The word "umbworld" is not a correct word in English.
It does not appear in any English dictionary and therefore is not considered a word in English.
But his intense localism is even more unusual today, as distances shrink, borders fade, and McDonald's, Wal-Mart and Coca-Cola build their brave new McWorld.
Benjamin Barber is the author of Jihad vs McWorld and If Mayors Ruled the World City-states: which cities most dominate their countries?
This is partly because "World 3.0" is a much less exciting title than "The World is Flat" or "Jihad vs. McWorld".
And there are parts of McWorld and other food sites that encourage purchases.
Kathryn Montgomery, a communications professor at American University who studies marketing to youth, said it would be more honest if McWorld did feature McDonald's food.
McWorld, a Web site for children sponsored by McDonald's, offers visitors the chance to create characters, decorate digital treehouses and go on a quest in a virtual world.
McWorld prompts children to enter codes from Happy Meal boxes to unlock things like special gear for their online avatars.
Players on McWorld are anonymous so the site complies with the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.
Pret a Manger, the veddy British chain, has gained a foothold in our McWorld of burgers and fries, where you can fun-size this, combo that and, let's face it, sort of expect sullen service.
In that sense, McWorld is a more sophisticated version of the sites that Matt Richtel discusses in an article about the online marketing of food to children.
It has given American novels a cocky swagger that survives still: the energy of Philip Roth's prose, the sweet spin that George Saunders gives to his tales of McWorld, the tragic passions of Toni Morrison.
