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A new study suggests paranoia may have something to do with violent gaming

Doom was partially blamed for the carnage that Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris unleashed at Columbine High School, according to cynics and various child advocacy.  In another example of video games being blamed for society's problems, kids that go out and commit auto thefts and assault have blamed the Grand Theft Auto, and even sued the publisher, Rockstar Games.  Can these games accurately be blamed for violence?  Researchers are trying to find the answer.  Dr. Sonya Brady, a researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, and Professor Karen Matthews, from the University of Pittsburgh, conducted a study of 100 undergraduate males between the ages of 18 to 21. 

The undergraduate participants in the study had to play either Grand Theft Auto III or The Simpsons: Hit and Run.  In GTA III, gamers were instructed by the mafia to beat up a drug dealer with a baseball bat.  In the other game, the players had to hastily deliver Lisa Simpson's science project before it was late.  According to the research, blood pressure began to rise in the players that were playing Grand Theft Auto.  Brady also shows evidence that people who played violent video games are also more likely to be less cooperative and more paranoid.   Reuters Health reports:

"Parents have been told the message that violent video games and violent media in general can influence the likelihood that their kids will be aggressive," Dr. Sonya S. Brady, now at the University of California, San Francisco, told Reuters Health. "What this study suggests is that they might increase any type of risk-taking behavior."

Along with potentially being more violent, young men are also allegedly more likely to believe it is acceptable to drink alcohol and smoke marijuana after playing video violent games.

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It Never Ends
By TomZ on 4/10/2006 9:27:52 PM , Rating: 5
These kinds of bullshit studies have gone on for years. They only seek to try to "prove" that everything is bad for you, and that you must be denied of everything because it might influence you in some negative way. This has been going on for years... Music (esp. rock and roll), sexual liberation, alcohol, pornography, movies, books, magazines, abortion, junk food, and now video games.

Bottom line: Each person needs to take responsibility for their actions. Don't blame your deviant behavior on other people, and don't let these kinds of bullshit studies try to tell you that you are some kind of sheep that has no choice but to be "influenced" by the game you're playing on your computer.

Be your own person and make your own decisions. Don't let these freaks tell you that you don't have free will. Don't live in fear of this bullshit.




RE: It Never Ends
By reactor on 4/10/2006 10:07:57 PM , Rating: 2
well said man


RE: It Never Ends
By INeedCache on 4/10/2006 10:44:19 PM , Rating: 2
See, these games have already increased your aggression. Chill out.


RE: It Never Ends
By zeroslugfm on 4/10/2006 10:47:13 PM , Rating: 2
indeed; I get more caught up over a hardcore match of Tetris, let alone "violent videogames".


RE: It Never Ends
By shecknoscopy on 4/10/2006 11:17:47 PM , Rating: 2
You know, it's funny that you mention tetris, as - given all the time I've spent playing "ultraviolent" or "immoral" etc.. video games - the only ones that ever left me suffering from any sort of noticeable physical alteration were the tetris/minesweeper type. You all know what I'm talking about: you spend an obnoxiously long time autonomically klinking away at Tetris, and when you finally manage to peel yourself away, it's STILL THERE every time you close your eyes. Seriously, it's like the plug that thing directly into my brain stem; there's nothing so innately psychoaffective in - say - the GTA series that ever had even near that effect on me. Okay, maybe all those cars it made me steal, but that could have been the fault of my millenium cult's teachings as well. Credit where credit is due.

..and don't get me started on PacMan. *shivers*


RE: It Never Ends
By xsilver on 4/11/2006 4:37:38 AM , Rating: 2
lol
yeah I learnt how to jack cars with education from GTA too!! :P


"get out of the car bitch! or I spray you with this flamethrower!!!" lol


or with tetris:
"kungpao -- get out of the way bitch,, I'll pack the luggage in the car -- I am elite tetris god!!!" lol


RE: It Never Ends
By Mirabiles on 4/10/2006 11:05:23 PM , Rating: 1
you're espousing your own opinion, which i cannot fault you for. unfortunately for you, you're also espousing ignorance and an anti-scientific attitude. if you want to critique the study, then do so. don't simply call it bullshit and dismiss it and lump it in with what you perceive to be some vast conspiracy.

seriously, what have you added to this discussion other than your very own paranoia, your irrational fear that everyone else is trying to take away our autonomy? if you want to think for yourself and convince others to do so, maybe you could actually demonstrate some ability to think reasonably.


