The "General Games Chat" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.
Just something I have been thinking about for a while. Donít take offence at anything here because that is not why I wrote it and I donít want to upset anybody.
I, as well as many others recently have been wondering why gaming gets such a bad press by the mass media. It is seen as the root of all evil, which warps kidsí minds and makes them perform violent acts, like just for an example, the school shootings that have occurred. But it has occurred to me that games are not the only things that get blamed for violent acts. My brother (a heavy metal and nu-metal fan) informs me that some people in Europe (canít remember which country, sorry) killed a girl in a kind of ritualistic act, and people, for one reason or another, blamed the music of Marilyn Manson. It was later discovered that the youths did not even listen to or like the music of Mr. Manson.
Other mediums are also regularly blamed for violence. Television, Movies, Music, Video games, they all have been blamed at one point for violence and death at some point. But that got me thinking. With all the recent terrorism, what makes them do it? Iím not talking in particular about the attacks on the US, although this may incorporate those as well, we may never know.
I mean the religious factions that for years have warred against one another, fighting for the ëPromised Landí which each claims is theirs, promised to them by their God. Religion. Religion is probably one of the biggest killers, bigger than TV, Music, Movies or, gasp, even video games. Religion has claimed so many lives recently and through out the history of mankind, yet it is still accepted as a part of everyday life. Now I am not suggesting that religion is evil. That would just make me as bad as those who say video games create psycho killers. But what I do want to know is why people find an entertainment medium that does no harm to anyone (except maybe those who are unstable anyway) isnít accepted, when religion, something that instils fanaticism in many groups is just seen as normal. The entertainment mediums are relatively new, while religion has been around as long as mankind.
People who believe they are doing something for a cause, like their faith, will go to the extreme of sacrificing their lives for what they see as the good of their faith. This may be them strapping explosives to themselves to blow up a bus full of ësinnersí or as we tragically saw on the News in September, hijacking a plane and crashing it to kill thousands. I cannot say whether those who hijacked the planes were doing it out of some religious fanaticism, but there is still a similarity. They were fighting for, or at least believed they were fighting for, a cause. A cause instils an individual with a passion greater than any video game, movie, song or television program can give.
I will sign off on this note. I donít mean to insult anyone with these comments, and donít mean to say itís not right to have a cause. Fight your corner all the way, but not at cost to others. Make what you will of the comments I have made. If I have been blasphemous then so be it, but I hope I have made some of you think, and put a point across.
Thanks for reading.
I, as well as many others recently have been wondering why gaming gets such a bad press by the mass media. It is seen as the root of all evil, which warps kidsí minds and makes them perform violent acts, like just for an example, the school shootings that have occurred. But it has occurred to me that games are not the only things that get blamed for violent acts. My brother (a heavy metal and nu-metal fan) informs me that some people in Europe (canít remember which country, sorry) killed a girl in a kind of ritualistic act, and people, for one reason or another, blamed the music of Marilyn Manson. It was later discovered that the youths did not even listen to or like the music of Mr. Manson.
Other mediums are also regularly blamed for violence. Television, Movies, Music, Video games, they all have been blamed at one point for violence and death at some point. But that got me thinking. With all the recent terrorism, what makes them do it? Iím not talking in particular about the attacks on the US, although this may incorporate those as well, we may never know.
I mean the religious factions that for years have warred against one another, fighting for the ëPromised Landí which each claims is theirs, promised to them by their God. Religion. Religion is probably one of the biggest killers, bigger than TV, Music, Movies or, gasp, even video games. Religion has claimed so many lives recently and through out the history of mankind, yet it is still accepted as a part of everyday life. Now I am not suggesting that religion is evil. That would just make me as bad as those who say video games create psycho killers. But what I do want to know is why people find an entertainment medium that does no harm to anyone (except maybe those who are unstable anyway) isnít accepted, when religion, something that instils fanaticism in many groups is just seen as normal. The entertainment mediums are relatively new, while religion has been around as long as mankind.
