'Call of Duty' and Mass Murders: Are Video Games Too Violent?

[Remodeling Maidiac]

COD even toned down their violence. In multiplayer you used to be able to blow off or shoot off limbs on players. No more. Now they don't even show blood except for a small smear that lasts for what 2 seconds. Shoot a crossbow at someone any they fall down after the arrow BOUNCES off.

And I still don't believe Avatar has seen death in a childs eyes that playing a game. Unless she's been watching the mentally ill play COD.

 

[Glensather]

Oh, World at War... man, taking that shotgun to people's faces. That was hilarious.

Now when you throw a tomahawk at someone, it kills them... then bounces to the floor.
LOGIC.

 

[Meister]

I remember putting a cap gun to my friends face as a youth when playing cops n robbers. Before that children played with play swords. Since its nurf guns and video games.

Why don't we just take everything away from our children, put them in a straight jacket and lock them in a padded room. That'll keep em safe.


And just to let you know since you clearly don't know violent games, including COD, are rated M for mature. Meaning minors are not allowed to purchase them. So if you're looking to place blame look squarley at the parents and leave the fucking toys alone

Then what's the difference from then to now, gramps? What has changed in our society to create this problem?

 

[Meister]

COD even toned down their violence. In multiplayer you used to be able to blow off or shoot off limbs on players. No more. Now they don't even show blood except for a small smear that lasts for what 2 seconds. Shoot a crossbow at someone any they fall down after the arrow BOUNCES off.

And I still don't believe Avatar has seen death in a childs eyes that playing a game. Unless she's been watching the mentally ill play COD.

If COD toned down the violence.....why would they do that?

 

[RoadVirus]

I play COD and GOW all the time. I've got no urge to go on a mass murdering rampage.
Quit blaming video games! Quit blaming movies! Quit blaming GUNS!

 

[Wehrwolfen]

Chuck Todd : If your kid’s playing “Halo” for 3 hours a night, make sure he doesn’t have a problem



By: AllahPundit
12/18/2012


Via Mediaite, I like this clip because it captures the essence of the Do Something gun-control impulse, even though Todd's not talking about guns. The "Halo" games have sold 50 million copies worldwide. Microsoft estimates that people collectively have spent five billion hours playing them. Violent crime has been declining for 40 years and mass shootings are no more common now than they used to be. I'd bet that, if anything, video games reduce violent crime by providing an innocuous outlet for thrill-seeking. But who cares? The point of Do Something isn't to craft a policy response carefully tailored to why Lanza and other rampage killers did what they did and how they did it. It's to throw whatever you can think of at the problem and see what sticks culturally and legislatively, no matter how many innocent people might be snared by your "solution." Lanza evidently loved violent video games. So do millions of kids who, unlike him, don't have severe mental problems. But isn't hassling your perfectly normal 12-year-old over “Call of Duty” a small price to pay for maybe possibly kinda sorta reducing the odds of a school shooting by an infinitesimally marginal amount? If you care about Sandy Hook, then the answer can only be yes. You do care, don’t you?

Before that, you’ll find WaPo’s Chris Cillizza wondering why the two sides of this issue seem to want the public to choose between total prohibition and “doing nothing.” Can’t we just have a “reasonable debate”? But we did have a debate. The left lost. And they lost for good reasons. Partly they lost because they couldn’t answer questions like these satisfactorily, and partly because, when push comes to shove, people know there just isn’t much that can be done:


[Excerpt]

Read more:
Chuck Todd on Sandy Hook: If your kid’s playing “Halo” for three hours a night, make sure he doesn’t have a problem « Hot Air

 

[AmyNation]

I love that this thread mostly turned into a discussion on the best video games


As to the OP, gramps is right, throughout history children have always played violent games, they have evolved, but the premise hasn't really changed. Attempting to blame video games is a cop-out, so people don't have to look at their own responsibility in poor parenting.

 

[liarintheWH]

Video games are awesome. Bringing peace to USMB!

 

[G.T.]

Violence in Video games and movies leads people to violence? How many people watch and play versus how many Murders, is your answer.

I think we can all calm down.

 

[G.T.]

