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The greatest toy of all
...'.X
■ OUR OPINION:
LEGOs
stimulate
creativity, cross
over gender
and generational
gaps and may be
the best toy
ever made
here are certain things in life that are just
timeless. Things that cross over generational
boundaries to unite all people. Things like blue
jeans, beer and, most importantly, LEGOs.
Who didn’t once play with LEGOs as a kid?
Further, who doesn’t secretly long to dig through the
closet and pull out that old LEGO castle set and play
with them again? Quite simply, LEGOs were and are
the greatest toy ever invented, and we think it’s time
to recognize that.
What is it that makes LEGOs such a great toy? First
of all, they allow kids to create in a way that very few
toys do. Most toys limit a child’s options for play. GI
Joes were primarily for war games, Barbies for house
games, but LEGOs were for any kind of game possible.
With LEGOs, there are no limits. What other toy
allows kids to literally build their own fantasy world?
Sure, there were Lincoln Logs, but all you could
build with them were cabins. And that got pretty
old pretty fast.
LEGOs can be made into virtually anything.
Castles, space ships, gas stations and
hundreds of other objects that can only be
defined inside a chid’s imagination. Even
people who aren’t too creative can have
fun following the directions on the box
^ and admiring their final
product. LEGOs provide
■£3 i something for everyone, which is
why almost everyone played with
them.
That includes both boys and girls. Unlike
the majority of toys on the market, LEGOs
represent a truly gender-neutral toy. Both sexes
grew up playing with them because they weren’t
exclusively targeted at either sex. This separates
LEGOs from almost every other toy available.
Unfortunately, the creation of new pink LEGOs
threatens this gender neutrality. Now there is a new
set of LEGOs available that is exclusively targeted at
girls. They’re pink and can be built into houses,
beauty shops — all the stereotypical “girl” creations
imaginable.
Not only do these new pink LEGOs violate the
entire premise of building with LEGOs, but they are
unnecessary. By bringing gender roles into the world
of LEGOs, the limitless creativity of playing with
them is severely threatened. Saying that one set of
LEGOs is for boys and one is for girls draws a divide
into their unified world.
From the castle LEGOs to the space LEGOs to the
generic bucket of LEGOs, we truly believe LEGO toys
are something unique. Wannabe copy-cat LEGO toy
sets simply aren’t the same. Only the original LEGO
has the power and broad based appeal to deserve the
title of best toy ever.
This editorial represents the opinion of the Emerald v
editorial board.
READER VOICES
CHRIS HUTCHINSON/Emerald
What do LEGOs mean to you?
“I think they symbolize
the future. Because it's
like building some
thing: you start with
nothing, just broken
fragments and make
them into anything
you want.”
Henry Jones
Junior, biology
“I love LEGOS. I still
have one of those
great big boxes of
them. I still play with
them. I like the origi
nals, though. Now
they have all those
weird sets.”
Heather Hardaway
Senior, exercise and
movement science
“They mean creativity
and colors to me.”
Charily Pickett
Sophomore,
journalism
“Creativity. Definitely
agelessness. I have a
little brother who's
two, and he plays
LEGOs, and I have a
brother who’s 19, and
he'll sit down and play
| with the LEGOs too."
Nicole Sanson
Senior, dance and
foreign languages
“LEGOs mean a time
for relaxation and
play. They are very
therapeutic for
adults.”
Sussn Pucci
Senior, psychology
K._ ■
“LEGOs mean
everything to
me. LEGOs are
the building
blocks of life."
Brian Lakefish
Senior,
- business
j
Blocks of ISO
LEGO world headquarters is *
located in faraway Billund,
Denmark. Also in Billund is
Legoiand, a full-size theme
park, complete with rides and I
other attractions. Another i
\ Legoiand is located in
\ Windsor, England and
v \ numberthree will soon
\ ) open in Carlsbad,
]/ California.
Some LEGO bricks have a life
of their own—well, sort of.
Electronic Bricks have simple “ j
electronic circuits inside and i
when put together, can form robotic
creatures with interesting and complex
behaviors.
h According to a 1980 catalog,
| LEQO Group Companies
- would like their customers to
keep the LEGO brand name
special. Therefore, they prefer their prod
uct be called “LEGO Bricks and Toys," not
“LEGOs."
One of the most common in
ternational advertising phrases
for LEGO is, “LEGO is a new
toy every day" or “LEGO c'est
un nouveau jouet chaque |our or LEGO ist
jeden Tag ein neues Spielzeug."
The proper cleaning process
for LEGO Bricks and Toys are
by hand, in warm water (104
degrees, max.) with a mild
liquid dish detergent. Also, do not wash the
faces of the LEGO people; their faces will rub
off.
Fortough brick separation, an
official LEGO “Brick Separator"
can be bought for under two
dollars in stores worldwide.
LEGO comes from the
Danish “leg godt” meaning
“Play well".
300 million children have
owned LEGO sets since they
were first made.
MOTTO: “Det bedst er ikke for
godt,” which translates into
“The best is not too good."
The meaning is that even the
best isn't good enough for
LEGO.
Official LEGO web site:
htttpy/www.lego.com/
SOURCE: Compiled lot the tec toys lego newsgroup.