Hey Unca Willie, glad to see you're doing better! One thing I have to say about your article: Wow, that's deep!

Happy new Year!

I would have to say that artificial violence is not worse molestation. Period.

Thank you. They did place ratings on games, right. I am glad Wil is listening, unlike the mind that wrote that editorial piece.

People are messed up. Everyone is going to witness violence wether its in a video game, a movie or real life.

Un-fucking-believable! As an old fart, all I can say is that it is a real shame that responsible parenting has seemingly gone out-of-style. Kudos to Wil for taking his role as parent to his 2 step-boys (his most important role EVER) seriously. Jeez!

Glad to see you're better!!!!!! I agree that video game violence is way different than child abuse, of course. The person who wrote that is probably just crazy or looking for attention and obviously has some weird thing against video games, which no one is forced to play.

That has got to be the most biased, one sided piece of swill that I have ever read. I am amazed that this guy actually works for the New York Times. What ever happened to objective journalism? Pehaps I am in the minority here, but I don't think that expsoure to violent media always makes you violent. For every one example this guy cites as proof that video games cause violence, there are millions of regular people who play the same damn game and still live normal, productive lives! This is just the new scapegoat of this decade. In the 1980's it was Judas Priest with subliminal lyrics. the 1990's had those gothic kids who would play Vampire the Masquerade, and now we have video games to blame. I just realized I'm ranting...I'll stop now.

I'm assuming that Kill Bill is the equivalent of murder, then?

Damn that thing called "parenting." Imagine the concept!!

The NYP blows anywho!

This from the paper owned by the same outfit that is giving us "My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance" on television. I believe that they also have a sitcom that this week featured a character wearing a shirt that had "SLUT" written on it. Yeah, I'll have my kids watch that instead of playing GTA.

Priceless.

JoAnn

::Quietly applauds you.::

Holy Crap---a role model for parents! I bet you don't even blame anything your kids do wrong on society, either. It's about damned time. I've got a 2 year old, and people are already telling me that all I will need is a TV and some video games (who cares what they are!) and I won't have to spend any time with him at all.

WTFO!

If you're not planning on spending time to raise your children then Don't Have Children. It's that simple. That just annoys the crap out of me.

Be responsible parents. Raise your children. Teach them what's right and what's wrong. Don't depend on his school, or his babysitter, or parental control software to do it for you.

argh, what a rediculous article and morally offensive! (not yours of course)
Actually i quite fancy going out and buying the game now just to see what all the fuss is about. Maybe someone should mention that to whats his face!

Amen There are more bad things in the world than violent video games.! Glad to hear you are getting better

*picks up her jaw off the floor*

Thanks for posting this Wil. I'm so very glad I don't usually read editorials, as people like this one make me so angry. I'm afraid to write a response, lest I blow up and call him what he really is and embarass myself. *blush*

Thanks for sharing this with us all. My boyfriend is addicted to GTA:Vice City, so it's almost always being played in our house. I honestly don't see what the big deal is with it. Anyone with the smallest bit of intelligence will know it's just a freakin' game!

Wow, wait until this guy hears about Manhunt.

Lovely article (sarcasm in reference to the first one quoted). Video games are not molestation, not even close.

I also am doing the parenting thing. I own GTA3 and GTA:VC, and I won't even play them when my kids are watching. Can't say that I agree with you on the loaded weapons thing. I'd rather teach my kids how to safely handle a gun under my supervision than to have them find one and experiment with it. Then again I was raised around firearms and I rather doubt that you were. (Not giving you grief or anything, just pointing out a difference in mindset)

The spew over GTA is simply another brick in the wall spearting us from any concept of personal accountability at any level. Pathetic.

Dear Mr Byron,

Your extreme distaste of this game, and possibly the game's publisher is noted, and even acknowledged. I would like to point out though that your article really lacks credibility when you stray and comment about the content of games. I see 2 separate and distinctive issues here.

1) Take Two Interactive is filing funny numbers.

2)Rockstar Games, a subsidiary of Take Two makes a game with notable and controversial violent themes.

I take issue with your attempt to connect these two separate issues. Your arguments lack any form of objectivity, and any retraceable proof.