RE: It Never Ends
By TomZ on 4/10/2006 11:51:20 PM , Rating: 2
Guess I've been playing too many video games... :o)


RE: It Never Ends
By poohbear on 4/11/2006 3:37:23 AM , Rating: 2
yep, i agree w/ mirabeles. the study does shedd some light on the effect of video games u can't deny that watching violent movies or playing violent video games, or watching hardcore porn, on a regular basis, doesnt effect u in SOME way. the extent of that effect is what is in question.


RE: It Never Ends
By dexin on 4/11/2006 4:42:29 AM , Rating: 2
Ok.... I don't comment on alot of things but this one holds merit... Let's break it down...

A) violent video games ARE violent(very violent)

B) alot of people play these violent games for long periods of time

C) a large number of players are below adult age(in development not law)

Ultimatly no one can dispute those things... BUT heres the thing.. and this one is a biggie...

D) THE WHOLE WORLD ENDORSES THE SAME THING< THE SAME WAY AS VIDEO GAMES DO...

Now i will talk about each point

A) Okay sure the games are violent to ploay but thats just it the GAME itself is inherently zero's and one's... So unless the game is called "Im 0 and i hate On'es guts!" then it cannot be labeled as truely violent "stand alone"

B) guilty

C) The parents are souly to blame here.. I think that some people who are yet to reach their highest maturity points in psychological development should not be aloud to play certain games because they are overly sceseptible to change their behavior as a direct influence. The parents are the ones who should decide this for their children.

D) This one is a major point for me.. Walk around town, billboards, magazines, shop windows, tv, radio... ADVERTISEMENT..PROPAGANDA(this doesnt immediatly make me "paranoid") the gavernment alows for so much to be openl effecting its citizens in public... How can limiting what is available to us privatly ever change anything.. Were you of age the first time you drank alcohol? What about your grand parents? Some things cannot change because it causes to many already rich people to lose to much money...

My last point on all of this is that when a person buys a video game they are buying 0's and 1's...thats it they arent buying a home bomb kit.. if that same person goes out and makes a bomb even tho the idea could be inspired by something else(LOOK AT POINT D) it is that person who alloud themselves to be influenced to the point that they act on a tangent behavior model.. They choose, no one else had any responsibility(Columbine*)


RE: It Never Ends
By Christopher1 on 4/11/2006 4:29:51 PM , Rating: 1
First of all, there is NO SUCH THING as being below adult age in mental development (which is what I assume you were getting at). My daughters are MUCH more able to tell when something is harmful to others than I am.

Two, there is NO SUCH THING as highest maturity points in psychological development. We keep on saying that "That person isn't psychologically developed as well as me" but that is YOUR OPINION of their choices. Doesn't make it true!
My daughters (13 and 15) have played Doom 3, Splinter Cell, Half-Life and other violent video games for years, and they know that it is NOT acceptable to do the things in those games in real life!
Mainly because I actually took the time to sit there and TELL them that NUMEROUS TIMES, to the point where they were getting tired of hearing me say it!

Third, people keep on SAYING that seeing pornography, violence and other things makes people more likely to be violent or rape others, but look at the crime statistics.
The amount of violent attacks and violent crimes goes DOWN as laws to protect society and people are repealed, because people have OTHER means to direct their less-constructive impulses to than letting them out on a real person!


RE: It Never Ends
By TomZ on 4/11/2006 4:49:53 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
First of all, there is NO SUCH THING as being below adult age in mental development

Where did you get this idea. Are you saying an average 5-year old or a 10-year old are as mentally developed as an average adult? If so, it makes me wonder about the adults you're comparing to.
quote:
The amount of violent attacks and violent crimes goes DOWN as laws to protect society and people are repealed

The objective is not to reduce crime statistics, but to reduce actual crime. Using your logic, if you want to reduce the murder rate, you would make murder legal. Then it would no longer be a crime, and thus crime statistics would go down?!?


RE: It Never Ends
By KashGarinn on 4/11/2006 5:52:24 AM , Rating: 2
Even though this is a scientific study, the study does not answer the original question whether there is a connection between violence in reality and violence in games.

And the fact that they try to conform any negatives found from the study to as a link to real life violence is discretiting them as scientists.

The only true study which could show a link between violence in games and violence in real life is a statistical analysis of people playing violent games, and compare it to their police records.

The fact that such a study was done, and it was shown that crime rates have fallen since computer games and consoles became popular, shows that even right-winged, religious fanatics who want to control everybodys life according to their ignorant dogma lie about being scientists.

