Veterans protest America's Army

by Alexander Sliwinski { Sep 4th 2007 at 11:03AM }

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, approximately 90 Iraq war veterans in black shirts protested in front of a military recruitment station chanting three times: "War is not a game!" Of course they are referring to, and protesting against, the Department of Defense funded America's Army video game.

This is not the first, and certainly won't be the last, bit of protest or controversy surrounding the recruitment tool/video game. The Global Gaming League came under fire for their $2 million sponsorship they received. Then there is the anti-war "performance art" by U. of Nevada Prof. Joe Delappe where when his character died he would broadcast the name of an actual dead soldier from Iraq.

A video of the brief protest can be found after the break.

[Via GamePolitics]

Tags: americasarmy, iraq, protest, veterans

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

NaeemTHM @ Sep 4th 2007 11:11AM

And yet war is a game. I salute my troops as much as the next guy; but they must know that their just pawns being moved on a battlefield.

samfish @ Sep 4th 2007 11:17AM

War may as well be a game to the elites who are running this country straight into the ground.

jsn @ Sep 4th 2007 11:46AM

oh yes, sooo into the ground. I could say the same for the other end of the spectrum who stand there with their hands out, complaining and doing nothing, but I imagine that would be lost on you.

mr nimblewick @ Sep 4th 2007 11:51AM

"oh yes, sooo into the ground. I could say the same for the other end of the spectrum who stand there with their hands out, complaining and doing nothing, but I imagine that would be lost on you."

How exactly are bums running the country into the ground? What impact do they have on anything? Do you even know anything about their circumstances?

samfish @ Sep 4th 2007 12:01PM

Yeah...you COULD say the same. But it would have no basis in reality.

waves @ Sep 4th 2007 12:16PM

The war in Iraq is totally the fault of the homeless.

*shakes fist*

GRANTED @ Sep 4th 2007 11:17AM

aa was pretty fun.... 4 years ago

Mr. Picklesworth @ Sep 4th 2007 11:21AM

Good. Now, maybe they will do something about the excessively huge US Army presence at every video game convention in the States.
It is annoying the hell out of me, and I'm sure it does the same for them.

aggrocrag @ Sep 4th 2007 11:42AM

True story, I used to belong to a Video Game club at my old city college and a while back they got asked by some Army dudes about which games people were playing these days. They also offered to sponsor a tournament and provide prizes for us.

mr nimblewick @ Sep 4th 2007 11:22AM

There's an idiotic war going on and they are protesting this game?

Man.

spoo @ Sep 4th 2007 11:24AM

And all this time I thought these games were nothing more than murder simulators.

Mark @ Sep 4th 2007 11:43AM

The military has been heavily targeting video gamers for prospective recruits. The video game club I belong to at a local college, has been approached by Army recruiters to host tournaments. They would pay for all expenses including prizes.

As much as I love games in a war setting, I am a disturbed that the Army's tactics to make recruitment very tantalizing.

Mullinator @ Sep 4th 2007 11:45AM

I can understand if they are upset because of companies making money by using the battles they fought in.

In reality though this is something that has existed ever since ancient times, Greek and Roman plays and novels would reinact and describe such battles and wars for the entertainment of their readers. This is not a new phenomonon at all. From what I understand too soldiers in those times felt honored when/if their stories became entertainment for the masses, if they were still alive by the time the work was released of course. Often there would be more than a century gap between the events and the writtings.

maskofskin @ Sep 4th 2007 11:50AM

As an Iraq War vet myself, I think these protesters are full of shit.

Guess what, you join the Army and you may have to go to war. That's what the military does. Did you think you were joining the Boy Scouts? You enlist and you do what the government tells you and STFU. You don't get an opinion in the matter.

Oh yeah, war sucks too! Big surprise. It's why it's called war, and not Fun Time Ticklefighting with Achmed.

I'm sure these people aren't protesting all the benefits they received by serving.

