Author: Mark Jabbour

This is my fourth book. Like the others it deals with the intersection of politics and personality. From a unique psychological, evolutionary, and personal perspective it combines history, geography, and fiction in an attempt to get close to reality.

CHIMP EMPIRE: Who Are We?

is the way James Reed's Netflix documentary (April 2023) begins, and ends. Does the four-hour series answer the question? That depends on who and what you believe. For me it does a very good job. We are the The Naked Ape (1967); or as Jared Diamond wrote, The Third Chimpanzee (1992). Robert Wright called us The Moral … Continue reading CHIMP EMPIRE: Who Are We? →

Marianne Williamson’s “Return to Love” Platform.

I'm re-reading Democrat POTUS candidate Marianne Williamson's 1992 bestseller A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A COURSE IN MIRACLES. Because, why not? It's on my bookshelf and I'm a believer in first principles, or rewarded behaviors being foundational for a person's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. The Platform I'm surmising from declarations from the … Continue reading Marianne Williamson’s “Return to Love” Platform. →

ChatGPT: Smash or Pass?

ChatGPT is a computer program(s) at the current apex of artificial intelligence. There are several versions. I heard of it four weeks ago and decided to check it out. They are Large Language Models that can read the entire Internet in seconds and answer questions or "prompts". In addition, you can have conversations with the … Continue reading ChatGPT: Smash or Pass? →

One Great Timeless Novel

Sometimes A Great Notion (1963) Ken Kesey. I’ve read it 6 times. The same paperback. One of the best ever character studies ever written. As true today as when it was written.   Here's a review I wrote for my Goodreads bookshelf: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8014925 My opening: This is the sixth time I’ve read this novel. The … Continue reading One Great Timeless Novel →

The Time Bind: Work-family balance

This is a review of the 1997 book The Time Bind: When Work Becomes Home and Home Becomes Work. It was written by professor Arlie Russell Hochschild over the course of seven years, based on her research of a Fortune 500 company in the rural midwest in the early nineties. What I want to do here … Continue reading The Time Bind: Work-family balance →

You Are What You Read

is a quote from the 1998 movie You've Got Mail. Is that true? Joe Fox (corporate big box bookseller) says that to Kathleen Kelly (independent bookstore owner) as they banter in this RomCom that is now historical fiction. [It describes the incipient impact of the internet.] The film was an adaptation of an earlier film (1940) … Continue reading You Are What You Read →

Time Bind 2023 update

Time Bind is a book I'm currently reading (when I can find the time). The book was written by Arlie Russell Hochschild published in 1997. It's a sociological study of the then demand characteristics of work/home/life balance. It's fantastic, real journalism that foreshadows, but doesn't come close to realizing the bind we're in now. We … Continue reading Time Bind 2023 update →

Ally McBeal: Smash or pass? Love it or leave it?

Ally McBeal was a serial TV show on Fox from 1998 to 2002. Do you love it or leave it? Is it a smash or pass? Each season was 20+, one-hour stories, with a regular cast of characters, mostly. Some characters would 'disappear' over the course of years, and be replaced by new ones. In … Continue reading Ally McBeal: Smash or pass? Love it or leave it? →