Mom Calls 911 Over Son's Non-Stop Gaming

[DeleteMe1112311]

My literal immediate reaction to learning that someone wrote a book called "Grand theft Childhood" was "ahahhahaha-ha-ha ha...oh god these people need to get laid."

But seriously, that is just bad parenting. I won't bother parroting any of the arguments I've made before and others have made in this topic, you've heard it all before. Its up to the parent to take care of their child. Did this parent over-react? Oh yeah. Was it her fault to begin with? Yup.

 

[Alone Disciple]

As a parent, I can only imagine what kind of little shit this kid must be and what he puts his poor mother through. She needs to mom up, and give the damn console away to someone, but if she has this much trouble disciplining her son maybe if she did that the kid would go psycho on her. She's probably afraid of him to some degree to let him walk all over her like that.

Also, from the looks of the story, she's a single mom. This kid is just a brat, too bad the cops couldn't take him away for a bit.

Also as a parent, I couldn't agree more. It's sad that she is so already defeated and he's only 14. What she thinks it's gonna get better when he's 16 or 18? Nope.

No matter what 'we' think of GTA IV and it's affect or non-affect on voilence is irrelevant. It is her house, her kid, her rules. If she feels that strongly about that game or any other game no matter what the title is, um...take it away? How hard can this be?

I have a 17 year old myself, and no way is my 17 year old going to tell me I can't enforce a no-gaming policy or 'title' policy in my house. Clearly they both have issues...her inability to have a spine and let her kid rule her, and his inability to show respect to his mother.

I'm sure this had been said somewhere else in the 160+ responses (that I'm too lazy to read through), but here's a novel idea: TAKE THE CONSOLE AWAY. If you can't do that to a 14 year old, then you as a parent have failed and my sympathy stops.

 

[Terramax]

Maybe she IS just a hard-working single mother. Is that really that out there to believe?

For goodness sake can you not see what I'm trying to explain? I am not agreeing or disagreeing. I'm stating the article has been deliberately written in such a way as to sway their readers on the side of the mother than the son.

If you were the editor, what position would you want to take on the story?

I would stick to the facts. Neither left wing nor right wing. I would not have manipulated the story so that it sides with either the mother or son, or have created biasedness of any kind.

I would not have mentioned the quote with the mother going to church for reasons which have already been pointed out to you. Neither would I have insinuated that the son was a videogame obsessive as that is also completely irrelavent to the story.

I don't see how believing that would make someone a marionette, dancing to the tune of the media, it's simply the more probably case.

No it is not. Like I have stated, there is not sufficiant evidence. Just because the mother states she can't control her son and sheds a few tears does not make her story fact.

Would I be dancing to the tune of the Herald if they reported contaminated food, and chose to not eat it?

Depends on the evidence they have to support their statements.

2. She says she wants to help her son. To me, this indicates the kid may spend entirely too much time focused on video games.

Or it may indicate she wants her son to not play videogames at all, but to read the bible instead. Or practice voodoo. Take up finger painting. Join the Taliban. We don't know what she means by "help her son", but you've assumed this to mean the kid is obsessed with videogames like a heroine addict (or at least this is what the Herald is trying to manipulate its readers to think).

What parent doesn't want better for their kids?

Yes, every parent wants the best for their kids. But we all have a different opinion as to what is best for our kids.

Playing at 2:30 may not be obsessive to him, but it certainly is to a single mom trying to maintain a certain order in HER household.

Fair enough, but that doesn't mean that he is officially obsessed with gaming. I'd more likely consider the mother to be the obsessive one if she goes to the extreme of calling the police just because her son is awake at 2:30 in the name of maintain order in her household.

But, alas, none of use are more right than the other, because we don't know the facts!

3. I have two kids. They can be very bratty when they make a concious decision to not listen. When kids don't listen, they are brats. If they do not listen one hundred percent of the time, they are a brat, if they don't listen ten percent of the time, than during that ten percent they are most certainly a brat.

