Response to Ken Rufo

When first learning about Baudrillard, I was a little confused as to what he was saying when he was discussing simulation. After reading Ken Rufo's post and learning more from Dr. M, I am understanding the concept of Simulacra/Simulation/Hyperreal.

Just the other day I was thinking about the concept of money and I found it interesting that Ken touched base on what I was thinking about. I was wondering if you work a job, and get your money direct deposited in your account, and you use a credit or debit card to pay for items, you essentially never see that money, but it stands for something.  Once Ken touched base on the idea of the credit card accumulation being a simulation of what is being used to buy a product, it allowed me to understand what I previously pondered.

I enjoyed when Ken went through the works of Baudrillard and how some of his ideas have changed as he went on in life. He started off with Marxist views, but then a hint of Structuralism and Post-Structuralism is found in his work.  The way that Ken related his changing ideas, allowed me to make a connection with how the theories we learn are connected. 

The last part that I found interesting is that Baudrillard does not even like the Matrix movie. He believes that the effects in that are a simulation itself, which I never thought about in those terms, but once I started thinking about it, it can be seen as taking away from Baudrillard's ideas. With that I said, I think it would be hard to make a movie or rendition of his ideas and not make it something it is not. In order for everything to be visual comprehensive I think there needs to be some form of simulation, when discussing the ideas of Simulacra/Simulacrum.

Thank You again Ken for the post!