Following the recent story about the 8 year old Louisiana boy who shot and killed his 87 year old caregiver, I feel it is an appropriate time to address the ongoing debate of violence in video games. Even though the police said they did not know the motive behind the killing, the media covering the story is quick to blame video games as the cause of the tragedy. They reported on how the child was playing Grand Theft Auto IV just before the shooting. Back in November of last year in Connecticut (my home state) where a mentally disturbed individual (I am not writing his name, you know who he was) went into an elementary school and killed 26, the media was once again quick to blame video games as a source of the aggression and a trigger for the tragedy, completely disregarding the fact that the killer was known to be mentally unstable and his parents were unwilling to seek help. They had reported the killers love for playing Call of Duty for long times "One person, whose name was redacted in a search warrant, described [the killer] as a shut-in who rarely left home and played military-style video games." The media has been very quick to place the blame on video games in many recent tragedies and will continue to do so because it gives them a quick scape-goat and it attacks another media form to protect itself (I will explain this later).
I have been playing video games for the majority of my life. I remember my first games and what I thought about each game in reference to reality. One thing that is very often under looked and undervalued when talking about this subject is parenting. My parents raised me to be respectful of people and from an early age, taught me the lessons I needed to know to separate fantasy from reality. My parents monitored my time on video games and did the research necessary to know whether a certain game would be proper for me at different ages. My parents taught me right from wrong and how guns are not to be seen as toys. My parents came to me when they felt there was something wrong and offered their help to get through tough situations in my life. Far too often these days parents do not engage with their children and really set good examples for them. My parents are my role models for life, I look up to them and I respect them for who they are and what they have done to help me better my life and understand the responsibilities and realities of the real world. I know sometimes it is not possible for children to have good relationships with their parents (divorce, abuse, etc.) and because of that they loose touch with reality and have no moral compass to guide them in life. This is the fault of the parents, not anyone or anything else. I and many others in the gaming communities are sick and tired of video games being the problem with the youth of today who carry out horrific acts. It is not the responsibility of the game developers to tone down their ART because some people cannot handle it. You do not see movies or television being front and center as often as video games when tragedies occur when I can make an argument that some movies are WAY more influential in driving a mental state of a person to carry out heinous acts (quick side note: I went to see Elysium a couple of weeks ago and a parent brought their what looked to be 8 and 10 year old children to see it with them). Parents need to know their child and help them if needed, not ignore them and then kick them to the curb come their 18th birthday.
Another fact that seems to be overlooked in the case of the Louisiana boy that I feel was somewhat disturbing was that no one really called out the parents for how easy it was for the boy to gain access to the gun. I am all for owning a gun but you have to be responsible about it! If you have children (even if you don't) you NEED to keep that gun FAR from their reach. The neglect and disregard for safety really falls on the parent. How is it that an 8 YEAR OLD can just pick up a gun that easily? That gun should be under lock and key at all times and even after that, you as a parent need to start talking to your child and explaining to them the responsibility of having a gun and what they can do and how they should never be used until they are of age when a supervisor can teach them how to properly and safely use them.
Video games such as the mentioned Grand Theft Auto series are given ratings by which parents buying the games can assess if it is an appropriate buy for their child. Grand Theft Auto is NOT a game meant for elementary school children! Regardless of that though, you as a parent need to do research and make your own decision for your child. I will say that my parents never bought me Mature rated and if I was able to get my hands on one in some other way, they would teach me responsibility and make sure I knew the consequences in reality. I played a lot of First Person Shooters growing up (Unreal Tournament, Quake, Battlefield 1942, Dark Forces, etc...) and so did many of my friends, and we all saw these games as just a fun time. We all had fun playing games and it never once occurred to me that "Hey, I think I want to try this out in real life", all I thought about was the fun time I was having being immersed in the story of the world or relaxing with friends or admiring the visual graphics in a brand new game that pushed technology forward. All this being said, the media needs something to blame for terrible tragedies that they can make shocking points about and play off peoples fear of something they do not fully understand. Its very easy to make the point of "Grand Theft Auto is a game where you can kill anyone, steal cars, buy drugs and prostitutes, and create chaos throughout an entire city with no regard for any law. Children all over are playing this game and it is the reason why the youth of today have higher aggression and disregard of any authority." Sound familiar? What the media fails to report on is what else is going on in the child's life. Are the parents involved? Why aren't the parents to blame at all? I mean they obviously bought the child the game which 1. has the M for Mature label on it and 2. THE NAME OF THE GAME IS A FELONY! Those 2 things weren't red flags to the parent? Oh and how did the child end up with access to a firearm? Shouldn't the parent be to blame for keeping it so accessible?
The youth of today is moving away from televised news. I know I get ALL of my information from online sources nowadays. I never watch the news on television on purpose and I feel that in some ways, that is why these news sources are attacking another media form. Television media is losing viewers daily and to make up for this they need to sensationalize stories to draw people back in. Attacking other media and art forms leads misinformed parents to call for bans of those outlets. No one wants to report on the real issue which is a lack of parenting and failure to address mental instability. No one wants to admit their child is mentally unstable or disturbed and that's why many turn away from reality and that is when tragedy happens. In the case of Newtown, if the warning signs were taken seriously and proper medical attention and mental therapy were introduced in the killers life, then I believe the tragedy would have been avoided. In the case in Louisiana, if proper parenting and proper gun ownership were followed, then the situation is avoided. There is a difference between an 8 year old playing a Mario game and a Grand Theft Auto game, there is a difference between LEGO video games and Call of Duty, and it is the parents responsibility to talk to their children and understand what is appropriate for them to view. How are video games any more influential than R rated movies or violent television shows? It is all just media sensationalism because they need something to blame for the irresponsibility of a parent.
This was more of a rant than anything and I wanted to open a discussion on the topic and see what people think. After re-reading this post I understand that it is all over the place and I really shouldn't post it but I need to, not because I want to inform people (I really do but I am just terrible at writing) but I want to try and get across my point that video games are not to blame for senseless tragedies and that YOU as a parent (or future parent) need to be there for your child(ren) and monitor their actions. Do not ignore the little things. Take action if you think something is wrong or off. Be there for your child if they need you and love them. Video games are an art form. They tell stories and create whole worlds to immerse the players in. They are not "murder simulators" as some would like to lead you to believe. If you don't understand them, do your research, hell even sit down and play one or two if you never have before, you might really enjoy the experience! But when tragedies strike, don't blame the game, find out what was really going on and make an informed decision. If you believe that video games have the potential to truly make me a killer then step back and ask yourself the same question about television, movies, books, and the environment around you.
PS. I want to thank my mom and dad for the way they raised me. They were there for me when I needed them and they taught me the morals I live my life by. Nothing can compare to how important they were to me growing up and I appreciate everything they have done for me. When it comes to video games, they did the right thing and now I can look back on those times and say with 100% confidence that they made the correct choices for me and my mental capacity when letting me play games. They taught me respect and responsibility and really engrained the fantasy vs reality aspect in my mind. I love them both very much and I always will.
Thank you mom and dad, for making me a better person.
And with that I will have my week in review for everyone posted tomorrow. Leave comments on this post on your feelings towards the subject and lets see if we can get some good discussions going.
Thanks for reading and until next time:
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