A few months ago I made the not very original observation that the era we are leaving (from Reagan to Bush II, from junk bonds to synthetic cdo’s) was partly shaped by the idea that simulation could supplant reality.
(An infamous example from 2004: ”We’re an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality.”)
Well, John Lanchester actually did some of the hard work of explaining what this means in the New Yorker.
(Also, yes, I’m a month behind on the New Yorker. I’ve read there’s a very exciting election coming. I hope Obama wins!)