"Army Men need an update, not sure about this one though" Topic

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NO!. . . these are just not right at all.

8(

Oh, this is wrong in so many ways. But apparently this image was used to illustrate a news article on the problems soldiers can have after returning home. Still in poor taste.

This is not for sale – this is art – whether you disagree with it or not – if you read the captions [not meant to be a snarky comment], it is supposed to reflect the high rate of suicide, domestic abuse etc for returning veterans. And there are models that were highlighted here on someone's vision of hell – lots of Nazis, german armor and victims. Art whether you disagree with it is still art -this is sculpting using a popular medium.

Yes, this is art —— that illustrates very real problems. Don't look away.

Because we all know soldiers are nothing but victims or violent psychotics or both, and the best thing to do is constantly portray them that way.

That was sarcasm for those that don't know me.

I didn't have time to read the comments, since I closed the link as quickly as I could before I threw-up.

"It is art" is a cop-out.

Not disagreeing with you Capt., but the statistics do show that there are many issues (greater statistically than the non-veteran population) that are really affecting many of our veterans. This was not an anti-war screed but a call to recognize the problems in that particular local community. Now this could have been balanced by positive images I dare say.
And whether it is a cop-out or not or whether you like it or think it's justified it is still art. And to say art never did have messages or political,religious, sociological overtones- even the "Masters", I humbly disagree.

The fact that this piece of art made it all the way through the web to TMP, then managed to disgust several of the folks who have posted here — that means it worked.

The question, for those of you who were repulsed by the image, is what are you going to do about it? Here's a good starting point: thesoldiersproject.org

It's a link to The Soldiers Project, which offers free counseling to vets & their families.

…oh, and to clarify – I don't particularly like this art. One, it's overdone – using common objects in a different milieu to shock or to make a point. Secondly, if one is making a political statement then there should be some suggestion of solution – much like PatrickWR did. Anyway I think Patrick makes a very good point – it created discussion of an issue (in that community at least) that may have been ignored or overlooked.

I like it, it shows that there is a very real issue with soldiers coming back to civvy street.

The real bad taste is society ignoring them once they have stopped fighting the armed enemy.

Someone has gone to a lot of effort to show this.

Michael.

1st, The organization 'The Soldier's Project' is not, as far as I can tell, worth supporting. Any agency claiming to support troops returning from combat that does not have offices near any major posts is suspect in my book. They appear to be a typical "Soldiers are victims" group.

2nd, the Army and other services have plenty of programs available to troops, vets, and family members. link is a good place to start for Army. Call or email your congress critter to tell him/her you want funding for those to improve.

3rd, if you want to support organizations that REALLY support troops and veterans, here are a couple that actually do that:

woundedwarriorproject.org

soldiersangels.org

4th, if you think veterans and soldiers and their families are ignored or forgotten, you are hanging out with the wrong crowd.

Jake

There are so many other ways that one can express the realty of a sad subject than to disgust people and then hide behind the cliche "Oh but its Art!". And this is obviously one such instants.

8|

Art? Nope…just crap posing as art. Same thing as the religious icon sitting in a jar of urine. I'm done. Don't need them…don't want them…

Steve Miller
DFW Irregulars

Personally, I thought the models were thought-provoking pieces of modelling – and quite skilful modelling – that raised an important issue by showing toy soldiers suffering fates that they never, but real soldiers all too often do.
IMHO that combination of skill and imagination IS art.
'Crap posing as art' would be the spray-painted white plastic army men glued to a sheet of hardboard, splattered with a few drops of red pain to represent blood, with a trite caption about Love not War, that I saw in a South Bank gallery on sale for c.£200 IIRC several years ago. No real skill or original thought involved. My son and I could have made something similar for less than £5, and told the gallery owner so.
To anyone this side of the Atlantic – support the Combat Stress charity appeal!

Perfect models. These should be sold and the money given to victims of American soldier atrocities committed in Afghanistan and Iraq. Many children, women and men would benefit greatly by the money instead of the usual and empty "sorry for your pain" that is usually given by the NATO forces.

Saif, perhaps your point would have more weight with me if I didn't know that some of those "victims of atrocities" didn't so willingly take American money to "salve" their pain. There is evidence that in Iraq some men coerced a wife to drive into certain death so he could collect money and get a new and, perhaps, more tractable wife. This evidence comes from men on the ground actively involved in the payout process. How many times have Iraqis or Afghans – or any Arab country at all – arrested a citizen of their country and put them on trial for non-battle crimes against American or allied soldiers? America has done this time after time when warranted. Yes, war is brutal and hellish, but at least the US, not always right by any means, makes an effort towards justice. Unless you have documentable evidence to support these countries do this as well, perhaps you'd do well to reconsider your opinions.

As to the art argument – frankly, I found the images deeply tasteless and thus not art at all in my eyes. A topic worthy of discussion? Of course, but this is the wrong way to facilitate it in my view.

I think these figures are a waste of bandwidth to discuss here and tasteless in the extreme. Don't whine to me about the "art" and the "rightness" or "wrongness" or why I should be tolerant. I've stepped in excrement as I've got a Giant Schnauzer. I have seen it, and know it. This line is excrement and will not receive my business.

I think it's very interesting that, almost without exception, the howls of protest about this are from our American cousins. These being, again, almost without exception, the same people who are happy as larry to participate in games involving the IRA, with indiscriminate nail bombs, car bombs, snipers et all, and those of us who dare to question that this may be in bad taste, are shouted down as 'PC Jerks'

This art may be in bad taste, but these are not figures you can buy, but are illustrating a point, and provoking (some) intelligent discussion.

As to my personal opinion, I am sure that TMP'ers, probably to a man, or woman, have given to a veterans charity, and have little need of this, so, to use an irritating transatlantic jargon, a 'meh' from me.

John

I won't get into a war of words. I've posted my position. I don't and have not played any games with IRA terrorists and the like. That type of game just doesn't appeal to me. To generalize is a little off the hook. I'll agree that the term "meh" (my students use that as a interpersonal discourse) is irritating and agree with you on the point that you made in the bottom of your post. Just sayin'……..

I wonder if everyone would be so quick to defend "Art" if it was say a priest molesting a young boy, or a mother drowning her child?

Why are the soldiers all wearing helemts? That's what I want to know.