You try to make a connection to kids or adults playing these games and violent crimes, and while the jury is still out on this one you don't make attempt to reference any studies to the support your arguments. for example:

FOR one thing, the age cutoff is totally unenforceable, and everyone knows it. And cases surface constantly in which "Grand Theft Auto" has been linked to violence and killing. In Tennessee last summer a motorist was killed and his passenger wounded when two boys - aged 14 and 16 - played "Grand Theft Auto" and then decided to go out and take sniper shots at cars, just like in the game.
Besides: By what preposterous reasoning can one argue that once someone turns 17 years of age it magically becomes OK to glorify mass murder? Are we saying that it would have been OK for that Beltway Sniper guy - who was apparently in his 40s - to have been allowed to play "Grand Theft Auto" before going on his killing spree, but it wouldn't have been OK for that young teenager who went along with him to have done the same?

All you are saying here is that you think their is a connection between a game and an act of violence regardless of Age. And while I agree that the laws governing these games are not being enforced as per who can buy these games and who cannot, At age 17 or 18 it is understood that 99.999% of the population understands the difference between a game and reality. Let me draw you an analogy to your posturing that sounds almost as ridiculous:

Monopoly is a horrible game. It teaches ultra right wing capitalism, it encourages underhandedness and trickery, as well as ruthless competitions, and glorifies material wealth. This game promotes the idea that the poor should be ignored and made fun of. The rich should only pay taxes or charity when they are forced too, by a governing body thanks to the fact that the game forces charity and taxes only when players land on the square that forces them to pay. This game also promotes a disturbing amount of violence and ill reaction as when I was a child I never left a game of monopoly without throwing my money at someone or having someone hit me because I was winning. to conclude Monopoly is a horrible game, and I believe that you should sell all your Milton Bradley stocks as a result of this game being so un-brotherly and enforcing so many questionable morals in today's society. Also The CEO's father is a criminal so by default so it the CEO.

I believe you may have a valid point about why someone should sell their take two stock in that they are not a good company, but your argument about what the company produces lacks any real points. It's just a red herring, and it sucks that a journalist of all people would ask the governments to start to censor this type of game. As always Parents should control what their kids are doing, and if you don't like what they are doing TURN IT OFF. If you don't want to play that game then again TURN IT OFF. Don't ask the governments of the world to stifle free speech because you find something distasteful. Otherwise you might as well scream about the Soprano's and Band of Brothers etc...

Thanks for you time, and please consider that unless you can support what you say you sound like someone who doesn't know what they are talking about.

This is what I sent the author of this... I can't beleive it provoked such a novel!

People are generally retarded and prove it daily on a global scale.

Just because its in print doesnt mean its worth reading.

Violent games/pork chops taste good!...Violent games/bacon taste good!

This guy probably put a short/sell on the stock and is just trying to ride the price down and unload it.

Martha Stewart's a man, baby!

And finally...

I didnt know that "rankling cops", especially when done by Bruce Springsteen, was a threat to the tenuous fabric that holds our society together. Is this guy referring to past articles he's written?

Are we sure Tipper Gore didnt write this article under a psuedonym?

Just remember, the NY Post is not the NY Times. The Post is a tabloid. Pure and simple. It may not have alien abductions, but it goes for the sensational rather than anything with real journalistic merit.

They're just playing to their audience.

Wil,
Thank you for posting this article and thank you for being a good parent. I must ask, however: When do Ryan and Nolan get to make the decision to play their choice of video games? Just an innocent wondering...

It will be a most glorious day if the next version of GTA-VC you COULD abduct,molest and beat a child to death in this game.After all the whole hooker and stripper thing is played out.Perhaps we could also euthanize a whole retiement community while were at it.That will teach those nazi book burners to tell us what we can and cant do as a society.

I just wish they would stop blaming all the worlds problems on video games and movies. A lot of people, such as myself, have watched these same movies and I personally LOVE playing GTA vice city. I'm perfectly sane and normal and I don't feel like hurting or killing anyone. I just think its ridiculous and they need to quit focusing on blaming the media industry and start focusing on the actual people and teach responsibility!

My god the ignorance of some people is stunning.
The comment about the game being 10,000 times worse than ANYTHING Michael Jackson ever did to a little boy, was the most disturbing comment I think I have read in a long time.

WTF where they thinking when they wrote that?

