Video Gaming and the Youth of America

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a gamer. I play everything from video games, board games, card games, role-playing games, miniatures, etc. I'm always up to playing something. I've been playing games as long as I can remember. I'm also a little outspoken when it comes to the government acting like parents. Parents should act like parents.

So, today I came across this article: Another State Mulls Video Game Ban. Basically, my governor is looking to make it illegal for a business to sell violent and/or sexually explicit video games to people under the age of 18. Now, I'm all for kids not getting their hands on mature rated games. I applaud the video gaming industry for voluntarily adopting the rating system currently in place. What I don't like is when the government thinks it needs to step in and act like parents.

Parents should be responsible for what their child gets their hands on. I have 5 kids, ages 13, 6, 3, 3, and 1. I pretty much know everything they play, watch, read. If my 13 year old wanted a game rated mature, I would look it over before making my decision. What is the game about? What in it causes the Mature rating? Do I think it's appropriate for my son? All of this info can easily be found on the internet. Game publishers give out tons of info on new games coming out. Websites like Gamespot & IGN review new games and give plenty of info for parents to help decide what's right for their children.

unfortunately, many parents don't do that. I was watching a new program about a set of parents who purchased Grand Theft Auto 3 for their 6 year old. The father would play it with his son. The mother was completely oblivious. Both parents were being irresponsible. Is it the government's place to step in then?

Here is a great quote from our esteemed governor:
"If you're 18 or older and you're a grown-up and an adult, that's your business," the governor said. "But I don't believe that my 8-year-old daughter has a constitutional right to cut somebody's head off in a game that she plays."

In my opinion, if my governor doesn't have enough control over his 8 year old that he can't stop her from trying to purchase a Mature rated game, then how is he supposed to keep track of what our state is doing? How is he supposed to get law enforcement to enforce this? Should we get big signs for the stores with a "We Card for M rated games" and put them in all the Targets, Wal-Marts, Gamestops, etc? How is he going to hand out the proposed $5000 fines and 1 year prison terms to a business?

Another great quote from the article: The proposed legislation also would require retailers to label violent or sexually explicit video games. Video games now are rated with general labels such as "M" for "mature." How can this be difficult to understand? Here is the picture for the M rating:



Can't everyone see the Mature 17+ right at the top? Here is the description that comes with the symbol:

MATURE
Titles rated M - Mature have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain mature sexual themes, more intense violence and/or strong language.

These games also have descriptors on the back of the game box that have all sorts of key-words that describe what's in the game. You can see all this on the ESRB's Website.

In short, while I am ranting here, do we really need our state government to act like parents to our kids?