Germany to Outlaw Paintball

Germany to Outlaw Paintball

www.welt.de

(Transliteration): The German Government is preparing to pass Bills that will outlaw games that involve shooting, especially Paintball and Laserdome. This is one of the planned measures resulting from recent homocide rampages at public schools.

(visit the link for the full news article)

I dont have any English-Language sources of this piece of news yet.

I think this news item gives us a glimpse into the distorted mindset of some of our politicians. Paintball is a completely harmless game. The hypocrites in Government have no problem with sending soldiers abroad with real guns to kill real people, but when it comes to people having fun, enjoying team-sports and spending a day out in the woods...that should be outlawed?

Psychological studies have concluded that Paintball-Players are LESS LIKELY to commit acts of violence because they have had an opportunity to vent in the safe context of games.

If this Bill comes to pass I will list it as yet another attempt to outlaw FUN and personal responsibility in the name of political correctness.

Paintball is already outlawed in various parts of central Europe and is already rarely played in the woods but instead played in "especially desginated game areas in accordance with the law".


www.welt.de
(visit the link for the full news article)

What Paintball Is

[edit on 7-5-2009 by Skyfloating]

reply to post by Skyfloating


I am surprised at this knee-jerk reaction from the German government. I would not be surprised if little boys and girls start getting arrested for playing cowboys and indians, or cops and robbers.
Will all plastic toy weapons in toy shops also be banned?

Will cooking be banned because some woman poisoned her husband?
Woman poisons husband

Where does the madness end?

So are they gonna disband their military then?

that would be interesting...

I know! Lets ban the drinking of, and swimming in, water!! Why? Because people drown in it thats why!

I demand 20 years minimum jail term for anyone caught drinking a glass of water. As a subsiduary to this I also demand that anyone caught with saliva in their mouths should be waterboarded for a week then sent off to a secret camp to be interrogated for many years.

If I do see results soon I shall be complaining to the United Nations!!

[edit on 7/5/2009 by Kryties]

Once toy-guns (which is what paintball is) are outlawed players will simply move to bordering countries to play (czech republic, the netherlands, belgium, austria). So its ineffective in the first place.

Americans worry about harsh gun-laws being passed...thats nothing compared to Germany where even fake-guns are outlawed...

Wow. Who saw this coming?

Guess I'd better get myself along to some Paintball before it's banned here too.
Or before they decide you have to be licensed, have a psych test, police check and a whole pile of other ridiculous things before you can have a fun game with friends.

I never thought I'd see the day when Germany did something stupider than making us separate every tiny bit of trash we have, but I guess I have.

It's amazing to me that they've outlawed laser tag [I'm assuming that's what laser dome essentially is]. I didn't know that there were kids running around their schools with moonraker lasers shootin' up the place. I knew that European science scores were higher than in America but, I didn't know they were thay high!

@Mr. Lizard--The German military actually gets smaller and smaller every year. The former German foreign minister [I think] has been recommending to the government to radically slash the defense budget, as are the more liberal political parties over here. So, I wouldn't be surprised if in the future, German doesn't have a military--just kids with moonraker lasers.

I printed out the article for some guys from Germany that are over here installing a new machine for the plant I work at. I am going to ask them their thoughts on it. Also I want their opinion of the source (not that I don’t believe the OP source but more for their thoughts). I will post them when I get a reply, it will be Friday before I can speak to them though.


As for my thoughts on this. It seems strange to ban paintball over school shootings. I am not sure of the exact weapons laws over there but it might be a step toward a larger weapons ban. It just does not make much sense to me.

Raist

Originally posted by Skyfloating
Psychological studies have concluded that Paintball-Players are LESS LIKELY to commit acts of violence because they have had an opportunity to vent in the safe context of games.

It's called 'getting your ya-yas out'.
I pity my son...he's a paintball fan...and he just discovered Berlin. Oh the trials of youth.

reply to post by Raist


My wife heard this same bit of news on RTL, which is probably the largest TV network in Germany. So, if that source doesn't check out with your coworkers, you can tell them that RTL said so to.

Originally posted by Skyfloating
Paintball is a completely harmless game.

You've obviously never suffered from a paintball 3rd Nipple then?

This does sound daft though. Unless people were holding up banks and assaulting eachother in the streets with these things, it's a rediculous idea to ban them.

What next.......aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah, now I see! The push for mass pacification continues.

Originally posted by Raist
Also I want their opinion of the source (not that I don’t believe the OP source but more for their thoughts).

The source is simply the normal news media and outlets. If you type "Paintball Verbot" which means "Paintball Ban" into Google, you`ll find conventional news media running the story.

My hope is that there will be enough protest for this not to pass...but they are already talking about €5000 fines for players who play anyway.

I dont play paintball myself but I like the idea of it and may start playing sometime in the future.

One reason I think the idea is great is because people have been shown people shooting each other in movies, on TV Shows and in the News since decades. Thus brainwashed, they`ll want to start shooting around themselves. What better way to vent than in a game?

In fact...if all nations held their wars in games instead of with real weapons, we`d be living in paradise.

reply to post by Skyfloating


I was just reminded of just before the recent General Elections in South Africa.
I was driving to work one morning and on all the lamp posts that divided the oncoming lanes on Rivonia Road, the various parties had put up their various campaign posters.
For a distance about 5km's every single poster bearing the face of Jacob Zuma had been nailed by a paint ball. I found it rather amusing.

I doubt our new President did. In fact I would not be surprised if he also outlaws paintballs.

reply to post by deltaalphanovember


A good example of protest without anyone getting killed. Im assuming Zuma takes himself much too seriously to see the benefit of that...

reply to post by Skyfloating


Well, let's see ... if anyone was caught in New York shooting paintballs at Democratic posters bearing the image of Obama, would you think he would be treated gently by the Secret Service?

I don't think many politicians have senses of humour - see for them, it is a short step from paintball to machine gun.

I´ll accept outlawing shooting at non-players

Yes I have played paintball but at present I have no inclination to go on a shooting rampage, but if they take away my paintball then I may have to, grrrrr..

What a bunch of politically correct, do-gooding, paranoid NUMPTIES.....

reply to post by Skyfloating


Edit: Misread the thread's title. Thought it said PINBALL. I'm a huge fan of PINBALL. Sorry

[edit on 5/7/2009 by DarkElvis]