This study only shows that the part of the brain which can simulate and empathise with other human beings and situations is working... the same area of brain which gets stimulated when you watch football, or see a sad movie.

And no, they did not prove any link to real life violence and violence in games.

K.


RE: It Never Ends
By stephenbrooks on 4/13/2006 5:13:19 AM , Rating: 2
Mirabiles you miss his point. He's not arguing against it scientifically, because scientifically all sorts of things have positive or negative effects on your health: from where you live and what you do to what your hobbies are.

I think he's making the point that we shouldn't therefore feel obliged to do what the study "tell us" to do. Scientific studies do not make ethical conclusions about what behaviours are right and wrong. The real "bullshit" here is the inference that just because a scientific study says something might have an adverse effect on your health in some way, you should be prohibited from doing it.

If risk to your health were outlawed, who would do jobs like being test pilots? I think society would stagnate rather.


RE: It Never Ends
By redbone75 on 4/11/2006 8:28:00 AM , Rating: 2
Here here.


RE: It Never Ends
By Shivian on 4/11/2006 10:57:54 PM , Rating: 2
TomZ couldn't have said it better myself.


heightened senses too!
By slashbinslashbash on 4/10/2006 9:24:27 PM , Rating: 3
Every time I've played through a new version of Splinter Cell (usually in a couple of marathon 8-hour sessions), I spent the next couple of days with a very heightened sense of environmental lighting and how I was exposed to it. I found myself instinctively retreating to the shadows in everyday situations. I kid you not.




RE: heightened senses too!
By Fnoob on 4/11/2006 9:15:30 AM , Rating: 3
One step further is playing Halo nonstop for days and then driving down the road.... someone pulls out in front of me, and for just a split second I'm thinkin I'll just TBone them and theyll go flying/flipping up in the air... No one will be hurt naturally. Either that or I'd find myself scrolling a non-existant thumbwheel to change to rocket launcher to clear out a traffic jam.... Fun stuff. Seriously, this "affect" will only continue to get worse as the suspention of disbelief gets better.


RE: heightened senses too!
By sync216 on 4/11/2006 1:36:34 PM , Rating: 2
Man the same thing used to happen to me with battlefield. I would see a helicopter when I was driving and think, man i gota find some cover- I hope he didnt see me.


RE: heightened senses too!
By Christopher1 on 4/11/2006 4:23:03 PM , Rating: 2
I have to say, but people like you guys just have a problem with reality in general. I know, after playing Doom 3 and other games, that the things that I see in them are NOT indicative of real life.

Yeah, I shoot the head off a monster, and he still keeps coming (Resident Evil 4). I crash into someone's car, my car is smoking at the front, and yet I can still drive the car around at 100 MPH.

Yeah, RIGHT! We have to start telling people that "These things are okay in fantasy, but NOT in real life, that could end with someone being hurt or killed!"

That is what I told MY children, and they took that to heart.


RE: heightened senses too!
By Fnoob on 4/11/2006 8:35:17 PM , Rating: 2
people like you guys just have a problem with reality in general

Who are "we" and just why is that?

Call it escapism if you will, but the 'suspention of disbelief' is what makes movies work, regardless of the material. Video games take this a step futher, allowing one to participate. This participation, and desire to control of our destiny, if you will, is deeply ingrained in mankind. The evolution of most all media will come to embrace this tactic in time.


Of Course...
By ChuDog on 4/10/2006 9:15:39 PM , Rating: 3
Of course blood pressure will rise in such games. Thats what we buy them for! The thrills and excitement of doing stuff that could not be done in real life (unless youre actually crazy). As for GTA3 and later games, they are comical in their violence, a different kind of comical violence than simpsons hit and run. its like going to see a dark comedy versus a disney comedy.




RE: Of Course...
By latrosicarius on 4/10/2006 11:22:13 PM , Rating: 5
You know what game makes peoples' blood pressure REALLY rise? How about Poker, craps, or any number of real gambling "games".

How many deaths and/or fights have resulted from THAT?!?!? Compare it to video games. Nil. These reporters need a life.


RE: Of Course...
By knowyourenemy on 4/11/2006 5:13:35 PM , Rating: 3
How can we forget those lovely evenin's at the pubs, where your jolly friend Al whacks the guy with the straight flush over the head with a nifty pool-stick? Ah, the good ol' days.


By SNM on 4/10/2006 9:18:29 PM , Rating: 2
I don't know about violence, and I'm not sure that I care much about blood pressure, but I'll speak to brief paranoia. I've seen people (not me...one of my gaming rules is to stop before that point) who couldn't stop shaking after not too long with Doom 3. A game that makes you tremble uncontrollably=not healthy.




