"15mm Japanese School Girl Tank Crew" Topic

Except, they are not admitting to being 'nonces'. Otaku does not refer to being a sex offender. So your 'point' is not taken.

More on otaku:

"The Nomura Research Institute (NRI) has made two major studies into otaku, the first in 2004 and a revised study with a more specific definition in 2005.[27][28] The 2005 study defines twelve major fields of otaku interests. Of these groups, manga (Japanese comics) was the largest, with 350,000 individuals and ¥83 billion market scale. Idol otaku were the next largest group, with 280,000 individuals and ¥61 billion. Travel otaku with 250,000 individuals and ¥81 billion. PC otaku with 190,000 individuals and ¥36 billion. Video game otaku with 160,000 individuals and ¥21 billion. Automobile otaku with 140,000 individuals and ¥54 billion. Animation (anime) otaku with 110,000 individuals and ¥20 billion. The remaining five categories include Mobile IT equipment otaku, with 70,000 individuals and ¥8 billion; Audio-visual equipment otaku, with 60,000 individuals and ¥12 billion; camera otaku, with 50,000 individuals and ¥18 billion; fashion otaku, with 40,000 individuals and ¥13 billion; and railway otaku, with 20,000 individuals and ¥4 billion.[28] These values were partially released with a much higher estimation in 2004, but this definition focused on the consumerism and not the "unique psychological characteristics" of otaku used in the 2005 study.[27][28]
NRI's 2005 study also put forth five archetypes of otaku. The first is the family-oriented otaku, who has broad interests and is more mature than other otaku; their object of interest is secretive and they are "closet otaku". The second is the serious "leaving my own mark on the world" otaku, with interests in mechanical or business personality fields. The third type is the "media-sensitive multiple interest" otaku, whose diverse interests are shared with others. The fourth type is the "outgoing and assertive otaku", who gain recognition by promoting their hobby. The last is the "fan magazine-obsessed otaku", which is predominately female with the a small group of males being the "moe type"; the secret hobby is focused on the production or interest in fan works.[28] The Hamagin Research Institute found that moe-related content was worth ¥88.8 billion ($807 million) in 2005, and one analyst estimated the market could be as much as ¥2 trillion ($18 billion).[3] Japan based Tokyo Otaku Mode a place for news relating to Otaku has been liked on Facebook almost 10 million times.[29]
Other classifications of otaku interests include vocaloid, cosplay, figures and professional wrestling as categorized by the Yano Research Institute. Yano Research reports and the tracks market growth and trends in sectors heavily influenced by otaku consumerism. In 2012, it noted around 30% growth in dating sim and online gaming otaku, while vocaloid, cosplay, idols and maid services grew by 10%, confirming its 2011 predictions.[30][31]"

So what if a significant majority admit to being nonces? They're still nonces.

"Otaku" in it's MOST INSULTING FORM translates to "epic nerd with minimal social skills"

I'm talking about people who are so socially insecure that they cannot look another person in the face. That they are incapable of verbal interaction beyond the bare minimum grunt of "hey, nice to meet you," which in colloquial Japanese sounds like "oh-tahk-oo".

Their very nickname comes from the greeting they grunt at each other in Comiket.

Explain to me how "epic lack of social skills" means "sexual predator" in more than 5% of cases, please.

Frankly, the anime nerds in the US adopted the term and have changed the meaning to 'fanboy' in the most obnoxious sense of the word, and that definition has since taken over the original Japanese definition of the word.

I merely raised the question of the wisdom in fuelling these sorts of groups with such easy ammunition…

Since when does anyone on the internet need "ammunition" to attack someone or something else? All you need is a picture to take out of context, an opinion and a combative attitude. The thread you are reading is plenty of proof of that.

No, a thread wanting pre-teenagers or young teenagers in short skirts driving tanks is creating the very scenario that leads directly to these sorts of confrontations.

I believe we already have at least one case of a wargamer convicted of some form of child pornography (must admit, I steered clear of the detail of the story), and I freely acknowledge that (a) those two threads are unrelated stories – any deranged idiot could be involved, not necessarily a wargamer – and (b) it absolutely does not mean I am suggesting in any way that anyone voting for these figures has any sort of these tendancies.

But… it only takes the (admittedly uneducated) media or mass public to tie these two together, and I am puzzled if you cannot see the end result. It just strikes me as somewhat unwise to lay it out on a plate for them.

You've seen that ridiculous Dark Dungeons comic? That thing has been around for decades and keeps coming back to haunt D&D fans everywhere every couple of years. But should that mean we should stop playing/discussing D&D in public? Because some biblethumpers are freaking out about something they perceive, but in reality isn't there (devil worship)? I would say that the same goes about this hoopla about Girls und Panzer…

The term Otaku also seems to have been popularized in the same way as nerd and geek have been in the west.

I think the problem is that outsiders would see wargaming as glorifying, or at best trivializing war that is in effect legalized murder.

To then be also associated with the objectification of women and girls is the cherry on the cake for the moral majority to come down on the hobby like a hammer.

The problem as I see it is one of fear. The fear of being seen as someone who is abhorrent, or the fear of living in a society where people do things that makes one afraid to allow one's children to go out alone.

The question for me is who benefits from this state of affairs?

Precisely. But to correct your parallel it is not saying don't play D&D, but would you want figures of devil worshippers sacrificing children as the (anti) heroes? Or perhaps (as I am sure you are one who can distinguish reality from entertainment) to be associated with devil worshippers when one turns up?

