California Congressman Demands Videogame Warning Labels [Again]

[Vigormortis]

Ultra-conservative is ultra conservative. We get it man. You're old. You fear change.

Deal wit it. >=(

Um...he's a democrat.

Political assumptions are humorous assumptions.

God I love hearing people ***** and argue across party lines. None of it ever makes sense, they all look like fools, and it makes for one hell of a good laugh.

Umm...he's a politician elected to office in the USA. He's a conservative.

Now, I will grant you that Democrats are more liberal than Republicans, but on the political spectrum, almost everyone at the Federal Level of the USA is more conservative than, say Reagan or Eisenhower.

Comparatively speaking to some other governments, sure. I'm not denying that. But the person I quoted seemed to imply (or seemingly assumed) that the politician in question was a conservative; or rather a Republican.

That may have been an assumption on my part, but more often than not when someone makes a statement like "ultra-conservatism" they are referring to someone as; or who is; a republican.

Regardless, this congressman is an idiot. We already have the ESRB. It's up the parents to make the right choices.

 

[Farther than stars]

Every time I read his name, my mind changes it to "Baka" which is a Japanese word for "idiot"

rather fitting if you ask me

Woah, woah! I'd say that's a fairly unjust assault on his personality. We are talking about a guy who was born in a poor hispanic household, managed to get a degree in sociology and then went on to be elected as a U.S. congressman. And that's a pretty steep climb to make.
Even his opinion differs from the consensus of the gaming community, that doesn't make him an "idiot". So no, I wouldn't say that it's a very fitting at all.

Umm...he's a politician elected to office in the USA. He's a conservative.

Now, I will grant you that Democrats are more liberal than Republicans, but on the political spectrum, almost everyone at the Federal Level of the USA is more conservative than, say Reagan or Eisenhower.

I disagree. I would say that Reagan is far more right-winged that most of the Democrats out there. Sure, the Republicans and the Democrats have more in common with one another than most of the other third parties, but that comes with defending a territory as large as North America (minus Canada). Moreover they do, in my opinion, differ on some very key issues, such as health care, financial aid and taxes, which are very endemic of the differences between right and left.

Damn, you think they would have more pressing matters, wouldn't you?

Amen. But... it is an election year and this is an easy way to cheap votes.

"FOR THE CHILDRENS!"
Yeah. This is just more lobby-whoring with tunnel-vision scientific "proof".
Keep the proud tradition alive; Generic Rich Old White Guy.

Latino and from a poor background. How is his sweeping statement any worse than yours?

Oh great. Now I have to go back to HBO.com and recast my vote for stupidest state.

Really? The fact that they voted Schwarzenegger governor didn't tip you off a little bit?

 

[Iszfury]

This is pretty much akin to marking off people's hands because they have the ability to strangle. Oh-oh. Science seems to support a mild correlation between violent media and violent behavior! This certainly means that only the new mediums deserve to be exempted. Oh my god. Art means dichotomy, polarity, differences, CONFLICT! Oh. God. God. There's conflict. PEOPLE ARE DYING! THE NARRATIVE ADDRESSES CONFLICT! A PROBLEM! YOU KNOW WHAT CONFLICT DOES TO CHILDREN! IT ENABLES THEM TO DEVELOP A WORLDVIEW! IT GIVES THEM SOCIETAL PERSPECTIVES! IT DEVELOPS THEIR CHARACTER! Same derpshittedness that made him assume that video games were mere "products" and there somehow existed a drastic differentiation between them and more-established mediums of self-expression, that, assuming they contain violent content, cause people's heads to spontaneously combust in some blazing vortex of perdition.
Y'know what? We should do away with the entertainment and art industries altogether.
Can I compare this situation to Fahrenheit 451?

Warning: Your humanity might create negative emotions whilst watching negative media. This has been linked to stale crackers and the holocaust.

 

[minuialear]

Can I just ask when the hell politicians will get their heads out of their asses and realize that it's up to the PARENTS, not the game industry, to monitor what children play? If a parent can't be bothered to do the damn research, that's THEIR fault. Not the industry's.

You missed the part where most of these politicians do it because parents (i.e., the people voting) like being told that their kids' problems aren't their fault, and where politicians don't give a crap about what the kids think about it, because the kids can't vote.

The number of politicians that truly believe parents can't properly monitor what their kids play is very, very low.

I've always been a strong proponent of putting birth control in the drinking water for just that reason.

That is idiotic for so many reasons, I wouldn't even know where to start...

Now, I will grant you that Democrats are more liberal than Republicans, but on the political spectrum, almost everyone at the Federal Level of the USA is more conservative than, say Reagan or Eisenhower.

Saying that most people in the U.S. federal government are more conservative than Reagan is pretty wrong, unless you have an odd way of measuring conservatism. Or unless you have an extreme lack of knowledge about the U.S. government and rely on news stories to fill you in on it.

