Description
This is a multi-day annotation project which displays both the use of the Hypothes.is browser extension and the value it has brought through the repeated annotation of a single PDF. Over three rounds of annotations, my thinking developed along new lines guided by the comments I had left myself earlier. Each set is shown below with screenshots for context.
Round 1
My initial commentary largely described the utility I saw in the use of Private Military Security Companies (PMSCs) and the examples of their use which seemed valuable to my research. Much of this ties into other works I have read or previous papers I have written.
Round 2
My second round of annotations expanded upon the first. I became interested in the comparison between PMSCs (primarily employed by NATO factions and Russia) and the unofficial maritime militias used by China. My original plan had been to study the PMSCs used in the context of the Russo-Ukrainian War and the legal status of foreign legion troops, but the Chinese side of the equation became much more interesting at this point and drew my attention away.
Round 3
The final annotations are focused on deepening the lines of inquiry I set up during the second round. I continued on the topic of Chinese maritime militias, wondering how far the contracts they operate under are from those given to western PMSCs. I also revise a previous comment I made about the nature of PMSCs. While these organizations are on long-term contracts to the states they are based in, this does not mean that their members are citizens of that state. In that regard, the charge of mercenarism is still very much on the table for PMSCs taken prisoner in modern conflicts.
Conclusion
Using Hypothes.is has been both new and familiar to me. In the past, I have normally taken notes in a separate document open to one side of my screen, so the act of electronic note-taken is nothing out of the ordinary for me. Annotating directly (and, more importantly, repeatedly) onto a PDF feels different in part because there is less impetus for me to keep things tidy – the program is doing that for me. At the same time, this method forces me to scroll back through the PDF to view my annotations, making accessibility more difficult in post. I can see myself using a combination of the methods in the future, perhaps alternating depending on the type and density of the text I’m working with.