Should violent videogames be banned?

[Arcade22]

Sure. Ban them right after you ban violent movies and tv series. The world will become a much better place for all. Peace, love and tranquility.

 

[Bikewer]

I'm always fond of pointing out that human beings are innately capable of violence, and that much of the most horrific violence through history was done prior to the invention of any "media" at all.
WWI, WWII, The Holocaust.... Not much video-game influence there....

As a child in the 50s, we had no such things, of course. However we played "guns", and "cops and robbers" and "cowboys" and all, using our toy guns and cap guns and whatever as realistically as our kid-minds would allow.
When Robin Hood hit, we all merrily whacked each other with wooden swords and quarterstaffs, and made our own bows as well. We all had BB guns.
Yet we were no more violent to each other than any other kids... Fights if any involved brief scuffling and hurt feelings and a handshake the next day.

 

[Visual Purple]

I've heard serious (semi-serious?) suggestions that the correlation between the drop in street crime and the rise of video games is the result of actual causation. Specifically, if the high-street-crime demographic is home playing GTA (or whatever), those people are not out stealing cars (or mugging people). Given the way that a lot of stupid crimes seem to arise out of a bunch of bored guys hanging out together, I find the suggestion pretty plausible.

I think it was someone on this board who suggested that offering games for guns would be effective? I think that would seriously be worth a pilot study.

 

[NWO Sentryman]

I've heard serious (semi-serious?) suggestions that the correlation between the drop in street crime and the rise of video games is the result of actual causation. Specifically, if the high-street-crime demographic is home playing GTA (or whatever), those people are not out stealing cars (or mugging people). Given the way that a lot of stupid crimes seem to arise out of a bunch of bored guys hanging out together, I find the suggestion pretty plausible.

I think it was someone on this board who suggested that offering games for guns would be effective? I think that would seriously be worth a pilot study.

I heart that the drop in violent crime was due to abortion.

 

[Visual Purple]

I heart that the drop in violent crime was due to abortion.

The Freakonomics authors argued this, showing that the drop paralleled the state-by-state legalization with a delay of something of the order of fifteen years. This is discussed here: http://boingboing.net/2013/01/03/leaded-gasoline-and-the-20th-c.html with further discussion of why the pattern fits the rise and decline of leaded gasoline even better. Strong trends often have more than one cause.

 

[Quad4_72]

Well his claim was that said constitution would prevent bannings in stating that it would never be allowed, ever.

If I said to you in an international forum that something would never be allowed, ever, would you assume that I was meaning just in one country?

You are not being honest right now Phantom. In fact, I don't think I have ever heard a poster on this forum, or even another human being advocate that the US Constitution applies to countries besides the United States.

 

[PhantomWolf]

You are not being honest right now Phantom. In fact, I don't think I have ever heard a poster on this forum, or even another human being advocate that the US Constitution applies to countries besides the United States.

Then why bring it up as if it is a Panacea for preventing banning of violent games? At best it is an argument of authority, at worst it is utterly pointless to the conversation since it affects just one country on the planet.

There may be many good reasons for not banning violent games, but the US 1st Admentment is not one, and is certainly not a relevant one for 95% of the people on the planet.

 

[PhantomWolf]

Let's forget about that posters supposed claim for a minute and focus on your clear claim and me asking you to confirm it.

Did you really just assume, or were you just saying that, perhaps being somewhat rhetorical?

Again, just a yes or no would be awesome. If you would like to back off that claim I would understand.

I rarely do just a yes or no, the world isn't black and white, so most things need to be dealt with in more then just a yes or no, especially when the questions are leading.

 

[Sabretooth]

If all I had to play was a game about an overweight Italian plumber jumping on mushrooms or a partially eaten pizza chomping on pixels all day, I'd probably become violent out of sheer boredom...

 

[IMST]

I'd find arguments for banning video games a lot more compelling if they had statistics behind them. But without even being able to show a correlation, let alone a causation, there doesn't seem to be much point in getting to the ban talk. I'm receptive to the idea Visual Purple brought up about those video games actually being helpful in this regard, though I'd need better statistics to be able to be confident in such an idea.

 

[Polaris]

I'd find arguments for banning video games a lot more compelling if they had statistics behind them. But without even being able to show a correlation, let alone a causation, there doesn't seem to be much point in getting to the ban talk. I'm receptive to the idea Visual Purple brought up about those video games actually being helpful in this regard, though I'd need better statistics to be able to be confident in such an idea.

I've found that WRT censorship arguments (and you find this with pornography as well), the proponents of said censorship, upon losing the rational, logical argument (always the case), can be counted on to deflate into an avalanche of "but everybody knows they cause XYZ!!!"

 

[Janadele]

Yes, violent video games should be banned. No sane person could think otherwise.

 

[lobosrul]

Yes, violent video games should be banned. No sane person could think otherwise.

Guess I need to check into the looney-bin

 

[Piscivore]

The thread title had me wondering the same thing. For example, does Space Invaders count as a violent game? After all, the game consists of blasting an endless series of alien spaceships out of the sky, and blowing up a presumably occupied vehicle most certainly counts as a violent act.

From my recent research paper on the subject:
"...[A] rabbi who, speaking of the seminal game Space Invaders in 1982 alleged:
"When children spend hours in front of a screen playing some of these games that are inherently violent, they will tend to look at people as they look at these little blips on the screen that must be zapped—that must be killed before they are killed. And it is my concern that 10, 20 years down the line we're going to see a group of children who then become adults who don't view people as human beings, but rather view them as other blips to be destroyed—as things." "

 

[Astreja]

Guess I need to check into the looney-bin

Move over, Lobosrul; I'm coming with you. Don't forget to bring a computer so we can set up a network and while away the mad hours playing Starcraft.

 

[IMST]

I've found that WRT censorship arguments (and you find this with pornography as well), the proponents of said censorship, upon losing the rational, logical argument (always the case), can be counted on to deflate into an avalanche of "but everybody knows they cause XYZ!!!"

I was thinking of bring up the porn thing as well, but didn't want to derail. A good argument says porn keeps down things like sexual assaults and unwanted pregnancies and STDs and such for much the same distraction based reasons.

Also tangentially related, given the significant drop in crime rates (at least in the US) over the last 30 years is an argument that leaded gas is an important correlation. Don't know nearly enough about the topic to weigh in, but thought it was interesting: http://freethoughtblogs.com/dispatches/2013/01/07/the-importance-of-lead-abatement/

 

[IMST]

Yes, violent video games should be banned. No sane person could think otherwise.

Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

- OR -

Maybe you want to defend this idea to some (any) extent?

 

[Polaris]

From my recent research paper on the subject:
"...[A] rabbi who, speaking of the seminal game Space Invaders in 1982 alleged:
"When children spend hours in front of a screen playing some of these games that are inherently violent, they will tend to look at people as they look at these little blips on the screen that must be zapped—that must be killed before they are killed. And it is my concern that 10, 20 years down the line we're going to see a group of children who then become adults who don't view people as human beings, but rather view them as other blips to be destroyed—as things." "

So he thought the kids who played Space Invaders would grow up to be medical insurance claims adjusters?

 

[Belz...]

Should violent videogames be banned?

No. Should violent comics be banned ? Should violent movies be banned ? Should violent novels be banned ? Should violent theatre be banned ? Music ?

What's wrong with fictional violence, except for people who can't distinguish it from reality ? Why ruin it for the rest of us ?

People have historically liked fictional violence and I see nothing wrong with that.

 

[Sabretooth]

Yes, violent video games should be banned. No sane person could think otherwise.

Not sure if sarcastic or serious?