23 Apr 2026
Spec Ops: The Line with Jane from Unwise Girls
War, war never changes. Keifer returns with the most ambitious episode of the show to date, bringing on Jane from the Unwise Girls podcast to talk about war through Spec Ops: The Line. We also talk about perspective as artistic intention, exploring gender through customizable characters, life on the road with a Steam Deck, and more.
Other games discussed in this episode: Bastion, Transistor, The Beginner’s Guide, Undertale, Deltarune, the Professor Layton series, Deep Rock Galactic, Civilization 5, Misericorde, Hades, Live A Live, We Love Katamari, Ridger Racer 2, Ridge Racer Type 4, Mario Kart Wii, The Walking Dead: A Telltale Game Series, Thomas Was Alone, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days, Army of Two, the Metal Gear Solid franchise, and more.
Select and Start is a video game podcast where the host, Keifer Lirette, talks with his guests about their most meaningful and memorable video game experiences. It is part of the Moonshot podcast network.
0:00 - Prologue
11:00 - Introducing Jane
42:10 - On Harry Belafonte
48:40 - Introducing Spec Ops: The Line
1:11:30 - No Country for Old Games
1:26:20 - Discussing Spec Ops: The Line
2:03:25 - White Phosphorus and war crimes
2:27:10 - Perspective, abstraction, and cognitive dissonance
2:43:00 - The legacy Spec Ops The Line
3:00:25 - Impact, weaknesses, and final thoughts
3:10:45 - Recommendations and Outro
Support Jane and her projects:
https://www.patreon.com/unwisegirls (https://www.patreon.com/unwisegirls)
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:gmybspzp4ycf32zql3ssivsm (https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:gmybspzp4ycf32zql3ssivsm)
https://moonshotpods.com/unwise-girls/ (https://moonshotpods.com/unwise-girls/)
Follow Keifer and support the show:
Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/KeifersCorner)
https://linktr.ee/KeiferL (https://linktr.ee/KeiferL)
Artwork provided by Avry Ott:
https://linktr.ee/avryrobinott (https://linktr.ee/avryrobinott)
Theme Music Provided by Mike Pettry:
https://linktr.ee/mikepettry (https://linktr.ee/mikepettry)
Murder at the Birch Tree Theater (https://store.steampowered.com/app/2864590/Murder_at_the_Birch_Tree_Theater/)
Works Cited:
Research:
Chalmers Johnson - American Militarism and Blowback (https://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/cnps/2002/00000024/00000001/art00003)
Gamesradar - Spec Ops: The Line - Learn about the story with lead writer Walt Williams (https://www.gamesradar.com/spec-ops-line-learn-about-story-lead-writer-walt-williams/)
Digital Spy - 'Spec Ops: The Line' - interview (https://web.archive.org/web/20160428201836/http://www.digitalspy.com/gaming/interviews/a365221/spec-ops-the-line-interview/)
Kotaku - The Full Story Of Spec Ops: The Line, From Audacious Storytelling to 'Cancerous' Publisher-Mandated Multiplayer (https://web.archive.org/web/20160509021728/http://kotaku.com/5938591/the-full-story-of-spec-ops-the-line-from-audacious-storytelling-to-cancerous-publisher-mandated-multiplayer)
PC Gamer - 2K confirms Spec Ops: The Line has been removed from sale because of expiring 'partnership licenses' (https://www.pcgamer.com/spec-ops-the-lines-sudden-removal-from-steam-baffles-its-director-why-has-this-happened/)
The Verge - Spec Ops: The Line permanently removed from Steam and other digital stores (https://www.theverge.com/2024/1/30/24055807/spec-ops-the-line-delisting-licensing-2k)
Delisted Games - Spec-Ops: The Line (https://delistedgames.com/spec-ops-the-line/)
Steam Curator - Games at risk of removal (https://store.steampowered.com/curator/31857481-Games-at-risk-of-removal/)
George Monbiot - 11/ 15/2005 - War Without Rules (https://www.monbiot.com/2005/11/15/war-without-rules/)
NBC News - U.S. denies using phosphorus against civilians (https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna10064711)
