This has been an ongoing complaint for some time, that "video games" are too violent and cause young people to be nasty. Of course, before that it was Rock & Roll...
When confronted with this issue, I always point out that mankind has a long and rather bloody history, with almost all the major horrors in terms of war, genocide, pogrom, inquisition, etc. being chalked up long before there was any sort of "media" whatever.
We have an ongoing thread on this over at the James Randi Foundation BBS, with one member citing a recent book that claims that man has a strong disinclination to kill, and that such games (and various sorts of military training) can reduce that disinclination.
Still, we have history....
Much as with suicide induced by repetitious listening to heavy-metal recordings, I feel that only those persons already pre-disposed to violence might be effected in any way.
When confronted with this issue, I always point out that mankind has a long and rather bloody history, with almost all the major horrors in terms of war, genocide, pogrom, inquisition, etc. being chalked up long before there was any sort of "media" whatever.
We have an ongoing thread on this over at the James Randi Foundation BBS, with one member citing a recent book that claims that man has a strong disinclination to kill, and that such games (and various sorts of military training) can reduce that disinclination.
Still, we have history....
Much as with suicide induced by repetitious listening to heavy-metal recordings, I feel that only those persons already pre-disposed to violence might be effected in any way.