The answer is as you said, parenting. The problem is there are too many people with the title of Parent that don't do their job. That is what we should really be concerned about I think.

P.S. I am glad you are on the road to recovery wil. :)

As the mother of a 2 year-old and the wife of a video game junkie, I've had many discussions with my husband about how to deal with the violent video games that he plays. I feel that until a certain maturity level (i.e. having the ability to determine the difference between reality and fantasy), he shouldn't be allowed to see the violence.

We have made our TV room off-limits to him, so that my husband has a place to play his games without the chance for our son to accidentally view it. (This has the added benefit of giving us a room to hide in when we need to be away from him!)

I get so angry when people want to blame elements in the media for the results of their poor parenting skills. All it takes to make sure your kids aren't unduly influenced is MAKING SURE YOUR KIDS AREN'T UNDULY INFLUENCED!! Pay a little bit of attention to what your kids are watching on TV or viewing on the Internet, and there won't be a problem!

Bad parents are a hot button for me...sorry to rant.

Glad you're feeling more human...that crud has hit a lot of people pretty hard!

It would be nice to think that the tit that wrote the piece actually reads your blog and what we all say....and then thinks "hey, maybe my first three wifes were right...I really am a neurotic loser....damn."

Mmm sounds like another small minded red necked bible toting moron that wrote that article. It never ceases to amaze me that the world has grunting morons like that in it! No wonder we have wars, racism and other unpleasantness when you have some clearly small minded people like this out there. I also agree with Will - I'm a practitioner of "Parenting" as well... and wouldn't let my kids play this game, but I don't need some moron forcing there views on me. I'm quite capable of thinking for myself. This guy should try it sometime...

Actually, Mark, I have a number of redneck family members, and they tend to really like GTA. Rednecks like violence in entertainment =)

I would advise a pleasant accomodation between the two abovementioned themes. Mindless, unrestrained violence and Michael Jackson.

But only after I've finished my LUNCH.

I think you just got trolled by the New York Post, myself.

--Kynn

Computer game viloence = child abuse?? I'll be the first to admit I'm a little behind the times, but how does a computer fantasy world ever justify abuse in the real world?? Haven't we rehashed this enough??

Hiya, Wil. Thanks for speaking up and for being an active parent instead of kicking the kids in front of the tube to play video games for days at a time. I was in my favorite pub the other day listening to some great live music and somebody's kid was there (12 or 13, not 7 or 8) playing a GBA the whole time and totally ignoring the great stuff around him - it just kills me to see that. If you're going to ignore everything around you, at least READ A BOOK for god's sake. It's entertaining *and* you'll probably write and speak more articulately than most of your friends.

That guy has some serious perspective issues that he needs to be made aware of.

I've sent him a letter about this article and highly recommend everyone else do so as well.

I'm afraid Mr. Byron has accomplished his goal with that article. Journalists make outrageous statements like the Michael Jackson statement to gain attention. That is all a jounro cares about. Being right or wrong or telling the truth is irrelevant to a journalist. Having people sit up and take notice whether to argue or support is everything. The best thing to do with journalists is ignore them. Don't argue with them, it only encourages them to come out with even more blatent crap.

I am stunned and amazed that not only could someone believe that crap enough to write it down, but that someone at the NY Times would allow it to be published. Also, thank you for pointing out what seems to continually be forgotten--children have parents. The parents are there to decide and control what the children are exposed to. Since I am always seeing children at graphic slasher horror films, I can only assume that parents are overlooking this simple concept. I am so sick of people trying to restrict/censor/ban what I as an adult can watch/read/listen to..etc. based on what is appropriate for children. I am an adult with adult problems and sometimes I want entertainment that isn't appropriate for kids. And there's NOTHING wrong with that.

As an 18 year old I find it really difficult to comprehend that a person would have actually taken the time out of a day to write such a pile of junk, I mean seriously! I was always told when I was younger to avoid things like this and, although I'd complain and bitch and moan about it, I'd always listen because I knew my mum was only trying to take care of me and raise me right. It is so incredibly obvious that this person doesn't have kids...he doesn't even have common sense!

