, so it's plain that, Network care is here to stay in one shape or another.Those against and those rooting for that of ma naged care agree that the existence of unconstrained health care on demand is declining. As health care costs push very high yearly, some say it's time for all to comprehend that the medical healthcare industry has financial restrictions just like any other industry. â€Å"People have been brought up to believe that health care is an entitlement,† says (Jeanne Holland, executive director of Northeast Physicians-Hospital Organization) at Beverly Hospital. They think ‘Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness and health care on demand. ‘ Consumers need to change their thinking. â€Å"Resources http://ask. reference. com/related/History+of+Managed+Care? o=102545&qsrc=121&l=dir, Retrieved, October 26, 2010 http://www. ecnnews. com/hlth/manintro. htm, Retrieved, October 26, 2010 http://ezinearticles. com/? Health-Insurance-Types, Retrieved, October 26, 2010 http://www. senioranswers. org/Pages/prosandcons. htm, Retrieved, October 26, 2010

The Evidence for the Existence of Multiple Memory Systems...

The Evidence for the Existence of Multiple Memory Systems Memory forms an important part of cognitive psychology and has been of interest to numerous psychologists. This essay is going to refer specifically to the information-processing model of memory and will discuss the experimental evidence that exists for multiple memory systems. The multi-store model of memory was first developed by Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) and Waugh and Norman (1965).[1] It comprises sensory stores, short term-store and long-term store to form a model of memory and information processing. One component of the system is the sensory register, where our feature detection and pattern recognition processes produce a†¦show more content†¦This led Sperling to the hypothesis that one form of presentation of the visual stimulation remains accessible for a short time after the presentation. It was Neisser (1967) who proposed that this representation should be called an icon. Iconic storage was claimed to be useless by some psychologists. Haber (1983) claimed it was irrelevant to normal perception, as he assumed that the icon was created at the offset of a visual stimulus, but it is actually created at its onset.[3] Therefore, even with a continuously changing visual world, iconic information is still useful. The Echoic store is a transient auditory store, holding relatively unprocessed input. It is similar to the iconic store except it refers to auditory rather than visual stimuli. Treisman (1964) conducted experiments in this area and found that the temporal duration of unattended auditory information in echoic storage is about two seconds. Short-term memory is another component of the multi-store model. Our short-term memory is said to require the allocation of cognitive resources (Atkinson Shiffrin 1968). Peterson Peterson (1959) conducted the classic study of short-termShow MoreRelatedThe Theoretical Framework Of Wm917 Words   |  4 Pagesunable to mentally adjust the amount of each ingredient called for in order to make only two portions. This is because of a deficit in her memory, specifically her working memory (WM). While memory is defined as the â€Å"storage of things learned and retained from an organism’s activity or experience† (Merriam-Webster, 2015), WM can be described as the cognitive systems that are required to temporarily store and manipulate information (Baddeley, 2012). This report provides an overview of the theoreticalRead MoreThe Many Functions of The Brain Essays1242 Words   |  5 Pagesfunctions in which it helps process and understands information. One aspect of the br ain is its memory. Memory is there so information can be used to understand what is happening around someone. The function of memory is somewhat of an enigma to many scientists. How does the brain store and retrieve such information and at such high speeds? Although it is hard to conceive the actual machine working behind memory scientist have been able to figure out the physiology behind this process. The brain isRead MoreAmnesia1074 Words   |  5 PagesA. Evaluate evidence that non-declarative long-term memory is preserved in amnesia. Amnesic patients tend to suffer from permanent or temporal, normally partial or total loss of episodic memory and an impaired capacity to form and store new memories. On the other hand, they seem to demonstrate unimpaired performance of behaviours involving prior experiences on tests which do not require any intentional or conscious recollection of those experiences (Schacter, 1992). Hence, most amnesic patientsRead MoreDissociative Identity Disorder ( Mpd )1170 Words   |  5 PagesDissociative Identity Disorder, commonly referred to as Multiple Personality Disorder, has been one of the more controversial diagnoses in psychology and psychiatry. On one side of the debate, many psychologists and psychiatrists believe the disorder to be an actual phenomenon that occurs in individuals that have suffered through some traumatic experience. On the other side of the debate, however, are the many psychologists and psychiatrists that believe the disorder is simply the result of a therapistâ €™sRead MoreModels Of Theories Of Memory1235 Words   |  5 Pagestheories of memory. This essay will evaluate two models of theories of memory. Memory can be defined as the persistence of learning over time via the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information. Encoding is the process of categorizing incoming information through conscious effortful processing, rehearsal, or unconscious automatic processing. The storage process involves the retention of encoded information over time. Lastly, retrieval is the process of getting information out of memory. There areRead MoreThe Process of Memory Reconsolidation1581 Words   |  6 Pagesoccurred over the process of memory reconsolidation. Understanding the processes that underlie memory formation retrieval and storage is key to understanding and guiding treatment for patients with conditions such as posttraumatic stress disorder. This essay discusses the processes of consolidation and how that impacts on reconsolidation and the implications of this knowledge on patients suffering posttraumatic stress disorder. Much psychological research suggests that new memories require time to stabilizeRead MoreComputer Forensics : The Integration Of Computer Science And Law1505 Words   |  7 PagesWhat is Computer forensics basically it is the integration of computer science and law to solve crimes. It serves as a branch of digital forensic science and it applies to evidence that is found in computers and digital storage media. Its purpose is to examine digital media through the identification, preservation, collection, analyzation and offering facts and creating opinions based on the digital information. Even if it relates most with many computer crimes computer forensics still can be usedRead MoreThe Human Memory Process Essay941 Words   |  4 PagesMemory is associated with the â€Å"thinking again† or â€Å"recalling to the mind† of something learned from past experience. Human memory is an important part of human existence, but it is rarely understandable. Memory is a â€Å"ment al time travel† (Goldstein, 2011, p. 116). A memory can bring back the feeling about situation, event and experience that occurred long ago. Memory is used to remember fact, acquired new knowledge and how to use new knowledge or skill in day to day life (Goldstein, 2011). SternbergRead MoreThe Severe Disease Known as Multiple Sclerosis Essay975 Words   |  4 Pagesdisease is known as Multiple Sclerosis. In this research essay, I will be discussing what multiple sclerosis is, symptoms, causes, personal experience, and treatments. M.S., as some would call it, also known as multiple sclerosis is a neurological disease. This disease, in particular, could also be viewed as an autoimmune disorder. It is not nearly as fatal as the sexually transmitted disease (AIDS), yet it can be just as debilitating. What exactly is Multiple Sclerosis? Multiple sclerosis is a diseaseRead MoreCase 09-1, Velocity Cellular Essay864 Words   |  4 PagesGroup # 5 (Amanda Picht, Qinxi Fan, Mengnan Zhang) Date: April 10, 2012 Subject: Acctg 642: Case 09-1, Velocity Cellular Statement of Facts Velocity Cellular Services is a company that sells wireless services and products based on the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) standard. Under the GSM standard, an activation card is necessary for every subscriber. The company is promoting Power Starterpack, a prepaid phone service plan to existing wireless subscribers. Each subscriber of this

