California Lawmaker Proposes New Videogame Ban

[MrRant 0]

Blaming the Game

Lawmaker proposes new game ban

Written by Karl Bode

 

With the increase in gang-related violence at broadband gaming cafes, blaming violence on video games once again becomes a hot topic. One California Assemblyman thinks banning kids under 17 years old from purchasing first-person-shooters is the answer.

 

Ask any psychologist and they'll usually tell you that violent behavior is a combination of genetics and parental influence. While gaming can be a trigger for those who already have issues, so can too much Pepsi. Americans enjoy finding superficial scapegoats; blame the White Album for Charles Manson; blame films (not absentee parenting) for poor behavior among children.

 

Back in January, a 17-year-old twelfth grader from the Vancouver suburbs was murdered at a broadband Internet cafe while playing the popular counter-terrorism game Counter-Strike; shot to death by a competitor.

 

What's odd is the automatic need by some to immediately assume the children playing were somehow incapable of distinguishing between the artificial, and real world. "It seems that something from the imagination has been taken to the next level and made into reality", suggested one Canadian police officer at the time of the murder.

 

California Democratic Assemblymember Leland Y. Lee of District 12 seems to also make this leap of logic in his latest legislative push. Interviewed over at HomeLan this week, the politician gives his thoughts on gaming's societal impact and two bills he thinks will help solve the problem:

 

"To be honest, a member of my staff was shocked when she saw the graphic violence depicted in many of these video games. As a mother, she felt it was unacceptable and brought it to my attention. We decided to look into the issue and found that there are over 1,000 studies conducted by distinguished scientists that showed a correlation between the viewing of violent media images and increased aggression and acceptance of violence among children."

 

In reality, the studies usually define "aggression" as anything from increased heart-rate to "agitation". Few if any of the participants finished playing, picked up their Xbox, and used it to brain every other person in the room. The connection is tenuous at best, yet Mr. Lee makes the same association between smoking and lung-cancer as he does to gaming and violence.

 

The interview with Yee (who has never actually played any of the games he talks about) is certainly worth a read. Some of his points seem legitimate, but perhaps better enforcement of the existing ESRB rating system would be a more logical first step?

 

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/36204

 

OMG BROADBANDREPORTS.COM 2003 LOLZ~!

[Guest JMA]

What a bunch of fucking pussies.

 

...What?

[Guest Skironox]

It seems every ten years or so, California tries to ban video games in some way.

 

Remember the "Leisure Suit Larry" bill? How far did that one go?

 

This is going to go as far as every other Video Game lawsuit/act/ban ever. Some conservative christian group comes and says videogames encourage killing, game industry reps come and rebuff them, saying "You're looking for an easy scapegoat when you can't raise your own damn kids", everyone starts worrying about their games, and the judge eventually throws it out.

 

Damn old people.

[Guest Kamui]

It seems every ten years or so, California tries to ban video games in some way.

 

Remember the "Leisure Suit Larry" bill? How far did that one go?

 

This is going to go as far as every other Video Game lawsuit/act/ban ever. Some conservative christian group comes and says videogames encourage killing, game industry reps come and rebuff them, saying "You're looking for an easy scapegoat when you can't raise your own damn kids", everyone starts worrying about their games, and the judge eventually throws it out.

 

Damn old people.

Hey, at least it gives a California judge a break every now and then.

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

Fucking left-wing whackos. Maybe you should get the guns out of their hands instead. It works up here.