Random Post

Sitting in my living room watching reruns of Myth Busters I have the sudden inspiration to put my time to good use. I never really took the notion of IR theory as everyday practice for individuals seriously until I actually used the prisoner's dilemma today in a practical decision making process. My friend Jerry has a lab report to finish today with a group in an engineering class. Apprently engineering labs are awful and tedious, especially voluntarily on a friday afternoon (I wouldn't know). He told me he was going to just call his group and tell them he couldn't make it because he was sick, and he would do the bulk of work on next week's lab report. He was following the realist agenda of the game by defecting, supporting the futility of external balancing in realist thought. He was leaving the alliance to maximize his relative gain. However, I explained to him, this isn't just a game you play once with this group, you're in it for the long haul with them, so you will maximize your gain through cooperation. Shadow of the future, Jerry. In the end, I don't think he ever made it to that group meeting, but I accomplished putting my understanding of IR Theory into practical use, something I don't normally have the chance to do.