I’m James “Pigeon” Fielder, roosting in Colorado State University’s Department of Political Science! I took up Chad’s request to help manage ALPS and am still getting my bearings, but I’ll start a regular posting schedule soon. That, and soliciting more guest submissions!
Short bio: in 2019 I retired as a USAF Lieutenant Colonel and associate professor of political science at the U.S. Air Force Academy, and chasing tenure-track positions in my late-40s was not my idea of a good time. My wife further advised, “honey, we can move anywhere you want after you retire, as long as it’s Fort Collins, Colorado,” which simplified my tactical problem. Thankfully, CSU had an open pool need and I’d met some faculty at MPSA who put in a good word for me, and now I figure they plan on keeping me around since they replaced my paper office nameplate with an etched plastic one.
I research the social aspects of cyber conflict, the politics of games (the settings themselves, their influence on players, and gamer culture), and political analysis of science fiction and fantasy literature. I also work for Littleton, CO-based roleplaying game design firm Mobius Worlds Publishing and consult on professional gaming–I’m legitimately a professional gaming nerd. When it comes to active learning, then, my posts will likely be game-centric.
Hello for now, and I’ll see you in future posts!