Funny I should see this today. I was just reading the wikipedia page on "Simulacra and Simulation": "Simulacra and Simulation is most known for its discussion

Funny I should see this today. I was just reading the wikipedia page on "Simulacra and Simulation": "Simulacra and Simulation is most known for its discussion of images, signs, and how they relate to contemporaneity. Baudrillard claims that our current society has replaced all reality and meaning with symbols and signs, and that human experience is of a simulation of reality. Moreover, these simulacra are not merely mediations of reality, nor even deceptive mediations of reality; they are not based in a reality nor do they hide a reality, they simply hide that anything like reality is irrelevant to our current understanding of our lives." Edit on further thought: If the products are the same, how is this more 'real' than a genuine apple store? They are both just a collection of signs, branding, processes and marketing. What happens when stores in even smaller towns spring up, copying this fake apple store? What then is the reality? How far along do the copies of copies need to go, before they are totally divorced from the originals in America? Do they then become 'real' and genuine their own right?