I hate when the media or right wing groups keep going after video games and movies as the reasons why society has gone the way it has. I do believe there will always be people who will do things they shouldn't that was inspired to them by video games or movies ( I remember some kids that decided to imitate a scene from the movie "The Program" and laid down in the middle of the road and ended up getting ran over), but violence in society has been around for a much longer time than either of these to mediums. If they think video game players are the cause of problems, maybe we should look at other groups. I think Christians have killed more people in a year than video game players (by the way, I am a Christian). I think what really needs to happen is people need to start taking responsibility for themselves and stop trying to blame others.

Nice to see your back Wil, excellent job with this post.

I loved watching you on Unscrewed, nice job!

Here is what I sent the dumbass yesterday...

Christopher,

I fail to see how playing a VIDEOGAME is "10,000 times worse than the worst thing anybody thinks Michael Jackson ever did to a little boy". I guess you subscribe to the theory that "Heavy Metal Music" is behind all of the Columbine Style shooting and has nothing to do with these kids parents.

How about not damning a videogame company and damning all of the parents who don't care what their child does or plays. Parents who use the TV or game system as a baby sitter.

Did you ever play space invaders as a kid? What is the point of the game? Kill Aliens. Save the Earth. Lets just say space aliens are real. You are still killing. Sure, GTA has better graphics, but the point is the same.

See you have to realize that Video Games are NOT Real Life, not matter how realistic the game are. If someone can't tell the difference, they are either high (where are the parents?), or just really stupid. (how are they breathing?)

This guy is probably just trying to get a rise out of people. Ignore it.

Point A) Video game violence does not promote real-life violence. If anything, it prevents real-life violence. (I'm living proof of that, having worked for 8 years in a grocery store, and coming home to my Goldeneye game on my N64 and ruthlessly slaughtering anything that moved, so that I wouldn't go out, buy an AK-47 and murder everyone in that store.)

Point B) Video Game violence does not promote real-life violence. People with no sense of responsibility promote real-life violence and then blame it all on the video games. YOU made the choice to buy the gun. YOU made the choice to pull the trigger. NO ONE is to blame for the murder of Anonymous Person #5465 but YOU.

Point C) Bad parenting is not always the problem, either. Good parents, as I've learned -- again from personal experience -- can have bad children. My mother raised my brother and me, practically by herself. We are both reasonably good people. She also raised my sister, however, and my sister was -- until she had children of her own and finally understood all the lessons Mom had tried to teach her -- a Very Bad Girl. Mom laid down the same rules with her. Mom taught her the same values. They just didn't seem to take.

Point D) I hope everyone who reads this web site has a safe and happy New Year's Eve. Don't drink and drive, and if you do, don't blame it on your parents or on video games. Take care.

Man. I like how quickly this guy went from being "rediculous[sic]" to being bible-toting. Let's do this guy a favor and flesh out his argument a little bit.

GTA's true crime is that it exposes millions of children (or people) to the idea that unrestrained violence can be enjoyable. These same people then leave their PS2 (or whatever) and head out into the world, more open to the idea that shooting someone on the street is a funny thing to do. Thus its true impact on the world (though difficult to estimate) will be countless crimes (murder, rape, etc.) that will certainly out-number Michael Jackson's limited (though no doubt horrible) number of offenses.

Now, this argument is--in my opinion--very definitely flawed. But no one seems to understand that it is the argument, certainly not Jason Bergman's own reactionary and poorly thought-out response, which consists of, "But it's art, and, well... crime's so much worse than art, you know!"

Sure, the article we're all discussing is a piece of trash, but (as has been pointed out) it's from an overtly reactionary paper.

I wholly agree that Mr. Wheaton's parenting approach is right on the mark. But on the other side, there are scores of parents out there who either won't or can't do the same thing. Do we just yell at them about what they should damn well be doing?

I'm not saying the right approach is to yank free speech, but it's worth thinking about.

