Forget Jack Thompson, Check Out This Guy
January 7th, 2007 by Darren Stevens in Articles, Business, Offbeat
If you thought Jack Thompson was the crown of ignorant politicians crusading against videogames, wait until you hear what British MP Boris Johnson has to say. This guy manages to blame all the problems of society solely on videogames, or at least, most of them. He wrote an article in the Dailty Telegraph, titled “The Writing is On The Wall - Computer Games Rot The Brain”.
“It is about time, as a society, that we admitted the catastrophic effect these blasted gizmos are having on the literacy and the prospects of young males.”
“I refuse to believe that these hypnotic little machines are innocent.”
And my favorite part:
“They become like blinking lizards, motionless, absorbed, only the twitching of their hands showing they are still conscious. These machines teach them nothing. They stimulate no ratiocination, discovery or feat of memory.”
Yes, indeed, we gamers are at the bottom of society, completely brainwashed and hypnotized by our hobby (or profession). So brainwashed that we actually wish to chainsaw this Boris guy in half with our new Lancer gun from Gears of War. Or get him in a drive-by shooting like we do in GTA San Andreas. Or decapitate him like in Mortal Combat. Or… well, you get the point.
Computer Games Rot The Brain by Boris Johnson
Tags: Articles, Business, Offbeat
January 7th, 2007 at 2:12 pm
Ha, Boris is an absolute legend. I forget what exactly he does, but he is very funny.
January 7th, 2007 at 4:49 pm
if he can be a politician then there must be high hopes for myself. i mean he’s dam stupid, but funny as hell, he should be forgiven unless he won’t alter his thinking.
January 7th, 2007 at 8:56 pm
I don’t care about guys like him. He has every right to use a specific hate agenda. He’s a politician, c’mon cut him some slack!
January 7th, 2007 at 9:12 pm
Yet another ridiculous person who has to jump on the “Blame it all on the video game age” bandwagon … wow We have ours and the Brits have their’s as well. Oh well he is good comic relief. Enjoy him while you can I guess.
January 7th, 2007 at 9:57 pm
This guy is a cartoon character in the UK, no one takes him seriously… he regularly places both feet in his own mouth, to the detriment of his political party.
January 7th, 2007 at 11:17 pm
My God.
And to think I knew of him not.
January 8th, 2007 at 12:57 am
Boris is a legend! He’s great, very un-politically correct. Despite being a geek and a gamer, I agree with the two quotes from him that you’ve quoted. Video games don’t do anything positive or productive to kids, on the whole. Some do, some are original and creative and have puzzles and characters etc (Psychonauts etc.. and many others), but most of the time its just mind numbing.
To illustrate my point, I questioned my girlfriends 13 year old brother about games after he spent all day from dawn til dusk staring at either a PC or TV screen. He is not a geek, but he couldn’t see entertainment in anything that didn’t come from a screen.
Parents need to take responsibility here, not the kids or the games manufacturers (except for Rockstar games (GTA etc), they are just bottom feeders). Games are not the only thing dumbing down our youth, TV and the media in general are the worst, but to play a game that lets you midlessly kill kill and kill without any recognition of what you are doing (eg Battlefield 2 gamers replacing the video-background on the menu screens with real life war footage and not considering that real people died in the making of those clips) cannot be considered as a good step for society.
Those of us geeks lucky enough to have retained our personalities and still see the value of everything non-technical need to spread the word! Geeking has its place, but its a small place and there is a giant world out there far bigger than can be illustrated in any screen (including the one you are reading this on!!)
January 8th, 2007 at 1:30 am
Spot on Armin! All gamers I know are a lot more intelligent and smarter than non-gamers. It’s not just “playing games”, there’s a whoel culture that most mainstream folks like pinksteady don’t get at all, so they point their fingers in vain.
January 8th, 2007 at 1:31 am
All I know is the body needs physical activity or else it begins to break down and that doesn’t benefit a strong mind at all. So really what is needed is a mixture of both mind stimulation and exercise or some type of physical activity that makes you sweat. Video games are cool but you are over hyping their value I think Armin. I believe more kids should spend time reading than playing video games … but that is just my opinion. I could care less about these obviously biased studies … but hey get out and play some team sports and you get all the same things multiplayer gaming can supposedly provide you with plus the benefits of being active and having to deal with people face to face. In my mind that FAR outweighs anything 90% of video games has to offer … but now that the Wii has come along maybe that can change. Also break out cool board games like Risk and chess and backgammon and scrabble, etc. which promote working and playing together and also stimulates the mind.