By AlexWade on 4/10/2006 9:52:41 PM , Rating: 2
Half-Life scared me half to death. I had an Aureal3D (I think that what it was called) sound card, and just hearing the moster say "die" would scare me. Even when I played it again and again and knew it was coming.

I thought it was awesome.

But I was an adult, and so I knew the difference. The parents need to take a more active interest and what the kids are playing, because kids don't know the difference.

I also knew my limits. I speak from personal experience when I say playing games like HL, GTA cause me to be more aggressive for a little bit. So, I take it a little at a time. I don't own GTA anymore because it affected me too much.


By Christopher1 on 4/11/2006 4:19:21 PM , Rating: 1
Even children can know the difference, if their parents take the time to make it clear that "The chances of a monster jumping out and attacking you are VERY slim in real life!"

That is the truth! The chance is VERY slim, but it is still there, though the monster is more likely to be some twisted human asshole than a REAL video-game monster.

We are starting to get to the point where we are blaming games for violent actions in real life, when the REAL thing between violent actions in real life, is seeing Mommy and Daddy or someone else hitting someone else in REAL life.


By poohbear on 4/11/2006 3:33:30 AM , Rating: 2
shaking because they were scared? so we should ban horror movies to? and maybe horror novels too. heck ban anyone who speaks of ghosts or ghost stories. that's the right course to take.


By Fnoob on 4/11/2006 9:24:02 AM , Rating: 3
A game that makes you tremble uncontrollably=not healthy.

No, it's just accomplishes its goal. Stick to the rated G movies. Doom 3 was scary, but terribly predictable after about the first 15 minutes. OOOoooohhh loooky here, a shadowy corner - couldnt be a monster over there. Please. Note to developers- come up with something besides:
1. Find the impossibly hidden key / open the door.
2. Monsters that jump out of every other shadow.
3. Plotlines that appear to be written by 5 year olds.



Don't ride bicycles either
By BikeDude on 4/11/2006 6:55:56 AM , Rating: 2
This report makes me very worried about my own lifestyle habits.

I've noticed over the years that my blood pressure rises while I'm riding my bicycle. To make matters worse, I've seen plenty of kids, sometimes as young as three or four years old, who also ride bicycles! Won't anyone think of the children?!?

Seriously, parents should look at other lifestyle habits before worrying about what kind of entertainment kids are exposed to. Instead of serving your kids hamburgers and pizza each day, try to get them eating healthy food and drink water (or orange juice) instead of coca cola. I think most studies will show a major impact from eating right compared to not playing video games. It's called the "duh" factor.




RE: Don't ride bicycles either
By pnyffeler on 4/11/2006 7:36:33 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
...try to get them eating healthy food and drink water (or orange juice)...


I agree with everything but the recomendation about orange juice. Orange juice is absolutely no better for you than Coke, and I'm not kidding. There is no doubt that fruit is good for you, but fruit juice is terrible. The fiber in fruit, by the way, is actually big long chains of carbohydrates that your body can't break down. When you eat an orange, all of the sugar in the juice sticks to the fiber and is slowly released over the course of hours as it goes through your digestive track. However, if you strip out the fiber and just drink the juice, it's like injecting glucose directly in your veins. Your body was never designed to handle all that blood sugar at once, so your insulin system goes bezerk. Sure, once in a while, it isn't a problem, but over, say, 20 or 30 years, your glucose regulation system becomes desensitized. Now you've got diabetes. Want to know why we have an explosion of diabetes? Blame Tropicana.

By the way, my job raises my blood pressure, and nothing relaxes me more than plugging a few mercs before beddy-bye.

Sorry for the digression, but this forum's readers are smart as hell and deserved to be better informed.


RE: Don't ride bicycles either
By farbdogg on 4/11/2006 11:46:47 AM , Rating: 2
Alright Mark Antony, calm down. Human bodies are able to adapt to changes such as higher than normal glucose intake. One would have to consume an excessive amount of orange juice (e.g. a gallon day plus) in order to develop diabetes in the long term. Of course you would already have Acid Reflux by then anyways. Besides, recent studies show that Coke and other softdrinks still have 5-10 times higher levels of benzene (a carcinogen) than the legal limit of water.

As for the study, you can't deny video games have an effect on our society as does any other form of media. Video games are targeted because they are the most interactive form of media, thus having the greatest potential to persuade people.