The real problem I see here is the failure of this individual to distinguish between reality and fiction. I can understand the thought process behind the comment, because far there are far more games than Michael Jacksons, so therefore the games are doing a greater level of damage. But this is only true if you can account for fictional violence leading to real violence. Can a game, by its very nature do harm to a human being? Does a game have the ability to forces itself on a person like Michael Jackson allegedly did? I’ve personally never seen a game jump off the Wal-Mart shelf and grab a little boy inappropriately. Humans who are rational individuals won’t have any problem seeing the difference and understanding that fictional violence from a game, comic, movie, or novel is played out in the mind, and won’t necessarily translate into violent actions in reality. Those who don’t have that rational faculty aren’t going to care if the violence is fictional or real. These kinds of people are going to do what they do whether they have a game to influence them or not. They are broken humans and need correctional help. So his opinion is based on an outlook of mankind that is bleak. We are all broken humans who need correctional help and unless a human’s decisions and thoughts are limited for him or her, the human will inevitably, through no responsibility of their own but from outside influence, do harm to themselves or other human beings. I feel sorry for this individual. He must have a depressing life.

Hey Wil,
glad to see you are recovering. :)

Tim, Jc, some others: This article appeared in the New York POST, not the Times. The Times is a respectable paper. The Post is a hardcopy Rush Limbaugh; ALL stories in the Post are right-wing twaddle (well, they did poke fun when the RIAA sued a 12-year-old, but that was an easy bandwagon to jump on).

It's been that way for a while, too. I remember a comedian mumble years ago when I was young, saying "New York City only has two newspapers -- unless you count the Post, and why should you?"

It's really the daily form of tabloids like the National Inquirer and Weekly World News. It serves only to justify prejudice and ride misplaced outrage. And attack "Liberals" wherever they may be.

New York Times, Washington Post: real papers.
New York Post, Washington Times: right-wing troll organs.

Wil, thanks for pointing this out, and I'm glad you're feeling better. I must say, this article must really comfort Michael Jackson. I'm sure he would NEVER let any of his boys play Mature content video games, no sir.

He'd best not make that the cornerstone of his defense strategy, methinks.

The New York Post is all about inflammatory articles written for the sole purpose of getting people who actually know or care about a topic so livid that they'll raise a major stink about it, therefore providing increased attention for the newspaper and the writer involved. This isn't the BBC, it isn't about balanced, fair reporting. No one takes the Post seriously (at least, no one should), especially not for financial advice! Wouldn't worry about it, myself.

Wow reading all these replys was great and i think most have hit the mark

There have been studies on Video game violence that have stated that violence in video games actually decreases the agression that most people feel it lets them exert their anger. there have been studies to the contrary but the majority i have read about have been that violent games help lower agression as has been said many times about the fact still remains it is the resonsability of the Parent to do the best they can at teaching right from wrong somone above mentioned that somtimes you still have people who end up doing bad things with good parents to them i say your are absolutly correct we are all human and no matter what our parents do we still have free will and some will Rebel i do not have kids yet however my wife and i would not let our children play these types of games until we saw that they were mature enough to understand that they are mearly games. as for the comparison of MJ and GTA i cannot belive that somone would say that no matter how violent a "VIDEO GAME" is that the accusation of molestation is by any means better. even if the video games lead to violence how can you say the Molestation is a lesser crime then shooting somone we all should know right from wrong and should commit neither act

Glad to hear your feeling better Wil

I was laughing and laaaaaughing...

then I realized the article wasn't by Dave Barry.

First, I think *all media* are making a very bad choice in making people "guilty by accusation." Mr. Jackson has not been proven guilty of anything, and for right now, until he *is* proven truly guilty, I will continue to believe that the accusers are after him money. I *do* think his admission that sleeping with children is a very bad choice on *his* part, however, for even if totally innocent, the appearance of wrongdoing is heavy.

*Tabloids* ARE tabloids, whether printed or broadcast.

Many people drink, not all are alcoholics. Many people play violent games, not all commit violence or even want to. I think personal inner disposition is a very big factor in all this.

I was lucky to have parents that "parented" me, but then I'm pretty old now--62--and from a different generation, from before the influence of tv-as-babysitter. At least, Wil, you still have the classic "right idea" and I applaud you. Nonetheless, children at some point, decide to go their own way. Good parents do have bad children at times, and I think we are too ready to place outside blame, when it really comes down to personal accountability. People commit crimes, not guns or video games.

Everyone please have a violence-free new year, and those parents out there, the blessing of children who grow up to have learned and abide by your good rules.

Peace!

--Joe Fekete

There was violence long before cartoons, video games, TV shows, movies and such. The Crusades, for example, very violent, very bloody, the damn thing went on for 30 years. And this was before cartoons, video games and stuff. (And it was started by a bunch of religious zealots who wanted to take back holy lands).