 

[cookyy2k]

(c) Video Game Defined- As used in this Act, the term `video game' means any product, whether distributed electronically or through a tangible device, consisting of data, programs, routines, instructions, applications, symbolic languages, or similar electronic information (collectively referred to as `software') that controls the operation of a computer or telecommunication device and that enables a user to interact with a computer controlled virtual environment for entertainment purposes.

Now I'm no expert but that seems a terrible legal description of a video game...

 

[MercurySteam]

"WARNING: Exposure to violent video games has been linked to aggressive behavior."

I'd like to see this get through when we have no solid evidence that games cause this. It'll get shot down faster than a turkey on Thanksgiving.

 

[cookyy2k]

"WARNING: Exposure to violent video games has been linked to aggressive behavior."

I'd like to see this get through when we have no solid evidence that games cause this. It'll get shot down faster than a turkey on Thanksgiving.

Even if it passed I'd hate to see what the industry's lawyers would do to it. Just look at the wording of the bill, they'd tear the thing to shreds followed by EA repossessing the entire state due to them not being able to pay the costs/damages awarded.

 

[Thumper17]

There are ALREADY warning labels. It's called the ESRB.

 

[spartan231490]

Warning: I fucking hate you. This may be more dangerous to your health than smoking.

They already have labels, can we just stop already? How many times must you be shot down before you stop trying? Go crawl in a hole and die. Or hey, can we just make california it's own little country and let it destroy itself?

 

[cookyy2k]

There are ALREADY warning labels. It's called the ESRB.

Problem is this bill relies on the ESRB rating to determine which games carry the warning. Now that's really dumb...

 

[dessertmonkeyjk]

Somebody staple this [http://daxinf8tk39bw.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/PennyArcadeRichard.jpg] on his office door. He needs to hear the great news!

 

[James Ennever]

Quick question how sex and violence is on Homeland? filmed in california...............
Are all christians in america retarded and hypocritical in a similar fashion?
Why did this inbred cretin move from the bible belt?

Honestly I am surprised He can even dress himself.

 

[Metalrocks]

games dont make people aggressive, stupid politicians do.

bad parents are bad parents. this will never change. unless the government starts to take action against them, instead wasting tax payers money and time for some stupid labeling that doesnt change anything besides for hysterical mothers who have s*** for brains anyway.

but in australia, they do not only write the age, they also write next to the age what the movies/games contains. what level the violence is, sex, drugs, etc.
like this one:
http://i.haymarket.net.au/Utils/ImageResizer.ashx?n=http%3A%2F%2Fi.haymarket.net.au%2FNews%2Fma.png&w=450&c=0

 

[FarleShadow]

Video games don't make people violent.
Violent people just draw images that are similar to videogames and movies.

Aka: A murderer using a chainsaw to kill someone, therefore they are obviously a gamer using Left4Dead 2 as a starting point! (Because the 'movies', 'TV' and even just 'being an angry lumberjack with an active chainsaw while his wife (or husband) tells them that they've been having an affair' JUST ISN'T AN EXCUSE IF VIDEOGAMES ARE IMPLICATED IN IT!)

 

[Joccaren]

Meanwhile research continues to show that playing violent videogames is a casual [sic] risk factor for a host of detrimental effects in both the short- and long-term

A casual risk factor you say, sounds about right. Good thing its not causal, then we might have something to worry about - you know, if the studies were unbiased and could be 100% replicated, and no question as to the fact it was videogames having the effect and such.

 

[zerobudgetgamer]

Have to say it, sorry if it's been done: Baca is Baka!

Also, just the fact that this dude is from my State...all my facepalms aren't nearly enough.

 

[Wesley Brannock]

Weather or not video games lead to violence is unclear due to the FACT that most studies have some sort of political agenda to them. As to the warning label video games already HAVE a rating system it's not perfect but it exists also video games with sex and violence AREN'T aimed at KIDS but rather ADULTS to which is the current average gamer I.E people around in their mid twenties to early thirty's in other words NOT kids.

 

[Berithil]

At this point I've just learned to shake my head and ignore. When politicians or the media bring up video games its never in a good light. Idiocy like this should just expected whenever they mention video games.

And video games above EC? That's pretty much saying every video game out there, except for some educational stuff.

 

[Akimoto]

"profit from selling heinous depictions of violence and sex to minors." --> As if the parents or adults who buy it for their kids care.

And for the last time Joe, violent games are correlated with violent people, not a causation. Stop quoting the APA, we aren't even sure of it ourselves and you're giving us a bad name. We would have expected a sharp increase in mass murders - not according to speakers on T.E.D.

 

[Seanfall]

The only thing negative(?) video games has taught me is to never trust politicians. You had me going there for a second Councilor Udina. You jerk!

*RENEGADE TRIGGER* Like a boss.