The majority of juvenile crimes aren't commited by suburban teens who post on line blaming parents for everything. They are commited by poverty stricken teens whose parent(s) care more about putting food on the table than the violence of video games. You can't expect these parent(s) to supervise their children all the time when they are working 18 hour days. A publicly funded daycare could fix this problem at the expense of our tax dollars.

If you're sick of seeing these studies, try finding a solution rather than blaming someone. You'll get a lot more accomplished and actually make the internet useful again.


RE: Don't ride bicycles either
By TomZ on 4/11/2006 12:16:32 PM , Rating: 2
No, sorry, wrong - orange juice is better for you than cola. Here's a page that directly compares the nutrition of orange juice versus cola: http://www.kidsnutrition.org/consumer/archives/sug...

Regarding the sugar effect on the bloodstream, they are also different. This page rates the glycemic rating of orange juice as "low," which is its effect on blood sugar levels: http://www.carbs-information.com/glycemic-index-fr...

Coca-cola has a glycemic rating of "medium" accoring to the same source.

Simple carbs, like the kind found in cola, are absorbed into the bloodstream very quickly. Fructose (fruit sugar) needs to be converted by the body into glucose first. http://www.carbs-information.com/digestion-of-carb...

As far as your assertion that drinking orange juice causes diabetes, I'm going to have to assume that is also wrong. But I'll let you cite some references to prove me incorrect.


The last sentence....LOL!!?!?
By UsernameX on 4/11/2006 10:41:05 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
Along with potentially being more violent, young men are also allegedly more likely to believe it is acceptable to drink alcohol and smoke marijuana after playing video violent games.


Alright so I see everyone's point about video games being linked to violence, however, what about this last sentence here??? APPARENTLY when you play video games you are more likely to smoke pot and drink alcohol? This article, if I'm not mistaken, was about video games. Not the effects video games have on people smoking pot and drinking alcohol. Not only that but they don't address either of their points with facts.

Playing video games cause your blood pressure rise...ok?

and then out of no where... Oh yah smoking and drinking are related somehow...lol?




RE: The last sentence....LOL!!?!?
By kattanna on 4/11/2006 12:03:41 PM , Rating: 2
yeah..i mean did they have any alcohol and pot on hand to test with?

and if so...how can i be in the next study they do?

LOL

but seriously..how did they "test" this? offer the people a beer or a joint right after they were done playing?



RE: The last sentence....LOL!!?!?
By UsernameX on 4/11/2006 12:20:51 PM , Rating: 2
hahaha, no kidding


By Decaydence on 4/11/2006 11:34:52 PM , Rating: 2
It is the classic misuse of facts that many studies employ. Like when they claim marijuana to be a gateway drug because an unusually high percentage or heroin users used marijuana in the past; no shit. If you have no qualms about taking heroin, you sure as shit aren't going to be turning down a joint. Lets use the only stat that would truly make the claim credible; what percentage of all the people that have ever smoked pot went on to use heroin. If you think that number even approaches 20%, you are out of your mind.

That would be like saying hair product is a gateway to men being gay. At least 99% of gay men use hair product, that doesn't mean the hair gel had anything to do with them being gay; although... well, maybe that is a bad example. You get the point though.

I'm sure they polled their sample group that enjoyed violent video games and a higher percentage of them smoked pot and drank than the population as a whole. No shit. Men between 16 and 26 that like to play video games tend to also smoke pot and/or drink? That is insane!! Surely the games made them do it!


Positive findings
By Decaydence on 4/11/2006 12:16:03 AM , Rating: 5
quote:
Along with potentially being more violent, young men are also allegedly more likely to believe it is acceptable to drink alcohol and smoke marijuana after playing video violent games.


At least they also mentioned the positive effects of violent video games.




RE: Positive findings
By Fnoob on 4/11/2006 8:47:03 PM , Rating: 2
after playing?

This study is clearly inaccurate. The vast majority of young men prefer to drink and smoke during play.

And just what pray-tell is unacceptable about drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana?


By lobadobadingdong on 4/11/2006 1:09:20 PM , Rating: 3
THE TRUTH ABOUT WEIGHT LOSS

For those of you who watch what you eat, here's the final word on nutrition and health. It's a relief to know the truth after all those conflicting medical studies.

1. Japanese eat very little fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than North Americans.

2. Mexicans eat a lot of fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than North Americans.

3. Africans drink very little red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks.

4. Italians drink excessive amounts of red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks.

5. Germans drink a lot of beer and eat lots of sausage and fats and suffer fewer heart attacks.

CONCLUSION:

Eat and drink whatever you like. Speaking English is apparently what kills you !!!!!