N-Zero @ Sep 4th 2007 12:16PM

Are you a fuckin retard man. The war vets were talking about the game Americas Army and protesting against it. They weren't protesting about joining the army dumbass,
and you know what watching your friend they guy you trained with die next to you isn't cool retard.

This is serious and I second that motion war isn't a game. Using a video game to help recruit people isn't good. These people go in thinking of war as something fun when it isn't. As a son of a Viet war vet I know. My father told me of the horror of war. Two of his best friends died in the war. One of them died in his arms. This is serious and it isn't a game.

Its okay for people to play shooting games like Call of Duty or Halo. But if the Army is using a game to motivate people to join then that is fuckin despicable.
I thought you maybe as a Iraqi war vet could understand that but you are probably just a fuckin retard who joined and didn't see the real horrors of war. I just hope that everyone who joins the military understands that war isn't a game its serious. Otherwise just stay home and play a fuckin game.

WiNG @ Sep 4th 2007 11:50AM

This protest is a giant waste of time. I mean, my team has been losing for the last 25 minutes, could these guys just hop into this game for a little bit to help out??

jsn @ Sep 4th 2007 11:53AM

Why? It's their job to find ways to make military service more appealing to potential recruits. How is it any different than a company who takes you out to a nice dinner and offers you perks in order to get you to take the job? It's not... It's quite smart of them to target gamers because they are typically going to have a leg up on non-gamers in many key areas.

Farseer @ Sep 4th 2007 12:04PM

"It's quite smart of them to target gamers because they are typically going to have a leg up on non-gamers in many key areas."

Yeah, areas like Dorito eating, Jolt cola drinking, and shit-talking, to name a few.

And, of course, man tits and bed sores are the most often overlooked aspect of a good soldier...

(I keed, I keed:)

jsn @ Sep 4th 2007 11:56AM

the fact that you think that people who "stand around with their hands out" is limited to bums tells me that you don't know enough about what I'm saying for me to bother going any further.

mr nimblewick @ Sep 4th 2007 11:58AM

I don't think you know what you are talking about. You said the "other end of the spectrum" of the elites... Bums!

Regular working people only have their hands out for the money and benefits they are owed for their work that is denied them so that businesses can make ridiculous profit (often by exploiting war).

jsn @ Sep 4th 2007 11:57AM

:salute:

You tell em!

J-Guy @ Sep 4th 2007 12:03PM

Protest the Iraq war if anything. I don't see how the game can bother them this much. Protest the President too.

jsn @ Sep 4th 2007 12:04PM

:Regular working people only have their hands out for the money and benefits they are owed for their work that is denied them so that businesses can make ridiculous profit (often by exploiting war).:

haha, your naivete is entertaining and frightening all at once..

mr nimblewick @ Sep 4th 2007 12:09PM

Then explain your knowledge for us. And where do you get it from, Foxnews?

mr nimblewick @ Sep 4th 2007 12:09PM

Then explain your knowledge for us. And where do you get it from, Foxnews?

samfish @ Sep 4th 2007 12:19PM

So are you ever going to actually tell us HOW we're wrong or are you just going to resort to disinformation tactics and constantly call everyone ignorant?

No? Par for the course, at least.

Farseer @ Sep 4th 2007 12:20PM

Sorry, but you are simply to making fun of people in this thread for not being able to read your mind and decipher your subjective cryptic statements. If you have a point to make, state it clearly and you won't sound so arrogant.

On the other hand, if you like sounding arrogant, than please disregard this.

Farseer @ Sep 4th 2007 12:22PM

sorry, ignore the misplaced "to"

fawazr @ Sep 4th 2007 12:41PM

Don't pull that sleight of hand bullshit here. We're not so stupid. All you can do is burn straw men without providing a single counter argument. Whatever it is you think you stand for becomes meaningless as a result.

jsn @ Sep 4th 2007 12:09PM

conditioning being the glaring exception, but it's not always the case. I know quite a few hardcore gamers who break that flabby mold.

mietha CAG @ Sep 4th 2007 12:21PM

"War is not a game." Yeah right. I think somebody forgot to tell that to Bush. Sure, it's not a game to the people fighting it, but the people running it sure think of it that way, and the media broadcasts it as such. Maybe 'War should not be a game.' would be more approiate. They might get more support that way. Saying that it "is not" a game just shows how clueless they are.

