Review: Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs and Cheap Labor in the Black Market

Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs and Cheap Labor in the Black Market by Eric Schlosser
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Porn Was Legalized 50 Years Ago, This Is How The Business Has Changed"
Fifty years ago something new and exciting was taking place in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Scandinavian country had lifted the ban on pornography on July 1, 1969

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Review: The Lost Gospel: The Book of Q and Christian Origins

The Lost Gospel: The Book of Q and Christian Origins by Burton L. Mack
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As for Christian origins, it suddenly became clear that the conventional scenario was deeply indebted to the apocalyptic hypothesis. If Jesus had not been an eschatological prophet, the presence of apocalyptic language in the early traditions of the Jesus movements would have to be explained some other way. The conventional view of Christian origins assumed an apocalyptic imagination at the beginning and a gradual shift to the language of wisdom when the world did not end as expected. Now the sequence worked the other way around. The shift was not from apocalyptic announcement to instruction in wisdom, but from wisdom to apocalyptic. This switch forced a total reconsideration of Christian origins and of the way in which apocalyptic language had been understood to function. The assumption had been that preaching an apocalyptic message of judgment could attract people to a movement that promised salvation from that judgment. It now appeared that an apocalyptic imagination worked only in sup-port of social values and commitments that were generated by other attractions and persuasions already at work within the group.

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As interest grew in knowing more about the community of Q, however, studies began to appear that bumped up against features of the text that did not seem to fit the standard scenario etched in the Christian imagination. Not only was there no reference to the death and resurrection of Jesus, no mention of Jesus as the Christ, and no instruction to Peter and the other disciples about continuing Jesus' mission and baptizing converts into the church, the instructions in Q were couched in curious aphoristic discourse, addressed to individuals, and recommended strange public behavior. So the first attempts at describing the community of Q aimed at understanding how these odd features of the text could be made to fit the traditional picture of Christian origins.

Some modern scholars suggest Jesus shared similarities with ancient Greek Cynic philosophers due to his itinerant lifestyle, rejection of material wealth, and radical social critiques. However, this is a debated topic, as Jesus's apocalyptic, communal, and Jewish-focused message differed significantly from the individualistic, ascetic nature of Greek Cynicism.

Similarities to Cynicism:
Lifestyle: Jesus lived without456 many possessions and advocated a simple life, similar to Cynic "hardihood".
Rhetoric: Jesus’s direct, challenging teachings and parables sometimes mirrored the witty, biting, and confrontational style of Cynic philosophers.
Social Critique: Jesus critiqued the power structures of his society, promoting a "brokerless" kingdom in opposition to Roman imperialism and temple elites, note The Contemplative Life.
Distinctions from Cynicism:
Context: Jesus was deeply rooted in Jewish tradition and apocalyptic expectations, whereas Cynics belonged to the Hellenistic, Greco-Roman tradition, according to The University of Chicago Press: Journals.
Community: Cynics were often solitary, radical individualists, while Jesus gathered a community and taught about community, love, and the "Kingdom of God" rather than just individual virtue, note Reddit.
Mission: Jesus's actions were driven by a mission from his Father, rather than the rejection of conventionality for the sake of defying convention itself.

While scholars like John Dominic Crossan and Burton Mack have explored the "Jesus as Cynic" hypothesis, it is generally not accepted that Jesus was a "card-carrying" Cynic, but rather that his methods of communication and social critique in Galilee may have resembled those of popular Cynic preachers.

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Review: On the Poverty of Student Life: Considered in Its Economic, Political, Psychological, Sexual, and Particularly Intellectual Aspects, and a Modest Proposal for Its Remedy

On the Poverty of Student Life: Considered in Its Economic, Political, Psychological, Sexual, and Particularly Intellectual Aspects, and a Modest Proposal for Its Remedy by Internationale Situationniste
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



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Review: Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson

Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson by Mitch Albom
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Review: A Short History of Ireland, 1500-2000

A Short History of Ireland, 1500-2000 by John Gibney
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



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Review: Pain Is a Portal to Beauty: Stunning Discoveries After Loss, Psychedelics, and Feeling It All

Pain Is a Portal to Beauty: Stunning Discoveries After Loss, Psychedelics, and Feeling It All by Alexis Leigh
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



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Review: A Tale of Two Valleys: Wine, Wealth and the Battle for the Good Life in Napa and Sonoma

A Tale of Two Valleys: Wine, Wealth and the Battle for the Good Life in Napa and Sonoma by Alan Deutschman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



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