By xsilver on 4/11/2006 10:26:13 PM , Rating: 2
the effect of red wine has very little significance compared to any other factor

weight can be attributed PARTIALLY to genetic heritage

lack of exercise is the killer, and Im not even talking gym type exercise, which would be good. Im talking just walking around to get from point a to b. I've read that normal fit/slim people walk on average of 2-3 miles a day just doing their normal routine; eg. lunch break, walk to shops etc..
but obese people walk only around half a mile a day; eg. drive through, only sit and watch tv etc..

food for thought ;)

oh and naturally you would think that for obese people 1 kfc meal isnt enough, i've personally seen someone go through 4 meals (btw i'm not even in the us)


More Stupidity....
By JacobSteelsmith on 4/11/2006 3:42:47 PM , Rating: 2
"Along with potentially being more violent, young men are also allegedly more likely to believe it is acceptable to drink alcohol and smoke marijuana after playing video violent games."

..or going to a four year university. Please. Let's take a little personal responsibility.

And parents need to start parenting. Yes, kids don't always listen, but they can't play a video game they don't have, can't be around people you won't let them and can't visit sites that are blocked. "I can't completely control my kids, so I won't even try." But parents can do their best. Lets see, were there any hints the two kids RESPONSIBLE for Columbine were unstable? Yep, and not subtle ones either. And the two fancing themselves as skinheads had nothing to do with video games.

BLAME ANYONE OR ANYTHING OTHER THAN THOSE RESPONSIBLE.




RE: More Stupidity....
By Christopher1 on 4/11/2006 4:34:48 PM , Rating: 1
Hey, you CANNOT protect children from everything in life. There is a time that you have to say, honestly, "I cannot be everywhere with my child at all times, the ONLY thing that I can do, is tell them that violence in real life is NOT acceptable, and hope that they agree with my beliefs."

That is ALL you can do.

Second, the Columbine kids had NO, or very little, signs that they were unstable. People were saying that there were signs afterward, but the signs that they were pointing to were the SAME things that I did when I was a teenager.
I didn't go out and kill anyone, even though I had a .22 that my father gave me, and could have killed the people who were teasing me! I simply didn't, because I was told that doing that would make me NO better than those people who were teasing me and bullying me!

The people who are responsible for violence are: The children and adults who are doing them, UNLESS they were never told that violence is unacceptable!
My parents told me that NUMEROUS times, when I was a child and teenager, and they EVEN still tell me that when I am an adult.


RE: More Stupidity....
By JacobSteelsmith on 4/16/2006 1:42:44 PM , Rating: 2
How can children be responsible for their own actions when, BY LAW, they are not? Want your cake, but want to eat it too?

I agree that there should be some sort of personal responsibility involved, but how many "responsible" 17,18,19,23 year olds do you know?

There were plenty of signs that the kids responsible for Columbine were unstable. The military dress, some of the writings and artwork the parents found after-the-fact (which may have been found had they been doing their jobs)...hell, they celebrated Hitler's birthday. How many kids do you know that did this?

You can't protect your kids from everything, but you can sure as hell try.


By mircea on 4/11/2006 5:24:37 PM , Rating: 1
I feel that many gamers here are just selfish. How many studies will there have to be to convince you that games do influence your behaviour in the real life??? I know it's not the game's fault or the gamesrs fault that you do a crime. But there's a huge diference in what makes's your adrenaline going now compared to 10 years ago.
The truth is that we need more and more as times goes to satisfy our adrenaline rush. Just look at how ridiculed Nintendo was for it's choice on games for Gamecube. ANd if zou look closely you notice that majority of people complain of lack om "mature content" in games. And what is it actually missing? I mean in Zelda you slash and kill, but we still complain at why didn't they make it more life like and kept the cartoonish design.

In reality games raise our sensibility threshold. About 15 years ago a man died by electocution in our building. I couold't sleep well for a week just remebering the bluish face. Now I go and see dead people in worse condition and it doesen't affect me at all. I have gotten used to it.
The same happens when we play games. Our adrenaline button get's harder and harder to push, so Nintendo's cute games even with killing and dying in it won't cut it anymore and for some there is that point where life like games don't do it anymore and look for other place to get it going, maybe a school cafetaria.
So no matter how much you scream that the person doing it is at fault for not discerning between reality and games, you can't say that the game had no fault at blurring that limit of discerning.
In the end I say it's our fault for asking the game studios to make more violent games, with more realistic grafics, and laughing at "kiddie" games and even making fun of those playing. Just ask yourself how many times have you made fun of someone online for playing a "kiddie" game, without even knowing if that pearson isn't a kid. So now he tries to find a game more suitable for online talk to the more "mature" gamers.
If peer preasure was proven to push people in doing stuf they would never do on thir own, why cant most gamers accept that games can push people the same way?




