Slashdot Mirror
IDSA Files To Block Violent Gaming Law
Thanks to an anonymous reader for pointing to a Yahoo/Reuters story indicating that the IDSA games trade body has filed a lawsuit against the Washington state videogame violence law. The law, restricting the sale to minors of games featuring violence against police, was passed a few days ago, and the IDSA are filing to have it struck down, saying "..while we share the state's objective to restrict the ability of children to purchase games that might not be appropriate for them, we passionately oppose efforts to achieve this goal by running roughshod over the constitutional rights of video game publishers, developers and retailers to make and sell games that depict images some find objectionable."
Please cut my anus with a shard of glass if this is not the first post.
"I'm confident our common-sense law will be upheld. Unlike the St. Louis ordinance recently struck down by the Eighth District Court of Appeals, our state law is narrowly focused on the compelling state interest of protecting the safety of law enforcement officers and firefighters," Dickerson said.
Firefighters?! Where did they come in? Are there even any games that involve the killing of firefighters?
I was about to release a new game: "Cop Invaders", where rows of policemen move back and forth across the screen, and you have to shoot them before they reach the bottom. It also may cause problems for another game I had in the works, "Cop Man", where you run around a maze, dodging cops, and trying to get to the energy pellets which allow you to turn around and eat the cops.
/. will be old enough to get the references...)
(I wonder if anyone on
On a more serious note, this law would seem to ban Nethack. (If you successfully escape from a store in Nethack with upaid items, you get attacked by "the Keystone Cops".) Since Nethack is included with most Linux/BSD systems, this law would seem to ban the sale of Linux/BSD systems in WA state. I seriously hope that more than just the game developers come out to oppose this ridiculous law.
Europeans have had violence selectively bred out of them for centuries, through emigration, genocide and mass starvation. Violence, self defense and gun ownership are all negative traits according to the Hague based New World Order, and Europe is the beta test in reducing humans to sheeple.
The initial secular humanist cabal was satisfied using the colonies as a safety valve to eliminate violence prone individuals, figuring that the natives in the colonies (Zulus, Iroquios, Bantu, Thugges, Pollywogs and Slantees) would kill most of them, and leave the more harmless ones in Europe. Not believing in God, they didn't take God into account, who so generously provided a fecund new Jerusalem in America, where right thinking God Fearing men could subdue and populate a whole continent, Kentucky long rifle in one hand, Bible in the other.
Once the colonies were full or free, the ruling cabal had to find another way to get rid of the free thinking men who worshipped God and not man. It's not a coincidence that the most fervent Christians in the British Empire suffered a British genrerated Potato Famine in the 1870's.
Finally, the humanists attempted genocide to purge Europe of men who would defend their rights with their lives. The Jews were the first to be targetted, one only needs a cursory glance at the history of Isreal to realize what a fierce opponent to soul degrading secular humanism the Jewish race would be.
Which pretty much brings us to today. The New World Order, based in the HAgue, is slowly grinding down Europenis into sub-humans, preventing them from fully achieving their full human potential, including the ability to fight for what you believe in. Teletubbies and happy, passive, non-violent vide games are part of the insidious conspiracy. Fortunately, there are enough God Fearing, right thinking men who will fight for the right for men to worship God instead of nebulous concepts like Gaia, ecology, feminism, astronomy and humanism in America, Israel and Saudi Arabia. For those of us blessed enough to live in one of God's chosen places, all we can do is pray for the poor souls being tortured in the soul crashing socialist hellhole that is Europe, and perhaps ship them a few handguns enclosed in the cases of Budweiser that we ship overseas to sate the European hunger for fine, beechwood aged corn beer.
Hey, cops aren't blind, they knew they'd be risking their lives right when they put on their suit, wether it be by getting ice cream thrown at them by 4 year olds in the park, man handled in the county, or digital made to eat a crowbar. Besides, why are they singling cops out and protecting them? The mail guy has feelings too, just look at The Postal Dude who recently go fired by Running with Scissors.
Just Another Knee Jerk Reaction.
The essential reason laws like this will continue to be created (regardless of being struck down) is that gamers have in some politically active circles become one of those hated groups.
These groups of legislators and lobbists, whom I will refer to as knee-cons (for knee jerking) believe that the current style of video gaming is symptomatic of what they feel ails society. To put it crudely, they want to push the clock back as far towards 50's TV land as possible, with a few exceptions for their largest groups of supporters such as the newfound status (since the 60's) of women.
Not all knee-cons are Republicans, some are simply democrats who believe strongly in the "republican motherhood" (small r) concept: Good upbringings make good citizens make good republics. Unfortunately everyone is their (Big?) brother's keeper these days.
These legislators represent a segment of American society which holds that video games, homosexuality, any rise in drug use (including medical marijuana), etc. are a threat to the social fabric and thus the political stability of the United States.
In essence, it is necessary that gamers realize that a war has been declared upon them as well as gaming in general. The main fatality could be the constitutional freedoms of entertainers.
Once this has been realized by all groups threatened by this law, the sheer size of the majority will crush the political muscle of the knee-cons. The US Army's game will not be able to include foreign law enforcement officers, even those of tyrannical or evil countries. Tom Clancy will be a step away from having his books banned. Simply put, we're very close to being neck deep in the smelly stuff.
Remember, The Taliban banned Chess.
Now, that doesn't mean that some of the people behind these laws aren't sincere crackpots, jut that I doubt very much they'd be trying to pass these kinds of laws if it was going to harm them in the polls.
Look at Joe Lieberman (well, you don't have to actually look at him, I mean his career). He's made a career out of being "the pious Democrat." Part of the way he got that reputation was by hammering video games. It means that when the news media wants a quote, say, about President Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky, he gets to be on TV and lecture us all about morality. He's a more important figure than he would've been if he had just left Mortal Kombat alone. (When he was a Vice Presidential candidate, though, he tried to downplay it. Being a sanctimonious scold may play well in Connecticut, but it wasn't as "cool" nationwide.)
For conservatives and certain kinds of Left-wingers, it's even more valuable than that. It becomes a symbolically defining issue for them to the public. When people go to the polls, they might think, "Well, I don't know if Bob Johnson is pro-life (or pro-gun control) but he did try to get those horrible video games taken off the market, so I'll vote for him."
All the creatures will die, And all the things will be broken. That's the law of samurai. (Jubai, 1605)