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Court Rules Dungeons and Dragons Threatens Prison Security
KermodeBear writes "Dungeons and Dragons — originally Satan's Game — has now been found to encourage gang-like behavior. In a finding by a three judge panel of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, D&D 'can mimic the organization of gangs and lead to the actual development thereof.' From the ruling: 'during D&D games, one player is denoted the "Dungeon Master." 'The Dungeon Master is tasked with giving directions to other players, which Muraski testified mimics the organization of a gang.'"
the DM is anything but a "leader" in D&D. His job is more akin to that of the judges themselves, that passed this retarded ruling.
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
[Offtopic] Is it just me, or the new Slashdot design seems to have chased away most of the people out there? Most stories are very short on comments! Come on people, get back to trolling and bashing stuff!!
Have you heard about SoylentNews?
I served 15 days in a county Jail (under Huber law) about 15 years ago or so I actually brought a few roleplaying books in with me, and set up a gaming session. (most of the guys in there with me were in for minor drug possession, and quite a few were gamers). I wound up running a 36 hour gaming session where people picked up and left off when they got tired, or had to go to work. It helped pass the time immensely, and gaming made my two weeks in jail go a lot faster than it would have otherwise.
Don't get me wrong, it was still a terrible experience, and I wouldn't want to go back (and I haven't!). But banning things like D&D isn't going to solve anything.
The Employer is tasked with giving directions to employees, which Muraski testified mimics the organization of a gang.
The Teacher is tasked with giving directions to students, which Muraski testified mimics the organization of a gang.
The Emergency Broadcast System is tasked with giving directions to the public during an emergency, which Muraski testified mimics the organization of a gang.
Really? When you have criteria for gang behavior that is that loose, anything can be classified and banned.
The Warden is tasked with giving directions to prisoners, which Muraski testified mimics the organization of a gang.
...religious services banned in prisons.
They mimic gang activity, there is a "priest" or "sheik" or "prophet" that tells the other participants how to interpret and act on religious texts
but that the game encourages players to become obsessed with mentally escaping the restrictions of prison life
Because surely it NEVER occurred to inmates to attempt to mentally escape the restrictions of prison life until the DM told them to