Halo 4 is pretty dope, btw. If anyone ever wants to play, I'll p-m gamer tags.

 

[Meister]

What do you people think is the cause, or causes for the young to be going postal over the last 30 years? What has changed in our society to bring this on? I have my ideas and there are a few things that may lead to the cause IMO, but I would like to hear your views.

 

[G.T.]

What do you people think is the cause, or causes for the young to be going postal over the last 30 years? What has changed in our society to bring this on? I have my ideas and there are a few things that may lead to the cause IMO, but I would like to hear your views.

I dont think it's a new phenomena, at all.

I just think it's more easily publicized, and weapons are more powerful.

It's not the media, it's not the "decline of the family unit." If those things were true, it wouldn't be so scarce of an issue. You have to keep things in perspective and not blow them out of proportion. There are 300 M give or take people in just this Country alone. This is not a widespread issue by any stretch of the imagination. But, violence in games and movies, the trend away from Religion and the divorce rates are pretty widespread. There's no necessary correlation.

A better assumption is that some kids are born with a defective brain, some kids are born into horrible home-life situations and can't handle it, and some kids become psychotic due to drugs.

 

[Remodeling Maidiac]

What do you people think is the cause, or causes for the young to be going postal over the last 30 years? What has changed in our society to bring this on? I have my ideas and there are a few things that may lead to the cause IMO, but I would like to hear your views.

Parenting and political correctness along with a dose of kids being over drugged because they are sad.

You can't even spank your xhild anymore without the risk of the police being called. Social media has also helped prevent kids from learning proper social skills but that again is largely a parenting issue.

Everyone wants to blame everything but the child and parrent.

I have seen first hand the response of mentally challenged kids to dropping something as simple as a cookie or icecream and they totally lose it.

Games are an outlet to release pressure not build it.

 

[Remodeling Maidiac]

COD even toned down their violence. In multiplayer you used to be able to blow off or shoot off limbs on players. No more. Now they don't even show blood except for a small smear that lasts for what 2 seconds. Shoot a crossbow at someone any they fall down after the arrow BOUNCES off.

And I still don't believe Avatar has seen death in a childs eyes that playing a game. Unless she's been watching the mentally ill play COD.

If COD toned down the violence.....why would they do that?

In an attempt to keep congress off their backs.

 

[AmyNation]

Spree shootings aren't common, what's changed is how the media covers it. There have always been crazy people, and they have always done horrible things.

I think the biggest issue is parenting, as well as our approach to the mentally ill. I think doctors and parents today, are more willing to turn to drugs to help children instead of going with the more difficult route of actually working at behavioral therapy and hands on parenting.

 

[G.T.]

Spree shootings aren't common, what's changed is how the media covers it. There have always been crazy people, and they have always done horrible things.

I think the biggest issue is parenting, as well as our approach to the mentally ill. I think doctors and parents today, are more willing to turn to drugs to help children instead of going with the more difficult route of actually working at behavioral therapy and hands on parenting.

I don't think parenting is worse today then ever before, except for the fact that Capitalism drives the Parents away from the child............ as "to produce" i.e. be productive in the workforce is today's ideal as opposed to having time for the home life, i.e. enjoying the fruits of your labor.

It's difficult for me to describe what I mean here - but I very much resent the fact that our entire thesis on this Earth (America) seems to be based on our market, our economy and our power.

What is a typical 40-hour work week, anyways?

Well, if you sleep the typical 8 hours per day - that leaves 16 hours a day.

In the morning, you prepare breakfast, clothe and feed yourself and your kids - all that takes away roughly an hour and a half.

Then, the commute. 20 minutes on average, so 40 gone there.

8.5 hours at work, typically. (30 minute lunch).

Then, homework, laundry, cooking and cleaning. We'll call that 2 hours, we'll be generous.

So at the end of your Capitalistic lifestyle, you get a few hours out of 16 to actually enjoy your life.


-many work well over 40 hours

etc etc

 

[Meister]

What do you people think is the cause, or causes for the young to be going postal over the last 30 years? What has changed in our society to bring this on? I have my ideas and there are a few things that may lead to the cause IMO, but I would like to hear your views.

