In the debate over a link between violence and video games, a U.S. Senator has told "gamers" that we've got to "just quiet down." Nothing like a U.S. politician trying to stifle the First Amendment rights of its citizens, while trying to protect that of the Second.
There's an ongoing debate here in the United States over gun control and, in turn, the gaming industry has come under fire from both the NRA and several politicians who deem video games as the culprit behind the increased mass shooting sprees. Needless to say, avid gamers aren't taking sentiment very lightly. Frankly, the notion that video games, or music, or any other form of "violent" entertainment is nothing more than a scapegoat.
Yet California Senator Leland Yee, the author of the games legislation aiming to ban sales of ultra-violent games (struck down by the Supreme Court in Governor of California v. Entertainment Merchants Association), thinks we gamers have "no credibility in this argument."
Speaking to the San Francisco Chronicle, Senator Yee said: "Gamers have got to just quiet down. Gamers have no credibility in this argument."
"This is all about their lust for violence and the industry's lust for money. This is a billion-dollar industry. This is about their self-interest," he concluded.
It's both interesting and ironic that a politician is commenting on the self-interest of others. It's even more interesting that Yee feels gamers have no right to fight for what we believe in, but NRA folk can talk all they want — isn't the weapons industry just as powerful as gaming? Where's his shot at the NRA's "self-interest"? This is just further proof of the disconnect between U.S. politicians and the citizens of America.
Earlier this month, the Top U.S. officials, the NRA, and several key figures in the gaming industry met to discuss possible solutions regarding increased violence in America.
