Congressman Wants Health Warning Labels on Games, Again

Andy Chalk

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Nov 12, 2002
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Congressman Wants Health Warning Labels on Games, Again


California Congressman Joe Baca has introduced "The Video Game Health Labeling Act of 2011," a bill that would require all games rated T or higher to carry another label warning about the links between violent media and aggressive behavior.

You might think it's a little silly to want to put a warning label on videogame boxes that already carry labels breaking down, in considerable detail, what lies inside. But not if you're Joe Baca [http://www.house.gov/baca/], a California Congressman who thinks the game industry is dodging its responsibility to inform people of the link between violent media and violent behavior. Thus this legislation, which would mandate that all games rated T (Teen) or higher carry a label reading "WARNING: Excessive exposure to violent videogames and other violent media has been linked to aggressive behavior."

"The videogame industry has a responsibility to parents, families, and to consumers - to inform them of the potentially damaging content that is often found in their products," said Rep. Baca. "They have repeatedly failed to live up to this responsibility. Meanwhile research continues to show a proven link between playing violent games and increased aggression in young people. American families deserve to know the truth about these potentially dangerous products."

If this sounds vaguely familiar, there's a good reason. Baca introduced the this one [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/88588-Congressman-Wants-Health-Warning-Labels-For-Games]. The only difference is that this time around his bill has a co-sponsor, Rep. Frank Wolf of Virginia. His original bill apparently went nowhere, so now he's back to try again.

Baca doesn't seem bothered by the fact that a substantial body of work has found no relationship [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/88830-Study-No-Link-Between-School-Shooters-And-Violent-Games] between violent gaming and aggressive behavior, or that violent crime in the U.S. has actually declined over the past two decades despite the explosive growth of the videogame industry. There's really not a whole lot more to say, except that if that does reflect "the growing influence of violent media on America's children and youth," then perhaps Baca shouldn't be working quite so hard to fight it.

via: GamePolitics [http://gamepolitics.com/2011/01/25/congressman-joe-baca-pushes-warning-labels-games]


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Feb 13, 2008
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Would you also like this on alcohol? Which has PROVABLE evidence rather than your made up variety?

Or Catcher in the Rye?

Or Huckleberry Finn?

...families deserve to know the truth...
That you're desperately trying to add false warnings to the best policed products instead of, say, fixing the unemployment rate of 12.4%, given California is the fifth worse state in the U.S. for that.

Yes, I think they do.
 

garfoldsomeoneelse

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Mar 22, 2009
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Y'know, when studies show that there is no conclusive evidence showing a cause-effect relationship between violent videogames and aggressive behavior, you kind of have to wonder why this guy is even bothering. As in, what's the goddamn point? Does he have an agenda, or is he just a gullible asshole that heard "vidya makes people bad" and decided to propose legislation because of it?
 

WhatIsThisIDontEven

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Jan 18, 2011
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Andy Chalk said:
"WARNING: Excessive exposure to violent videogames and other violent media has been linked to aggressive behavior."
Really? Would you like to prove that?

The only people who become violent because of video games are people that have pre-existing mental disorders. Give a normal teenager Modern Warfare, he's not going to become the next Jeffrey Dahmer.
 

Fuselage

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Nov 18, 2009
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Basicaly what he is saying.
"BLAH BLAH, BEING A PARENT IS HARD BECAUSE PARENTS TODAY DON'T KNOW JACK SHIT AND SHOULD NOT TAKE RESPONSIBLITY FOR THEIR ACTIONS"
This is equivilant of putting a child warning on X-rated movies saying that your son undergoing puberty may masturbate to this movie, OH MY GOD THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE.
 

JUMBO PALACE

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Jun 17, 2009
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If you can provide the concrete links, I'll get behind you. Oh wait, you can't? I thought so. *Snore*
 

JediMB

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Oct 25, 2008
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"WARNING: Aggressive personalities may seek out and excessively play violent videogames."

"WARNING: Playing violent videogames does not, however, suggest that one is an aggressive person."
 
Apr 28, 2008
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The_root_of_all_evil said:
Would you also like this on alcohol? Which has PROVABLE evidence rather than your made up variety?

Or Catcher in the Rye?

Or Huckleberry Finn?

...families deserve to know the truth...
That you're desperately trying to add false warnings to the best policed products instead of, say, fixing the unemployment rate of 12.4%, given California is the fifth worse state in the U.S. for that.

Yes, I think they do.
What he said.

California, stop trying to legislate games and start worrying about trying to get California out of the really shitty state its in right now.

Legislating games won't help the situation.
 

JediMB

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Oct 25, 2008
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Le Tueur said:
WARNING: Excessive exposure to violent videogames and other violent media has been linked to aggressive behavior
No....It hasn't.
There are links. Aggressive people like to play violent videogames.

There's no proof that violent videogames cause aggressive/violent behavior, though.
 

BoogieManFL

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Apr 14, 2008
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How about no? Games don't mess people up. Just because some psychos have played games doesn't mean jack - they were already messed up. They also drank milk, ate fast food, and watched TV.

Why isn't there warning on soda drinks that excessive consumption of them can be bad for your teeth?

Why isn't there a warning on alcohol that excessive consumption of it can turn you into an asshole, and make some people beat their wives and family?

Why isn't their a warning on most fast food that states that excessive consumption can lead to obesity and poor health?

Why are cigarettes still legal? Right. Only because the companies that own them are rich and powerful. They are drugs, and poison which affect people around you and unlike this crusade against gaming, that's cold hard FACT proven by science.

People are dumb. All the crap wrong in the world and trying to get a false warning on games is what they are choosing to spend their time on? Sometimes I wish I was some James Bond supervillian (good intentioned) so I could take over the world and show these clowns how it's done.
 

sizzle949

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May 4, 2009
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He's trying to appeal to some sort of common sense argument that not only weak to begin with, but has been proved wrong by scientific studies time and time again. Unfortunately science seems to little to no part in policy making by right wing nut jobs (not the entire right wing, just the ones like this guy). Essentially what they hope to do is make this knowledge by tenacity, one of those "well they've been saying that forever, so it must be true" arguments. Fortunately most people I tend to discuss this with, including non-gamers, know that this is not the case and that studies have proven this wrong.
 

Daaaah Whoosh

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Jun 23, 2010
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I don't see the problem. It already says the games aren't for pre-teens, a label saying that again isn't going to change anything.
 

ArcWinter

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May 9, 2009
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I have an idea. Let's label people instead. It's only a tiny bit more demeaning than labeling games.

For example, this Baca could have one saying WARNING: This congressman does not understand how society or psychology works. Do not vote for this man.

Other than that, this isn't really surprising. Just more scapegoating from people who have never played a video game.

and that asteroids arcade game in 1983 does not count
 

Wolfram23

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Mar 23, 2004
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Fuck this guy I'm going to tear him to pieces and pee on his remains!!!!

Oh, wait, no I won't... I'm not actually violent even tho I've been playing "violent" games basically my whole life.

Anyway yeah pretty stupid.

BTW what happened with the whole supreme court thing?