Disney has gone too far... please read

[paint magnet]

Sorry, I would have posted this sooner but I was on vacation. And for the third time, AOL cut me off in the middle of posting (#(*&(%$#&!!)

Anyway, I was watching TV the other day and I spotted someone wielding a Sheridan KP-3 on the Disney channel. As it turns out, it was an old guy who owned a “field” (a pile of sandbags and a tree in his back yard) and some kid ‘playing’ paintball. What shocked me was that neither one of them was wearing a mask! Now I’ve seen shows before where people only wear shop goggles, and that’s bad enough but these people had NOTHING at all on their face! The kid was armed with what looked like a caulking gun and he was wearing dirtbike armor, and the old guy had a KP-3 and was firing at the kid. I was amazed at the level of stupidity present in this film, not only on Disney’s part but on behalf of the actors for letting themselves be shot at like that. (he was wearing dirtbike armor but no mask? What has this kid been smoking?)

But later on it gets much, much worse. The ‘bad’ guys present in all Disney films have stolen this kids paper route and routinely beat him up, etc. So he decides to lure them back to the ‘field’, where 10 of his friends armed with KP-3s and PGP’s and a P-68 unload on their unsuspecting victims. Now, not only have they shown people firing markers with no kind of facial protection, but the people being shot at weren’t wearing anything either, didn’t have markers to shoot back with, and furthermore didn’t even want to be playing paintball! Now not only is that wrong, its illegal and could probably be considered aggravated assault. Also, the kid puts a PGP to the ‘bad’ guy’s chest and threatens to shoot him if he moves. So they’ve gone from stupid people playing paintball with no masks or anything to little kids assaulting each other, to using a paintball marker like a firearm to threaten someone. By now you’re probably thinking that there is no actor in his right mind that would allow himself to be shot point blank, unprotected like that and that it must have been faked. Well, the markers were most certainly firing, and the kids were being encouraged by the old geezer hiding behind the sandbags. Also, the hits looked real to me and looked like real paint splats. So now they’re actually endangering the actors in the movie. And do you think the kids get punished? Of course not, this is Disney! He gets to make out with the hot girl in the very next scene!

I’ve seen misrepresentations of paintball before on shows like Jackass, but on those shows, common sense would tell you not to try something that a guy who has allowed himself to be turned upside down in a porta potty and jumped off a building has tried. However, Disney makes it look like shooting people with paintball markers (unwillingly, I might add) is cool and a perfectly acceptable thing to do, and that later on you get to make out with the hot girl that lives next door to you. Something has to be done about this.

[ShowTime]

this has got to be the 100th about i saw paintball on tv and they miss-represented it, sorry to be a jerk but who cares. let the tv show do what they want, if the kid looses an eye on the show o well whos fault is that... there not bringing the name of paintball down when they do this, its just a bunch of noobs that dont have a clue, and most people that dont know anything about paintball think its just some rambo game who cares, no need to get all hurt about it, its not like its hurting sales, if anything it boost sales because i noob see well how fun that looks and maybe well actually vist a feild to go and play, when show put paintball on tv even though the rereasnt it wrong hey no matter just free advertisement....
just get over it just the way most ppl see paintball no need to get in a hissy fit.

[i like tictacs]

yeah, but this isn't adult tv. you have a very easily impressionable target audience. so showtime, something actually needs to be said about it this time.

[paint magnet]

I'm not concerned that it will deter potential patrons from playing (say that 3 times fast:) ) but rather that people will use paintball guns to vandalize and threaten people, or play in their back yard without any facial protection, then get their eye shot out and go crying in court for thier state to ban this evil sport called paintball for taking out their eye.

[superdesk2007]

Complaining about the past won't solve anything.

[gibby]

I also saw that same show. I was a bit disturbed with how they portrayed the sport to be. Sure, it looked "fun" and all, but the disregard for safety blew me away. Yes, kids are easily impressionable and the light heartedness in which the show presented the sport can make it seem harmless. Who cares if kids play outside in their backyard, no one is going to get hurt right? WRONG!