What on earth does that mean? That kids are officially brats period because they don't listen just sometimes?

I would also like to remind you it is not just the singular comment of calling him a brat that I am concerned with but that you go on to call him "a little shit", a possible psycho and the mother as a "poor" victim over such little information.

4. I didn't even read the Herald Article, I saw this on Fox Boston. Dancing to the tune of something I haven't read, I am not.

What, 'Fox Boston' as in part of Fox News?

That's it... I, I, I just don't know what to say anymore. I think our conversation is over.

 

[Blindrooster]

Kid must take after his dad. Who calls the police because their child won't listen? learn to be a parent.

 

[xaekin]

When I saw this in the local news, my first reactions were, in order:
"That mom is a moron."
"The kid's a prick"
"They both need help, the mom first."
I'm reading this thread three pages in, and it turns out my reaction's the same as most.
That's nice to know.

 

[Misaek]

I hate how video games get special treatment for this kind of thing its like if a kid starts a war the police don't care if he read like The Art of War 5 times over but that he played Empire ONCE *GASP* If this kid did nothing but read or play football this wouldn't be a problem its because its a game not even because its non stop, deep down its all just a prejudice against games which I hope will be gone soon.

 

[AizenTheAzure]

I really hate hearing stories like this, they try to focus on the gaming aspect of it and not the shitty parenting that led up to the kid's "problem". Whats so wrong about staying up late on Christmas break anyway?

 

[Nuke_em_05]

I find it ironic how the same community that is up-in-arms whenever "videogames" are mentioned with stupidity or violence can turn around and "write-off" an incident whenever religion is mentioned.

The parent isn't being a parent, and she'll use whatever scapegoat or justification possible. Someone could have just told her that they were praying for her (because she is insane), and she could have interpreted that as "support". Or no one said anything and she's just insane; notice they don't specify which church or have a comment.

Religion had as much, or less, to do with this as videogames. She's a bad parent. The end.

 

[Queen Michael]

Really?
The best use for the forces that can be summoned by calling 911 was, in her opinion, to have her son play less video games? I bet she thinks you ought to call the fire department to get cats down from trees, too.

 

[ninjajoeman]

I know someone probably said this but if she would have never bought that game then who did if hes only 14? I'm asking because if he bought it then technically the blame is on the seller of the game not the game itself.

Also for all of you saying "wheres the father?" think about it. There are a lot of families don't have fathers or mothers.

One more thing is if she used calling the police as a threat and then she followed through with it then good for her. Seriously, she shows that shes not gonna be messed with and the kid should listen!

 

[chronobreak]

snip

Fox News Corporation is a seperate entity from your local (in my case channel 25) Fox Affiliate. That's why they are able to run programs such as The Simpsons without having Republicans in a tizzy. Just wanted to clear that up, however I hope you wouldn't discount someones opinion because of what station they choose to watch their news on. That would be silly.

I guess we aren't really getting anywhere. You're right, I have no facts, just what has been put in front of me. Same with the Mars, I have never been there, just know what I've been told. And Oxygen, I've never witnessed it, but people tell me it's there. Or Mexico. Never been there, so who knows if it's real?

I don't believe everything I read, and don't have evidence for every claim I see, but I am capable of using life experience and my brain to arrive at the most logical conclusion, and I feel I have done that.

 

[SupaMechaDeathChrist]

Now, y'see, she should have just picked up the console and thrown it out the window.

That's parenting.

I would respond with both throwing that and the TV out the window, and if he is still complaining knock him out with a chair and when he wakes up just say "you fell asleep and fell on the floor, nothing happend."

that's good parenting in my mind. (untill he gets a concussion.)

 

[Terramax]

Parents need to get with the times, huh? Yea, parents should let their kids do whatever they want. Hell, stay up all night playing games, who cares? Get with the times! Grades start slipping? Eh, fuck it, nobody cares about school anymore! Drop out, why not?

