Author: Georgia Mealings

Categories
Blog

Videogames and Veterans: The Ethics of a Virtual Battle of Fallujah

By Georgia Mealings, Research Assistant for ‘Warnings from the Archive’

When studios market wargames, they emphasise the authenticity of experience. The latest videogame technology is so immersive that the graphics, the sound design, the game mechanics, and the worldbuilding all work together to persuade you that are really there, on a battlefield or controlling an aircraft. The studios’ intent is to curate a realistic sensory experience that can offer a taste of the ‘thrill’ of war, without any of the risk. 

Continue reading “Videogames and Veterans: The Ethics of a Virtual Battle of Fallujah”
Categories
News

Weekly recommendations from WFTA

A quick update on what the Warnings from the Archive team have been listening to/reading/watching this week. The pieces that have caught our interest and develop the themes and topics explored by the project.

Continue reading “Weekly recommendations from WFTA”
Categories
News

Curating colonialism: Reflections on Osborne’s appointment to chair ‘Brutish’ Museum

Last Thursday, George Osborne, former Chancellor of Exchequer, was unanimously appointed the new chair of the British Museum’s board of trustees. This position is not government-appointed, however given his high-status role in the Cameron cabinet and in the Conservative party more broadly, the decision has garnered considerable controversy. It has fed into an ongoing debate over the state’s role in the curation of a white supremacist British self-image, particularly with regards to cultural restitution, the display of stolen items, and national profit from colonial legacies.  

Continue reading “Curating colonialism: Reflections on Osborne’s appointment to chair ‘Brutish’ Museum”
Categories
News

Weekly recommendations from WFTA

A quick update on what the Warnings from the Archive team have been listening to/reading/watching this week. The pieces that have caught our interest and develop the themes and topics explored by the project.

Continue reading “Weekly recommendations from WFTA”
Categories
News

Reckoning with Iraq, Revoking Authorisation

On 17th June, the US House of Representatives voted to revoke the 2002 Authorisation for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) against Iraq. Whilst the resolution is not currently in use as the legal basis for any ongoing US military activities, its existence sanctions a US President to attack Iraq without Congressional approval. In January 2020, the Trump administration used it to justify the legality of the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani. Given the escalation in tensions with Iran that ensued many argued that the attack should have required Congress’ assent. 

Continue reading “Reckoning with Iraq, Revoking Authorisation”
Categories
News

Weekly recommendations from WFTA

A quick update on what the Warnings from the Archive team have been listening to/reading/watching this week. The pieces that have caught our interest and develop the themes and topics explored by the project. 

Continue reading “Weekly recommendations from WFTA”