Osama Bin Lego!?

[Mirandir]

So the terrorist and Nazi minifigs made by Brickarms has been targeted in this article on The Sun's website.

It seems like they've missed the point that, as far as I know, theese minifigs aren't really sold to children...

[Pencoin]

What a megablocking joke I say! This is a complete stupid article. If Brickarms get done by the law for these then the world is offically lost.

The world gets more stupid by the minute.

[Ryan_T]

i see no Resemblance.... If they don't like it. Get over it, its a TOY. Its not like it will come alive and shoot small pieces of PLASTIC at you! lol BANG!!!! huh? what? what was that?

[Tanotrooper]

Dutch article aswell:

het nieuwsblad article

That way you could complain about all miniature WWII figures aswell. I really don't like the tone at wich they treat Will, claiming it to be a children's toy while it is of course aimed at AFOLs/TFOLs.

TT

[Cardinal Brick]

It’s hardly a shocking or surprising story, it’s just normal UK journalism. You find something that’s been going on for ages but no ones noticed and then blow it out of all propitiation and then phone a few groups and give then hardly any details but get a shocked quote, publish job done.

[Pencoin]

Dutch article aswell:

het nieuwsblad article

That way you could complain about all miniature WWII figures aswell. I really don't like the tone at wich they treat Will, claiming it to be a children's toy while it is of course aimed at AFOLs/TFOLs.

TT

I just sent the writer of the Sun article a email saying the same thing.

[Stash2Sixx]

Isn't the SUN a tabloid in the UK?

[Buttons]

Yes it is. And all it is is the writer trying to find a quick story without doing any research into it.

[Pencoin]

Yes it is. And all it is is the writer trying to find a quick story without doing any research into it.

As I said in my email as well!

We should bombard this adress: v.wheeler@the-sun.co.uk

[Hinckley]

I hope this doesn't get blown out of proportion as The Sun is not widely regarded as a reliable news source. What an irresponsible joke of a publication.

[Algernon]

Now all our children will become terrorists!

[brickzone]

These people often don't deal in news, but rather any bit of nonsense that will provide some amusement to its readers. So I don't think really much attention needs to be given.

It's far worse when they do deal in news and spin it whatever way they like to keep their readers happy.

[Algernon]

You won't be saying that when terrorist children are roaming the streets!

[Athos]

BA seems to have unified the Jewish and Arab people against it. Maybe this means AFOLs can bring peace to the Middle East...?

Steve

[randomparrot]

*facepalm*

This is stupid it's not even aimed at kids.

[Cardinal Brick]

BA seems to have unified the Jewish and Arab people against it. Maybe this means AFOLs can bring peace to the Middle East...?

Steve

I didn't think of it like that what a great idea!

[Algernon]

...that would be freaking hilarious. Great idea.

I'll get to work on another offensive LEGO moc. :D

[Dadster]

*facepalm*

This is stupid it's not even aimed at kids.

Not that I'm defending the article, but some folks don't know this...

Some folks see Lego and think "kids toy". They don't feel the two should go together. My own brother will not let his son/ daughter play with Castle/ Star Wars/ Batman/ Pirate Lego because of the violence and gun usage. They (my brothers kids') have a healthy dose of City sets though.

[Derek]

Wow. This is SO stupid. They probably just got that picture of that figure (who I'm 99% sure is not supposed to be Osama, it doesn't even look like him) and said "OOOH look! Someone made something bad out of Legos! Let's try to stir up some trouble!"

Some people really need to get a life.

[Zarkan]

This is annoying that they are singling out Brickarms for supposedly "gloriflying terrorism," when at the same time they are ignoring the countless video games and movies that depict actual terrorists (ie. Call of Duty 4, which my brother was just playing today). Seriously, just because you make a figure that looks something like the guys the USA is fighting over in Iraq doesn't mean you support it. Someone could potentially use figures like this to make a strong case against terrorism - just like many video games and movies have used their art forms to show why these guys must be stopped.

In summary: this article is best ignored.

[SWMAN]

I understand where they are coming from. These toys do kind of glorify war. That is why Lego does not make war-themed toys. Still, the fact that these aren't geared towards children is a fair point.

[natelite]

lol this is silly. the "news" is all one sided. see how brickarms isn't even given the option to reply. it just said "The £9.50 two-inch figures are customised from Lego toys by makers BrickArms, who hope for a Christmas hit." no word whatsoever from brickarms. not even the curtesy of "we contacted BA but they refused to comment."

and i like how they singled out the "SS major" and just those elements they found "tasteless". what about the US troops available on the site? it's quite obvious BA targeted afols who wanted to recreate historic scenes and need to provide for both baddies and goodies.

so in other words, if we go to a museum and they had a diorama of how the allied forces took back normandy we are supposed to get offended because there are nazi's portrayed in the diorama? get real!

this just goes to show how presumably innocuous things can be made "dangerous" by skewing the viewpoint. just like how 80% of all statistics can be made up to suit your needs so can the spindoctors make anything good or bad by twisting the facts.

I understand where they are coming from. These toys do kind of glorify war. That is why Lego does not make war-themed toys. Still, the fact that these aren't geared towards children is a fair point.

you know what's next? the nazi planes and vehicles from the indy jones sets will recast lego as nazi-philes. seriously...any story can be made one sided.

but i agree that "the sun" is very much like "the onion" ...purely satirical and not to be taken seriously for journalism.

[SirNadroj]

Total bull$h!t. These politcally correct losers need to report on something more important, like Al-Queda themselves. Perhaps Mumbai will make for an imformative story. Hell, even those pirates off Somolia's coast.

Wow.

[KinGanon]

I hope this doesn't get blown out of proportion as The Sun is not widely regarded as a reliable news source. What an irresponsible joke of a publication.

Wow how many children under 5 can order custom LEGO offline?(Pauses for answer) Thats what I thought.

[Darth_Legois]

*facepalm*

This is stupid it's not even aimed at kids.

I reckon.

Here's what Badger [Official Spokesbadger] said:

"Manufactured controversy and faux outrage have been a staple of The Sun (the British equivalent of The New York Post in terms of their sensationalism:actual news ratio) for years. Note that they manage to incorrectly name every BrickArms figure they discuss, conflate BrickArms with the LEGO Group, and completely miss the fact all of the elements used to construct the Bandit figure, who I might add is clearly not meant to represent any real-life individual or group, are official TLG products.

Frankly, I believe The Sun has completely missed the point that all BrickArms products are meant to compliment LEGO product. LEGO itself produces weapon accessories, and like those accessories, BrickArms products are meant to help younger builders build in a way that helps them to process their reactions to the world around them and develop effective conflict-solving strategies. Also, the primary audience for BrickArms are older builders, who can differentiate between what they build and appropriate real-world actions and behaviors.

As always, the only worthwhile thing published by the Sun is on Page 3.

badger"