ooh! ooh! one more thing.

my dad just got back from a conference in berlin. as a souvenir, he brought back a tiny piece (1.5 cubed centimetres) of the berlin wall. it's in a little plastic bag with a certificate, and he assures me that it's not like buying "a piece of the true cross", that it's an authentic piece of rock...

i was telling my girlfriend about my dad buying the piece, and she pointed out that it's a testament to the power of capitalism. not only did the berlin wall fall, in other words - it was then broken up into little pieces and sold to western tourists for 5.5 Euros apiece! how perfect is that?

and to think that i'd previously only theorised the lump of cement along the lines of its "auratic quality" (cf. benjamin)...