People who believe they are doing something for a cause, like their faith, will go to the extreme of sacrificing their lives for what they see as the good of their faith. This may be them strapping explosives to themselves to blow up a bus full of ësinnersí or as we tragically saw on the News in September, hijacking a plane and crashing it to kill thousands. I cannot say whether those who hijacked the planes were doing it out of some religious fanaticism, but there is still a similarity. They were fighting for, or at least believed they were fighting for, a cause. A cause instils an individual with a passion greater than any video game, movie, song or television program can give.
I will sign off on this note. I donít mean to insult anyone with these comments, and donít mean to say itís not right to have a cause. Fight your corner all the way, but not at cost to others. Make what you will of the comments I have made. If I have been blasphemous then so be it, but I hope I have made some of you think, and put a point across.
Thanks for reading.
So true, so true.
Yet we can do nothing, for big, fat, retarded, disgusting 'american big brother' with his 'no, sorry, cant let you have free will' politics will make sure that games and music are blamed for his crimes eternally. It makes me want to weep.
Yet we can do nothing, for big, fat, retarded, disgusting 'american big brother' with his 'no, sorry, cant let you have free will' politics will make sure that games and music are blamed for his crimes eternally. It makes me want to weep.
Great post, Sibs, my good friend.
I know, many violent, eccentric and delusional killing acts have used gaming as its scapegoat, something to blame for their actions and pretend that they were under a strong influence which made them do it.
For example, do you remember the school killings in America where two lads killed their fellow school mates and then killed themselves?
It was later discovered that they might have got their ideas from a Stephen King book. I find this theory ridiculous, those boys must of been extremely unstable to be under the influence of a damn book.
Yet, what annoys me the most, is that the parents of the two delinquent, raving loonies who commited the crimes, lamed and used gaming as the real reason as to why their offspring acted the way they did! They had the cheek to take huge firms such as Sony, Nintendo, Microsoft, Midway etc. to court and fight for the right to gain around Ł12.5 billion in compensation. That really did set me off, I was annoyed that people could be so greedy. I mean - why not sue the god-damn gun shops, eh? The firms that sold the weapons to them!
Pathetic really.
SHOCKY
I know, many violent, eccentric and delusional killing acts have used gaming as its scapegoat, something to blame for their actions and pretend that they were under a strong influence which made them do it.
For example, do you remember the school killings in America where two lads killed their fellow school mates and then killed themselves?
It was later discovered that they might have got their ideas from a Stephen King book. I find this theory ridiculous, those boys must of been extremely unstable to be under the influence of a damn book.
Yet, what annoys me the most, is that the parents of the two delinquent, raving loonies who commited the crimes, lamed and used gaming as the real reason as to why their offspring acted the way they did! They had the cheek to take huge firms such as Sony, Nintendo, Microsoft, Midway etc. to court and fight for the right to gain around Ł12.5 billion in compensation. That really did set me off, I was annoyed that people could be so greedy. I mean - why not sue the god-damn gun shops, eh? The firms that sold the weapons to them!
Pathetic really.
SHOCKY
Just something I have been thinking about for a while. Donít take offence at anything here because that is not why I wrote it and I donít want to upset anybody.
I, as well as many others recently have been wondering why gaming gets such a bad press by the mass media. It is seen as the root of all evil, which warps kidsí minds and makes them perform violent acts, like just for an example, the school shootings that have occurred. But it has occurred to me that games are not the only things that get blamed for violent acts. My brother (a heavy metal and nu-metal fan) informs me that some people in Europe (canít remember which country, sorry) killed a girl in a kind of ritualistic act, and people, for one reason or another, blamed the music of Marilyn Manson. It was later discovered that the youths did not even listen to or like the music of Mr. Manson.
Other mediums are also regularly blamed for violence. Television, Movies, Music, Video games, they all have been blamed at one point for violence and death at some point. But that got me thinking. With all the recent terrorism, what makes them do it? Iím not talking in particular about the attacks on the US, although this may incorporate those as well, we may never know.
