A disturbing reflection of our militarised society
This ‘toy’ is available at Asda, is priced £17 in a sale, and has the age range 5+ years. On the website, the description underneath the photo glamorises the military figurine for all its life-like equipment, describing the specifications in detail. Furthermore, the mortar weapon’s description makes it sound like a toy, despite giving the real-to-life information:
This action figure has…an 81mm mortar and mortar round modelled on the real L16A2 81mm Mortar. This awesome piece of kit is a Battlegroup level, indirect fire weapon that is capable of providing accurate High Explosive, smoke and illuminating rounds out to a maximum range of 5,650m.
Nowhere in the description does it mention the direct consequences of using this “awesome piece of kit”. The torn flesh, maimed bodies, twisted limbs and broken families inflicted by a direct hit from a mortar bomb go unmentioned. Is this what we should be advertising to children? Scaling down the realities of war to a plastic action figure, with which children will innocently play out mock-battle scenarios naive to the real destructive power of a mortar bomb, is horrifying. Mortar bombs kill everyone; the Taliban, Afghan civilians, British and US Armed Forces.
According to an article in The Times:
Police have identified children as young as seven being groomed for terrorism, with some expressing a wish to become suicide bombers.
Could these official HM Armed Forces dolls be considered as “grooming” children for a military career, or at the least, sympathetic feelings towards the Forces? Kids shouldn’t have militarism, extremism, terrorism, war, guns and bombs rammed down their throats.
Desensitising them at a young age is a form of indoctrination, and it shouldn’t be tolerated.
