Violence and Video games, here we go again

Video games do not put guns into their player’s hands. They do not make parents want to leave their guns accessible to teenagers.

This argument has been going on for decades. I loved GTA, remember the storm over that series? But it never made me want to steal cars, deal drugs or visit a prostitute.

Politicians always need to find a solution, even when you don't need one. They need to be seen to do the right thing, which too often does not help. This is a problem today more than ever, with the news media clammering for answers and 24hr news raising those calls to fervour pitch.

I don't know enough about the gun issue to make a comment on that, but I do know video games have been a scapegoat for years. Politicians and even more so the media have to blame someone.

I think TV has more influence than Videogames. There is just way too much of it these days, and backstapping, and even the good guys of the show are at each others throats.

In all the years I have played games and watched TV, I have never had the desire to act out a videogame, whereas TV I do all the time, because it is more real with real people, and not pixels.

In The Mentalist, he kills a guy he thinks is his arch enemy, which is not, and then gets away with it. He has to get away with it, otherwise the show would end!

If any of the Law shows is any indication of real law, too many guilty people get away with murder, and innocent people go to jail, all because of the game lawyers play in court.

Videogames have helped me spot details, and be on the look out for trouble, basically be more observant, and I did prevent a real crime of fraud from happening, and I put that down from playing videogames.

Originally posted by superniceguy

I think TV has more influence than Videogames. There is just way too much of it these days, and backstapping, and even the good guys of the show are at each others throats.

i think both mediums de-sensitize people

but i agree tv / film is more impressionable than video games

example

-  teen killer from columbine massacre was supposedly inspired by Neo of the Matrix

what have video games inspired?  cosplayers?

the only videogame violence ive read about is people taking game disputes to real life

Scapegoating has taken place of personal responsibility in western culture it would seem. Laying blame on videogames or even guns on heinous crimes is the same thing as blaming automobiles or even alcohol for drunk driving. Could a very violent videogame illicit feelings of violence in someone? Sure, but a mentally capable person understands that what takes place in a videogame isn't real, and that knowledge of fantasy can allow people to safely vent frustrations. However, a mentally unstable person could not realize where the fantasy ends and real life begins and take inappropriate actions.

Per usual, the most logical step in fixing violence issues in our country is ignored, because mental health issues aren't taken seriously in our culture.

Originally posted by Eluldor
The NRA has been directing the attention to video games...

didnt know but after you mentioned this, i checked recent articles and saw this

NRA's video game smacks of hypocrisy

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/16/opinion/ferguson-nra-video-games/

if video games promoted violence, why didnt the government blame Microsoft Flight Simulator on 9/11?

mmmh....

Seems to me the problem is adult children 18 plus, under grads, grad students living in there mother and father's basement and off there health insurance. Or am i being crule too Mentaly challenged young people, who there whole life probaly have not fit in.

Sorry, I could not resist.

When I was yonger about 10 I knew guns meant death, and when my uncle came to visit and said someone had been waving a gun around on the streets it scared me.

I think videogames takes real guns off the street more, as when I was kid my friend had a gun (a BB gun I think), for tin can shooting, plus other weapons including shurikens, which made me freak, but there was not these awesome games back to substitue the desire for wanting a gun, and this was before the ZX Spectrum and C64. Maybe my friend would not have wanted a real gun if we grew up with the games of today.

Originally posted by superniceguy

I think TV has more influence than Videogames. There is just way too much of it these days, and backstapping, and even the good guys of the show are at each others throats.

In all the years I have played games and watched TV, I have never had the desire to act out a videogame, whereas TV I do all the time, because it is more real with real people, and not pixels.

In The Mentalist, he kills a guy he thinks is his arch enemy, which is not, and then gets away with it. He has to get away with it, otherwise the show would end!

If any of the Law shows is any indication of real law, too many guilty people get away with murder, and innocent people go to jail, all because of the game lawyers play in court.

Videogames have helped me spot details, and be on the look out for trouble, basically be more observant, and I did prevent a real crime of fraud from happening, and I put that down from playing videogames.

Violence on TV, violence in videogames, it doesn't matter. The main fault for ANY child getting hold of adult content is their parents/guardians. Parents either don't understand or just don't care about ratings. They think their 10 year old should be able to play Call of Duty. If the government wants to crack down on the so called "videogame violence" getting to kids, they need to start punishing parents for letting their children have it. Instead of taking that damn $500mil or so that Obama spent on research into videogame violence, use that money to educate parents. I have played violent videogames since I was like 8 years old, and I am not violent nor do I want to, or have thoughts of, hurting others. Parents need to stop blaming media and start looking at themselves.

Unfortunately all forms of media have desensitized the public to violence, sex, language and gore which has been the case for many decades now.  

There is no way for anyone to give a 100% diagnoses that states the reason behind their insanity was any form of media.  Out of a population of 300 something million in this country you're gonna have some nut cases here and there. If media was the reason there would be millions of people performing the same type of acts so blaming media is not acceptable nor a proper diagnoses.

The reasons for some of these massacres were later revealed as bullying, mental instability, (not mental insanity from playing games or watching any form of media) but born with a mental impairment.

There is one fact with most of these massacres and that is most were young guys in their early twenties.

Originally posted by Eluldor
The NRA has been directing the attention to video games...

Blaming inanimate objects for crime is stupid, I agree.

