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Do You Think That Violent Video Games/ Movies Are An Issue

Do You Think That Violent Video Games/ Movies Are An Issue

  • No

    Votes: 64 72.7%
  • Yes

    Votes: 18 20.5%
  • Other

    Votes: 6 6.8%

  • Total voters
    88
Lately the media, especially the liberal media has been scapegoating video games as a possible factor in the Connecticut shooting. Do you believe that violence in video games and movies are an issue and they can cause things like the tragedy we have seen recently. If you do believe they are an issue what do you think should be done? I personally believe that video games/movies cannot cause violence and blaming them is just a stupid reaction to a horrible tragedy. Video games and movies should not be censored or have enforced ratings like minors can't buy M rated video games. Please explain your opinion.

Yes I do think that violent videos can be scapegoated in this matter. People tend to imitate the popular movie fantasies. Copying looks, perceived mannerisms, cool attitudes, dirty looks, vocal expressions. Life imitates art as the saying goes. I think people move into the mentalities being acted and try to live out their fantasies for lack of solid life dreams and ambitions. They have jobs, food, clothes, cars and only dream of wanting more things and the video fantasies give them an unreal grip on "doing something active."
 
We are all powerless over other people's actions.

If the government could magically confiscate all weapons, we would see Pipe Guns appears. Just like in prison settings, knives would be made from soap bar wrappers. And being insane doesn't have a damn thing to do with intelligence. There's some very intelligent crazy people.

The mentally insane are what they are and will always remain mentally insane. There are people are born wired mentally insane. The criminally insane...are what they are. Many are born wired criminally insane.

We need to take more aggressive action on how we deal with mental illnesses or disorders...and stop fearing that there are millions of people who want to drop out of society and not be self-responsible, and who will surely use the system as a place to exploit the taxpayers. The fear factor is the very thing insurance organizations and lobbyists use to maintain their influence with the public. Of course we all know that their influence over government officials is MONEY.

By the way, I don't include the developmentally disable with people who are mentally ill or insane. There is a vast difference.
 
One of my favorite running jokes on game forums are "Things we learned from __" threads, where __ is the name of the game title. And the entries are often hilarious. For example, some of the entries in "Things we learned from Grand Theft Auto" include the following:

-People never lock their car doors, even in violent neighborhoods.
-Traffic laws do not exist.
-Neither does 911.
-Cops will never follow you into your house. Furthermore, if you go to sleep, they will just go away.

Et cetera. No sane person would ever absorb Grand Theft Auto as any kind of simulation of real life. Same goes with Halo and a simulation of military battles. Hell, even "realistic" battle simulators don't thrust the person into the real life horrors of battle.

Moral of the story? Blaming violence in video games and movies is a cop-out.
 
I know that playing Need for Speed and similar games has completely desensitized a generation from driving the speed limit, on the correct side of the road, or in accordance with traffic signals. That’s why so many 16 year olds are routinely being in the news for causing massive collisions across this country. God Damn Video games, won’t someone think of the children! We must protect them from the non-stop exposure to poor driving!
 
I know that playing Need for Speed and similar games has completely desensitized a generation from driving the speed limit, on the correct side of the road, or in accordance with traffic signals. That’s why so many 16 year olds are routinely being in the news for causing massive collisions across this country. God Damn Video games, won’t someone think of the children! We must protect them from the non-stop exposure to poor driving!

I've played many of the Need for Speed versions, up until they included "drifting" and became overrun with "ricers" instead of real performance cars. Didn't cause me to speed more, I think being stationed in Germany for 3 years had far more impact on my driving than those games did.

But then again, I wasn't 16 or under at the time I played them.
 
Here is something to consider. Contrast the viewpoints of those that INSIST there is no causative link of violence and violent media to their positions on firearms and how quickly they blame the evil gun for causing people to kill. So a videogame that has you running around killing people...meh...no big deal. But the inanimate object...it taaaaaaaalks to you...
 
Here is something to consider. Contrast the viewpoints of those that INSIST there is no causative link of violence and violent media to their positions on firearms and how quickly they blame the evil gun for causing people to kill. So a videogame that has you running around killing people...meh...no big deal. But the inanimate object...it taaaaaaaalks to you...

I think most people who have serious issues with guns (I am not such a person, but I know a lot of them) aren't suggesting that guns cause violence so much as that they facilitate violence; so I'm not sure your analogy holds up.
 
I think most people who have serious issues with guns (I am not such a person, but I know a lot of them) aren't suggesting that guns cause violence so much as that they facilitate violence; so I'm not sure your analogy holds up.
Not at all the case. Numerous people have cited guns killing people-hell...many on this site have been doing it. Bob Costas went on national TV talking about how guns make young black men into thugs and murderers. People ROUTINELY blame the gun, and not the individual.
 
I still blame Marilyn Manson..
 
Not at all the case. Numerous people have cited guns killing people-hell...many on this site have been doing it. Bob Costas went on national TV talking about how guns make young black men into thugs and murderers. People ROUTINELY blame the gun, and not the individual.

