Of course there are going to be some people who can't differentiate between fantasy and reality, but they are not going to need video games to influence their decisions. Those are the types of people who cross over the line between what is socially acceptable and what isn't all on their own.
Blaming entertainment media for crime or behaviour is a cop-out. It's utilizing a scapegoat in order to ignore a serious societal problem. Blaming pornography for the objectification of women is attacking a symptom not the deep-rooted societal antipathy towards them that allows pornography to exist. If we did not already believe women to be less then men that form of objectification wouldn't happen.
The same applies to video games and whatever they are being blamed for this week. In the case of high-speed car races the culture of worshiping a motor vehicle has existed since they became a mass consumer item. They were marketed from the get go as being essential to defining ones masculinity. There's a reason for the jokes about male sexual prowess and cars: the car companies in their need to ensure sales created that atmosphere.
Passing the buck to movies or video games allows us to feel morally superior about an incident without having to accept any responsibility. The truth of the matter is that as a society we are all guilty in the death of that cab driver last week. If we did not continue to worship at the altar of the internal combustion engine, praying for heightened status through our devotion, street races like the one that took his life would never happen.
To paraphrase the National Rifle Association: video games don't kill people - people kill people.
Article comments
1 - steve
this totally reminded me! I have to pick up the new need for speed for XBOX! Thanks!
2 - Duane
Gee, I don't feel guilty about owning and driving a car. I admire nice cars, and I wish I could afford to have something swankier than my Dodge. But I don't worship cars, as you seem to imply when you say "we are all guilty..." And I have never scored any coolness points by having a slick car. I don't care what people think about my status. I know what it is. My car gets me from A to B when I need to go from A to B. That's it. I drive about 20,000 miles per year. What do you suggest as an alternative? I feel about as guilty about this incident as I would about some kids going on a GTA-inspired shooting spree on account of me owning a copy of Civ III.
Interesting article.
3 - Ken Edwards
Great article gypsyman. The cop did say it was ironic. At least he has his head on strait.
Steve - NFS: Most Wanted is so worth the purchase.
4 - Matt Paprocki
It's like blaming the video game, not the gun company, when someone shoots up a classroom. Apparently, the item that killed someone has no bearing on the events.
Fun read Gypsyman.
5 - JimW
Odd - I just finished Quake4, but don't feel the slightest inclination to pack up my arsenal and start blowing people away. Could it be that only a 24 karat doofus carries what he did in a game into the real world?
6 - Maxray
I've heard stories from parents who won't let their teens ride in another teens car. Why? Because that teens parents thought it would be cool to buy them a. Teens already have the highest fatality rate among drivers. Why tempt their fates with the keys to the latest testorone enducing vehicle?
To quote a friend of mine who when asked about the game Dungeons and Dragons being a devil worshipping game - "I almost never kill my parents."
7 - Rikk
Just wait till Dungeons and Dragons online hits. Some kid will cast a fireball spell at some other and wipe out a McDonalds. I can see the headlines already! Unfortunately the culprit behind most of these tragedies (imho) is just plain poor parenting. "I make 150k a year and can afford to buy my kid a fast car and every new toy he wants." well thats great but do you spend time with them? And I don't mean on the couch at the same time watchin a movie! I mean do you KNOW them...as a person? who are they... what do they like...DO THEY HAVE A FIRM GRASP ON REALITY! Admittedly sometimes it's not bad parenting but a simple "slipped through the cracks" thing but... I guess what i'm saying (long-windedly) is that parents need to step up and take some responsibility for the minds their action or inaction help form. Kid killed himself? Must've been rock/games/movies. Just once I'd like to see someone stand up and say "I guess I should have been more involved...noticed more...or just plain paid attention!" Sorry for the rant.
8 - Ace McCloud
Well, what if you do spend time with your kid and find the answer to your question, "DO THEY HAVE A FIRM GRASP ON REALITY", is "No"? What do you suggest then? What do you do when you learn your 15yo son is a wacko?
I don't know if "spending time" with your kid helps keep him from being a lunatic -- some people are just born to be crazy. But if you do spend time with them, then at least you'll know he's a nutcase before it comes as a complete surprise.