Case 6.1 the Greater Providence Deposit Trust Embezzlement

Assignment # 1 Case 6.1 The Greater Providence Deposit amp; Trust Embezzlement Accounting Information Systems – ACC 564 Professor Jim Ridilla October 23, 2011 Discuss how Greater Providence Deposit amp; Trust might improve its control procedures over the disbursement of loan funds to minimize the risk of this type of fraud. Segregation of duties is a fundamental element of internal control in any company. No single employee should be given too much responsibility over certain business transactions or processes. When one person in an organization has too much control or access over these responsibilities, problems can and often do arise. In the case of The Greater Providence Deposit amp; Trust, James Guisti was a†¦show more content†¦Even though it is accepted industry practice for the bank manager to authorize loans up to a certain dollar amount, in this case $25,000, the procedures for processing a loan should require the attention of more than one person. If the amount of the loan does not require approval from the bank’s headquarters, it should still be reviewed by the controller of the local branch. This will further discourage bogus loans and reduce the risk of embezzlement. Discuss how Greater Providence might improve its loan review procedures at bank headquarters to minimize its fraud risk. As demonstrated in this case, the amount of the loan does not always indicate the presence of fraud. An automated system that checks all loans, not just loans for large amounts, for proper authorizations, documentation and paperwork should be established. Any loans that are processed through the system that are missing any type of information or that have information that matches existing loans would be flagged and double checked for irregularities. Background checks should be required for all bank employees. The background check should include criminal and financial records. Unusual changes in credit reports, such as sudden spikes in outstanding consumer debt or unusual high past-due accounts should be examined. Financial information of current employees displaying possessions ofShow MoreRelatedAccounting Information System Chapter 1137115 Words   |  549 Pagesinclude information for each audience. Consequently, the annual report may grow in size and complexity to the point where it contains more information than many users want to receive or are able to comprehend, i.e., information overload. In some cases, technical concepts may be reduced to concepts that are more common; this reduces precision and conciseness thereby leading to more generalizations.  · Care must be taken in the presentation of information. Words and phrases familiar to one

