The Other Side Of The Coin

I was browsing the news when I saw this article on a shooting incident that happened, out of all places, at a church. Not only that, but the killer wasn't some brainless 16 year old who played too many video games, like most of the media would have you believe all modern killers are, but a 44 year old devout church goer who most described as "quiet" and "sharing". This incident is, like all senseless acts of violence, a tragedy, regardless of how many died. But, I daresay that I'm glad that if there was going to be another tragic shooting incident, this one happened at a church.

If you were to ask me why, I would say that, while this incident is unlikely to open many people's eyes, or at least the eyes of people who are half-convinced that all shootings these days are perpetrated by media-violence brainwashed children, it is at least useful as more proof that bad things happen to and are commited by all sorts of people in all sorts of places. Because lately, it seems to me like the only time any violent incident is reported happening in the U.S. is when there's an underage suspect involved who the media say is too young to to have consciously commited those acts and therefore must be under the influence of violent, evil entertainment, because god knows they can't think for themselves. This kind of media brainwashing bothers me, like it bothers any self-respecting gamer, because it continues the modern adage of blaming any reprehensible actions on anything other than yourself instead of taking personal responsbility. And of course, it lowers the public opinion of all the rest of us who enjoy video games who will never shoot a gun at anyone else despite how many hours of violent entertainment we may consume, and it makes it harder for those who create games to express their visions without limits. That really bothers me the most, because that gets into First Amendment incringement issues, and starts making it easier for censorship from those who think they know what's best for everyone to spread.

For those of you who play games and are familiar with these issues my stance on all of this will come as no surprise whatsoever, but for the rest of you, here it is. Make parents take an active responsibility in choosing what their children can and cannot be exposed to, make it harder for kids to aquire mature entertainment on their own, and for god's sake, stop trying to punish those who want to make mature games or enjoy mature games.

I'm not holding my breath.