By UsernameX on 4/11/2006 6:48:42 PM , Rating: 2
Games raise our sensibility threshold? So, when I see a man die in a video game that's going to desensitize me seeing someone die in real life? Seeing someone electrocuted in real life differs quite a bit from a video game electrocution.

Personally I have no problems with Zelda. I find it just fine the way it is, ever since its first release. Saying that slashing a hacking a cartoon character just doesn't give me my "fix", so I need a more realistic character to hack up is incorrect. I enjoy the game for what it is, just as I still enjoy the original mario brothers. Both games display violence, sure, but I'm not expecting the next "mario brothers" to turn into "the realistic mario brother killers."

Peer preasure and what game you play are two different things. Are you saying that all "mature gamers" only play violent games?

The reason I cant accept any study about gaming is because there is no proven fact that video games cause violence, only speculation.



By Decaydence on 4/12/2006 12:09:48 AM , Rating: 2
Original post is an extremely convoluted set of logical fallacies and sophisms. Half of the post is spent arguing that games are more violent; obviously they are. Now that we have worked through that philisophical triumph, on to the most troubling part.

Your assertion, which has never been proven, in your post or otherwise, is that games raise the point at which we are affected by violence or death. The anecdote you then use to back the assertion is one that doesn't involve video games in any way, shape, or form. I think that is extremely telling. Even a person in your situation, trying to prove an unprovable belief (unprovable because it is false), couldn't muster a scenario that makes any sense in the real world. Imagine: "I spent all day shooting imps with a rail gun, and when I went out that day, I had the insatiable need to shoot people on the streets." For the link you are trying to make to be anecdotally proven, the description would have to be that rediculous; because you are claiming the games feed a compulsion, not simply a passive acceptance of violence (which is what your anecdote supported). (I know that at first you are trying to prove a passive acceptance, but you morph it seamlessly to a compulsion, so, because you treated the two as one, I will)

Furthermore, you ignore the fact that there is a fundamental difference in how any human perceives and reacts to fantasy violence (movies, books, video games) compared to real life violence. I don't even flinch when I see some over-the-top death or mayhem when on a movie screen or video game, but when I see something like "faces of death" or some other real-life presentation of the same, I still experience a visceral reaction. Certainly if, as you would have us believe, games desensitize us to real life violence, nevermind compell us to it, I would have lost that reaction two Dooms and a half-life ago.

So before you condemn us as selfish gamers who are looking to affirm a result regardless of sound logic and facts, perhaps you should make sure you aren't jumping to a conclusion supported by bad logic and half-assed studies that are themselves trying to reach a predestined conclusion. Keep in mind, for every pathetic study sponsored by the Heritage foundation or some other nutball group, there is another study done by a university claiming the opposite to be true.


Get Real
By INeedCache on 4/11/2006 2:23:39 AM , Rating: 2
Violent video games do raise aggression in MOST people. SO does a lot of today's garbage music. I have observed it and there are studies that prove it. Obviously people are free to believe whatever they wish, no matter how wrong it may be. Just remember, if you jump all over me for this post, you are proving my point.




RE: Get Real
By Snuffalufagus on 4/11/2006 2:48:37 AM , Rating: 2
It is possible I have never played a violent video game or listened to any of the music you consider garbage, but I still may decide to 'jump all over you' purely for making such a post. That action would do nothing to prove your point :).


Violent games
By MrHanson on 4/11/2006 2:53:07 PM , Rating: 2
I hear a lot of:
"It's the PARENTS responsibility to teach their kids what's the difference between right and wrong. It's the PARENTS responsiblity to allow what kind of games their kids play."
Well I guess they are right. **Most parents are responsible for their kids and most teenagers do respect authority and listen to their parents.

