The problem with games is the same with any media, they influence the young and weak minded. While you can get a thrill when you blast someone with a shotgun in MW3 and they flop like a rag doll, someone mentally less capable wonders what it would be like to do that to a real person..It’s not the games, movies or the guns. It’s parenting.
Yes… let’s violate a Constitutional right or two for everyone because someone who’s a nutjob was not only able to purchase a shotgun, but more importantly able to obtain security clearance to get into the compound. There are 330 million people in this country, and we want to impugn the rights of 329,999,995 of those people because of the acts of 5 whackamoles. Granted, violent crime is still present, but the restriction of access to firearms is not preventing the problem. LA, DC, Chicago, and New York are proof of this. Where there’s a will, there’s a way…. history has taught us this.The best way to prevent these kinds of tragedies is to send a message to the media to stop glorifying and splattering this guy’s name all over the headlines. By doing this, they are encouraging other nutjobs to come out and perform similar acts. They feel their name will be glorified and go down in the annals of history, and they will be famous. The best way to push back is to let their name fall into obscurity by not covering it every day, all day long.
Not only are some of the mentioned games over 10 years old … Games are being played world wide, and its oddly enough mainly in the US with one or two exceptions these cases happen. Now I know its hard for the parties doing these accusations, but could we add some logic to the mix, and ditch blaming games? Similar to how it was stopped blaming specific genres of music?
There are also games that have violent acts with swords, spaceships, mushrooms, magic cars – and yet sword violence has not increased. Virtual violence has nothing to do with actual violence. Increased guns do have something to do with increased gun violence.
Hmm, I’ve watched, and talked to folks, including kids, after playing violent video games, and there IS a danger with those who don’t have “self control” or are a tad “over the edge”. Interestingly, I hear the same radical thinking, and inability to focus on logic, from folks who’ve been listening to a couple hours of Limbaugh! With Beck, just listen to HIM!
With the multiple run ins with the law this guy had he would have never been able to work at my place of business, and it is just a retail facility.How in the world did he have a security clearance here?For those who want to take away guns, do you really think it will be the last right that an overoppressive government will try to ridicule out of you?
“You ignore the 2nd part of the 2nd amendment which clearly states the right to own and bear arms shall not be infringed..,”
Then you obviously can’t tell the difference between reducing gun sales (you can still buy guns, just with regulation) and taking away your guns point blank.
I would just like to point out that study after study has failed to find any connection to violent video games. There is probably more to be gained by finding those with no empathy. Don’t ask how to find them, they’re working on that.
The only baloney that’s being served is yours gramps. John Lott AKA Mary Rosh (as the Democratic Undergrounders know him as) has a history of lying about gun statistics (which is strange because he’s an economist). When he was questioned about the statistics about his book more guns = less crime, his data was not available. From his website: "The bottom line is that I lost data for most of my various research projects, as well as the files for my book “More Guns, Less Crime,” in a computer crash in July 1997." He even admits to being Mary Rosh: “As to the claim, raised in a Feb. 1 Style article, that I used a fictitious identity in making posts in Internet chat rooms, I did indeed do that. I originally used my own name but switched after receiving threatening and obnoxious telephone calls from other Internet posters.”
As for 2.5 million thwarts this is an exaggerated number as the NCVS has it more like 108,000 per year vs 2.5 million using small telephone surveys (key word here is SURVEYS). There is no actual data here that says that guns make us much safer, other than the word of the person being surveyed. As far as those incidents are concerned a couple of them are overexaggerated:
A woman who was a victim of a home invasion shot her assailants AFTER she was robbed at gun point. At no point during the robbery did she go get her gun to confront her attackers. She shot them when they were already fleeing the scene.
A pricipal who supposedly stopped a massacre by using his colt 45 from his truck is also not true. The perpetrator had already killed 3 students and left for the woods. At that time police showed up and the principal got his piece from his truck after the fact.
Dr. Canuck, just read the article in Psychology Today to get a more unbiased view. I would link it here, but I think it would stop me. It’s by Romeo Vitelli.
The single more ignorant comment on video games & violence I’ve ever seen – and that’s quite a feat. For example, “God of War” is a game about ancient Greek heroes – I’m open to the idea that this inspired a massacre if said massacre was performed by someone with a spear dressed as a hoplite.
“Thrill Kill”? An 15 year old UNPUBLISHED game. (I hadn’t even heard of it til I googled it.)
“Mortal Kombat” – a 22 year old melee combat game. No guns in it at all.
There is no correlation between the number of video games played in a country and the number of massacres, and plenty of correlation between the number of guns and the number of massacres. Ireland has one of the highest rates of game console ownership in the world, and our gun deaths are negligible.
You’re the one who mentioned that garbage author and insulted me first but thanks for playing the victim card, which shows that you don’t believe in the trash you post.
echoraven over 10 years ago
The problem with games is the same with any media, they influence the young and weak minded. While you can get a thrill when you blast someone with a shotgun in MW3 and they flop like a rag doll, someone mentally less capable wonders what it would be like to do that to a real person..It’s not the games, movies or the guns. It’s parenting.