Shakespeares Sonnet 18 - 1392 Words

In Sonnet 18, Shakespeare shows his audience that his love will be preserved through his eternal lines of poetry by comparing his love and poetry with a summers day. Shakespeare then uses personification to emphasize these comparisons and make his theme clearer to his audience. Shakespeare also uses repetition of single words and ideas throughout the sonnet in order to stress the theme that his love and poetry are eternal, unlike other aspects of the natural world. Using the devices of metaphor, personification, repetition, and progression of tone, Shakespeare reveals his theme that the natural world is imperfect and transitory while his love is made eternal through his lines of poetry. Shakespeare uses metaphors to show one object†¦show more content†¦For instance, the word time itself is repeated three times, while the idea of time is used repetitively throughout the sonnet. For example, with the lines rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, Shakespeare suggests that just as the summer progresses and the winds shakes the buds of May, life progresses as youth fades and aging occurs. The key word in this quote is bud because the bud signifies youth, and by these buds being shaken, the idea of youth departing is shown. Shakespeare further stresses the idea of time, in his lines and summers lease hath all too short a date, Shakespeare uses the idea that life is too short in order to emphasize the fact that, unlike other things in life, his love will never end because his words will never be forgotten. Again, Shakespeare speaks of the progression of time when he mentions the summer suns gold complexion often being dimmed. Shakespeare uses this idea of di mming and death in order to show his audience once again that his love and his eternal lines of poetry will never be dimmed as the summer sun is. Shakespeare also changes the tone as the sonnet progresses. The sonnet begins with a very pleasant tone, continues to change to become more depressing, and then progresses to become pleasant once again. The pleasantShow MoreRelatedDicussion of the Purpose of Shakespeares Sonnet 181129 Words   |  5 Pages Shakespeares collection of sonnets is heralded as one of the greatest, most ambitious sonnet collections in English literature. Of these154 sonnets, the first 126 of them are addressed to a fair youth, a beatiful young man, with whom Shakespeare has developed an intimate friendship. The overarching theme of devotion in antimony to mortality denotes that â€Å"Sonnet 18† is predominantly a love poem. Accordingly the purpose of the poem seems initially to be to compare his beloved friends handsomnessRead MoreEssay about William Shakespeares Sonnet 18924 Words   |  4 Pagesalive is not easy. One knows that life eventually comes to an end, but does love? Time passes and days must end. It is in Sonnet 18, by Shakespeare, that we see a challenge to the idea that love is finite. Shakespeare shows us how some love is eternal and will live on forever in comparison to a beautiful summers day. Shakespeare has a way of keeping love alive in Sonnet 18, and he uses a variety of techni ques to demonstrate how love is more brilliant and everlasting than a summers day. TheRead MoreLove in Shakespeares Sonnets 18 and 130 Essay703 Words   |  3 PagesAlmost four hundred years after his death, William Shakespeares work continues to live on through his readers. He provides them with vivid images of what love was like during the 1600s. Shakespeare put virtually indescribable feelings into beautiful words that fit the specific form of the sonnet. He wrote 154 sonnets; all of which discuss some stage or feature of love. Love was the common theme during the time Shakespeare was writing. However, Shakespeare wrote about it in such a way that captivatedRead More Immortality Through Verse in Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 and Spenser’s Sonnet 751681 Words   |  7 PagesImmortality Through Verse in Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 and Spenser’s Sonnet 75  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   Desiring fame, celebrity, and importance, people for centuries have yearned for the ultimately unattainable goal of immortality. Poets, too, have expressed desires in verse that their lovers remain as they are for eternity, in efforts of praise. Though Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 and Spenser’s Sonnet 75 from Amoretti both offer lovers this immortality through verse, only Spenser pairs this immortality with respectRead MoreEssay Shakespeares Sonnet 18823 Words   |  4 Pages During the Renaissance period, most poets were writing love poems about their lovers/mistresses. The poets of this time often compared love to high, unrealistic, and unattainable beauty. Shakespeare, in his sonnet 18, continues the tradition of his time by comparing the speakers love/mistress to the summer time of the year. It is during this time of the year that the flowers and the nature that surround them are at there peak for beauty. The theme of the poem is to show the speakers true interpretationRead More A Comparison of Shakespeares Sonnet 18 and Duffys Valentine646 Words   |  3 PagesA Comparison of Shakespeares Sonnet 18 and Duffys Valentine Shakespears attitude towards his lover is she is superior to the summer and very beautiful Shall I compare thee to a summers day? This show Shakespeare is thinking about comparing her to the summer but then he gives examples of how she is better than the summer. He says she is lovelier than the summer Thou art more lovely and more temperate. He then goes on to say Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May Read MoreDifferent Versions Of Shall I Compare Thee And A Summer s Day?967 Words   |  4 Pagesof Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day? William Shakespeare was the original author of the famous sonnet â€Å"Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?†. Shakespeare’s intentions for writing this poem was to compare his beloved to a Summer’s Day. Shakespeare wrote and published this original version of Sonnet 18 in 1609, but was rewritten in the early 1900’s by Howard Moss. Shakespeare s sonnets were published only once in his lifetime. For nearly two centuries after their first appearance, in theRead MoreThe Foundation Of Image : William Shakespeare1323 Words   |  6 PagesThe Foundation of Image William Shakespeare is one of the most known writers not only of his time period, but to this day. He is known for the 37 plays he wrote and his 154 sonnets which are often recreated and studied today. Reading can seem very monotonous and boring if you’re not impacted by the text. A writer has to lay a foundation to pull their reader in and paint an imaginative picture in their reader’s head in order to bring a story to life. William Shakespeare was nowhere shy of doing theseRead MoreAnalysis Of Shakespeare s Sonnet 130 1048 Words   |  5 Pages 2015 Sonnet 130 Shakespeare’s â€Å"Sonnet 130† uses imagery to compare his lover to other objects in order to convey his true feelings towards his mistress. With this idea, one can make the assumption that Shakespeare’s argument is accepting the normality of women by understanding that they don’t all look like supermodels or goddesses. His views about his mistress can relate to how present day men look at their significant other. Shakespeare’s view towards women shifts between his sonnets. ComparingRead MoreResearch Paper on Shakespeare1586 Words   |  7 Pagesstyle, mysterious life and amazingly written sonnets make him the most studied and analyzed men to ever walk the planet. William Shakespeare, born in Stratford-upon-Avon, he was baptized on April 26th 1564, but his actual birth date is unknown. Shakespeare was the third child of John Shakespeare and Mary Arden. William had two older sisters, Judith and Joan, and three younger brothers, Richard, Gilbert and Edmund. Not a lot is known of Shakespeare’s childhood, which is part of the reason everyone