This Byron guy is out there to say the least. He is using the same arguments, just slightly reworded that were used against Rock & Roll in the 50s. Then used on D&D, then on video games in the arcade, then home video games. His remarks clearly show a less than educated opinion. He is off the mark on a number of things, not just about this one game, but on gaming in general. So to play devil's advocate, is he doing this to raise the level of controversy and increase the stock value of the company?
Back to reality, his basis of a video game, light and pixels, is worse than what humans do daily in real life? This alone tells me he is one of those that needs a mental health evaluation. He clearly has issues adn difficulty seperating reality from fiction. To wrap this up, if you read just the last several paragraphs of the article, it seems he has some sort of personal beef with either the founder of Rock Star Games or his father. The personal attacks remind me of the PMRC (founded by TIpper Gore, Al's wife) of the 80s. BTW, they are the reason there are the rating levels on music and games. They were pro-censorship and wanted to ban anything that didn't meet their level of acceptance. All they managed was the ratings levels (which that much I do agree with). Byron seems to be in the same boat as them, pro-censorship and anything that does not meet his standards is going to lead to the downfall of humanity. In fact, he uses several of their arguments in this article.

So bluntly, the dude is a plagarising, unoriginal, unable to think for himself idiot.

Ok, longwinded rant over.
Coyote

And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

Hm...It seems that even in the biblical days that there was violence to contend with. Hell, I bet Cain had just finished playing a rousing game of Grand Theft Auto: Eden. Because, obviously, according to the asshat at the new york post, violence couldn't possibly be just another facet of mankind.

You know what that article really tells me? That Mr. Byron supports Censorship. It's always great to see people support the destruction of constitutional rights as long as they don't apply to them. Of course, if I had my druthers, I would like to stand aside and watch them take away those rights, and see Mr. Byron realize that what he had in his hands wasn't the flag of liberty, or the staff of morality, but simply the tail of the tiger that would destroy his freedom as well. Ah well, we can dream, can't we? Wil - Thanks for posting about this...saw it on Fark.com and wondered who would catch it.

Jamie

You know when I hear someone say that a video game is 10,000 times worse than child molestation I must question if this person also thinks that child molestion is 10,000 times BETTER than video games....Oo? Maybe he is a child molester that is jealous of video games taking childrens attention away from him? (just a thought)
I would also like to comment on the CLOSED MINDED IDIOTS that choose to say that it is closed minded bible carrying rednecks that make all these statements....I do believe he writes for the New York papers, right?RIGHT?!Okay I thought so if you knew rednecks as you call them you know they hate yankees and would not be writing in a paper there.Thank You.I would also like to say that My whole family lives in Florida and Georgia and we goto Pentacostal and Babtist churches, I have more game systems and games also violent sexual movies in my home than you people do.So while you like to say it is natural for men to love men and to kill a baby that is already formed in the womb, don't spank your children just put them in a chair for a couple of minutes that will teach 'em.I tried that and before my children nearly took over my home i resorted to a spanking and HEY,guess what, it works!When you people can quit saying its Gods fault or christians fault and look at your own passive (roll over and take it in the rear attitude)maybe you will find that it's kid's thats parents put them in timeout or just ignore them for fear of H.R.S. that has the kid's that are killing each other.The bible has laws and if you followed them you would only be an asset to the community not a hindrance.It says we are forgiven of sin not perfect, man so quit being scared of it,I bet you didn't know that Darwin denounced his theory of evolution as a GET FAMOUS QUICK scheme and accepted jesus in his last days did ya?Do your research and quit looking for a Scapegoat.P.S. My religion doesn't accept the catholic beliefs so remember that when you say it's (christians) that are molesting little boys,no it's not.Just remember while you people are lying on your deathbed and thinking "what if I'm wrong?" that most people call out to god before dying because Hell is much worse than we could imagine.Please refrain from saying that putting God in school or having a nativity scene in my yard is violating your religious beliefs,because the constitutional right is FREEDOM to practice my religion, not FREEDOM to STOP me from practicing it.Mind your own business and I will mind mine,that's the best way to take care of this problem.Sorry to ramble so much people,I'm just tired of reading about people blaming everything that says you can't do something wrong on us.I don't care what you do.>=P

There is a war going on. A weird one, launched by born again christians on a secular muslim nation. It is a pre-emptive war. It is the new kind of chrtistianity, "do unto otheres before they can do unto you". There are 40 million americans with no real health access, we are cutting education sepnding while increasing prison capacity. Jobs are going over seas and they aint coming back. WalMart is taking over the countries retailing and undermineing cities and towns economies and will soon be lowering everyones standard of living here in California. A very few hold the ownership power in the American media, and thus the gates to information and the shaping of public opinion.