**SARCASM!!!!!




RE: Violent games
By Decaydence on 4/11/2006 11:42:18 PM , Rating: 2
I think most people understand that keeping violent games out of the hands of children is an inherantly selfish cause. People don't what THEIR kids to play violent video games and therefore want to fight against them. It is not society's role to enforce people's personal parenting preferences; which intellectually honest people understand this battle to be about. The only way it is the governments role is if there is a demonstrable and significant social benefit to ensuring all children won't play violent video games. That benefit can't just be the fact that parents won't have to worry about trying to control their kids.


paranoia, high blood pressure
By smitty3268 on 4/10/2006 11:04:30 PM , Rating: 2
It's called adrenaline. It's also why most people play these games in the first place, so getting rid of them isn't likely to do much. People would just move on to other activities to get their rush, and many of those would probably be more dangerous.




waste...
By YewNork on 4/10/2006 11:14:12 PM , Rating: 2
alls this survey proves that people are looking for scape goats on why things go wrong.
it happens EVERYWHERE in society and in this case(and many others) its the parents to blame. parents have nearly all the control on what their children do and wat they dont do. so when they find out their kid is smoking pot or have drinking problems OR W/E else... they blame it on friends, tv/magazine ads, society etc; when actually its there own damn fault for not showing them what they think is right and what is wrong.

so here i am incoherently saying to all you parents out there...
THERE IS NO ONE TO BLAME EXCEPT YOURSELF, TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHAT YOU TEACH YOUR CHILDREN AND HOW THEY BEHAVE, DONT BLAME A VIDEO GAME .

damn just think for once. dont act. THINK this "does this even make sense"?





U know what makes me violent?
By latrosicarius on 4/10/2006 11:19:30 PM , Rating: 2
U know what makes me violent? --> Idiots that say games are too violent.




Sometimes...
By Spinne on 4/10/2006 11:39:49 PM , Rating: 2
They need a budget cut!! Why the **** does my tax money go towards this bullshit?




Window Dressing
By codeThug on 4/11/2006 12:16:46 AM , Rating: 2
After hours of playing "Call of Duty" I instinctively avoid all windows. Besides, everyone knows you can run faster with a knife.




LOL
By bunnyfubbles on 4/11/2006 3:13:56 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
Along with potentially being more violent, young men are also allegedly more likely to believe it is acceptable to drink alcohol and smoke marijuana after playing video violent games.


This just in, playing violent video games gives you herpes.

Kidding asside, if these games do increase agression, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Could be a good way to help get kids who aren't agressive enough to change. :P




Dont get it
By NT78stonewobble on 4/11/2006 5:15:52 AM , Rating: 2
Since when isn't it acceptable to smoke weed when having a few friends over blasting innocents in a random ps2 game and having a cold beer at the same time?

But then again I dont get that anti weed campaign im seeing on the banners all around.







It's your responsibility
By Tupolev22m on 4/11/2006 8:32:28 AM , Rating: 2
If playing a simple game (i.e. not real) raises your aggression to the point where you are a danger to other people, you shouldn't be playing the game in the first place. All the people it does affect, however, need to recognize that these things are only games. Personally playing a game is FUN for me, I don't get pissed off about it or raise my blood pressure, when I'm feeling annoyed with it I quit and try another, not continue to the point where I'm ready to go out and hose a bunch of my neighbours down with machine guns for looking at me the wrong way.

The basic fact is that if Video Games inspire this kind of aggression in you its probably time to find a new hobby, because whether they were inspired by games or not, violent actions are the responsibility of those who perpetrate them. Obviously from previous posts people who get aggressive can identify that, so anything they do because of a video game is their fault the same way drunk driving isn't the fault of the alcohol, its the fault of the damn fool who drank too much and got behind the wheel of a car.




Now That's funny!!!
By BaronMatrix on 4/11/2006 4:57:01 PM , Rating: 2
I guess there'll be a problem if I get my hands on a Dark Matter Gun or a Plasma Gun. As far as paranoia, I'm OK as long as no one dresses up like a Hell Knight and jumps from behind my couch.




lawl
By GhandiInstinct on 4/11/2006 10:00:22 AM , Rating: 1
Video Games are paranoid of Chuck Norris.




By BenSkywalker on 4/11/2006 10:43:14 AM , Rating: 1
Simpsons hit and Run is GTA with a skin pack(only better)- seriously. Both games are violent, it is just more trivialized in the Simpsons then it is in GTA.

In realistic terms- take my blood pressure after half an hour of Geometry Wars and I will assure you that it will be considerably higher then it would be playing either of the games they were looking at. For that matter- why don't we take a look at the newest fad kids are doing these days that raises blood pressure quite a bit- running around and playing outside- If you really want to see the biggest threat to the future of our society. We need to kids those kids into a small dark room and put a controller/keyboard/mouse in their hands ASAP......




"So if you want to save the planet, feel free to drive your Hummer. Just avoid the drive thru line at McDonalds." -- Michael Asher









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