This last Saturday at the county fair, my son and I were in the ATM queue, and what did I see slung proudly over the shoulder of the middle-aged woman in front of us? Nothing less than an inflatable, stars & stripes covered M-16 emblazoned with a bold USA.
Ack, ack, ack ack...no, not the sound of the rifle, but my patriotic indignation bubbling up through my stunned silent, gaping mouth. I found the booth that was giving away the toys as prizes, which was, fittingly, a strength test game. To my additional horror, a father was playing the game in order to arm all of his children, including his stroller bound infant. Ack, ack, ack....
Now, I own two guns (out of sentimentality for one and for target shooting fun for the other), so don't think that I am knee-jerkish. My beef is with the promotion of our country as a war mongering imperialist society and these toys support this classic negative American stereotype that countries like Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Iran, North Korea, etc... have about us. I am sure that the good family people letting their kids tote around these patriotic, simulated weapons of death are thinking that this supports our troops; however, why are we in Iraq/Afghanistan? What is their mission again? I thought it was to spread peace and democracy. So, what message do these toys give to our children? Be patriotic and go kill some foreigners? Getting the world to fear/hate us more does not support our troops.
Unfortunately, the right message is much harder to teach and certainly less fun for the kids (diplomacy on a stick?) Of course the biggest stumbling block is that the parents have to learn the lesson first--Talk more, shoot less, and we can bury fewer of our husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, and children.
Ack, ack, ack....