Look at what else the NRA proposed and the is being implemented across the country today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-phl2d_n60

Originally posted by Elsabolts

Seems to me the problem is adult children 18 plus, under grads, grad students living in there mother and father's basement and off there health insurance. Or am i being crule too Mentaly challenged young people, who there whole life probaly have not fit in.

Just think these mass shooters haven't even reached their mid 30's which is when they will turn to serial killings instead of these childish outbursts. I think the upcoming generation is going to be seriously fucked up. These 18-25 year olds today just seem completely lost, and unable to cope with life. Colleges have reported a record number of students in the last 10 years requesting psychiatric help because they think college is too hard, and can't deal with it.

Originally posted by DarthMajin

Originally posted by superniceguy

I think TV has more influence than Videogames. There is just way too much of it these days, and backstapping, and even the good guys of the show are at each others throats.

In all the years I have played games and watched TV, I have never had the desire to act out a videogame, whereas TV I do all the time, because it is more real with real people, and not pixels.

In The Mentalist, he kills a guy he thinks is his arch enemy, which is not, and then gets away with it. He has to get away with it, otherwise the show would end!

If any of the Law shows is any indication of real law, too many guilty people get away with murder, and innocent people go to jail, all because of the game lawyers play in court.

Videogames have helped me spot details, and be on the look out for trouble, basically be more observant, and I did prevent a real crime of fraud from happening, and I put that down from playing videogames.

Violence on TV, violence in videogames, it doesn't matter. The main fault for ANY child getting hold of adult content is their parents/guardians. Parents either don't understand or just don't care about ratings. They think their 10 year old should be able to play Call of Duty. If the government wants to crack down on the so called "videogame violence" getting to kids, they need to start punishing parents for letting their children have it. Instead of taking that damn $500mil or so that Obama spent on research into videogame violence, use that money to educate parents. I have played violent videogames since I was like 8 years old, and I am not violent nor do I want to, or have thoughts of, hurting others. Parents need to stop blaming media and start looking at themselves.

AMEN bro :)

Originally posted by DarthMajin

Originally posted by superniceguy

I think TV has more influence than Videogames. There is just way too much of it these days, and backstapping, and even the good guys of the show are at each others throats.

In all the years I have played games and watched TV, I have never had the desire to act out a videogame, whereas TV I do all the time, because it is more real with real people, and not pixels.

In The Mentalist, he kills a guy he thinks is his arch enemy, which is not, and then gets away with it. He has to get away with it, otherwise the show would end!

If any of the Law shows is any indication of real law, too many guilty people get away with murder, and innocent people go to jail, all because of the game lawyers play in court.

Videogames have helped me spot details, and be on the look out for trouble, basically be more observant, and I did prevent a real crime of fraud from happening, and I put that down from playing videogames.

Violence on TV, violence in videogames, it doesn't matter. The main fault for ANY child getting hold of adult content is their parents/guardians. Parents either don't understand or just don't care about ratings. They think their 10 year old should be able to play Call of Duty. If the government wants to crack down on the so called "videogame violence" getting to kids, they need to start punishing parents for letting their children have it. Instead of taking that damn $500mil or so that Obama spent on research into videogame violence, use that money to educate parents. I have played violent videogames since I was like 8 years old, and I am not violent nor do I want to, or have thoughts of, hurting others. Parents need to stop blaming media and start looking at themselves.

I am not just talking about children. Personally TV influences me, but I know what is good and bad, and only follow the good stuff, like acting like Adrian Paul the Highlander being 400 years old, mature and who knows it all, to chat up girls and it worked, but videogames does not influence my life at all, in any way.

All the TV lately is getting worse, and shows like Criminal Minds should not be shown before 9pm, yet it is. The Watershed for programmes seems to be getting more and more relaxed.

TV needs more clean fun shows like what was on in the 80s, where the good guys were the good guys and the bad guys were the bad guys, and good guys win and bad guys lose, and good guys do not go killing other people and getting away with it, like Patrick jane did in The Mentalist, and that is also being shown in the day time too. Even Adults may use that as an example, to try and get away with murder, or pretend to be insane. Kids are less likely to put that much thought into it.

Originally posted by ShakyMo
Makes me wonder what games people played, what music people listened to and what tv shows they watched in Victorian times when the murder rate over here was more than 20 times what it Is today.

It was probably because they didn't drink water, as it was polluted in the larger cities.  They only drank beer (the process purified the water portion) and the dehydration and DT's that were the end result of imbibing too much probably caused all the violence. 

Originally posted by rojo6934

if video games promoted violence, why didnt the government blame Microsoft Flight Simulator on 9/11?

mmmh....

Or boxcutters. Why haven't boxcutters been banned for killing 3,000 people within minutes?

Inanimate objects > nutjobs? Makes perfect sense.

Don't tell anyone 38,000 deaths from cars happened last year, we'll be riding in horse and buggies again. Or that more baseball bats have killed people in the US than rifles. I like baseball, I would hate to see baseball banned because a nutjob killed someone with a baseball bat at a higher rate than rifles.

Originally posted by ShakyMo
Makes me wonder what games people played, what music people listened to and what tv shows they watched in Victorian times when the murder rate over here was more than 20 times what it Is today.

in those times i think the UK was fighting the russians and taking land from africa??

guess they where playing risk in those days.....for real :p