When I saw that, I just shooked my head. The good thing is, yes, it can spark interest in the sport and bring new players in. It's more than likely those new players will play on fields that enforce the safety rules and they'll learn it that way.

My only worries are the few who do go and aren't told about safety rules or consequences from playing without safety equipment. Who cares if they hurt one another? Maybe they deserve it since they're so stupid. However, that doesn't guarantee that they might not hurt someone else with a missed shot.

Bottom line, safety first. But it's network television so who the hell cares? :rolleyes:

[Brak]

i remember watching that movie before i even played paintball. it made me want to play paintball. maybe im just wierd?

[Vash02]

I understand exactly how you feel but right now your preachin to the choir.(sp?) What needs to be done is that you need to find out some sort of mailing address and send them a letter. Not to threaten them but just inform them that it is unsafe,(not to mention unlawful). Now maybe just your one letter wont change anything but if we all stand up then some show is gonna think next time..."hmm is this one scene worth me dealing with all the mail? Nahh". Doing something about it is the only way to change it.

[LittlePaintballBoy]

you mean the paper brigade? that movie is so old, it was made like 10 years ago:p

[Can_Opener]

Actually, on Jackass I saw them use goggles when they did their wild west style showdowns, not so sure about when Johnny was tied to the target and let everyone shoot him though, so at least even the idiots on Jackass are concerned about their own health.

[Xyxyll]

That's Paper Brigade for sure... good movie. Hot chick. Chill man... you are the first person I have ever met that has taken that the wrong way.

[AngelBoy]

Im gonna have to agree with the earlier post of, who cares. Paintball is what? the second biggest extreme sport or somethin? Most of the people watching the Disney channel are probably 8 or 10 years old anyway. I dont think they are actually hurting the sport. They were just using paintball equipment, not actually playing the sport.

Remember the movie 3 Kings? They strapped bombs to footballs and blew them up, did that hurt the sport of football any? How many times have u heard of people using baseball bats or golf clubs as weapons? People arent making the sport look bad, they are just making the equipment look powerful.

just my 2cp....

[M-a-s-sDriver]

I'm just curious:
Are you equally angry to see Vin Diesel ram his weenie little eclipse into another car on a public road, "misrepresenting" racing everywhere across the globe?
How about having Arnold blast a shotgun into someone's chest from 1 foot away, in a blatant "misrepresentation" of hunters, trap shooters, and skeet lovers the world over?
I remember watching a movie several years ago where an escaping inmate buried a running skilsaw into a gaurds chest. As a building contractor, should I be worried about the bad image portrayed by the actor, perhaps hurting my business because of an inaccurate portrayal. I think Mel Gibson shot someone in a movie with a nail gun once.
Nail guns are still around.
Obviously, you are sincere. If you really want to improve the image of paintball, then don't be a pimp, thug, gangsta paintball wannabe, and if you ever see evidence of paintball related vandalism, be sure to stop what you are doing and clean it up the best of your ability. If you see a person's property defiled, go introduce yourself as a paintball player, relate how disguted you are to see thier property damaged, and offer to clean it up. That will do way more good to the sport than all the Disney movies combined could do to harm it.
Brent Jackson

[Lopy-slopy]

Originally posted by Can_Opener
Actually, on Jackass I saw them use goggles when they did their wild west style showdowns, not so sure about when Johnny was tied to the target and let everyone shoot him though, so at least even the idiots on Jackass are concerned about their own health.

But in CKY, They ambush Bam's dad in a parking lot with Bams tippy. Not only endangering Bams dad but eveyone around them too. MOST people wouldn't do it. But lot's of people have copied it in different forms. People think it's just funny and will do it themselves.


The good thing is, yes, it can spark interest in the sport and bring new players in. It's more than likely those new players will play on fields that enforce the safety rules and they'll learn it that way.

Not nessesarily true. Lot's of people just go to Canadian tire(K-mart for you in the US) and buy a blade or talon from their. They see the masks, but they have the same disregard for safety equipment that most people do in other sports and don't bother paying the 70 bucks for a mask(yes, at the canadian tire near me the only mask they have costs 70 bucks! and a talon is 50) that they don't think they need.

