Mods, I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this thread, but I wanted to address this particular topic and create a dialogue. Please move it to the appropriate forum if it isn't in the right spot.
I just saw an interview with a convicted killer and throughout the whole interview he blamed his actions on gaming, music and the media. This annoys me to no end because not once do these people take responsibility for their own acts. Sure they say it, but the scope of their argument makes it clear that they exonerate themselves for any blame. Oh, you played a video game and listened to a rock video, so you are justified in your violent actions. Seriously? How many of us have played a game and never thought about hurting another. Last week, I played "Batman: Arkham Asylum" and I didn't get the urge to dress up in a bat costume and start beating people up. It's a game. It's entertainment. If you don't have the ability to distinguish this, then I'm sorry, but video games are the least of your problems. To act as though that gaming is the main culprit and enabler of violent acts when millions of other people take up such a hobby without ill effects is plain ludicrous to me. It's wasn't fair to blame the Beatles for one's planned race war, it's wasn't fair to blame Judas Priest for your attempted suicide, and it's not fair to blame Grand Theft Auto or any other game on your violent acts. Entertainment in all of it's forms are a reflection of our culture. If you dislike the negatives and the violence, perhaps it's time to look at the source of it all. However, stop blaming peripheral issues for the ills of society. That isn't going to work despite how much sensationalist journalists in the media try to pick it up. It's easy to blame, but it's harder to tackle the real issue and solve the problems. A broken family unit or abusive home, mental illness, crime, perennial war culture, and poverty have all contributed more to societal violence than Pacman and Mario- even those other topics deserve more than a perfunctory glance before being labelled as the problem as there are so many variables worth taking into account. If you don't want to report it or take on the real issues, fine, but stop trying to find a scapegoat for your societies flaws when you aren't actually trying to solve anything other than your ratings dilemma.
I don't know, but this report tonight pissed me off and needed to rant. Plus, I'd love to hear other perspectives. What say you?
