What actually appears is the trappings of violence: Guys--even gals--armed to the teeth; "weapons of death and destruction"; fierce eyes of suspicious warriors; silent and fast movements always going for the kill. You find them all in a war as well as in a wargame. The difference is: In a real war, appearance is reality; in a wargame, appearance is NOT reality.
In a wargame--particularly airsoft--the reality is that the protagonists are fun-loving aficionados of the exciting life--which is their definition of the good life--who have been burnt out and bored by the routine of weekday responsiblities in offices, board rooms, clinics, field works, production plants, school rooms, etc. Definitely none are warfreaks--in fact, it's even safe to say that these guys and gals are the most peace-loving denizens of the globe. Many are professionals: medical doctors, lawyers, engineers of all sorts, professors in universities/colleges, accountants, businessmen/women, artists, etc.
Yes, the whole set-up gives us the picture of military life: boots, uniforms, guns (BUG). But there is nothing military in the equality of treatment among airsofters who address each other "Sir"/"Ma'm" regardless of age, gender, race, and status in life and career. There was even a time in the recent past (it was only last year) when as a lone wolf I joined my eldest son who is a seasoned airsofter and member of the elite Special Warfare Airsoft Group (SWAG) to play in a big game in Naic, Cavite. I was assigned to join a team composed of Philippine Navy and Marine officers and soldiers and the leader of the group was a military doctor carrying the rank of a Rear Admiral (2-star General). I was sort of elated when in the course of a conversation, he addressed me "Sir". The natural but amusing reaction from a greenhorn like me was a feeling of elation with the idea that probably this guy thought I was a Vice-Admiral. Well, of course, I was just kidding. But on the serious side, I was really impressed that a real military officer did not hesitate to level himself with a simple non-military entity in a mil-sim (military simulation) event. (Constitutionally, that was quite accurate because during peace time, the civilian is supreme over the military.)
Well, yes, there are also real warriors who play the game of airsoft. But once in the gamesite, they must shed off their real identities and be gamers.
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Even in war we can still maintain the dignity of human life. Most hardcore war afficionados may disagree, but I say this in the sense that while the objective of war is to defeat the enemy, it doesnt always necessarily mean killing the opponent. Giving the enemy the choice of surrender and be taken prisoner is one manifestation of maintaining human dignity even in war.
ReplyDeleteThe Kamikaze warriors of world war II consider defeat and surrender as loss of human dignity and therefore take their own life since living on bended knees of shame from this defeat does not justify living further.
In the milsim world of Airsoft, such maintenance of human dignity in war can also be possible when you either give the enemy the option to surrender by giving him a KNIFE KILL.
While the basic principle of a knife kill is to verbally call a HIT on your "caught un-aware opponent" (one who hasn't detected you usually from behind or when the distance between you is less than 5 meters such that shooting him from this short distance can cause injury), this gives him the chance to either surrender or die in battle. As shared by other fellow airsofters; some tournament rules allow the opponent to either accept the knife kill or not. So, the next best thing to do is to maintain your aim on the opponent while declaring the knife kill and shoot him (in a short burst of fire) if he resists or poses to shoot.
Airsoft is a gentleman's sport. Opponents maintain respect by addressing each other as "sir" or "maam." Warriors can still be gentlemen, giving each other the option of surrender or die in battle.