Okay so this isn't really a feminist issue, although it is worth saying that social issues are interlinked so this could be related to feminism if you try hard enough. This is about video games and their relation to violent behavior.
Some people say they do and they blame the video games for school shootings and the general increase in violence in our society. Others are offended at the mere implication that video games, or really any form of media, could possibly impact our behavior. They think you'd have to be really stupid to let that stuff influence you at all. Well, this issue isn't exactly black and white.
If a mentally healthy person plays a violent video game, it's probably not going to have much of an effect. Mentally sound people know it's just fantasy and that's not how you behave in real life. If anything it'll provide an outlet for any aggression they do occasionally feel. However, exposure to violent video games while one is developing may skew one's view of reality a tiny bit; they may become desensitized to violence, or some of the gorier stuff may be disturbing to younger gamers. Not good. But if someone with a mental illness plays video games, they may interpret the violence a little differently, and they may see it as an inspiration. It may fuel their illness, or it may encourage their violent behavior, and that's where a problem occurs.
Think of it as an energy drink. Energy drinks may have a minor impact on a healthy person's wellbeing - digestive problems, heart palpitations, insomnia, etc. Nothing serious, but still unpleasant stuff. Only a major overdose is going to have really negative consequences. But we still allow adults to make their own decisions about them. Energy drinks do, however, endanger their less healthy consumers. If you have a heart condition or other such health problems, an energy drink could kill them, or at least put them in the hospital. This is why adults are advised not to consume them if they have health problems, and a big part of why minors are often not allowed to buy them at certain stores. I know CVS doesn't let minors buy the stuff, they even carded me.
Now, I'm not sure I'm totally against restricting the sale of M-rated video games to minors. Maybe not in the form of a law, but I do see the value in letting video game stores require an ID for certain games. It's not censorship, it's putting the decision in the parents' hands. If parents want their preteen kids playing Bioshock, they're free to buy them the game. If parents don't want their kids playing, say, Grand Theft Auto, it's probably not the end of the world for the kids. So you have to wait until you're a little older big whoop. My dad made me wait until I was 12 to play MediEvil, and I was pretty much never allowed to own any GTA games. I thought it was unfair at the time, but I grew up and I got over it. It was inconvenient but they weren't trying to oppress me, they were just doing what they felt was right, an they were probably on to something. Parents have the right and the responsibility to take charge of their kids' psychological development.
On the other hand, restricting the sale of video games may only lead to these games being torrented, and video game companies losing money. Then again, that's a sale they may never make if the kid is forced to wait, and outgrows the game before he or she is allowed to play it.
So again, I'm still sort of on the fence about this, I just can't seem to get myself all riled up either way. I think teenagers flipping out over the possibility of not being able to play whatever game they want whenever they want to be a tad immature, but I think there are some issues with an age restriction as well. And we certainly can't run mental health checks or background checks on kids who want to buy Gears of War, that would be ridiculous. And while I do think Penn Jillette has a point about the need for better, more attentive parenting, I've never been a parent so I don't think I'm in a position to judge most parents or tell them how to raise their kids.
Okay, I've said my piece. Not totally relevant to the blog, but screw it, it's my blog and I'll write about whatever the heck I want.
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