I dont think it's a new phenomena, at all.

I just think it's more easily publicized, and weapons are more powerful.

It's not the media, it's not the "decline of the family unit." If those things were true, it wouldn't be so scarce of an issue. You have to keep things in perspective and not blow them out of proportion. There are 300 M give or take people in just this Country alone. This is not a widespread issue by any stretch of the imagination. But, violence in games and movies, the trend away from Religion and the divorce rates are pretty widespread. There's no necessary correlation.

A better assumption is that some kids are born with a defective brain, some kids are born into horrible home-life situations and can't handle it, and some kids become psychotic due to drugs.

I do agree with a lot of what you say. But couldn't a kid born with a defective brain respond to one or several of the points you posted to the point of an outburst?
I do think that not having two parents does create a problem with well adjusted children....take that to a "problem child", it could become a real issue. If a child isn't exposed to children growing up and not bonding, but instead his time is consumed on the internet in a make believe world may not create an issue with normal children, but could have impact on a problem child. IMO, I think religion is important....but that is just me.
I do believe the drugs given to children for ADD and anti depressent drugs might play a huge problem. I saw that first hand with a relatively normal child of a friend of mine. He lashed out with anger and there were suicide issues......Dr. told him that it was a side effect of the drug he took.

 

[Meister]

Spree shootings aren't common, what's changed is how the media covers it. There have always been crazy people, and they have always done horrible things.

I think the biggest issue is parenting, as well as our approach to the mentally ill. I think doctors and parents today, are more willing to turn to drugs to help children instead of going with the more difficult route of actually working at behavioral therapy and hands on parenting.

I think the first student killing students in the US was back in the 1970's.

 

[G.T.]

What do you people think is the cause, or causes for the young to be going postal over the last 30 years? What has changed in our society to bring this on? I have my ideas and there are a few things that may lead to the cause IMO, but I would like to hear your views.

I dont think it's a new phenomena, at all.

I just think it's more easily publicized, and weapons are more powerful.

It's not the media, it's not the "decline of the family unit." If those things were true, it wouldn't be so scarce of an issue. You have to keep things in perspective and not blow them out of proportion. There are 300 M give or take people in just this Country alone. This is not a widespread issue by any stretch of the imagination. But, violence in games and movies, the trend away from Religion and the divorce rates are pretty widespread. There's no necessary correlation.

A better assumption is that some kids are born with a defective brain, some kids are born into horrible home-life situations and can't handle it, and some kids become psychotic due to drugs.

I do agree with a lot of what you say. But couldn't a kid born with a defective brain respond to one or several of points you posted to the point of an outburst?
I do think that not having two parents does create a problem with well adjusted children....take that to a "problem child", it could become a real issue. If a child isn't exposed to children growing up and not bonding, but instead his time is consumed on the internet in a make believe world may not create an issue with normal children, but could have impact on a problem child. IMO, I think religion is important....but that is just me.
I do believe the drugs give to children for ADD and anti depressent drugs might play a huge problem. I saw that first hand with a relatively normal child of a friend of mine. He lashed out with anger and there were suicide issues......Dr. told him that it was a side effect of the drug he took.

I think that children driven over the edge are born defective to begin with. Otherwise, we'd see way more then we actually do. Divorce rates are 50%. Think about how many kids that effects, and then think of how small this mass-killing phenomena is as compared to that amount of kids.

Religion, in my opinion, is the worst type of brainwashing possibly ever. I say this as an agnostic. It's a control mechanism and with that comes the controlled, and the admittance that people need to be necessarily controlled. I reject it out of hand.

If you mean the morals taught within a Religion? Those morals exist outside of said Religion and were not invented by said Religion.

 

[G.T.]

Spree shootings aren't common, what's changed is how the media covers it. There have always been crazy people, and they have always done horrible things.

I think the biggest issue is parenting, as well as our approach to the mentally ill. I think doctors and parents today, are more willing to turn to drugs to help children instead of going with the more difficult route of actually working at behavioral therapy and hands on parenting.

I think the first student killing students in the US was back in the 1970's.

Why do you think that? What makes you believe that it never happened in...say, the 1800's?