author: David Foster Wallace content: "An ad that pretends to be art is \u2014 at absolute best \u2014 like somebody\ \ who smiles warmly at you only because he wants something from you. This is dishonest,\ \ but what's sinister is the cumulative effect that such dishonesty has on us: since\ \ it offers a perfect facsimile or simulacrum of goodwill without goodwill's real\ \ spirit, it messes with our heads and eventually starts upping our defenses even\ \ in cases of genuine smiles and real art and true goodwill. It makes us feel confused\ \ and lonely and impotent and angry and scared. It causes despair." id: 4ac0713d-01fe-4375-94e1-1054816e2afb