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Sorry the title sucks. Anyhow, many say, believe, and are trying to prove that violent video games cause adolescenses to become more violent. They think that games like GTA and Manhunt will spawn more violence and kills and the like. So they want these games to be banned. Some even want all games to be banned and believe video games are evil. *cough*JackThompson*cough*
Thoughts?
(I'll post mine tomorrow. It's almost 2 in the morning here and I gotta get up early tomorrow so...yeah...)

I hear you have to be 18 now to get an M rated game.

I play violent games all the time, they're great to play cause they let out stress. And if a person can't tell the difference between violence in a game and violence in real life, then they shouldn't play the damn game. And parents should stop bitching about violent games. The rating is there for a reason. If you don't want your kid to pay it, then don't let them. But don't try to make it impossible for the 20-soemthings and up to play the adult rated game. People don't whine about violent movies nearly as much as they do video games. And it's easier for kids to slip into an R rated movie. When my friend and I went to see 300, the ticket seller didn't even card us. Least they do in gamestores.
It's good for parents to monitor what their kids play, but they don't need to take it to the extreme and denounce all violent games or games period. *cough*JackThompson*cough*

EDIT: And hell, what about all that hip hop with crude, derogative, & violent lerics? Maybe that helps make kids violent? A good percentage of the males at my school try to emmulate the 'gangsta' rappers and what not. Maybe that s**t has more influence than video games.

I attempted to write an essay on this when I was still in high school. I was told that it was an irrelevant topic AFTER I had written about 3 pages on it. The argument that the ESRB should step in is valid but if local stores are lax in their policies (Ex. my local rental store of choice) then the ESRB might as well have never said anything in the first place. What we have here is an attempt to place the blame somewhere ANYWHERE but on the classmates that tortured the guys in the first place (speaking of columbine).This is because the parents of those students who bullied them everyday don't want to believe that their perfect children had anything to do with it. I have been a gamer for my entire life and have yet to kill anyone. If anything video games have KEPT me from going off the deep end. One question, Why did they blame the violence of DOOM for the killings?

@ Jezus Needles Yeah I think they did try to partically blame Doom since the two played it. I heard they played it as practice, but considering the source I didn't pay too much attention. And I agree, I love God of War and fps cause they're a great way to blow off steam.

GTA, one of the worst and best games. The only good thing about it, is the cars part, being able to get into anything and fly or drive away, cruising around, having fun. Even a Train in the San Andreas version.

The bad, everything else, as it is depicted on possible life. Shooting people, cops as well, non-stop cursing, just a plainly bad game, yet it sells...

This kind of game depicts the integration of all kinds of real life into it, though even so, doesn't do the reverse in teaching kids how to kill people with cars. It's just the parents who don't raise their kids up, just letting them be them and not interfering, that allow violence among youth to rise. Games are just a scapegoat for them so they don't look like bad parents. Stupid lawyers!

I think the argument of videogame violence causing realy violence is rediculous. I think lack of dicipline with children leads to violence. I've seen kids who don't play video games and aren't spanked by their parents hit and kick and slap their parents. I mean for that much we might as well ban violent movies because kids will probably pick up violence from that too.. No, it's only the responsibility for the parents to teach their kids how to behave, so that the children will know that even though you do violent things in video games, that is not the appropriate way to act in real life. Work just fine for me, I have never thought of being violent based on something I've seen in videogames, because I used to get speanked when I acted out when I was younger, before I even started playing them.

Plus I'd like to take a moment to hate on parents who complain about violence in games and such: It's YOUR responsibility to control what your kid sees and not. It's not the video game company's fault that YOU bought your 9-year-old "God of war" and now you're upset because he saw people getting ripped apart, getting heads cut off, and naked boobies. YOU got it for them and YOU didn't look at the rating that says "Rated M for ages 17+" BECAUSE the game has people's heads getting cut off and naked boobies. That is why your 9 year old kid wouldn't be able to buy it on his own. That's like getting mad at the PORN industry because you just carelessly gave your kid an x-rated video and then were later upset because your kids saw sex. It's says right on the case that there's going to be sex in it! It's YOUR fault you failed to read the freakin' rating! It's there for a reason! So you can't come back later and complain because you didn't know there was sex in the movie! [/rant]

rofl I would not be surprised if that's how it all began.

It is a genuine possibility.