Well, Costas is a genuis... he knows what most of us don't. That removal of guns would be an end to thugery and killing.
 
It is not even close to being real violence though. SO your point is mute.

You think that THAT will shut him up? :lol:

Playing MADDEN has convinced me that I could be an NFL QB. I created myself and we have won multiple Super Bowls and it is all so real. I will be trying out for the 49ers next year. Wish me luck because if it doesn't work I learned a lot from Counter Strike too. :lol:
 
Not at all the case. Numerous people have cited guns killing people-hell...many on this site have been doing it. Bob Costas went on national TV talking about how guns make young black men into thugs and murderers. People ROUTINELY blame the gun, and not the individual.

I'm not really buying it (Bob Costas aside - I have no idea what his deal is). When most people are referring to guns killing people, they most likely mean it the way I suggested in my last post. I'm sure there are counter examples, but if I were you, I'd avoid considering them to be representative.
 
The fact that people can play violent video games in other cultures an have no ill effect upon society means nothing to its effects in other cultures.

What it means is that the underlying problem is cultural, and not directly a result of the thing itself. It means that you're focusing on the wrong boogeyman. Of course in this case you could also look at the numerous studies done on this issue and discover that there's no demonstrated causal link between video games and violence in this culture either.
 
What it means is that the underlying problem is cultural, and not directly a result of the thing itself. It means that you're focusing on the wrong boogeyman. Of course in this case you could also look at the numerous studies done on this issue and discover that there's no demonstrated causal link between video games and violence in this culture either.


and what does the real boogeyman look like?
 
and what does the real boogeyman look like?

That's an excellent question. Anyone who claims to have a clear answer is probably either lying or delusional.
 
One of my favorite running jokes on game forums are "Things we learned from __" threads, where __ is the name of the game title. And the entries are often hilarious. For example, some of the entries in "Things we learned from Grand Theft Auto" include the following:

-People never lock their car doors, even in violent neighborhoods.
-Traffic laws do not exist.
-Neither does 911.
-Cops will never follow you into your house. Furthermore, if you go to sleep, they will just go away.

Et cetera. No sane person would ever absorb Grand Theft Auto as any kind of simulation of real life. Same goes with Halo and a simulation of military battles. Hell, even "realistic" battle simulators don't thrust the person into the real life horrors of battle.

Moral of the story? Blaming violence in video games and movies is a cop-out.

I cant play GTA with my son around or he will start cussing. But I havent noticed him being violent in anyway, in fact he has talked to me about wrong it is that I steal cars in the game. A far as the violence in his words: "Its fake dad..."

I still find it funny that people go on about movies, tv , and games and never mention any of those really messed up books out there.
 
More than any of you likely, I have experience in the gaming industry and yes it can be a factor to a bigger issue. It's proven people kill over games and kill themselves over them. That said, a person could die at age 50 and do numerous bad things to themselves; blaming one thing is silly.
 
That's an excellent question. Anyone who claims to have a clear answer is probably either lying or delusional.

Perhaps we need to start figuring the answer to the question?
 
Here is something to consider. Contrast the viewpoints of those that INSIST there is no causative link of violence and violent media to their positions on firearms and how quickly they blame the evil gun for causing people to kill. So a videogame that has you running around killing people...meh...no big deal. But the inanimate object...it taaaaaaaalks to you...

Here is something to consider. Contrast the viewpoint of those that INSIST on attacking those suggesting that the "gun culture" and spread help cause these types of massacres, stating that "guns don't kill people, PEOPLE kill people" but are quick to attack Video Games and Violent Media as as blame for people taking such action. So a person using a gun to kill someone means the person killed people, not the guns. But a person played GTA and kills people, OMG GTA IS RUINING OUR YOUTHS MINDS! (lets not bother with the question of why the parents are letting their child who can't handle the reality of the situation play GTA. That'd be too difficult plus that parent may be pro-2nd amendment, and we can't criticize our own side!)
 
Advertisers pay billions of dollars to get their message on TV because we believe people are influenced by what they see.

Why would the same NOT be true for violence as well with some people?
 
Advertisers pay billions of dollars to get their message on TV because we believe people are influenced by what they see.

Why would the same NOT be true for violence as well with some people?

Mainly because video games and movies take place in an alternate reality. Mentally sane people can differentiate between that universe and real life.
 
Mainly because video games and movies take place in an alternate reality. Mentally sane people can differentiate between that universe and real life.

Do you believe that there is some definitive unbreachable and unchanging wall between people who are either sane/mentally healthy/socially adjusted or not any of those things?
 
Mainly because video games and movies take place in an alternate reality. Mentally sane people can differentiate between that universe and real life.

I would add the mentally mature also. I do believe that many forms of media can be harmful to the immature developing brain that has not yet developed a strong understanding of the relationship between reality and fantasy media. But some it could also be parents/guardians using what a child wants to entertain them so that child doesn't bother them instead of taking the time with the child to develop that understanding.

So, IMO, bad parenting has as much of an affect as the media itself, possibly more.
 
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