Melbourne Herald Sun, Australia
01-17-07
DVIR Abramovich writes: CHILDREN are being exposed to more violent games
than ever.
The number of MA15 games approved for sale tripled last year.
The obscene cruelty in some of the latest games is disturbing.
In the popular and notoriously violent series Grand Theft Auto, players pretend to
be cocaine dealers.
They bludgeon people with baseball bats, steal cars and have sex with
prostitutes.
The different versions include burning police officers and pedestrians with flamethrowers and engaging in criminal acts such as pimping and robbery.
In 2003, Devin Moore, who murdered three US police officers, claimed in his
defence that GTA inspired the killings.
A juvenile, who with friends murdered a homeless man in the US, compared the
attack to GTA.
In Manhunt, you are a prisoner reprieved from death row who suffocates or kills
acquaintances with bats and knives. The more grisly the execution, the more
points you score.
A European game, The Rule of Rose, involves a young kidnapped girl who
undergoes psychological and physical humiliation.
In Bully, schoolyard violence and bullying form the core of the game. Super
Columbine Massacre RPG allows users to retrace the steps of the Columbine
school killers.
Religion is not sacred to this $17 billion industry.
Left Behind: Eternal Forces invites players to roam the streets of New York with
tanks and machine guns on a mission to convert or kill non-believers, including
Jews, Muslims, Buddhists and gays.
Clearly, these games instill poor moral attitude, promote risky behaviour and take
a toll on social development.
Numerous studies have proved a link between exposure to violent games and
aggressive behaviour.
An Iowa State University study demonstrated that the more violent games
teenagers played, the more they considered aggression to be acceptable.
A 2006 report from Indiana University found that violent games stirred the brain's
emotional responses while reducing activity linked to self-control, inhibition and
concentration.
Dr John Murray has testified to the US Senate that the brain can treat
entertainment violence as real and stores this violence as long-term memory.
As a parent myself, I simply ask other parents whether they consider it wrong to
steal, use drugs and to kill.
Violent games are stealing the innocence of our children. As computing becomes
more sophisticated, the graphics look more vivid and realistic.
The level of detail and the degree of realism means that the interactive
experience is highly involving.
Consequently, engrossed players are perpetrating violence and are rewarded for
it.
Playing takes days and levels within the game have to be played over and over.
Unlike films, players have to consciously make decisions on who to stab or
maim.
Such mindless, dehumanising games desensitise kids to the point where they
may not realise that shooting someone has real consequences.
They may fail to understand reality and normality.
They might not help a real victim of violence because gamers can view people
not as human beings, but as things to be destroyed.
David Grossman, in his book Stop Teaching Our Children to Kill, explains how
the military uses the same gaming techniques to break down the psychological
barriers that might discourage young recruits from killing.
A director at Quantico marine base says recruits who are experienced video
gamers feel less inhibited when pointing a gun at someone.
What does all this say about us as a society?
Good parenting is the key.
Psychologist Ron Taffel calls video games a "second family" that has virtually
overpowered parents.
Parents need to educate themselves about the content of entertainment their
children are consuming.
The best way to protect our children is to choose wisely and above all censor the
games they play.
Estabish ground rules about what comes into you home.
In short, parents need to know how to say no.
Just giving up and allowing small children to use virtual cash to have virtual sex
with prostitutes and to garotte people is irresponsible.
Yes, it's tough stopping such forms of entertainment at the front door. But being a
parent is not easy, and it's not a popularity contest.