Sunday, July 27, 2003

Hey all you party people!

Well, I'm sorry it's been a while since the last post. Hm . . . about a week, eh? Fair enough.

It's been an interesting week, I must say. Have I mentioned that I'm just not suited for working in the corporate world? Oh yeah.

Well, in any case, on to the events of the week.

Anybody follow that news about the Canadian journalist who died in Iran? She's taking pictures of a "facility" that's off limits to international journalists, and gets taken into custody. Two weeks later she dies of a major head blow. The Iranian government's response? "Maybe she fell." Yeesh, don't they sound like the ultimate abusive parents.

In other news, my hometown paper recently printed an article about the "dangers" of violence in video games. Hoo boy. Why do people get so concerned about video game violence? I mean, they'll take their 8 year olds to see "The Matrix," let them watch WWE matches until they're blue in the face, and play with bazooka weilding action figures and toy guns that shoot foam balls and arrows, but video games are suddenly too violent for their children's mental safety? Give me a break!

First off, if video games are going to make children violent, then so are the movies, TV shows, and other toys that stimulate their imaginations and occupy their waking thoughts. Nothing about video games makes them any more dangerous of effective a form of media than the music or whatever else kids or teens take in. I guess objecting to Huck Finn being read at school just became boring.

My other point is that, despite the fact that video games are no more likely to make kids violent, parents still have a responsibility to protect their kids from things they're just not ready to handle. We all can agree on that. So then, how about the TV? How about the movies? Will parents be responsible about what their kids are taking in? Hey, those video games . . . be responsible. Seriously, these games have a voluntary rating placed right on the cover. Look up what the ratings mean, check out screen shots and reviews of the games, do some research! Don't just pass the blame and expect someone else to clean up the mess. I'll be pretty upset if my favorite hobby gets ruined by a bunch of lazy, irresponsible parents, and I won't be alone.

Well, that's about it. Maybe I'll have something more important (i.e. less nerdy) to rant about next time. Until then, here's a neat news site you should all check out:

www.worldnetdaily.com

Enjoy,
Hal

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