Native Son The Paradoxical Symbol free essay sample

This paper discusses and analyzes the symbols of light and dark in the novel Native Son by Richard Wright. The paper shows that the symbols of dark and light in Richard Wrights Native Son represent both good and bad elements in the book. It discusses how these motifs are hurtful and beneficial simultaneously throughout the novel. It shows, too, how these symbols refer to objects, feelings, people, culture and society. The light and dark motifs in the novel Native Son, by Richard Wright, are ambivalent and complex. These symbols have both good and bad elements. On the one hand, Bigger Thomas hates what whites have made of his dark skin; he is conditioned to see his blackness in a negative manner. However, he loves the darkness when it offers protection from what whites have caused in Biggers home, community, and life. The light symbols in this novel represent a sense of power. We will write a custom essay sample on Native Son: The Paradoxical Symbol or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The whites, in Native Son, are considered to be superior based on the light color of their skin. Light also represents a lack of knowledge of the whites about black society and culture.

Introduction of Acer Essay Example

Introduction of Acer Paper Introduction of Acer Acer ranks as the worlds No. 3 branded PC vendor, designing easy, dependable IT solutions that empower people to reach their goals and enhance their lives. Established in 1976, Acer Inc. employs 5,300 people in more than 100 countries. Offering a complete range of laptops, desktops and peripherals, Acer has the right solution for all your home computing needs. Market Acer competes within the PC and peripherals industry providing a personal computing solution for consumers and businesses. Unlike competitors Acer offers alternate brands for different customer segments rather than one brand with many variables. This allows Acer to maintain margin for each brand without cannibalization. Most brands within the PC industry offer one brand. However, as demonstrated in the strategic group map (see side panel) out of the top 5 brands only Acer offers different brands for different segments. While Acer takes a middle ground in terms of pricing and reputation (but also covering the ‘premium’ and ‘low’ end of market), other brands trade on a lower or higher pricing offers dependent upon their market segment. For example, Dell takes a price leadership position, whereas HP and Lenovo take a higher price position. The key aspect is that Acer stands alone as compared to competitors in offering a range of brands that target various segments. There are also substitute players such as Apple introducing devices such as the iPhone and iPad that will challenge the need for a PC for some consumer segments. There is also a lot of power in suppliers with 85% of all laptops being produced by Taiwanese manufacturers in Chinese factories who supply the entire industry. We will write a custom essay sample on Introduction of Acer specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Introduction of Acer specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Introduction of Acer specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer If these suppliers decide to forward integrate into the value chain, especially by using the internet to sell their products, this could mean a serious competitor to all PC companies. Internal Analysis In a SWOT analysis the key points for Acer are: Strengths * Three tiered pricing structure of low, medium and premium * Alliances with BenQ and the Ferrari brand * Demonstrated ability to find new markets Weaknesses  · Market share is declining in established markets  · Too many brands in a stable can lead to cannibalization Opportunities Continue to find new markets Leverage the relationship with other Taiwanese companies to find efficiencies and technology for laptops Acer Aspire series is a line of Acer laptops that manufactured in People’s Republic of China and designed for business and professional users. Its competitors include the Dell Latitude range and some laptops from Lenovo. The Aspire series includes several notebooks with different design, performance and functionality.