http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18220228/

This guy is such an idiot, he has been on a crusade to eradicate the world of video games for awhile now.

A great bumper sticker comes to mind here "Defend America, Disbar a Lawyer!"

milions of people play video games and they dont become mass murderers.

Originally Posted by phoenix80

milions of people play video games and they dont become mass murderers.

Yup, I played a lot of violence, mature, and graphic games such as The Punisher, DOOM 3, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and more. But I'm not a killer for the real world.

I dont think its the game that is the problem but the state of mind of the player, part of the problem is that some people stop differentiating between real world and game world and see it as one.

However this Jack Thompson character is usually way off target with his attacks and seems to have little idea what he is talking about as I recall Microsoft didnt create Counter Strike.

Jack Thompson represents the type of conservative I despise the most: The Holier-than-thou, "morals" preacher who sole contribution to society is sticking their nose into others peoples business or personal life in order to preach to them. The sole purpose of his kind is not to build a better society but so that he HE can get elected.

I could mention his ambulance chasing tactics against Take-Two (GTA series) in Alabama (which got him disbarred there), or I mention his pathetic attempts to ban rap music groups like 2 Live Crew and NWA, (which in the case of the latter, totally backfired making the then unknown NWA an extremely popular group). Dr. Dre , Easy-E, and Ice Cube all have Jack Thompson to thank for launching their careers. (There is a rumor that Dr. Dre still sends him a fruit basket every year as thanks for his lawsuit).

But the classic Jack Thompson was back in 2000 when he ran against Janet Reno for Attorney General.

His platform wasn't his court record (its not that great) nor was it his plans for combating crime (he didn't have one) nor did he bother attacking his opponents platform.

Instead he picked a platform that he thought was by far the most important for Floridians:

Janet Reno is a Lesbian.

And he made sure everybody in Florida (those that still hadn't figured it out) that she was a Lesbian hoping that Homophobia would make him win the election.

Instead, He lost in a landslide. Apparently even the far-right thought he was a self-serving fraud.

BTW, after Reno dismissed his frivolous lawsuit against Take-Two he again went around the TV networks reminding everybody that she was gay.

Nice, Jack.

Video games per se are not to blame, but I have no doubt whatsoever that they do reinforce unrealistic expectations and behaviour patterns, in certain types of individuals.

They desensitise people to violence... THAT is their danger.

Jack Thompson is a person who does not understand the gaming industry. His letter to Bill Gates and to Microsoft have already exposed his eccentric views on the Video Game Industry.

Originally Posted by bulldogg

They desensitise people to violence... THAT is their danger.

Like the nightly news doesnt, or a movie like Saw III. The problem is a lack of education in right from wrong and real life and entertainment. Hollywood has desensitized and glorified violence far more than any video game.

I saw a cartoon in this months playboy that made so much sense, it was of an alien and a human female. The alien says "Your civilization must be far more advanced then mine for we still celebrate sex and consider violence obscene."

You can not blame a product for how the end user uses it or precives it.

You can not blame a product for how the end user uses it or precives it.

I think that the problem is somewhat deeper than that. When a game has totally unrealistic gameplay it certainly can be blamed for creating the wrong impression in young and/or impressionable persons.

By unrealistic I mean things like cars that crash into others at high speed but allow the driver to just drive away, whereas in real life they would be dead or seriously injured.