That's where 99% of injuries happen and 90% of public perception is derived from cuz the kids that buy markers from canadian tire don't bother going anywere far from other people and play in their little 500sq foot backyard in plain view of other people. While the people that play real pb are off way away from the public eye.

The media does have a very negitive affect on PB. but so far their havn't been any widespread ban's on PB so were fine for now. If anything does happen that's when we actualy have to do somehing. Micky might be a "head" shorter after i'm done with him. :D

[ratmonkey]

welcome to 1992.

[TooDamnSweet]

Gibby and I went into a pb store not to long ago and there was a mother buying her son a bunch of paintball stuff. He looked about 14 years old. He made comments about not wanting to get a beebee (sp) gun because you can't fire them on the street. The guy behind the counter said that he could'nt fire the paintball gun on the street either, but the boy didn't seem to pay attention and niether did his mother. That was bad. Who knows how he found out about the sport whether it was from magazines, friends or television, but obviously safty was not on his list, at least not on the top where it should've been.

I think how PB is portrayed makes an impression on ppl who don't know anything about the sport. PPL who are knowledgeable about paintball can rip a movie like that apart saying what was wrong and why, but those who aren't aware don't know any better. I would say that if a movie was going to use paintball in a scene, they should be responsible and have a general statement regarding safty, but then again, look at movies like Lethal Weapon, or GoodFella's, they don't have any warnings....and they use real guns...

I think if a parent lets their child participate in a sport, no matter what sport it is, they should be well informed and know all the safty rules and regulations prior to allowing their child to play. In the end, it's the parents or the players (if an adult) responsibility.

[nospmas311]

All I know is that The Paper Brigade is a great movie...and I thoroughly enjoyed those scenes with the paintballs (brought me into the sport). Of course, I agree with your argument 100%

[Frank (the spank)]

Anyone remember "Gotcha"?

http://www.chuckwright.com/thumbs/gotcha.jpg

"Gotcha" was a james bond type game played by college students. They would get cards on who they needed to "hit" and walk up and blast them with their Nel-Spot 007.

They at least attempted to wear goggles, whenever someone would make a hit they didn't wear any.. but if they missed and it turned into a chase and fire fight they would wear shop goggles... the movie only had about 20 minutes of paintball, the rest was about a kid going to Germany or France or something and being part of some government thing.. or something.. it was a long time ago. The woman in the pic is some spy... basicly his Gotcha game turned into real life whenever he went to Germany.

I remember watching that movie when it came out and i would tell everyone I played "gotcha", or some form of it, lol

[~WarpedRT#2~]

Made out with a hot girl huh? Anything else happen with that? I mean, uh, BAD!! BAD Disney actors! For Shame!

I once played with a guy who used some sort of snow hat and sun glasses. Actually, that was my first time playing, he refused to stay out, and he told his team that if they saw us coming, to tell him to hide so he wouldnt get shot in the face. It was funny. He could later be seen blind shooting out of a hole in a semi-trailer.

[Recon by Fire]

Here is another bad paintball image (and an accident waiting to happen!):

The owner of the company I work for and I both play paintball, sometimes we chat about paintball in the office. A co-worker shared his paintball experience with us also. He and two others riding around on ATV's while shooting each other with Brass Eagles they bought at Wally World. It gets better... Not only are they playing while riding ATV's of course nobody is wearing a mask or helmet.

BTW he no longers works for the company :)

[DWill]

one of societies biggest problems is that people try to live their lives shown on T.V or movies by actors. People have to stop believing T.V. and another thing the internet. Very little on either is completely true...many stories being warped with a different perspective. And those companies and stations that show misrepresentations of facts have to become more responsible. BTW I saw the movie and really liked it, one of the things that kicked off paintball for me.

[Catch22]

Wow i love to watch that movie like 5 times daily and eat penautbutter on crackers.