Wraithkin over 10 years ago
Yes… let’s violate a Constitutional right or two for everyone because someone who’s a nutjob was not only able to purchase a shotgun, but more importantly able to obtain security clearance to get into the compound. There are 330 million people in this country, and we want to impugn the rights of 329,999,995 of those people because of the acts of 5 whackamoles. Granted, violent crime is still present, but the restriction of access to firearms is not preventing the problem. LA, DC, Chicago, and New York are proof of this. Where there’s a will, there’s a way…. history has taught us this.The best way to prevent these kinds of tragedies is to send a message to the media to stop glorifying and splattering this guy’s name all over the headlines. By doing this, they are encouraging other nutjobs to come out and perform similar acts. They feel their name will be glorified and go down in the annals of history, and they will be famous. The best way to push back is to let their name fall into obscurity by not covering it every day, all day long.
Tue Elung-Jensen over 10 years ago
Not only are some of the mentioned games over 10 years old … Games are being played world wide, and its oddly enough mainly in the US with one or two exceptions these cases happen. Now I know its hard for the parties doing these accusations, but could we add some logic to the mix, and ditch blaming games? Similar to how it was stopped blaming specific genres of music?
ianrey over 10 years ago
There are also games that have violent acts with swords, spaceships, mushrooms, magic cars – and yet sword violence has not increased. Virtual violence has nothing to do with actual violence. Increased guns do have something to do with increased gun violence.
d_legendary1 over 10 years ago
More guns!
Dtroutma over 10 years ago
Hmm, I’ve watched, and talked to folks, including kids, after playing violent video games, and there IS a danger with those who don’t have “self control” or are a tad “over the edge”. Interestingly, I hear the same radical thinking, and inability to focus on logic, from folks who’ve been listening to a couple hours of Limbaugh! With Beck, just listen to HIM!
pirate227 over 10 years ago
They’re… GAMES.
Brutatowski over 10 years ago
With the multiple run ins with the law this guy had he would have never been able to work at my place of business, and it is just a retail facility.How in the world did he have a security clearance here?For those who want to take away guns, do you really think it will be the last right that an overoppressive government will try to ridicule out of you?
d_legendary1 over 10 years ago
“You ignore the 2nd part of the 2nd amendment which clearly states the right to own and bear arms shall not be infringed..,”
Then you obviously can’t tell the difference between reducing gun sales (you can still buy guns, just with regulation) and taking away your guns point blank.
CrazyRubes over 10 years ago
I would just like to point out that study after study has failed to find any connection to violent video games. There is probably more to be gained by finding those with no empathy. Don’t ask how to find them, they’re working on that.
d_legendary1 over 10 years ago
The only baloney that’s being served is yours gramps. John Lott AKA Mary Rosh (as the Democratic Undergrounders know him as) has a history of lying about gun statistics (which is strange because he’s an economist). When he was questioned about the statistics about his book more guns = less crime, his data was not available. From his website: "The bottom line is that I lost data for most of my various research projects, as well as the files for my book “More Guns, Less Crime,” in a computer crash in July 1997." He even admits to being Mary Rosh: “As to the claim, raised in a Feb. 1 Style article, that I used a fictitious identity in making posts in Internet chat rooms, I did indeed do that. I originally used my own name but switched after receiving threatening and obnoxious telephone calls from other Internet posters.”
As for 2.5 million thwarts this is an exaggerated number as the NCVS has it more like 108,000 per year vs 2.5 million using small telephone surveys (key word here is SURVEYS). There is no actual data here that says that guns make us much safer, other than the word of the person being surveyed. As far as those incidents are concerned a couple of them are overexaggerated:
A woman who was a victim of a home invasion shot her assailants AFTER she was robbed at gun point. At no point during the robbery did she go get her gun to confront her attackers. She shot them when they were already fleeing the scene.
A pricipal who supposedly stopped a massacre by using his colt 45 from his truck is also not true. The perpetrator had already killed 3 students and left for the woods. At that time police showed up and the principal got his piece from his truck after the fact.
CrazyRubes over 10 years ago
Dr. Canuck, just read the article in Psychology Today to get a more unbiased view. I would link it here, but I think it would stop me. It’s by Romeo Vitelli.
oceanclub over 10 years ago
The single more ignorant comment on video games & violence I’ve ever seen – and that’s quite a feat. For example, “God of War” is a game about ancient Greek heroes – I’m open to the idea that this inspired a massacre if said massacre was performed by someone with a spear dressed as a hoplite.
“Thrill Kill”? An 15 year old UNPUBLISHED game. (I hadn’t even heard of it til I googled it.)
“Mortal Kombat” – a 22 year old melee combat game. No guns in it at all.
There is no correlation between the number of video games played in a country and the number of massacres, and plenty of correlation between the number of guns and the number of massacres. Ireland has one of the highest rates of game console ownership in the world, and our gun deaths are negligible.
P.
d_legendary1 over 10 years ago
You’re the one who mentioned that garbage author and insulted me first but thanks for playing the victim card, which shows that you don’t believe in the trash you post.