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Louisiana passes game bill
Victory for Thompson.
The Lousiana Senate has passed HB1381, a bill designed to restrict the sale of games with violent content which was co-authored by notorious anti-videogames campaigner Jack Thompson.
HB1381, which Thompson wrote together with Representative Roy Burrell, would make it illegal to sell or rent out a game to a minor if it met three conditions. Namely, if an "average person" would consider that it "appeals to the minor's morbid interest in violence"; if the game "depicts violence in a manner patently offensive to prevailing standards"; and if it "lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors." Anyone violating the law could face a fine of up to USD 2000 and a maximum 12 month prison sentence.
The bill was approved by a key committee last week and has now been unanimously passed by the Louisiana State Senate. It's now up to Governor Kathleen Blanco to sign the bill into law - which seems highly likely.
It's also likely that the Entertainment Software Association will respond with the threat of legal action, as in the case of the bill passed in Minnesota recently.
Meanwhile, New York Senator Hillary Clinton has called for the US Government to support further research into the effects of electronic media on children - including TV and the Internet as well as videogames.
"We don't know the effects," Clinton told the audience at an event organised by the New America Foundation.
"Never have children been raised in such a media-saturated environment. How do we get more research, better facts and evidence?"
Clinton is hoping Congress will approve a bill she has co-authored which, if it became law, would impose fines on anyone selling or renting Mature or Adults Only-rated games to minors.
Earlier this week, her office released a downloadable "media guide" designed to help parents understand the ratings systems used for TV and games, and how to make use of the parental control option featured in many electronic entertainment devices. "Obviously parents are on the front line, but a lot of them need help," Clinton commented.
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Comments (50) Latest comment 6 years ago
Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!
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shut... up!! O_O
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And I'm sure Thompson, Burrell and Clinton have gaggles of "average people" waiting in the wings, ready to present their "average opinions" on how despicable video games are...
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Children shouldn't be playing the likes of Postal and Manhunt, because they're not for children - as they state on the boxes.
So what's the problem?
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WTF. Who watches the watchmen and so on and so forth....
Bla bla
Hypocrits, idiot, only in the U.S. of A mtfr yeah yeah
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If anything, it'll take responsibility away from violent games themselves, and correctly place it with the people who are selling them to/buying them for minors.
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I agree that children shouldn't be allowed to rent or purchase any media which has been rated unsuitable. But I don't like the way this law is worded. It basically gives legal backing to Thompson, Burrell and Clinton's Witchfinder General approach to the video game industry.
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Maybe the research that is really lacking is a study in to the affects of not playing video games, as it seems to turn these video game deprived citizens in to nazi-esque dictators intent on depriving people of their fundamental right to choose how they wish to entertain themselves.
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I agree with Mrs. C there though, more research can't hurt.
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The way I understand it is the other way around. That Ice Age game could be banned for lack of 'literary, artistic, scientific or political value'. And what about a game like R* Table Tennis? As long as ball physics and well crafted gameplay doesn't count as scientific and artistic values respectivly it could be banned.
Maybe I'm just paranoid.
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Well bang go about 90% of games out there then. I thought that was the point of games?
This law, or at least the quoted parts, does seem incredibly vague to me, and down to huge interpretation. Probably something Thopmson relishes.
It's only Louisiana though so meh, it's not that big yet.
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crayfish.... aaarrhgghghh
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Unfortunately they word as to be totally vacuous so that Thompson can have a legitimate avenue to chase any game he doesn't like.
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Does it mean that it's OK to brutally murder people as long as they have a towel on their head?
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wow what a way to set GTA as a benchmark.
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So even if a) the moron on the steet thinks it's offensive and b) it appeals to sick teenagers it will not be banned if it c) educates youngsters about the distinction between marx's concept of alienation and Durkheim's anomie.
The artistic merit thing could be a get out clause for some games.
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Which is a loophole for the violent games to sneak through if you ask me. It doesn't say all games without those values are banned.
Meh. I personally don't see the problem with restricting violent games to kids... it seems pretty overdue if you ask me. As long as the parents don't have to bother monitoring their kids I'm pretty sure the Americans will be happy.
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Just because a game that "appeals to the minor's morbid interest in violence" *AND* the game "depicts violence in a manner patently offensive to prevailing standards" *AND* it "lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors" (note the ands, not ors) can't be bought by a kid it doesn't mean everyone else can't!
