Congressmen Joe Baca (D-Calif.) and Frank Wolf (R-Va.) on Monday introduced a bill that would require most video games to bear a warning label that says, "WARNING: Exposure to violent video games has been linked to aggressive behavior."
I guess the rest of our nations problems have been solved.
The Bill would require every game, except ones rated EC (Early Childhood), to carry the warning text. That means any game that is rated "E" for everyone, "E10+" for everyone 10 and older, "T" for teen, "M" for mature or "A" for adult. Even if the game isn't violent.
"Just as we warn smokers of the health consequences of tobacco, we should warn parents — and children — about the growing scientific evidence demonstrating a relationship between violent video games and violent behavior," Wolf said. "As a parent and grandparent, I think it is important people know everything they can about the extremely violent nature of some of these games."
I'm not going to waste my time pointing out how a link between violent games and real violence has never been established in any meaningful way, nor will I belabor the point that the people proposing this law are paid for with taxpayer money, nor will I point out that mandatory labeling of art work is almost certainly unconstitutional. Instead, I'll look on the bright side, and say, hey, at least it's a bipartisan bill, which proves that the Democrats and Republicans can work together as long as they're doing something dumb.
Source: The Hill
All of the best people are following Stephen Johnson's twitter feed. Also, email me if you wanna.
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DJTahoe
I call BS on that! http://www.scientificamerican. com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=ste ven-pinker-violence-is-lower-t ha-11-10-18
InnerRise
But what about contraception? They haven't solved that yet.
silent_jedi
well I have been playing a lot of swtor lately and have been having the urge to force lighting people.
Capt Obvious789
If they put this through, i want a warning label on every piece of paper stating "WARNING: PAPER MAY CAUSE PAPER CUTS WHICH CAN LEAD TO INFECTION". Because apparently something with an incredibly small chance of happening is cause for warning.
ParkinLotPlaya
so i made sure i didn't have any kids, so now i have to parent others! AS A PARENT IF YOU KNOW YOUR KID IS NOT THAT BRIGHT AN THINKS WHEN HE/SHE PLAYS GRAND THEFT AUTO (WHICH LETS BE FOR REAL IF HE/SHE IS NOT 17 OR OLDER THEY SHOULD NOT BE PLAYING GTA ANYWAY AN SHOULD ONLY HAVE A NINTENDO PRODUCT IN THERE HOME! IF THAT!) HE/SHE SHOULD GO OUT AN DO THE SAME THING THEY JUST DID IN A VIDEO GAME, OR ANY VIDEO GAME, THEN THATS JUST SAD AS HELL! if your being a true parent then you know your kid needs to be in some books and not video games! I'M GROWN! I DON'T NEED THE LABEL! MY MOM MADE SURE I KNOW THE DIFFERENCE! MY MOTHER DID HER JOB AS A PARENT!
teac77
I could see this for Dark Souls, with all of the controller-flinging, but not much else, really.
Alwyn1978
Our tax dollars hard at work here. Sad times we live in, anyone remember in the 80"s when they tried to blame every violent outbreak on the music of that time?
Calvin_Crowe82
ALL of my games consist of Mature ratings because of guns, swords, voilence, and my favorite, blood and gore. Yet, i have NO urge to go grab a rifle and shoot REAL people. Just because I love violence in media doesn't mean I'm a violent person. As Jhonen Vasquez, author of "Johnny the Homicidal Maniac" or his more popular "Invader Zim" puts it, is that violent videogames, movies, shows, comics etc. is a great way to release anger and frustration; it's a way to vent what we build up inside. A label isn't going to do anything! You can slap a label on a game saying it's for "Mature" audiences, yet I still played "Diablo" when I was 10 years old. 10 YEARS OLD!!!! And I have no psychological issues or problems.
Point being, you can slap a label on cigarettes telling people what they already know, you can slap a label on a bag of candy to tell people what they already know, and if you want to slap a label on games to tell us what we already know. Well go ahead and waste your time you idiots, it's not going to stop anything. Apparently our government has a lot of time on their hands...not like we're fighting wars or anything...
