Airsoft International Magazine Vol 12 iss 8 Back Issue

COME THE APOCALYPSE...
Hopefully, by the time you are reading this the world will still be in one piece and acting as harmoniously as we can expect, that is to say some kind of thermonuclear holocaust hasn't kicked off! It's almost impossible to avoid the fall out from the US Election at the point in time that I'm writing this but I'm sure politics isn't something you want to be hearing about in Airsoft International, this does however bring me to a very pertinent point that was discussed over a pint or two with a friend recently. The "load out" seems to be a little less popular than it used to be and many players are opting for a generic look and feel to the kit they use. Myself and the aforementioned friend moved on to the subject of historic load outs, something that used to be a more popular occurrence. They are GREAT. You can visit historic load outs and build them as you wish, according to a reference photo and the best thing is, they don't change. The goal posts are fixed and there's a finite list of what you do and don't need to use. The worst aspect of historic load outs for me is the political and moral connotations that are associated with certain outfits and uniforms. It's obvious which ones are "hot spots" and should be worn with sensitivity but when it comes to representing the actual warring factions of any conflict you have to take into account the reality of the impact of war and how it leaves an impression in time. Unfortunately as fun as it can be to recreate a military load out people can take it too far and perhaps use it as a font from which to spout their rather extreme political ideologies, which it goes without saying, simply isn't cool.