KsE 79 @ Sep 4th 2007 12:27PM

You are clueless. Keep your mouth shut about things you apparently know nothing about. There are a few people who might think this war is a game but those who are fighting it and Bush do not. As well as other Americans who actually have a clue about what this war is about. Which apparently you and too many others dont.

samfish @ Sep 4th 2007 12:44PM

"There are a few people who might think this war is a game but those who are fighting it and Bush do not. As well as other Americans who actually have a clue about what this war is about. Which apparently you and too many others dont."

This war is about a dovetailing of interests:

1) The oil barons who want the dwindling mid-east oil supply for themselves. This also has national security interests at stake, as we don't want to see China in particular gobbling up the last remaining reserves

2) Bush wanted to one-up his daddy and do what he couldn't by taking out Saddam.

3) The Neo-conservative ideology which felt that after the Cold War the world's oil supplies were the victory prize, in essence. They also so the chance to remake the Middle East as a sort of Right-wing Marshall Plan. After WWII, part of the reasoning to rebuild Europe and Japan as socialized liberal democracies was to show people that that form of government COULD indeed work. And it did, obviously, judging by the continued sustainability of those nations and Europe as a whole.
They saw it as a chance to show that a conservative styled democracy could work just as well.
Unfortunately, it wasn't the case. The primary reason Iraq went to Hell is because they gave all the jobs to private contractors rather than Iraqi citizens. What jobs Iraqis DO have (with their 50% or so unemployment rate) they're typically paid damn near slave wages by these contractors. That all stems from the fundamental conservative belief that unrestrained capitalism will regulate itself and things will work out for the better.

THAT'S what it's about.

KsE 79 @ Sep 4th 2007 12:24PM

I have to side with the Vets on this one. I am a veteran myself. Typically, I dont have problems with video games covering many different aspects of life. But consider yourself, being in the war we are fighting. When you see our government supporting a game and companies making big profit off of it, while your buddies our dying horrible deaths over there, I would think you would have right to be sour about it.
And why does Mr Nimblewick always seem to want to throw Fox News under the bus when they arent even part of this conversation. I guess the fact that atleast one news source covers more of both sides of a story than most other news outlets bothers you?

I wont sit here and bash these men who are protesting. Put yourselves in a war vets shoes and you put your life on the line and may have had soldier buddies close to you die. Then there are these companies over here strictly out to make a buck off of it. How would you react?

samfish @ Sep 4th 2007 12:28PM

"I guess the fact that atleast one news source covers more of both sides of a story than most other news outlets bothers you?"

When has Fox EVER done that?

mr nimblewick @ Sep 4th 2007 12:31PM

"Put yourselves in a war vets shoes and you put your life on the line and may have had soldier buddies close to you die. Then there are these companies over here strictly out to make a buck off of it. How would you react?"

A lot of companies make money off of the war. A LOT. I'm a little disturbed how this game represents a war that is currently happening, and do think it is in bad taste, but if it is just people making money off of the sacrifice of soldiers, you should really just be against the war in general.

I brought Foxnews up because it is the mouthpiece of the conservative movement. You say it presents both sides, but just watch for all of their specials where they ask if democrats are destroying America. How many special on CNN ask if republicans are destroying America?

