MPs have linked the problem of increased knife crime to the popularity of violent video games and movies.
In a Commons debate lead by Labour MP Diane Abbott on London gang crime yesterday, Liberal Democrat MP - and former party leader candidate - Simon Hughes stated:
"The report then makes a controversial point, but I believe that it is true - evidence supported our view that violent DVDs and video games exert a negative influence on those who watch and play them."
According to MCV, subsequent talk of possible action on the subject focused more on the fight against knife possession as opposed to a possible crackdown on gaming.
I can play games like God of war 3 and stab things all day. But I never feel the need to pick up a knife in real life and stab someone. But when I see people like Gordon Brown on the TV it makes me want to stab cute little kittens and even myself.
unfortunately its true i was walkin down the street an while i tried 2 turn the corner my thumb slipped and i accidentally clicked the right thumb stick and knifed the guy beside me. i could have sworn friendly fire was off...
It's like bloody Groundhog day this. I wake up, smash my radio alarm clock, check out CVG, get annoyed because /insert ill informed moron/ has made another scathing attack on the gaming industry, write an angry comment, save a kid who falls out of a tree and then go to bed.
Please note that at no point in my day do I shank a granny.
It's becoming harder and harder to link historical events to games, but I'll have a go anyway.
Marathon, Ancient Greece. The Persians had been defeated by the Athenians. While Xerxes saw this, he didn't really care. It wasn't until he started playing Rome: Total War on his PC that he got really mad. Xerxes was playing the campaign as one of the Persian-area factions, scientists speculate that he was either Parthians or Armenians through a hack. But then, a powerful Greek force comes along and trounces his fledgling empire in only 10 short turns. Xerxes wasn't about to stand for this, so with the largest army ever assembled he invaded Greece, starting at the Battle of Thermopalae and ending in the razing of Athens. Rome: Total War had not only driven him to do this, but also given him the bloodlust and tactics to pull it off. Science has proven this as a fact.
Only those comitting the crime are responsible for their actions and not various media. When will these politicians learn? If they spent as much time sorting out proper justice in this country as they do debating the same topic(that has been proven false)most of the countrys problems would be solved overnight. I've been playing videogames for over 27 years and havn't felt the need to hang around the streets like a d*^&head, hassle people or commit crime. It really annoys me when media and videogames get bad press by someone who hasn't got the first clue what they're talking about.
unfortunately its true i was walkin down the street an while i tried 2 turn the corner my thumb slipped and i accidentally clicked the right thumb stick and knifed the guy beside me. i could have sworn friendly fire was off...
better him than you, plus he had cold-blooded pro on anyway so you made the right call.
hmmm... so it's got nothing to do with the culture, upbrining or the cirsumstances in which these people live and grow up in? I'd like to see the evidence that supports this latest claim.
I would never have considered taking a knife onto the streets because i "did it in a game an i fort it was gud to stab up sum ppl".
Looks to me like another MP jumping on the anti-games wagon, which is easier than addressing the real issues that lead to knife crime.
Mmmm that exactly the response I'd expect from you if you were. Are you absolutely positive you're not Craig David and just in denial because you're such a talentless waste of oxygen?
How they work that out? Cos these thugs own violent games? Well DUH! Wouldnt it make more sense that violent youths would buy violent media? My point is that if your into violence and had a choice of Flower or GTA, it's obvious which you would choose. SO, these thugs are buying violent media because they are ALREADY violently natured NOT because games are making them violent!
l'm going to play devils advocate a bit here, and say that games and movies could possibly be a contributing factor towards knife crime. I.e., the notion is not an impossibility. Bear with me....
However, to have us believe that movies and video games are the only factor would be rediculous. Millions of us play violent video games, and like the grand majority of my fellow gamers, i've never once been compelled to go out and give my neighbour a chelsea smile as a result.
Maybe there are a few unbalanced individuals out there who think its ok to emulate what they see on the screen (or at least tell the courts/Daily Mail as such), but ultimately I would point the finger of blame at multiple factors, rather than simply lynching the one gaming scapegoat.
Domestic violence, the drug trade, poor education, unemployment and a horrifically flawed system of law are all factors that play a much bigger part in the pervasion of knife crime than any film or piece of software ever could. (Note: I use the term Law, rather than Police, as I've found the police to be very helpful and supportive in the past, its just they're often bound by reams of red tape that prevent them getting the job done).
So, to dismiss videogames and movies outright as an influence on knifecrime, no matter how unlikely, would be both arrogant and dangerous. However, I think politicians need to start tackling knife crime at the root(s) of the problem , rather than taking the easy way out and laying the sole blame at forms of media that reflect, not dictate, the ills of society.
Oh please, computer games have given us much more inventive ways to murder people.
Hahaha ya right. If you only knew. Video game violence doesn't even come close to whats been done in the past (ex. ancient rome, middle ages). Not even close.
Imagine being strapped down, having your belly sliced open, and having one end of your intestines nailed to a turn crank. While your still alive you get to watch your guts slowly being pulled out lnch by inch. And thats one of the more pleasant experiences.
You'd think they'd learn to stfu around election time. It just hoes to prove how out of touch they are with the voters. Maybe it's why people aren't voting anymore.
Mmmm that exactly the response I'd expect from you if you were. Are you absolutely positive you're not Craig David and just in denial because you're such a talentless waste of oxygen?
OK, so you want me to say it?: Craaaazy Pavin'!!!
I don't think Craig David would have the same taste in music as I have (check the Jack White thread). Besides, I can't sing for shit. Well, neither could Cwaig but he could probably do so better than me
What about all the good things gaming contributes to society? I'm pretty sure teenage pregnancies would be a lot higher if half the boys weren't more interested in scoring on FIFA than with a girl
@bellboy, what on earth? I thought that racism went away...nope it just went into the closet and hid itself. At least we get to be reminded that there are still short minded, self absorbed, condescending idiots still being bred.
Once again the one's claiming to have our best interests at heart going on and passing blame to others. Focus and point the finger and oneself and then work outward. It begins at home, bad economies, leads to more crimes, but if the individual was raised right, they would think twice about comitting crimes. People have seemed to have forgotten how precious life is, a rise in violent crimes attributed to violent videogames? How did videogames bypass all those war movies and action movies with gratuitous violence, where the protagonist must use violence to save the day? Has anyone here wanted to become a space marine and fight brightly colored aliens after playing Halo?
It's just what politicians do round about now. Bring up a few 'concerns', see which ones get the most publicity and jump on the bandwagon. After this dies a death he'll find smething else to link to crime and see how many column inches/airtime that gets him. The problem isn't games, movies, immigrants or aliens. It's just people being people, just as they always have been.
How they work that out? Cos these thugs own violent games? Well DUH! Wouldnt it make more sense that violent youths would buy violent media? My point is that if your into violence and had a choice of Flower or GTA, it's obvious which you would choose. SO, these thugs are buying violent media because they are ALREADY violently natured NOT because games are making them violent!
idiots...
This.
That's exactly what's happening. The politicians are getting the comparison the wrong way round.
Last night, after being battered by the same boss on FF13 for the umpteenth time, I turned off the PS3 and made my way to the kitchen to make tea (dinner if posh).
Still mildly shaking with frustration, I continued to make a mockery of filleting the fish.
'Gordon Brown called, said the place was a bit quiet. Wanted to know what was going on, wants a bit of info on what we're doing.' 'Janine, you know what to do. Make a useless link between video games and...something bad.' 'Yes sir.'
Oooh, look, blame culture, blame, blame, blame. Shut up and do something constructive, MP. Th e crimes and games played by people merely reflect their taste.
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