James Livingston is one of the most brilliant historians of the United States. His book Pragmatism and the Political Economy of Cultural Revolution is by far the best book I’ve read all year. In his more recent book, Against Thrift, he makes the claim that advertising is “the last utopian idiom of our time.” If Jim is right, we’re in major trouble. Because, according to this New York Times piece, working conditions have gotten so bad that advertisers can now depict utopia as…taking a lunch break: But marketers are urging workers to commit small acts of so-called rebellion — like taking a vacation, or going on a lunch break. That’s the message McDonald’s sent this spring with a campaign called, “It’s […]