Australians blame Half-Life for shooting
Security industry up in arms
Trouble is brewing down under, following the shooting of a security guard at a Melbourne abortion clinic. You would think that radical anti-abortion groups might be the most obvious suspects, but the Australian Security Industry Assocation apparently has another theory in mind. It's all the fault of Half-Life!
"A computer game that rewards players for killing security guards and stealing their guns is being sold in Victoria", declared the Herald Sun in a fit of moral outrage. But what is the link between this latest shooting and Half-Life? "Another add-on version of the violent and bloodthirsty game, Half Life : Blue Shift, was released in Australia only two weeks before the shooting murder of security guard and father-of-seven Steven Rogers."
Well, there you go. It's an open and shut case. Ban this filth now! Of course, new add-ons and Half-Life bundles are released pretty much every few weeks, and shooting security guards is hardly a central part of the game, or even actively encouraged for that matter. But don't let that get in the way of a good crusade.
"It's not something the association would like to see, where security guards are being shot and killed for fun in a game", grunted ASIA executive director Terry Murphy. "These sort of things, they just encourage the wrong sort of behaviour."
Know what I mean, mate?