What does this have to do with the article? Well I think it is funny that with all this gong on in the country and the world, that this is what you choose to rant about. An article in the POST of all places. About a video game . And you all talk about it like it is relevant and meaningful It is at best a stupid distraction. You can tell a lot about a person by the battles they choose to fight

Happy New Year.

These are the real problems of our society

I'm not big on video games these days, but I played Vice City on an X-Box when I visited a friend (he had a nice HD set too :) ) and I thought it was incredibly good fun. Hell it was fun to watch other's play too. I've played few games in my life that were that good.

Wil,

I said the same thing when I read the NY Post story about Take Two Interactive...not that the NY Post is really that much of true journalism. I can't believe he feels that the game maker is 10k times worse than ANYTHING MJ could do to a little boy.

-BRYAN-

as a mother of 2, (6 and 2) i thank god every now and then for the dvd and the playstation, it keeps my kids out of the kitchen while i cook dinner, and it gives me a little time to do my homework ( i just finished my first semester of college) . but my kids are watching finding nemo ( every one knows what that is right?) and my son plays croc ( a cuddly crocadile gathering gems to open doors) my kids don't watch a movie until i have seen it first and approve of it. my husband has a brother who is 11, their mother has never limited what he watches or listens to, or plays. and he is a horrible child. he is violent and he has no respect for others or their property, not because of the movies he watches or the games he plays, but because she has never taken the time to teach him any better. i don't see any problem with letting my kids watch tv or play video games as long as they are age appropiate. ( the next game we are buying is blues clues.) wil i am glad to hear you are doing better. i had the flu over christmas too and it sucked. i still think december was the best movie ever. ;) rock on, hams

and harry potter is not satanic.

additional comment, any violence on any one is horrible but violence done to a child is worse than anything else. grown ups are old enough to know what is happening and to be able to fight back, a child dosen't know that they are able to fight back. all they know is that the grown up is hurting them but that the grown ups make the rules and they have no choice but to live with it. any one who says that pretend violence in a video game is worse than real violence done to a child needs to have their head examined (i had something else to say but i won't i've gone on long enough, and besides i'm a good southern girl and if i said that my momma would wash my mouth out with soap.)

I'll second and third those who remind others that the Post is good for lining cat boxes and not much more. I grew up in NY, the only reason the Post is still around spewing their right wing idiocy in NYC is that they have a great sports section.

Also, just to give you an idea of what the Post is babbling about when it comes to Springsteen, here's the lyrics to American Skin, a song he debuted on the 2000 tour and played again this year. It's a good litmus test as to whether people actually READ lyrics, or just assume they know what they mean. Personally, I read it as not a condemnation of cops for the Amadou Diallo murder, but a cautious prayer for respect and peace, a recognition of how difficult it can be to be a police officer, and hope that tolerance will prevent such a tragedy from happening again.

American Skin (Bruce Springsteen)

41 shots, and we'll take that ride
Across this bloody river to the other side
41 shots, they cut through the night
You're kneeling over his body in the vestibule
Praying for his life

Is it a gun?
Is it a knife?
Is it a wallet?
This is your life
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
Ain't no secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in your American skin

Lena gets her son ready for school
She says now on these streets Charles
You got to understand the rules
Promise me if an officer stops you'll always be polite
Never ever run away and promise mama you'll keep your hands in sight

Cause is it a gun?
Is it a knife?
Is it a wallet?
This is your life
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in your American skin

41 shots and we'll take that ride
Across this bloody river to the other side
41 shots my boots caked in mud
We're baptized in these waters and in each other's blood

Is it a gun?
Is it a knife?
Is it a wallet?
This is your life
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in
Your American skin

It helps to understand the bio of the guy (Christopher Byron) writing this.

http://www.thirdage.com/insider/money/byron/bio.html

Basically, Mr. Byron is an ex-Navy guy in his fifties who now makes a living hawking contentious stories to various magazines and newspapers, none of which have a tech slant. Sounds like a real 'expert' on technology to me.

