At his commencement speech over the weekend at Hampton University, President Obama took some time out from inspiring a generation to lay the presidential slam down on video games, iPads and other "distractions."
"With iPods and iPads; Xboxes and PlayStations -- none of which I know how to work -- information becomes a distraction, a diversion, a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment, rather than the means of emancipation," Obama said. "All of this is not only putting new pressures on you. It is putting new pressures on our country and on our democracy," he added.
Obama also said an education can help people make sense of the different viewpoints and voices "clamoring for attention on blogs, on cable, on talk radio."
It's hard to argue with the characterization of video games as distractions -- that's the whole point -- but the iPad? That seems to me to be more of a tool than anything else. My doctor uses an iPad to quickly reference medical information before he writes prescriptions. Also, it's hard to take someone seriously after he says he doesn't know how to work the things he's putting down.
What do you guys think? Are you having trouble making sense of all the media voices out there? Are you being distracted right now, by these very words?
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ZoMbie1791
Huh? What did u say? I'm sorry I was playing on my xbox 360
hunkychops
One commenter said:
"i wish i never voted on him after these obscene comments"
Why did you vote for him in the first place? On what foundation did you base your opinion so it could be crumbled with one ignorant comment? He isn't enacting law regarding use of technology, just rambling about how he thinks it distracts us. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not a supporter of Obama, I just think people have been voting based on twisted opinions, prejudgment, and ignorance of the actual implications of issues. I think the reason for this voter ignorance comes from the two party system. The media makes everyone believe that 'x' extreme is better and therefore, they vote only on the issues that fit in 'x' extreme. Who decides 'x' extreme is correct? The real chances are that a mixture of 'x' and 'y' extremes would be better for the country overall (moderate-ism), but we can't have that can we?
aproxy
Obama has a point. These are huge distractions for every generation of Americans. Overall, Americans in my opinion are getting dumber and lazier through each generation. That's just my opinion.
furiousgeorge
Isn't this the same guy who game the Queen of England an iPod for her birthday a year ago. I thought he was the tech savy president. I get it that he might not know how to play a 360 or ps3, but an iPod. The gadget that revolutionized how we listen, watch, and receive different forms of media. I think it's very ignorant on his part to condemn a thing that he doesn't even know how to use. I understand his point he's trying to make, that we need to work harder. I find it hard to believe that the 360 or PS3 will be the cause of the fall of democracy.
chojiisdavid
His kids must be sad about what he said
ShatteringBlade
I see he chooses to ignore that video games, especially big hit releases, are a constant huge money maker for the economy. Which he has no problem burning up more and more of it every day. But I dont care much for obamas opinion anyhow, I mean all he did was choose an easy subject to make fun of and then try to get a quick applause off it anyway.
MasterKiller64
Also lets remember the Republican Party is being smart and using video games to lure young people to their party. Now lets look at the Democrat Party.... Not so much.
The Monkey King
I think what Obama was trying to say that video games and the like are taking precedent over actual education. For the most part, video games ARE entertainment, like he said, not much is derived from them educationally.
Socalmic47
When in doubt, alienate Generation Y, the next batch of major voters in this country.
Hydrafiend
Yes President Obama, the days of the dominant liberal mass media controlling all information are nearing the end. But this statement by Obama is interesting, I guess he shares a view with China and other more dictatorial, or totalitarian regimes, that restrict the internet and other sources of information, they are just "distractions" distracting us from what I assume Obama thinks is the "correct" point of view.
jc18378
Eh.....and we care why??
HeatherMarMal
Why, in any way, would information as entertainment be a bad thing?
I'm a Canadian, but I was rooting for Obama until now.
babyteeth219
Its impossible to eliminate technology. I would like to see restrictions on things like television and video games. Its sad when kids need programs like "lets move" to keep kids in shape. I think the presidents main point is technology breeds laziness. Its hard for me to agree with the president seeing as I just spent an hour watching television but I do limit the amount I watch. My theory is if something is easy it becomes addictive. Technology make things easier. I cant wait to see all the seeds the president plants bloom. I might even want to stay in the United States.
gravy666
I wonder who's going to win the 2012 election.
(sarcasm)
jedimasterchief9
This is the same president we all thought was super cool for owning a Wii.
blueneostang
He's just pissed because those are all the formats he's getting slammed on. And he can't use them to read what's being said. The only thing he can use is his Blackberry. Presidential frustration.
zeroslashj
"With iPods and iPads; Xboxes and PlayStations -- /none of which I know how to work\..."
And this voids his entire argument.
Geistman
Any form of media can be a distraction. Reading the news via the writers blog is no different than reading the same "post" in the newspaper. (With the exception that we had to waste significantly more resources to print the paper...)
Let's compare video games to movies... both leave you in a sitting position, maybe even munching, for 1-3 hours with the primary goal of entertaining. (Learning is usually tertiary at best.) Why aren't we slamming Hollywood? Maybe it has to do with, oh I don't know... Money?
Let's look at this RSS type post (Some may say a blog in a sense). As of now I see 114 different posts in under 4 hours about a political topic that arose less than 48 hours ago. That is a pretty strong response to a "distracted" and "pressured" population on a political topic in a non-political arena with a non-political audience.
As has been stated prior to this post, the blog-o-sphere and techie types brought attention to this administration and now they seem to do nothing but back hand them in return...
blueboykc
i bet you dollars to doughnuts obama knows very little if anything about video games or the gaming industry in general..and theres nothing wrong with that..but to me his opinion on the subject is moot until the man proves to me he knows the difference between super mario and super metroid..
BCouto
Ok Obama. Let's get rid of all of these devices, some of which put billions of dollars into the US economy. That's a great idea.
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