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Seriously, it's this idiocy that allows people like Jack to have such sway in the US. Elsewhere in the world, the guy is mocked and ridiculed because we HAVE these restrictions on the content that minors can see. But in the USA, they cannot, because freedom of media and indeed, freedom of speech is part of the first amendment - and even if it maks perfect sense in todays society to have age restrictions on content, most Americans could not bear the first ammendment being compromised - even if that compromise is just an employing of common sense in the 21st Century.
So they're in a catch-22 situation. Whilst many would want a proper law stating this age-limit, they don't want it to compromise the first amendment. I think eventually, they are going to end up in a situation where they will have no choice but to choose between the two...
I hope they make the sensible decision to in the end, just bung proper restrictions on and have done with it. Then people like Jack will have absolutely no case and hopefully, fade away into obscurity.
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I think the average American could probably spell 'hypocrite' correctly, at least. :\
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I think the average American is probably better at those as well, tbh. :\
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Instead of a common sense aproach that aplies to all media.
1up has a verry nice article about the state of politics vs media in the US.
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"Kids shouldn't be playing those games anyway, so what's the problem?"
The problem is; I was 13 years old when I DESPERATELY wanted to play Mortal Kombat 2. Now, you may say "but MK isn't that scary!", but the thing is, it had an 18 sticker on it. Selling MK2 to me would've been illegal.
I got MK2 when I was 13, and I played it to death. I thought it was absolutely awesome, and I even drew fatalities in Deluxe Paint on my Amiga.
This isn't about people who are into games making the call if a game deserves this or that rating, this is about some truly mind boggling ratings on games (The Outfit has an 18 rating on it for some unfathomable reason) that prevents young passionate gamers from playing games that wouldn't do them any harm.
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but this law could never work since all 3 conditions have to be met - the 3rd point "lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors"
A half decent lawyer could show that 99% of games have artistic value to minors.
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And even with that mug sadly, I'll still be getting more sex than you. :'(
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/makes a wish
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Obelix from the Asterix Cartoons.
Taps the side of his head.
"These Romans are crazy"
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One thing that is forgotten time and time again is that really, there should be no "flat-out" restrictions of that type in America. All the videogame industry really has to WARN people about the content of there material, THEN, make agreements with the retailer not to sell the games with those warnings to kids under 18 or whatever. I is also the parents responsibilty to not buy the violent games- they don't even have to read articles about the games, just look at the freakin' box! Back when I worked at Toys R Us when I was in school, I was a cashier- I can't tell you how many times some little kid would come through with his or her mommy or daddy with a copy of GTA in his or hands. Everytime, I rang the game up, I said my usual little speech, "this game is rated 'M' for violent content, sexual situations, blah, blah, blah-" and everytime, the parent would give me a nasty look and say something like, "whatever, how much is it?" The problem isn't the first amendment, the problem parents that won't admit that they're doing a crummy job.
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Time magazine described Vice City as art, and it's full of political satire.
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Children shouldn't be playing the likes of Postal and Manhunt, because they're not for children - as they state on the boxes.
So what's the problem?"
There are two problems:
1. games are now being subjected to criteria defined in the law whereas books, comics and movies are still allowed to use voluntary rating system adopted by industry.
2. the risk of law suits will cause big retailers such as WalMart to restrict (further) the content and topics of games they are asked to offer
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roflmao
These people are the cancer of humanity.
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Look at Germany, they don't have it and it allows for all sorts of censorship where it's illegal to sell certain games at ALL and movies are continually censored, not just on TV. Hell, you can't even buy certain films on DVD in their original versions.
Sure, Germany is quite exceptional in this case, but really, the first amendment is something that should definitively be preserved.
Edit: typos...
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in us many things are being censored (and not only there of course)anyway to the extend of few people please
imagine if it weren't for that.
aside from that i m not sure i can take morality courses from a culture that gives all credit to control and brute force and consuming anything around them people
that would invent new bombs to throw at you just because you looked them bizzarelly and would start a war for the fun of it.
neither i would take morality lessons from a culture that based 20+years of movies on abysmal images of war movies one man armies ruthless raw models to lead me to a law that even if it applies in one square inch on this planet deals if some get to see beautifully shaped PIXELS with IMAGINERY characters killed brutally on a IMAGINARY world
if thats the problem right now well they solved it ...hmph
+judge was a woman so i m afraid she was the best case Thomson would like
hitting some maternal emotions and lack of knowledge of what games are + stereotypes like game for geeks and bs like that and you have it louissiana
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After i saw your abysmal opinion i wanna puke!
Hmph go burn on everest man!
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Sorry for double posting.
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He's such an idiot that I wonder how many did he shell out to bribe for his law degreee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There's no way he has got it clean!
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/strokes rusty kettle
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