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For anyone who has read the news within the past few months, you've probably noticed that the parents of a victim of the Columbine incident two years ago are suing numerous game companies and movie companies for 25 billion dollars because they say violent media caused the incident in Colorado. But do video games really have any effect on children? At the moment, there is no evidence to back up that video games and other violent media have any long-term effects on children, and it doesn't look like there will be any proof that there is anytime soon. It's even been proven from a five year study that children who have played video games that long do better in school and get better jobs later on in life. Which brings me back to the main issue. Why 25 billion dollars? Sure, I feel for your loss, it's terrible when something like that happens, but that's just being greedy. If you may remember, a similar lawsuit was made last year for much less money, and you guessed it, it was thrown out for the exact same reasons I stated up above, there was no evidence to back it up It also brings up the question if these people making these claims that video games influence children really know what the hell they are talking about. They always use references to games like Doom, Quake, etc. Why games that have been out for almost ten years and haven't even been in production for eight years? Have you people even played video games before? I don't think so. They see something violent and they automatically think their children are going to go out and do what they saw. I've been playing video games for almost eleven years, and I have never once done this, neither have any of my friends, relatives, or immediate family, all of which have played video games as long as I have. But if you do think that violent video games and media cause children to lash out, why didn't you look at the ESRB rating? Or monitor what your children play? Or restrict what they play? Video games are not a baby sitter, they are an entertainment device and in some cases a tool, like a hammer, a basketball, or an alligator. Your probably asking what I mean by a tool. But don't you people remember that video games can be used to teach? Many, many games require extreme hand-eye coordination, complex puzzle solving skills, and the ability to remember things for a prolonged time. Last time I checked, Banjo-Kazooie doesn't teach kids to go out and shoot people. Sure, there are games intended for mature audiences, and this is not shown off more than in games like Conker's Bad Fur Day, Perfect Dark, and others, but these are just a few games in the huge library of games that are available. It's your job as a parent to know what your child buys and what he does. But if it's not video games, what is it than? 95% of it is upbringing, if you don't watch your kids and teach them what is right and wrong, real and fake, and what to do and not to do. You don't leave that up to a small cartridge or CD or GOD Rom, it's your job, and if you don't want to do that job, you shouldn't have children. |
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