Ostensibly, he's an expert on financial markets, a journalistic position akin to 'weatherman' or 'voodoo priest.' This guy makes a living scaring people and a game like Vice City is an easy and obvious subject.

The New York Post is not exactly renowned for its journalism (Cindy Adams?) and this column has the typical McCarthy-esque spin usually found in yellow sheets. I've made a good living as a freelance journalist in national markets and this guy gives the whole professiona bad name. This is not journalism - it is bitter polemic intended to incite those without knowledge.

Ironically, Mr. Bryan is a former writer for Playboy, a magazine frequently charged with inciting lascivious and dangerous behaviour (cp. MacKinnon) although no clear scientific proof of this moral decay is available. To write for Playboy while also attacking Vice City on the grounds of sexual content seems a nebulous and slippery position.

Personally, I love it when I see a story like this because it makes me feel 'under 30' (though I'm not) in the Abby Hoffman sense. Guys like this are waiting for the grave. People like us are ready to dance on top.

Rock on, Wil.

Glad to know there are also americans like you mr Wheaton.

I think people need to consider this issue a little more deeply. I don't see this as a censorship issue, but rather a how-do-we-want-our-society-to-be issue. When you play a game, you learn the rules and learn to work within those rules to achieve goals. The more you play and the more you learn, the more neurons you will dedicate to this. Due to the intensely involving, high speed nature of video games, these are neurons that come into play WITHOUT CONSCIOUS THOUGHT. For the GTA game in question, the rules are that violence works, that they way to get ahead is to screw other people, and that hostility is the order of the day. People learn exactly the types of things that make open and honest relationships impossible.

To pretend that people aren't influenced by this is willful blindness. People are influenced by EVERYTHING they experience. It all gets stirred into the melting pot of the mind. I am not worried about anyone who comments here as tending more towards violence as a result of playing such games. People who read and appreciate Wil are people whose core values are already honesty and openness. People here are not at risk.

Society at large is a different story. There are a large number of children who are not being parented effectively. If they WERE parented with love and guidance, then violent and hostile games would not be an issue. The reality is, however, that there are millions of children who establish their moral compass based on their friends, and the media. I for one fear greatly for the society that those children will grow up to create.

In my America, people are innoncent until proven guilty. Jackson hasn't been convicted of anything.

I see that a lot of these comments have blamed right wing influences, and bible thumpers as a large cause of this article. In all honesty, most of the conservative people I know (and I know a quite a few, being from South Louisiana) enjoy the GTA series, and the bible thumpers seem to focus on just showing how much more pious they are than their neighbors. I think that the fault truly lies with those looking for a scapegoat for societies problems. You won't find it in music or in video games, but in the people that allow their children to view, play, and listen to these influences without any guidance. You can't stop your kids from watching violent movies, playing violent games, or listening to the music that is popular at the time, but you can at least learn about what is going on in their lives and talk to them about it. I'm relatively young (24), and my parents knew every movie I saw, and tried to learn about the music I listened to (which was remarkably similar to those Columbine kids' songs). Thier involvement turned me into a better person, and allowed me to see that you can still play all these violent games, see these violent movies, and listen to heavy metal and still turn out to be a relatively normal person.

So parents: know what your kids are into...mine did, and it made all the difference.

Wil.. brother...

It pleases me to NO end that are on the same page on this issue.

On "my little website" (see blog link) I have been running a couple of web polls on the Michael Jackson story and people's opinions and predictions. Two of the results are interesting.

"Do you believe that Michael Jackson is guilty of the crimes he has been accused of?"

64% say yes.
14% say no.
18% aren't sure.
5% were too chicken to give an opinion.

HOWEVER... (he says in a sinister voice)...

"Will Michael Jackson go to jail?"

88% say no!!
50% because they believe the legal system favour the famous.
25% because they think he's guilty but his lawyer will get him off
13% because they think he's not guilty

I dunno. I just found the statistics amusing. Everybody wants to extradite him to Utah for the firing squad, but nobody wants to pull the trigger or thinks anybody else will.

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