Washington Post - Israel used U.S.-supplied white phosphorus in Lebanon attack (https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2023/12/11/israel-us-white-phosphorus-lebanon/)
Under Fire: White Phosphorus, Civilians, and Arkansas | Amnesty International USA (https://www.amnestyusa.org/blog/under-fire-white-phosphorus-civilians-and-arkansas/)
Human Rights Watch - Lebanon: Israel’s White Phosphorous Use Risks Civilian Harm (https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/06/05/lebanon-israels-white-phosphorous-use-risks-civilian-harm)
Audio Sources:
Colin Powell's Speech at the UN (https://www.c-span.org/clip/united-nations/user-clip-colin-powells-speech-at-the-un/4716794)
Defense Department Briefing March 21st, 2003 (https://www.c-span.org/program/news-conference/defense-department-briefing/153138) C- (http://c-span.org)SPAN.org (https://span.org)
Rumsfeld "known unknowns" and "unknowns unknowns" (https://www.c-span.org/clip/news-conference/user-clip-rumsfeld-known-unknowns-and-unknowns-unknowns/5189032)
Ronald Reagan - Iran-Contra (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2wtkukZCpY)
Joe Biden: Were there not an Israel the USA would have to invent an Israel to protect her interest in the region. | Video | C- (https://www.c-span.org/clip/senate-highlight/user-clip-joe-biden-were-there-not-an-israel-the-usa-would-have-to-invent-an-israel-to-protect-her-interest-in-the-region/4962369)SPAN.org (https://span.org)
Democracy Now - 1/30/2006 - Harry Belafonte on Bush, Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and Having His Conversations with Martin Luther King Wiretapped by the FBI (https://web.archive.org/web/20071114183807/http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06%2F01%2F30%2F157217)
Democracy Now - 11/8/2005 - U.S. Broadcast Exclusive–“Fallujah: The Hidden Massacre” on the U.S. Use of Napalm-Like White Phosphorus Bombs (https://www.democracynow.org/2005/11/8/u_s_broadcast_exclusive_fallujah_the)
Democracy Now - 11/17/2005 - Pentagon Reverses Position and Admits U.S. Troops Used White Phosphorus Against Iraqis in Fallujah (https://www.democracynow.org/2005/11/17/pentagon_reverses_position_and_admits_u)
Democracy Now - 10/13/2023 - A Second Nakba? Israel Orders 1.1 Million Palestinians to Evacuate Northern Gaza Amid Bombing & Siege (https://www.democracynow.org/2023/10/13/israel_orders_gaza_evacuation)
Democracy Now - 12/14/2023 - Washington Post: Israel Used U.S.-Supplied White Phosphorus to Attack Civilians in Lebanon (https://www.democracynow.org/2023/12/14/headlines)
Democracy Now - 6/7/2024 - Israel’s Widespread Use of White Phosphorus in Lebanon, Gaza Violates Int’l Law: Human Rights Watch (https://www.democracynow.org/2024/6/7/white_phosphorus_israel_lebanon_hrw_report)
Democracy Now - 10/18/2024 - UNIFIL Says Israel Has Used White Phosphorus as Israeli Military Continues to Attack Its Forces (https://www.democracynow.org/2024/10/18/headlines)
In-game audio sources:
Spec Ops The Line - Combat Barks and Animations changes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIFQzMgYS0I\&t=2s)
Spec Ops: The Line - Chapter #4 - The Refugees (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExeYzZHxp40)
Eerily Realistic AC-130 Mission - Modern Warfare Remastered (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwFNKNl6P7I\&t=237s)
Other referenced works:
Reik, Theodor (1965). Curiosities of the self: illusions we have about ourselves (https://archive.org/details/curiositiesofsel00reik).
Jacob Geller - What We Don't Talk About in "Spec Ops The Line" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KSl_lMN7-c)
Tobi Smethurst - "We put our hands on the trigger with him": Guilt and Perpetration in Spec Ops: The Line (https://www.academia.edu/8308705/_We_put_our_hands_on_the_trigger_with_him_Guilt_and_Perpetration_in_Spec_Ops_The_Line)
The Second Coming - W.B. Yeats
The Hollow Men - T.S. Eliot
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Blowback (https://blowback.show/)
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