A good parent does their best to set reasonable boundaries for their children to follow, so later in life they can deal with the reality of having rules that they have to follow and be accountable for. Not staying up until 2:30 in the morning playing games is a reasonable boundary. If you don't think that is the case, I would like to know what else parents should get off their kids backs about.

Well, the kid was playing GTA at 2:30 on a Saturday i.e. a non-school day. I did the same every Saturday morning from age 11-16 and at 23 I've yet to break the law once and I've always had a complete understanding of the rules in my household and in my country.

But, yes, I can fully see how kids staying awake just a little bit later on a friday night accumilates to how their grades are going down the drain. When I have kids I'll have them go to bed every day at 6pm and, in theory, they'll be masterminds by 16.

rebelling against your parents is practically a rite of passage for teenagers.

Apparently not with chronobreak's children.

EDIT: Actually, I apologise for the above joke. That's probably quite offending and I mean nothing bad on you or your children and it was very disrespectful of me.

 

[AndyRock]

Thankfully my parents are pretty tolerent, but this is an example of how not to handle an out of control kid.

 

[dwoo21]

Sounds a bit extreme to be calling the cops

 

[gred]

As much as I did fancy having a go its got nothing to do with being uneducated or bigotted. Its about the fact that it reads like she is seeing games as unholy and has to claim that even with Jesus' support the evil of video games is still corrupting her son. As that is insane, she therefore loses credability and is laughable.

I want you to answer me one question: Where in the article does it say anything about her thinking video games are evil, or where does it say her decision was based on her faith?

This is getting out of hand. People that want to make these assumptions should be moderated. The level of bigotry and ignorance on this forum is way out of control, and nobody seems to want to step in to take a stand. I have been in the R+P section for a few days, debating with people there, and I thought that section was bad. It's tame compared to the comments going on here.

I joined this community because it stood out from others on the net, because of the great userbase here. I don't know what has happened, but it's starting to become like the Wild West, and I no longer feel like I am welcome here, because of my faith. After all, if you are so quick to admonish some woman in Boston because she makes a small statement about seeking help from her church, why would anybody think I have any credibility in anything I say? It is clear the majority of this community does not want Christians around, and intend to be completely disrespectful towards them.

Lol u should go to 4chan and try to debate about religion

 

[TelHybrid]

She's a Christian American. Explains everything.

Her fault for buying him the game in the 1st place to be honest. I am sick of video games taking the blame for poor parenting.

 

[mayney93]

"I have support from my church"

Is it wrong that I read that and though, "well that explains everything"?

nope i thought the exact same thing

 

[SupaMechaDeathChrist]

On your second point... are you kidding? You think that is the only way, the ONLY way a kid can get hold of a game? Even not by...

1. Stealing it
2. Renting it
3. Borrowing it from a friend
4. Getting it as a gift
5. Paying for it
6. Finding it (slimmer chance than others)

The information put out there is the kid didn't listen to his mother. The mother called the police on him. As I already stated, the mother clearly did the wrong thing, but on the other side of the fence the kid wasn't doing what he was supposed to be doing either.

well, if he got it as a gift then that would mean that the parent probably bought it for him. So much as stealing it, your outa your fucking mind if you think that kids could steal something these days. Paying for it, then it is his game and the mother can't take it from him. Borrowing it from a friend, the friend is at fault. Renting it, again he either payed with his own money so it is his responsibility or the mother rented it for him. Finding it, who the fuck leaves a 40 dollar game on the fucking streets.

and this is what i say, the kid wan'ts to stay up all night playing a game, fine but he is the one that is going to ruin his learning. (yes not good grammar but i dont give a fuck.)
The mother did the wrong thing yes, but she went to the extreme, doesn't mean she is not a good parent.

from all the posts you put out it seems that you are an over protective mother/father and needs to give your kid a break. Are you taking lessons from Michael Atkinson?

 

[DRTJR]

I would have MADE the little Shit play the games till he droped then he'd know eight hours of sleep is a good thing

the Mom is a moron and the son's a prick