How much more will it take for us to lose the sport of paintball completely? From the ban in Baltimore, to the attack on Gary Holden, we are constantly losing ground, and rarely if ever gaining any.
In the national spotlight, paintball IS a "wargame" whether we think so or not. We cannot expect to compare the misuse of our equipment to that of other sports, i.e. baseball or golf, where putters and bats have been often used as a deadly weapon. It just won't work, and we need to realize that.
Paintball is a different animal altogether, and I believe that only those who truly enjoy it and understand have the ability to defend it.
No one says, I don't like baseball because of the potential destructive nature the bats imply, they just say it's boring if they don't like it.
When paintball is mentioned, war comes to mind, then the question of pain, and safety. Sure, we know how safe it is, but we can't continue to believe that we can convince everyone of this.
The industry needs to start to take the lead in guiding paintball towards even safer territory. Debates online between players are fruitless, and though they can be entertaining, you can tell that if it were left up to the forum members, you'd have as many opinions as you do members, and barely any agreement as to what to do.
After all, the industry has the most invested in this sport, and make a living out of it. Continuing to hope that the next incident won't damage our sport more than the last is just too risky. At some point they may find they have nothing left.
These are my fears, and as much as I love paintball and the excitement it gives me, I feel we are headed for disaster, and inevitably an all out ban.
If not that, paintball will become restricted in a very harsh way. I won't even speculate, but I think you can imagine. At that point it will be too late for the representatives of paintball to come to the bargaining table. If they take the initiative however, their goodwill would be recognized and rewarded.
I see the industry is looking for help from us with the incident involving Mr. Holden. Well, I'm asking for help from the industry on behalf of the players.
Things are getting out of hand. Every highway sign and stop sign is marked with a paintball. Houses get shot, and people too. Saying that these vandals would just find other ways to create mischief is NOT an excuse for paintball to go on existing in the eyes of those who have been on the receiving end of these criminal acts.
Something really needs to be done, and I don't really want to hear what that would be from any member here, after all I'm not telling you what I think should be done.
If the industry wants to turn to the players for answers, then it's their choice. I see them as our leader though, and they may have some very tough choices to make in the near future. Giving them your support and encouragement to keep paintball a sport we can enjoy is the best you can do as a player.
I wish that this message could be more optimistic, and that my fears won't ever come true, but if we don't come to grips with the fact that paintball's existence is a fragile one, then we may have to learn it the hard way someday.
In the national spotlight, paintball IS a "wargame" whether we think so or not. We cannot expect to compare the misuse of our equipment to that of other sports, i.e. baseball or golf, where putters and bats have been often used as a deadly weapon. It just won't work, and we need to realize that.
Paintball is a different animal altogether, and I believe that only those who truly enjoy it and understand have the ability to defend it.
No one says, I don't like baseball because of the potential destructive nature the bats imply, they just say it's boring if they don't like it.
When paintball is mentioned, war comes to mind, then the question of pain, and safety. Sure, we know how safe it is, but we can't continue to believe that we can convince everyone of this.
The industry needs to start to take the lead in guiding paintball towards even safer territory. Debates online between players are fruitless, and though they can be entertaining, you can tell that if it were left up to the forum members, you'd have as many opinions as you do members, and barely any agreement as to what to do.
After all, the industry has the most invested in this sport, and make a living out of it. Continuing to hope that the next incident won't damage our sport more than the last is just too risky. At some point they may find they have nothing left.
These are my fears, and as much as I love paintball and the excitement it gives me, I feel we are headed for disaster, and inevitably an all out ban.
If not that, paintball will become restricted in a very harsh way. I won't even speculate, but I think you can imagine. At that point it will be too late for the representatives of paintball to come to the bargaining table. If they take the initiative however, their goodwill would be recognized and rewarded.
I see the industry is looking for help from us with the incident involving Mr. Holden. Well, I'm asking for help from the industry on behalf of the players.
Things are getting out of hand. Every highway sign and stop sign is marked with a paintball. Houses get shot, and people too. Saying that these vandals would just find other ways to create mischief is NOT an excuse for paintball to go on existing in the eyes of those who have been on the receiving end of these criminal acts.
Something really needs to be done, and I don't really want to hear what that would be from any member here, after all I'm not telling you what I think should be done.
If the industry wants to turn to the players for answers, then it's their choice. I see them as our leader though, and they may have some very tough choices to make in the near future. Giving them your support and encouragement to keep paintball a sport we can enjoy is the best you can do as a player.
I wish that this message could be more optimistic, and that my fears won't ever come true, but if we don't come to grips with the fact that paintball's existence is a fragile one, then we may have to learn it the hard way someday.
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