January 8th, 2007 at 1:34 am
Alex you are way off base on that statement about gamers being more intelligent than non gamers … where do you get that info from? I am a pretty avid gamer and even I don’t believe that for one second … I know scores of very very intelligent people who could care less for video games. The games they play are the ones I mentioned above and they play team sports like Soccer, BBall, Football, Lacrosse, etc. which involve some real strategic thinking if you are really going to try to win. Plus there are plenty more I didn’t even mention. Again you guys are putting WAAAYYY to much on video games which are mainly just for pleasure … nothing more or less.
January 8th, 2007 at 1:40 am
I agree with Anuban obviously. Its one thing to say that games don’t hinder a youth’s upbringing, but to start arguing that they actually are BETTER and IMPROVE the mind and body… no way! If games teach people teamwork and reactions, what did the entire human race do up until 20 years ago when games started becoming mainstream? We were all dull, unrepsonsive, uncommunicative etc? Me thinks not. The real world was there first, and can offer far more than any game can. I would be worried if I started to put more value on what I can get from a game than what I can get from life. Who cares if a game has been proven to increase reaction times? Are you really trying to replace real life expaeriences with ones in games? Why? Why encourage looking at a screen for whatever reason over going out and about and doing it all in the world we have evolved in? We can develop into the best possible person without ever looking at a screen, and I partly believe that we should! Kurt Cobain wanted to kill the inventor of TV, and its not a coincidence that its called an idiot box. I totally see where he was coming from.
January 8th, 2007 at 1:50 am
Anuban: I’m talking about the gamers I know, they are far more intelligent than the non-gamers I know.
January 8th, 2007 at 1:54 am
Anuban, once again you (any many others) are taking things too literal. No one is talking about gamers as “only play games and not do ANYTHING else”.
Of course it’s best as a combination, sports, reading, games and so on.
I think the point Alex and Armin are making is that those who read, play sports, and play videogames are “better” than those who just read and play games.
Someone who ONLY plays games isn’t that good, but neither is someone who only reads books, or someone who only plays sports.
January 8th, 2007 at 2:16 am
”I disagree on that, pinksteady. Countless studies have shows that the brain is far more active when playing games. ”
The body too? And brain productivity surely doesnt equal useful productivity no?
January 8th, 2007 at 3:30 am
I say to Boris what I said to Thompson…
I have played video games since the atari 2600,
I am now a professional Systems/Network admin (which oddly enough came into play with this generation of consoles thats are all networked, i get calls from people all day!)
I am a Father of 4 (girl 9 twin boys 7 and little girl 3)
and I am happily marryed to a nongaming wife…
So much for mindless zombies?
(also ALL of my kids play games rating appropriate with me)
So before you say video games are estroying anything look at the ones who make it and not the few disturbed who didnt…
January 8th, 2007 at 4:05 am
Alex maybe you don’t know enough non-gamers then … look I totally disagree with what you are Armin are saying it is that simple. And Jim I don’t follow your logic at all. How are people who play video games better than people who choose not to but play team sports that require strategic thinking and board games that also require brain power and then toss in reading real literature … I can’t see what you are saying. Sorry.
And robby1051 good for you, but again I know Systems Engineers who develop Database programs and networking products who are very proffecient in C and Assembler who never played video games other than the ones at the arcades years ago and mainly pinball games … and I also have been Systems Engineer and a Lab Manager and a Programmer in the past as well as Network Admin for a 1000 plus node network but that was well after I had stopped gaming … video gaming that is. During that time I was playing team sports, reading a ton of high level literature, astrophysics, art theory, histories of ancient civilization, and philosophy, and of course keeping up with my martial arts studies which worked my mind, body and soul, so again I just don’t see how anyone can think video games make you more intelligent in any real tangible way. But of course as I always say that is just my opinion.
All I know is gaming is fun and doesn’t necessarily make a person a mindless zombie … but that is as far as I will go.