[Ov3rmind]

Originally posted by Recon by Fire
Here is another bad paintball image (and an accident waiting to happen!):

The owner of the company I work for and I both play paintball, sometimes we chat about paintball in the office. A co-worker shared his paintball experience with us also. He and two others riding around on ATV's while shooting each other with Brass Eagles they bought at Wally World. It gets better... Not only are they playing while riding ATV's of course nobody is wearing a mask or helmet.

BTW he no longers works for the company :)
LOL, awesome. It's rare I find someone who shares my views on paintball, even when I'm at the field.

[bryceeden]

Originally posted by Xyxyll
That's Paper Brigade for sure... good movie. Hot chick. Chill man... you are the first person I have ever met that has taken that the wrong way.
There were several. I e-mailed Disney about it, and they wrote back alittle less than politly and said they were sick of the e-mails correcting their safety. The real problem is that it shows paintball markers being used as a weopon to get revenge.

[Vash02]

Originally posted by bryceeden

There were several. I e-mailed Disney about it, and they wrote back alittle less than politly and said they were sick of the e-mails correcting their safety. The real problem is that it shows paintball markers being used as a weopon to get revenge.

Bravo man. You did the right thing. Sure they were less than polite but at least they know that one more person is upset about it. Thats the only way anything will happen.

[Lohman446]

Originally posted by Recon by Fire
Here is another bad paintball image (and an accident waiting to happen!):

The owner of the company I work for and I both play paintball, sometimes we chat about paintball in the office. A co-worker shared his paintball experience with us also. He and two others riding around on ATV's while shooting each other with Brass Eagles they bought at Wally World. It gets better... Not only are they playing while riding ATV's of course nobody is wearing a mask or helmet.

BTW he no longers works for the company :)

Do you know how hard it is to ride an ATV and shoot a paintball gun at the same time (I mean, these are meant for two hands)... LOL - btw, do you suppose having legal waivers at your house for just such activities is a bad sign. Relax, most semi-intelligent people know the risks involved with such "stupid" activities - and they bring memories forever (btw, we did wear masks)

[paint magnet]

Am I over reacting? I don't think so. Just because people get shot in movies with real guns is no reason not to be concerned about someone being threatened with a paintball marker. We have owl loving, tree hugging, save-the-whales people marching in the streets against firearms, and why do you think that is? Mainly because they are misrepresented in the media, or because someone was influenced to do what he saw on tv. There are allready states that have tried to ban paintball, so all we need is to give them more of a 'reason' to.

[automagking182]

haha yeah papaer brigade; believe it or not that movie brought me into the world of paintball, like 5 years ago

[Cyberious]

Originally posted by Frank (the spank)
Anyone remember "Gotcha"?

http://www.chuckwright.com/thumbs/gotcha.jpg

"Gotcha" was a james bond type game played by college students. They would get cards on who they needed to "hit" and walk up and blast them with their Nel-Spot 007.



I remember watching that movie when it came out and i would tell everyone I played "gotcha", or some form of it, lol

Yes, I remember it well. The girl was Linda Fiorintino (The girl in Men In Black). Actually they did well with the protective equipment of the day. There were some basic masks but not many folks had them (I still have 3). Most times we just played wearing Scott googles. I can remember welts on the side of the face, the temple, the lip. Man the pain. Add to it the fact that the only way we could chrono was to shoot into a thin piece of wall board. If it split the wall board then you were shooting hot. My Nelspots were OK by today's standards (around 300 fps). My Nightmare was at around 500 fps. The worst one though was my BlackWidow. I didn't know how bad until I pulled it out of retirement one weekend after maybe 12-13 years and took it to a local field. It kept snapping balls at the chronostation so I went a pulled out some really old Nelson paint (Oil Based) that I had put away. (I had it stored in it's original box unopened and it was actually in good shape.) Anyway I stepped up to the chronostation and it came out at 798 fps on the first shot! (You can ask ~WarpedRT#2~ he witnessed it). The ref was in such shock he didn't know what to say.

OK let me come back from my nostalgia trip....Ah, the good old days of paintball.

[GhillieGuy]

That is a funny movie. Iv'e seen it a dozen times..
Man i like the fresh smell of goos poo in the mornin