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When Politicians Tax Violent Video Games

talien79 writes "Taxing video games has a storied history in state legislatures. The reality is that video games, violent or otherwise, simply make too much money to be stopped. But taxing them is a viable compromise, a 'sin tax' of sorts similar to that levied on cigarettes. This article reviews the time-honored tactic of politicians pandering to their base: taxing violent video games."

23 of 315 comments (clear)

  1. but but but, it's for a good cause!! by kcornia · · Score: 4, Funny

    I'm sure ALL the tax revenue will go towards educating kids on the dangers of violent video games and/or to the victims or violent video game inspired violence, right?

    RIGHT?

    1. Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! by linhares · · Score: 3, Funny

      I'm sure ALL the tax revenue will go towards educating kids on the dangers of violent video games and/or to the victims or violent video game inspired violence, right?

      No, sir, you see, it's on my contract here. The money comes to me.

      Yours Truly,

      --Dr. A. Linhares, Senior Vice President, AIG.

    2. Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! by rackserverdeals · · Score: 5, Funny

      Actually, that's exactly what's going to happen.

      They plan on showing them computer simulations of violent acts to illustrate how bad violence is.

      I've seen the prototype of the simulation. It's pretty neat. It's from a first person perspective of someone running around killing people and being shot at. And it progresses. First you get to see what the horrors are of killing people with a pistol. Then you pick up a shot gun and see how horrible it is. Then you pick up a machine gun and see that atrocity.

      There's even a little number at the top that keeps count of how much you've learned.

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    3. Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! by Chris+Mattern · · Score: 5, Funny

      So next time I pick up a hooker, it'll be OK if I beat her on top of screwing her, as long as I give her an extra $40 or so?

      I thought the lesson of video games was that if you beat up the hooker, you got your $40 *back*.

    4. Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! by need4mospd · · Score: 2, Funny

      Man that's awesome! If they could figure out a way to sell that for like $50, they could make a fortune!

  2. Re:This is how government controls us. by FooAtWFU · · Score: 4, Funny

    First they came for the AIG executive bonuses, but I did not speak up, because the AIG executives were a bunch of jerks...

    --
    The World Wide Web is dying. Soon, we shall have only the Internet.
  3. Re:Tax my Toilet by ArcherB · · Score: 4, Funny

    When will they eventually get to the point of taxing what comes out of my butt?

    Unless you make more than $250,000, you have nothing to worry about. Obama said so:

    "Under my plan, no family making less than $250,000 a year will see any form of tax increase. Not your income tax, not your payroll tax, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes."

    Maybe you'll have to take your pay stub into the store to prove that you make less than a quarter mill' a year. I'm still waiting for my cigarette tax refund paper work to come in the mail I paid the extra $1.00 tax recently and I don't make more than $250,000/yr.

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  4. Re:Tax my Toilet by Sparckus · · Score: 2, Funny

    It'll never happen, will cost them too much for the shit they spout from their mouths.

  5. Re:stupid by Red+Flayer · · Score: 5, Funny

    Why not tax for having ides, next?

    Uh-oh, March is gonna be screwed come tax time.

    --
    "Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will of their master: a fell race..." -- J.R.R. Tolkien on Olog-hai
  6. Re:Movies? by jgtg32a · · Score: 2, Funny

    In most cases when there is Gore and Blood on a bible its considered art or a crime has been committed, it depends

  7. Ahem... by momerath2003 · · Score: 5, Funny

    This is a perfect example of a sin tax error.

    Thank you, I'll be here all night.

    --
    I had but a simple dream, to destroy all humans.
  8. Re:Tax my Toilet by mu11ing1t0ver · · Score: 3, Funny

    This is an example of the fallacy that consuming energy requires one to expel carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. For counterexample, check out the promising new 'photosynthesis' technology that the plant world has been working on.

  9. Re:Tax my Toilet by CrashPoint · · Score: 4, Funny

    Which part of "...not any of your taxes" did you not understand?

    We've heard that before, though, haven't we?

  10. Re:Movies? by linhares · · Score: 2, Funny

    I'd pay $200 for a bible game that included Ezekiel 23:19-20, with all the members and their emissions. $200 dollars would be a good price for encouraging a game developer to fight fire with fire. They should even market it as a good bible teaching aid.

  11. Re:Sin tax? by Chris+Mattern · · Score: 2, Funny

    Can you please explain what part of playing a violet game is a sin?

    All the purple prose in the dialog.

  12. Re:Tax my Toilet by toriver · · Score: 2, Funny

    *sigh* Obama's powers are at the federal level so it was IMPLICIT that he was talking about federal taxes, just like when someone tells you the year is 2009 you do not need to ask BC or AD. Unless you want to look like a total doofus.

  13. Re:Violent games are never good by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    I think you just implied that you lack reading comprehension skills.

  14. Re:stupid by toriver · · Score: 3, Funny

    No, we beware those.

  15. Re:Tax my Toilet by scorp1us · · Score: 2, Funny

    Infact, it seems that withdraw from video games kills you. Ask those Chinese people (in China) that walked out of internet cafes after 24hr+ gaming sessions and died. They should have kept playing.

    (Totally tongue-in-cheek)

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  16. Brats Tax by fremean · · Score: 2, Funny

    I've been playing violent video games for going on 20 years now (OK, so the graphics were less realistic) but not once have I ever felt the urge to go out and kill anyone - until last night.

    My mate's daughter had just been given the Brats Movie game (I think that's the name) and after 20 minutes of listening to the music and the "like so cool" game play (not to mention it's teaching this poor girl to be a dumb american teen) - I was ready to strangle someone...

  17. Re:Tax my Toilet by TrekkieGod · · Score: 2, Funny

    Oh no, I got it. Obama has no control over state and local taxes. However, he should has specified that when he said "...not ANY of your taxes..." He could have said, "...not any of your FEDERAL taxes." or "not any of your INCOME taxes." He didn't.

    Who the HELL are you talking about? Who is this Obama and why is he in charge of anything tax related?

    Actually, I got it. You mean President Barack Obama. However, you never specified that when you said, "Obama." You could have said "United State President Barack Obama." You didn't. You said, "Obama."

    Dude, seriously. When the candidate for a federal office says the word "tax" the fact that it is a federal tax is assumed by everyone.

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  18. Re:Tax my Toilet by The+Grim+Reefer2 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Anyway taxing smokers is smart, because smokers have health problems that taxpayers end up subsidizing through medicare/medicaid. Raising taxes on smokers results in fewer smokers, which results in a lower tax burden for nonsmokers. This is one where the "lower my taxes" crowd should be creaming their jeans, and instead they're whining about it.

    Actually you're wrong. A non-smoker on average costs more over their life in medical costs than a smoker. Sure smokers get cancer and emphysema, but the treatments are fairly straight forward for these and usually a smoker dies much younger. Non-smokers tend to get more exotic/costly diseases and in the end cost the tax payers more.

    This has been known for some time as this was published in 1997: http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/337/15/1052

    There have been more recent studies that back this up published out of Holland and at least one other European country in the last year or so.

    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22995659/

  19. Re:Tax my Toilet by B1oodAnge1 · · Score: 2, Funny

    I lose weight when I stop working out and just play games. My first year of college I lost 11 pounds.

    WHERE IS YOUR GOD NOW???

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