January 8th, 2007 at 5:46 am
We are all talking about personal experiences. We are very insignificant in the grand scheme of things so to say “this isn’t true because look at me” is irrelevant. Not everyone is the same so we have to take the best point of view for an entire multitude of generations to come. Therefore, I think it much wiser to promote everything that doesn’t involve a screen to the younger generation, and then let them come to computers/games in their own time with their parents support, than to force computers down their necks for no reason at all. There is no REASON why computer games should be promoted to kids … they don’t need them, and they certainly don’t increase anything in that child that cannot be increased far more effectively and healthily outdoors or in a book etc. I am amazed at some of the arguments put forward here - that playing games increases this that and the other (proven in ‘tests’ - BrassEye anyone?). Its just not an argument, human development does not need computer games to be at its optimum!!! Games have been around for a few decades, humans have been around for a few millenia, therefore I really don’t think games are that vital to our upbringing!
So to the pro-gamers posting here, I have one question - WHY do you promote games to the degree that you do (eg trying to prove they improve kids mental performance et)? Its like reality TV, or prOn - Society would never promote these things to kids because they don’t do any favours to them, but obviously the kids will get involved at some stage and enjoy them, but hopefully by then they will have learnt that these things do not have any serious significance in reality. If however, you DID show your kids crap telly and prOn from an early age, you can be sure that they will play a larger part in that persons life as he/she develops, which is not a good thing.
So why the keeness to promote computer games to kids? Surely anyone in their right mind would try and promote outdoorsy stuff, reading, socialising, absolutely anything but what comes from a screen, and let the kids find the screen a little bit later on? I just don’t get the importance being put on games by some of you. Like Anuban says, its just opinion, but there we go.
January 8th, 2007 at 6:33 am
Gaming makes the body passive. People who game too much often neglect the other things in life. I know too many stories of people sacrificing almost everything for gaming. From no longer seeing people, to eating only pizza for your natural life.
I don’t blame them but:P …
Lots of recent studies have shown that people who play videogames show increased activity in the lobes handling coordination and problem solving. Very duh so far. So basically ze doctors theorize (because the brain expands that areas which it uses most frequently) that gaming makes you ’smart’. So Armin did have a valid point there. However, the question remains wether it’s a good thing being completely passive with your body and restraining your mind in repetitive and easy tasks would add to your common knowledge. (Un)fortunately we aren’t taht far yet with ze brains to know what our knowledge is precicely made of:P Also that the brain would expand some areas, would ofcourse mean that the other areas get a little less attention, like the lobes that do communication, bodily functions or movement:P:P
Add to that the serotonine that keeps getting released due to gaming (which causes exhileration, the ‘fun’ so to speak. Which makes it in a way addictive wahhahaah. JUNKIEESS!
in short: GAMING MAKES YOU SLAVE
Denying that too much gaming is bad for you is like staring into the sun and saying it’s good for your eyes. Or you’re just a game-fanboy! But I game anyway fuck it, I get along juuust fine:P
January 8th, 2007 at 6:39 am
@ alex ”Anuban: I’m talking about the gamers I know, they are far more intelligent than the non-gamers I know. ”
But is it the games taht made them ‘intelligent’(if you call school degrees a viable tool for measuring intelligence) or where they intelligent and wanted games more than their counterparts. Maybe their parents where richer, or less home. So they had more money and/or time to invest in games/computers? 100’s of possible reasons, maybe even intertwining. You cannot make such a statement.
Just because you see A and B, doesnt mean it has a connection.
January 9th, 2007 at 7:21 pm
My God … Jack Thompson is actually wising up and using some common sense and logic? Amazing, simply incredible … just goes to show anything can happen these days. Who knows maybe the PS3 will be a really great gaming system afterall.
“In the past, Florida attorney Jack Thompson has shown little interest in compromising when it comes to his efforts to keep violent games from being made, released, or sold to minors. Today, however, the controversial lawyer appears to be willing to bury the hatchet with the industry, and has proposed an agreement that he said would put an end to his efforts to have laws passed regulating the industry.
In a letter addressed to outgoing Entertainment Software Association president Doug Lowenstein and Entertainment Software Rating Board president Patricia Vance (and forwarded to GameSpot), Thompson suggested that the industry simply tell retailers that if they sell games rated M for Mature to minors, publishers won’t ship them games to sell in the first place.
“All that is needed for the industry to get federal and state governments and activists like me off your back is to craft a written industry policy whereby all ESA members direct retailers to stop selling Mature-rated games to anyone under 17,” Thompson wrote. “By private agreement rather than by legislation, if such sales occur, upon a factual showing on a case by case basis, then escalating commercial sanctions will be visited upon the offending retailer(s) by all ESRB members.”
- quoted from Gamespot
Guess that means this dude Boris is all alone know is the major ideot against gaming.