A Game of Risk...

After reading the articles last week about basic International Relations theories, I was most intrigued by realism. Therefore, when we listened to the podcast/read the Layne article, I was very interested. I can see the usefulness of realism – in a world where power seems almost necessary to ensure survival, building up military forces to ensure furthering the success of your state, realism makes a lot of sense. When we talked in class about how realism basically assumes the worst and prepares for it, I couldn’t agree more. It wouldn’t make sense to believe that other countries have some type of good intentions in mind. It’s not safe, in a world where maintaining a certain amount of power and a good position is key, to believe that a country has their best intentions in mind. Because honestly, as a leader, I would first look to secure the security of my state over helping another country that doesn’t offer any type of strategic advantage. I guess I would feel an obligation to my country first to secure their interests, as the realist theory states.

I found the Spy Museum to be fascinating, especially the history of spying and how it has changed and been utilized. I like how the museum put a face on the craft, showing different people that changed the course of history because of their bravery and dedication. The idea of cyber spying was almost frightening though – the fact that hacking into the United States’ grid could shut power off and cost trillions is a real threat. I’m not sure why you’d put that in a museum where anyone could see the exhibit but I digress. I wonder if we’re preparing for such an attack and how it could even be stopped or prevented. In addition, the evolution of spying since its use in the Bible makes me wonder where we’ll go next.

Actually, at the moment, I’m playing Risk with a few people from our World Politics classes. It’s basically a lesson in world politics – in our first game, we even formed alliances. It’s an interesting dynamic to try and figure out the best strategy, to figure out who to align with to better your own chances. It’s also a perfect game for a realist because it is completely military based – you build up your forces in an attempt to protect your own interests. It’s also a perfect game for a neo-con, if you’re into conquering the majority of the world. The first game, our alliance was actually essential to protecting our interests. Fiona and I aligned with Alyssa to keep Europe under our control, then had Alex join to secure all of Asia. We even had a link to the Spy Museum, when one person employed espionage techniques to look at someone’s cards. On another note, we really should play Risk in class.