Beyond Profit and Self-Interest: Economics with a Broader Scope Book

I like Baudrillard in spite of myself. The concept of hyperreality as outlined by him is for me the most profound view, that I've encountered outside of fiction, of the social and cultural world of the late 20th and early 21st century, and of the art produced during this period. Baudrillard is long-winded, fond of unsupported claims, and a bit too silly at times-- everything I dislike in a thinker, usually, but his prose is eminently readable, and his ideas are brilliant, concise takes on some pretty interesting issues.

I find it's best not to take him too seriously. Use his books and ideas to stimulate thought of your own, not to solve problems, and he'll probably help you develop an interesting perspective on stuff. Although he doesn't always do the best job of explicating his own ideas, his writings still help sort out more or less exactly certain peculiarities of our world. The stuff on Marxism in this book is really great ammunition for bar table "arguments."