And guess what! Foxnews became really popular based on the coverage of the war (setting explosions to music and what-not). So they are one of the companies profiting! Shocking!

mietha CAG @ Sep 4th 2007 12:40PM

I was going to say something negative in response to this (KsE 79's comments, if this one doesn't go where it's supposed to either), but then I thought about it for a second. I think you are just trying to justify to yourself that people you know are dying for a cause, and not just to make a small group of people truckloads of money. I can respect that. It's hard to accept that your friends are dying for absolutely nothing. I would like to point out that you don't actually mention what the war is supposedly about. If it were civil rights violations, we would be in China, or North Korea, or South Africa, or dozens of other countries which prepertrate much worse ones every day. If you are going to say terrorism, I'm not touching that. I'd just be wasting my time.

mietha CAG @ Sep 4th 2007 12:27PM

Best post in the thread and puts the whole thing in the proper perspective. Bravo. And no, I'm not being sarcastic. Maybe they should be protesting their friends dying to line Bush and pals pockets with yet even MORE oil money and leave the video game industry the fuck alone. As bad as some games are, I don't think they've ever killed anyone. The president does on a daily basis.

mietha CAG @ Sep 4th 2007 12:29PM

I was referring to mr. nimblewick's first post but, for some reason, it didn't go where it was supposed to.

fawazr @ Sep 4th 2007 12:33PM

Yeah, take away their fucking benefits and right to protest! Fucking veterans! I'm really obnoxious and brash, so I must be fucking right! It's not just grab-ass with Mustaffa, it's WAR!!

But on topic, America's Army is little more than a recruiting device and the first rule of recruitment is deception. So the game isn't so much a simulation of being on a field of death, but rather a carefully orchestrated depiction of warfare. And we can all say that we're too smart to be lured into service by a video game, but the Army doesn't pour money into AA because it's not a successful recruiting device.

These veterans are just looking out for those kids who aren't as discerning. There's nothing romantic, fun, or adventurous about gurgling your last breath on the sands of some foreign land. That kind of sacrifice should come from a sense of duty, not a video game, and these veterans know as much.

fawazr @ Sep 4th 2007 12:36PM

this was actually in response to maskofskin's comment. And though I respect his sense of duty, he should remember what it is soldiers fight for. Nobody fights for the right to shut up. If anything, veterans have more right to protest than anyone else. They've earned it.

mietha CAG @ Sep 4th 2007 12:45PM

In reference to your last paragraph, that is a very valid point and I had not thought of it from that prespective. I'm 30, not 16. I would never have those notions about the army or war. That very well might not be true for a teenager though. Still though, I think their slogan needs work.

Backslash @ Sep 4th 2007 8:58PM

Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.

Or whatever. It's not true anyway.

fawazr @ Sep 4th 2007 10:06PM

"Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.

Or whatever. It's not true anyway."

But it IS sweet to die for one's own country and the rights secured to him by blood. It's NOT nearly as sweet to die for oil, greedy contractors, or for the security of a chaotic foreign government.

Bluebrake @ Sep 4th 2007 1:51PM

A lot of people claim video games subversively cause people to go out and kill each other.

I find it a lot more disturbing when that's the explicit purpose of the game.

Kangstarr @ Sep 4th 2007 2:05PM

AA is propaganda at it's finest but so is every military recruitment commercial that's attached in-between South Park and Simpsons episodes.

The US military is having a very hard time covering their monthly recruitment quotas because generation of kids these days do not believe in fighting and killing. They would rather enjoy life, screw around on MySpace, and watch American Idol. I'm all for that.

Games and commercials won't be putting the soldiers we need on the field. It'll be a carefully orchestrated national tragedy like 9/11 and/or the draft.

Crono @ Sep 4th 2007 3:27PM

Actually, I've heard that the military has had NO trouble filling their quotas since the war started, up to and including now.

Kalroy @ Sep 4th 2007 10:38PM

Crono is correct. The "military" has consistently met its quotas with the exception of the Army. It has met its yearly quotas, but has had months that it missed them. They have also increased their recruiting goals regularly over the last several years. USN, USAF, USMC have had no problem recruiting. Heck, there has been zero shortage of willing recruits. The problem is with qualified recruits.

Incidentally, the Army also sponsors a dragracer, NASCAR and other things (student scholarships and awards). The military will continue to be required to do more to recruit so long as anti-military organizations continue to degrade them, and so long as we don't resort to forced servitude again. Most GIs don't want slaves fighting next to them. They're not as smart, not as reliable, and not as motivated. Despite several Democrat attempts to bring it back.

Kalroy