I mean the religious factions that for years have warred against one another, fighting for the ëPromised Landí which each claims is theirs, promised to them by their God. Religion. Religion is probably one of the biggest killers, bigger than TV, Music, Movies or, gasp, even video games. Religion has claimed so many lives recently and through out the history of mankind, yet it is still accepted as a part of everyday life. Now I am not suggesting that religion is evil. That would just make me as bad as those who say video games create psycho killers. But what I do want to know is why people find an entertainment medium that does no harm to anyone (except maybe those who are unstable anyway) isnít accepted, when religion, something that instils fanaticism in many groups is just seen as normal. The entertainment mediums are relatively new, while religion has been around as long as mankind.
People who believe they are doing something for a cause, like their faith, will go to the extreme of sacrificing their lives for what they see as the good of their faith. This may be them strapping explosives to themselves to blow up a bus full of ësinnersí or as we tragically saw on the News in September, hijacking a plane and crashing it to kill thousands. I cannot say whether those who hijacked the planes were doing it out of some religious fanaticism, but there is still a similarity. They were fighting for, or at least believed they were fighting for, a cause. A cause instils an individual with a passion greater than any video game, movie, song or television program can give.
I will sign off on this note. I donít mean to insult anyone with these comments, and donít mean to say itís not right to have a cause. Fight your corner all the way, but not at cost to others. Make what you will of the comments I have made. If I have been blasphemous then so be it, but I hope I have made some of you think, and put a point across.
Thanks for reading.
I, as well as many others recently have been wondering why gaming gets such a bad press by the mass media. It is seen as the root of all evil, which warps kidsí minds and makes them perform violent acts, like just for an example, the school shootings that have occurred. But it has occurred to me that games are not the only things that get blamed for violent acts. My brother (a heavy metal and nu-metal fan) informs me that some people in Europe (canít remember which country, sorry) killed a girl in a kind of ritualistic act, and people, for one reason or another, blamed the music of Marilyn Manson. It was later discovered that the youths did not even listen to or like the music of Mr. Manson.
Other mediums are also regularly blamed for violence. Television, Movies, Music, Video games, they all have been blamed at one point for violence and death at some point. But that got me thinking. With all the recent terrorism, what makes them do it? Iím not talking in particular about the attacks on the US, although this may incorporate those as well, we may never know.
I mean the religious factions that for years have warred against one another, fighting for the ëPromised Landí which each claims is theirs, promised to them by their God. Religion. Religion is probably one of the biggest killers, bigger than TV, Music, Movies or, gasp, even video games. Religion has claimed so many lives recently and through out the history of mankind, yet it is still accepted as a part of everyday life. Now I am not suggesting that religion is evil. That would just make me as bad as those who say video games create psycho killers. But what I do want to know is why people find an entertainment medium that does no harm to anyone (except maybe those who are unstable anyway) isnít accepted, when religion, something that instils fanaticism in many groups is just seen as normal. The entertainment mediums are relatively new, while religion has been around as long as mankind.
People who believe they are doing something for a cause, like their faith, will go to the extreme of sacrificing their lives for what they see as the good of their faith. This may be them strapping explosives to themselves to blow up a bus full of ësinnersí or as we tragically saw on the News in September, hijacking a plane and crashing it to kill thousands. I cannot say whether those who hijacked the planes were doing it out of some religious fanaticism, but there is still a similarity. They were fighting for, or at least believed they were fighting for, a cause. A cause instils an individual with a passion greater than any video game, movie, song or television program can give.
I will sign off on this note. I donít mean to insult anyone with these comments, and donít mean to say itís not right to have a cause. Fight your corner all the way, but not at cost to others. Make what you will of the comments I have made. If I have been blasphemous then so be it, but I hope I have made some of you think, and put a point across.
Thanks for reading.