U.S. politicians are lining up to save American children from the evils of violent and sexually-explicit video games. As the November elections get even closer, all kinds of bills are being introduced in Congress in hopes of doing just that. Right now there are multiple bills in Congress that are meant to do everything from ban the sale of “mature” video games to minors, to study the effects electronic media has on kids. A bill ordering the FTC to investigate Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has been passed by both the House and Senate.
A hearing on the topic of violent and sexually explicit games is set for later this month. From C/Net:
Representatives from the Entertainment Software Association, which lobbies for the video game industry, and the Entertainment Safety Ratings Board, which oversees the labeling of games, said the organizations expect to testify.An ESA representative declined to comment on the group's planned testimony, except to say it views it "as an opportunity to talk about the tools available to parents," such as parental control technology.
In addition to the federal efforts, states have made attempts to pass laws to ban the sale of certain video games to minors. Many of these laws have already been overturned by U.S. courts. Saying they’re unconstitutional, judges so far have lined up in favor of the First Amendment. Politicians, unfortunately, have not, and they seem hell-bent on beating a dead horse.
It would seem lawmakers have nothing better to do than jump on the Hillary Clinton and Joe Lieberman bandwagon. Those two want fines and possible jail terms for those who sell or rent games rated 'M' to minors.
So, what’s my beef with all this?
It’s simple: By trying to make it illegal to rent or sell games to minors, the federal government is overstepping its boundaries. To censor, or not to censor, is a parent’s right, not the local congressman’s. It really is that simple. And, as the courts have seen, it’s also unconstitutional. Add to that the fact that the law would be almost impossible to enforce and costly if it were enforced with vigor, what we have here is just a bunch of hot-air-filled politicians trying to get a vote by putting up a smoke screen to deflect attention from the real issues: the war on terrorism, immigration, crime in general, the state of America’s educational system, and on and on.
Article comments
1 - Kenn
Parents...are you there? Instill in your children some responsibilities and manners before the "politicians" decide what is "right" for you and your kids. They've made enough inroads in that area already. Playboy & Penthouse for kids? No.. neither should mature/adult video games be either. Video games may have more influence as they are "active" entertainment but you have the control, please use it.