On the way to looking up other things I found this online copy of The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, Walter Benjamin's inquiry into what it means to have unlimited capabilities in producing, distributing, and owning artifacts.
"Just as water, gas, and electricity are brought into our houses from far off to satisfy our needs in response to a minimal effort, so we shall be supplied with visual or auditory images, which will appear and disappear at a simple movement of the hand, hardly more than a sign."Feel free to copy the link. Posted by mastr at December 10, 2003 03:04 PMPaul Valery