Again, I agree with your post John Treadaway … especially about "barging in" … As I said previously, " … once you post on any open forum online, you may get comments that don't always agree with you or you may not like … In any "intellectual" discussion, all POV should be welcomed. At least in theroy. No doubt some may see some comments, that they find in their opinion crazy, goofy, unrealistic, etc., etc. … Again, maybe from my POV and predilections on this topic my opinion will differ [greatly] from your's and others … " …

What I find really weird is the amount of you who have been posting on here who either dislike anime in general, find this thread appalling, and yet you come back time after time to post comments that are not on topic or so far off topic it its not funny.

As for point of view I am fine with it but when you make Pedo comments that bugs me…a lot…

So how about staying on topic….

LGW

I thought the topic was the problem

link

My point exactly GeofQRT if it is an issue then go else where
Where you won't be bothered by it. Why continuously lament this thread or are you on some kind of crusade.

I have this thread on LAF and it has not been blown out of proportions like here. Yes guys have posted comments that its not to their liking but it was one post and then that was it they moved on.

LGW … had you not mention me directly in response to my post about the IDF female AFV crews … I pretty much had moved on … but I felt I owed you a reply. But I did say and stand by it … Do What Works For U … Not me … Also my current personal experiences as a Private Investigator, a few cases involved pedophiles, child abuse, etc. … so maybe I am little sensitive to some things. That may be my problem … not any one elses … so I'm sorry if I upset some here … Between my military plus my PI experiences. My POV may be tainted somewhat … I may see the world as a gritty, cold, unforgiving place on some occasions …

Hey, all I said was it felt wrong, not because of the topic itself, or any suggestion that those wanting the figures made were directly or indirectly associated with any deviant tendancies, but precisely because I could see exactly where this thread was heading.

It is slightly confusing that I seem to be under attack for asking whether wanting figures of young girls in very short skirts is a good idea…?

Look back through the thread, I'm not the main contributor/critic here by far. I didn't comment again until much later, and only really to quantify exactly that I was NOT suggesting that anyone here was associated with the exact threat that mass media would love to label us with

Of course you would prefer not to have comments that challenge your request but 'if you don't like it look elsewhere' is not really the answer, is it, when you are bordering on this sort of topic?

Perhaps, like Legion, I am slightly oversensitive to this topic, but surely it is preferable to be slightly oversensitive than undersensitive?

giggity-giggity

I've watched the show numerous times (as it is one of my kids' favorites) and I never realized I was supposed to be sexually attracted to the cartoon characters.

Now when Bugs Bunny put on a dress and played a girl bunny… that was HOT.

My observation is that people are bothered by how the comments make them feel. Quite rightly, feelings are important, because they what you feel. However, feelings are not facts, in that by definition they can't be falsified.

From a research perspective one cannot link causally watching violent films, games etc with the propensity to act on the images, in fact a recent paper showed the opposite tendency in young men i.e less violent because they played FPS etc.

Unfortunately, paedophilia is a very emotionally laden topic that is difficult to discuss.

My experience as a therapist treating women who had been abused as children is that the kind of people who do this kind of abuse are not those that generally partake of things like watching animation. Though I should add the caveat that this is only in my personal experience and therefore anecdotal. I'm sure we can find a sex abuser who has watched animation, but my point would remain that the two are only correlated, not casual.

I am pretty liberal about most freedoms and really beleive anyone has a right to do what they want and express their creativity any way they like. There are a lot of people who seem to think that the entire public spectrum will see it from their point of view. The trouble is that the public's point of view IS that full wide spectrum.

Some people will not see anything, some will see harmless freaky, but others will see dangerous freaky, using terms like 'suspected grooming'. It isn't based on anything real but just a feeling and a perception.

Maybe nothing will be said, but it will be thought by some parents and wargaming will be discouraged which seems counterproductive,especially if that is the point for these figures purchase.

Again as far as wargaming … Do What Works For U … Not me … After all we are not only products of our environment and experiences but sometimes victims of it as well …

Looks like the listing is gone.

Looks like the listing is gone.

Yup. Insufficient interest to reach the 600 units and 10 different buyers level for production after one year, so it was pulled from the 300 Club.

I'm still looking for a way to get these made, but now it looks like I would have to foot the bill for the entire project. Personally commissioning this makes it a 'maybe next year' thing, since I am dead broke right now.

Yep, TMP is exactly what the people on LAF seem to think it is.

Sigh.

The whole "perception" thing is the problem, both in EEO in the USA and here on TMP.

God spare me…

Leaving this thread and not coming back.

LAF? Who cares what the Liberian Air Force thinks about TMP?

That was funny

Well, if all you need are the upper torsos jutting out of the cupolas, you could convert these (the weapons can be a problem, unless you like shouting "Drive me closer! I want to hit them with my sword!")

link

Lion, I was in the 300 Club and I'm interested. Revive this thread when you have funds available and we'll talk.

@Thomas Nissvik: will do. If you're a sculptor, please send me an email, this user name all lowercase and no spaces, at gmail dot com. I would like a rough estimate for cost, so I know how much $$ I need to save up.

Lion, you have mail.
Sculptors out there, Lion has my email and you can reach us both that way. I am no sculptor, if I was, this thing would not have the hatches closed:

This worries me more than animated characters. Working in the same crew they will synchronise their menstruation. I wouldn't want to be walking through Gaza on those few "femme fatal" days of the month. But, if we have to pick favorites, I like the one on the left.

LGW, wonderful job those tanks. I hope you and your daughter enjoy your adventures.