Ask Bono to Stop Video Game that Attacks Venezuela
- 26 February 2007
NOTE: The sign-on letter below is intended ONLY for people who have a titled position in an organized religion (eg. Fr., Rev., Sr., Rabbi, etc.) or are lay officials such as Directors, Episcopal Office of Peace and Justice. Those of us who are not religious leaders can participate by bringing this letter to the attention of those who are. We can also sign on to the secular letter to Bono, which you can read here.
Sign on to either letter by sending an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with your name, organization (if any), city, state, and religious title (if any).
From:
Marie Dennis, Director, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
Rabbi Michael Lerner, editor of Tikkun magazine
Fr. Joe Nangle, OFM, Pax Christi USA Ambassador for Peace
Dave Robinson, Executive Director, Pax Christi USA
Rev. A David Bos, Presbyterian Minister
To all religious leaders,
We are writing to ask you to become part of a growing worldwide
campaign to stop the sale of a violent video game in which the player
leads a mercenary force into Venezuela with the objective of killing a
"power hungry tyrant" who has taken over the oil industry. The game,
"Mercenaries 2," is produced by Pandemic Studios which has been
subcontracted to create extremely realistic videos to be used as
training games for the U.S. military. Pandemic Studios uses the same
technology found in the training videos to make the scenes in
"Mercenaries 2" as realistic as possible. Anyone who has spent time in
Caracas can immediately recognize the city's streets and landmarks in
the game. The aim of the video game is full devastation, so any
"person" who moves should be "shot," and all the buildings, such as the
headquarters of PDVSA, the Venezuelan public oil company, can be
"destroyed."
Our concern is that this game will only deepen an already antagonistic
relationship between the U.S. and Venezuelan governments. Millions of
Venezuelans fear an invasion from the U.S.; knowing that a company that
works for the U.S. military has created a game in which their country
is completely destroyed will increase those concerns.
To promote the campaign, we are approaching one of the principal
investors in Pandemic Studios, Bono, lead singer for U2 and one of
Time's 2005 People of the Year, to ask him to use his considerable
influence to stop the sale of the game. Bono is one of six members of
Elevation Partners which has invested $300 million in Pandemic Studios.
We hope that his history of involvement in justice issues such as debt
and famine relief will sensitize him to the problems with this game.
We invite you to learn more about the case at http://www.vensolidarity.org/Campaigns/index.php.
In Peace,
Marie Dennis,
Director, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
Rabbi Michael Lerner,
editor of Tikkun magazine
Fr. Joe Nangle, OFM
Pax Christi USA Ambassador for Peace
Dave Robinson,
Executive Director, Pax Christi USA
Rev. A David Bos,
Presbyterian Minister
To
sign on to this letter as an organization or as an individual, send
your name, title, organization and religious affiliation, city and
state to by email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., by phone: 202-544-9355, or by fax:
202-544-9359.
Deadline for signatures: March 31, 2007. Please forward this email widely to your colleagues!
Here follows the letter to Bono and to Pandemic Studios:
April 1, 2007
Bono (of U2)
Principle Management
30-32 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay
Dublin 2, 1111
Ireland
Josh Resnick
President, Pandemic Studios
1100 Glendon Avenue
19th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90024
Dear Bono,
We hope that this letter finds you well. We applaud your efforts to
erase the plagues of debt and famine from our planet and hope 2007 will
bring new energy and advances in these struggles. We write with the
hope that, while addressing these significant international issues, you
will also use your considerable influence in a matter that is closer to
home - a violent video game that has the potential to increase tensions
between the U.S. and Venezuela while promoting violence in our
communities.
Our faith traditions motivate us to confront the international debt
problem that robs human dignity and calls us to counter the culture of
violence that pervades our society today. The celebration of violence
in much of our media, music and video games is poisoning our children.
Games such as "Mercenaries 2" only serve to deepen the alienation that
already exists in our society, creating fear that drives people away
from each other. As people of faith, we are called to a different way
of life. "Mercenaries 2" is an extremely realistic and vicious game in
which the player leads a mercenary team to kill a "power hungry tyrant"
that has taken control of oil supplies in Venezuela. Images of downtown
Caracas are depicted as being completely destroyed during the game, and
any "people" on the streets are to be killed.
Pandemic Studios, a company in which your investment partnership has
financed hundreds of millions of dollars, is the creator of this game.
Behavioral science research demonstrates that playing violent video
games increases the likelihood of aggressive behavior, particularly in
children and youth. A game like "Mercenaries 2" in which the player
assumes the role of killer in scenes that appear very life-like is even
more likely to provoke aggressiveness. Of equal concern is the fact
that the game inevitably will provoke increased tensions between the
U.S. and Venezuela. Pandemic Studios has made a similar training game
for the U.S. military. This fact is not overlooked by Venezuelans, who
see this as further evidence of U.S. government hostility toward their
country.
We ask that you do whatever is necessary to see that "Mercenaries 2" is
pulled from stores and not sold anywhere. We also ask you to reconsider
your investment in a company that glorifies violence and
militarization. Most of our organizations have reconsidered past
investments in companies involved in life-draining activities and have
reoriented our investments to support more life-encouraging companies.
We hope that you will consider the same. We feel your connection with
this game detracts from your image as a human rights defender. In the
end, to paraphrase a statement of yours, we all know that history, like
God, is watching what you do. We look forward to your response and
would welcome a meeting to discuss these concerns further.
In Peace,
Marie Dennis,
Director, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, Washington, DC
Rabbi Michael Lerner
Editor, Tikkun magazine, Berkeley, CA
Rev. A David Bos, Presbyterian Minister, Louisville, KY
Fr. Joe Nangle, OFM
Pax Christi USA Ambassador for Peace, Washington, DC
Dave Robinson,
Executive Director, Pax Christi USA, Erie, PA
***Names of thousands of Religious Leaders and Organizations!***
To
sign on to this letter as an organization or as an individual, send
your name, title, organization and religious affiliation, city and
state to by email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., by phone: 202-544-9355, or by fax:
202-544-9359.
Please forward widely to your colleagues!
Deadline for signatures: March 31, 2007.
Resources you can use to contact Bono and his associates:
Fact Sheet (pdf)
Fact Sheet (Spanish-pdf)
Faith Sign-On Letter to Bono (pdf)
Faith Sign-On Letter to Bono-Spanish (pdf)
If you would like more information, please contact the Venezuela Solidarity Network at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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