Grand Theft Auto III is under fire once again...

jonmartensen · Post by **jonmartensen** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 2:41 pm

fyrtenheimer wrote:No need to point the finger at Rockstar or the parents. The kids were just fucken retarded.

Which is why it's the parents fault. Either they were improperly raised, or they had mental "issues" and should never have had access to guns in the first place.

CliffD · Post by **CliffD** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 2:41 pm

SARCASM ALERT

fyrtenheimer wrote:But then again, these kids were what ..16 and 14? By that age, parental guidance or not, the kid should be able to distinguish "right from wrong" and what obviously not to do. It's by the age of 7 does the average kid know all that.

No need to point the finger at Rockstar or the parents. The kids were just fucken retarded.

No argument there. The problem is, individuals who commit crimes aren't supposed to BEAR any responsibility, not in CIVIL lawsuits. The PARENTS aren't supposed to BEAR any responsibility. The store that SOLD THEM THE GAME isn't supposed to BEAR any responsibility (unless they're a chain).

WHO IS SUPPOSED TO BEAR THE RESPONSIBILITY for two teenagers acting out a violent video game? THE PUBLISHER OF THE GAME, AND (if it can be narrowed down to a single corporation) THE MAKER OF THE VIDEO GAME CONSOLE.

WHY? Simple. They have the money. This is a civil lawsuit. And as long as lawyers can make their 20%-or-more, they will ALWAYS push that it is the MANUFACTURER who is responsible for the problems and crimes of others. It is the video game publisher who is at fault. It is the gun maker for making the gun used in the crime. It is the tobacco company for making the cigarrette. It is the fast food chain who is responsible for making the majority of Americans obese. It is the maker of the RV that is responsible for NOT pointing out that "cruise control" does NOT mean "auto-pilot."

END SARCASM

Do you get the feeling I have a dislike for lawyers?

fyrtenheimer · Post by **fyrtenheimer** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 3:05 pm

jonmartensen wrote:
fyrtenheimer wrote:No need to point the finger at Rockstar or the parents. The kids were just fucken retarded.
Which is why it's the parents fault. Either they were improperly raised, or they had mental "issues" and should never have had access to guns in the first place.

When I said retarded and i didn't mean it literally, neway what if they were 35? Would you blame the parents then? Well ...no.

There are kids all around who aren't "raised" at all. Parents can only do so much. There's a guide to adulthood; Parents ARE NOT the guide, they're simply in the guide. I understand what you're saying but it's absolutely ridiculous to just blame the parents for everything a kid does.

Stoic · Post by **Stoic** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 3:36 pm

fyrtenheimer wrote:There are kids all around who aren't "raised" at all. Parents can only do so much. There's a guide to adulthood; Parents ARE NOT the guide, they're simply in the guide. I understand what you're saying but it's absolutely ridiculous to just blame the parents for everything a kid does.

It's also ridiculous to blame a game for violence kids commit :-p

J-0080 · Post by **J-0080** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 3:44 pm

I just played a game of Tribes 2. Does that mean I'm going to run into the street and start shooting people with a plasma rifle?

No.

Partly because I don't have a plasma rifle though it would be cool if I did and because I can tell the difference between a game and reality.

I wouldn't say its the game makers fault (though there is a reason the game has a mature label on it, if you're not mature you shouldn't be playing) some responsibilities do fall on the parents, yes. Though I would say it was boys fault.

At 16 they should just know better.

J-0080.

Jebadia · Post by **Jebadia** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 4:16 pm

J-0080 wrote:I just played a game of Tribes 2.

J-0080.

ah..thats a good game..I need to reinstall it...

Kamoc · Post by **Kamoc** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 5:31 pm

what gets me is that there used to be tons of this stuff going around back when grittier types of horror films were coming out. there's the whole 'chucky' thing where two kids decided to reenact the film and tied their little brother to a railroad track. there was also all that 'DOOM 64 MADE THE COLUMBINE KIDS DO THEIR SHOOTINS, HERE HERE OL CHAP', which just hurts to think about. how come none of that ever saw the courtroom? why is it that just now people are popping out and showing their disgust for media so late in the game? why didn't anyone come out and say that their copy of 'hey you, pikachu' was making their kids talk to the giant yellow rat in the tv?

sure, you don't kill people in video games, but if you had just enough imagination, you sure as hell could. just play some unreal tournament 2003 for a while and things begin to sortof shift in and out of their own individual worlds: what once was a double-jumping alien with rocket launchers strapped to it's back now appears nothing more than enemy. kill. win.

but where do we stop?

at what point is needless violence going to be untasteful? rockstar sure as hell isn't helping by rehashing the same exact game it got in trouble with a year ago. it's like people getting killed isn't just overlooked to them; it's also publicity. not to mention their new game <a href="http://ps2.ign.com/articles/434/434963p ... manhunt</a>, which deems killing not only the driving factor in the game, but makes it damn well practical. murdering people with broken liquor bottles, wire and even plastic bags makes it seem that rockstar isn't trying to pass off killing as 'more fun that ever'. instead, it looks like they're trying to teach us how to do it.

all these kids are just trying to do is find something to learn. whether it's how plants work or which button to press for blood, it's something to them. parents only choose what they learn and how they learn it. besides, parents don't raise a child, a village does. you can't blame the parents for making 'grand theft auto 800482', and you certainly can't blame them for letting their friend coerce them into playing their older brother's copy. sure, there's always the 'YOU PARENTS GOT THE BADMORALS' issue, but then again, what are good morals? you can't go around telling everyone who thinks different from you that they've got horrible values, no matter how many eye-rings they have.

either way, their claim that they were acting out grand theft auto 3 is complete crap: no matter how many times they tried to enter the 'lower wanted level' cheat into the back of that magnum.

R1 R1 O R2 U D U D U D

kthulhu · Post by **kthulhu** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 5:46 pm

Stoic wrote:But it's not just the parents... Because most of the violent video games are from Japan, and you are telling me all the parents over there are activitly involved with their kids? Bullshit. They are mostly work-aholics over there. So there has to be something else going on here. What it is I don't know...

Actually, near as I can tell, Japanese society is still mostly "father works, mother stays at home".

El Banana · Post by **El Banana** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 6:54 pm

It's about as ridiculous as suing gun manufacturers for a killing.

Look, unless the kids had some serious reality problems, they should know that killing is bad at that age. They're just taking some of the blame off their back by pointing their fingers and squealing: "OMFG THE WITCH THE WITCH MADE ME DO IT!

fyrtenheimer · Post by **fyrtenheimer** » Mon Sep 15, 2003 9:22 pm

Stoic wrote:
fyrtenheimer wrote:There are kids all around who aren't "raised" at all. Parents can only do so much. There's a guide to adulthood; Parents ARE NOT the guide, they're simply in the guide. I understand what you're saying but it's absolutely ridiculous to just blame the parents for everything a kid does.
It's also ridiculous to blame a game for violence kids commit :-p

I wasn't doing that.