KromStormfist
This is only a government idea that is going to let parents off the hook to actually having to PARENT and be INVOLVED with their kids and the activities they are involved in and open a giant door for stupid lawsuits. This is proof that our country is still on a downward spiral because if this is important I can only imaging where the actual problems that face us Americans.
geotrax
I want a label on congress. Watching interacting or generally reading it about it will cause stupidity
B-minus
First of all violence in games, movies and everything else does not cause anyone to be violent. I started playing Mortal Kombat when i was 3 with my older brother and never once tried to have a fight to the death with anyone. Some people are just naturally violent or are raised in an area that promotes violence. It's been that way for thousands of years. Today in america kids are actually exposed to less violent activities in real life than they ever were. There are millions of people everyday that play games, watch movies or shows, and whatever else that has violence in it and those people don't do any acts of violence. What it really comes down to is parents being good parents. Make sure there child knows at an early age that its not good to be violentand the parent should try not to promote any kind of violence.
Second the ESRB is enough of a warning label already and gives more information about whats actually in the game than the these idiots want to put on there. Every game has the same thing but with different ratings and a list of things that are in the game that a parent or any player should know before buying.
Skyrim
Front cover: ESRB label on botton left with a giant M that's very easy to see and says above the M Mature 17+
Back cover:ESRB label on bottom right with same information on the front and list(Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol)
Ratchet and Clank
Front cover: ESRB label on bottom left with giant E 10+ and says Everyone 10+
Back cover: Same information as front ESRB label with(Animated Blood, Comic Mischief, Fantasy Violence)
People that don't play games need to reallize that kids arn't the only ones that play games. Video games have been around for over 30 years and if someone started playing games then that was 20 years old and still plays games today they are over 50. So quit trying to act like only kids play violent games when a good percentage of gamers are over the age of 18 and can play whatever they want. The parent need to start being responsible and simply look at the rating and discribtion of a game and decide that their kid shouldn't play it.
Jay_Tuckerful
Oh, and I forgot to add, almost all the people who played video games and had a violent event after (school shootings, abuse, etc.) had pre existing mental conditions. An average, HEALTHY, human being does not become violent after playing video games. They might be a bit more aggressive, but the same can be said about athletes. Besides, I would imagine a hockey player would be more prone to violent behavior, and yet we bring kids to hockey games. I have been playing video games since I was 4. In fact, they have had a positive effect on my life, it helped my reading comprehension, strategy, and in some cases taught me about history years before I learned at school. Sure, games have violence, but many also have cause and effect logic in it. Fallout, you kill or steal, you become hated and people attack you. Most games have a sort of karma system, do bad things, people start disliking you. And in games like Call of Duty, it shows brutal stuff. In W@W it showed American soldiers being beaten, and dead civilians as a result of the Nazis. If somebody finds that stuff fun, it's not because the game shows it in a good light, it's obviously because they have some issues already. If i missed anything please add to what i said in a reply.
Jay_Tuckerful
If violent games make me violent, if I play minecraft will I become a master at survival and architecture?
BrenLeahey
As a completely off-topic question: Does anyone else that uses Google Chrome have issues with this site's comments section? It seems like half of my comments don't go through then I come back to the article the next day to see if anyone replied and it turns out that my comment was posted three times. It's getting a little annoying.
CustosIntusSilentium
Sure, so long as every sports event, every movie, every TV show, every news cast, every play, every documentary, every music concert, every book, and every other source of entertainment containing any act of "violence" has such a message plastered all over it. This would include "Beauty and the Beast" and "Cinderella".
Poopfish
No where in the Constitution does it say Congress has the power to do this :(
CustosIntusSilentium
Sure, so long as every sports event, every movie, every TV show, every news cast, every play, every music concert, every documentary, every book, and every other source of entertainment receives the same treatment.
scorpian876
LMAO! What a load of lies! 9Congressmen Joe Baca (D-Calif.) and Frank Wolf (R-Va.) on Monday introduced a bill that would require most video games to bear a warning label that says, "WARNING: Exposure to violent video games has been linked to aggressive behavior.") They might as well put a warning label for violent movies saying"Exposure to violent movies has been linked to aggressive behavior.".
jnite
Again with this stupidity. I mean really. Don't these guys have far more important things to deal with and not waste money on that this? What is politician's obsession with damning video games? They've obviously never played one because who has is laughing at how silly this is. I knew when I read the title to this article that there was going to be plenty of stupid. And I was right.
Bronsolo
I must say, i love all the Pro-gaming comments there are, with all the perfect counter-examples. Let's keep gaming, people!!!
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