Thompson & Son At It Again... Says Junior Bought Halo 3 at Target
Thompson & Son At It Again... Says Junior Bought Halo 3 at Target
September 27, 2007
Have you got Jack Thompson fatigue?Yeah, we have it too.
In the wake of yesterday's server-crashing, mind-numbing revelation by GamePolitics that the anti-game attorney sent gay porn pics to a federal judge we could use a couple of Jack-less days.
Alas, it's not to be. The activist, who sometimes refers to himself as the "Energizer Bunny" of the game violence debate, is at it again.
In a press release issued late yesterday, Thompson claims that his 15-year-old son has once again purchased an M-rated (17 and older) game at a South Florida retailer.
Readers may recall our September 13th story in which Thompson claimed that Junior purchased BioShock at a local Best Buy. This time around Thompson says it was Halo 3:
Miami attorney and anti-violent video game activist today did a successful sting on Target Corporation. His fifteen-year-old son, on the first try, was able to buy the “Mature-rated” Halo 3 without producing any age ID at the Dadeland Station Target.
GP: Hey, the kid is accumulating quite a game collection in the name of research. Hope he's finding time to get his homework done.
Comments
I'll bet anything they tried going to Best Buy first, and when they asked for the kids ID, Jack dragged him out of there and went next door to target, crying the whole way because "the jig was up."
how on earth did his son by it?
His "stings" ain't exactly news. Why bother posting about them?
-P
Sounds like poor parenting.
Y'know, these little stings of his might get more attention if they mattered. Target doesn't threaten to fire their employees and the managers on duty if an employee sells an M-rated game to an under-aged customer like GameStop does. More importantly, all the ultra-retailers, like Wal-Mart, Target, and BestBuy are so huge that one little incident like that couldn't possibly harm them.
Besides, it's the retailers choice to enforce the ESRB ratings, not the government or the local courts. But, we all know this, even JT knows this. More importantly, JT should know that it's HIS responsibility to raise his child and filter the media he's exposed to.
"You know, I decided to “do” a “sting” of my own (I made phone calls). I called the nearest Best Buy and Futureshop and they both asks for Ids when selling M-rated games."
lie: a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; an intentional untruth; a falsehood.
So you called the store and asked "Do you check IDs for M rated games?" Brilliant. Also, Clinton did not inhale, OJ was innocent, and The Sims contains full frontal nudity including labia and pubic hair.
If I worked at a game store and a stranger called and asked "Do you check for IDs?" I'd say yes instictively, whether or not it's actually true. Because if I didn't, and it was the regional manager on the other end, I'm fired.
That doesn't mean when a kid goes up to the counter with a copy of Halo 3 he is actually carded by the same employee.
I'm not sticking up for JT: I've watched kids at Best Buy slink away from the counter, disappointed that he couldn't buy Crackdown because he wasn't 17+. But don't be so gullible as to think that the gamer being paid slightly above minimum wage at Best Buy is above telling a little fib to ensure his job is safe.
Exactly what i thought.
That being said, I have never approved of Thompson's laughable (guerilla) tactics. The ends do not justify the means. It should only be a matter of time before he gets booted from the Florida bar. I just hate to think what kind of martyrdom he would pull after that.
BTW, I'm almost 30 and I got carded at Toys'RUs when I bought Halo 3 on Tuesday.
Stop giving this horrid man air time!
I'm a developer at Krome.
I currently have itchy balls because Krome doesn't pay us enough for me to afford beer and steak every night AND calamine lotion. It's one or the other for us!
That's game slash politic related... are you going to report that???
Or do I have to write you an email about it?
*stand*
Jack Thompson, you are right. In my haste to post something this morning before I went to work, I skimmed the article and didn't read it carefully enough. If I'd realized you'd already mentioned the day and that you did it 'first try', I wouldn't have posted in that manner. For that, I apologize.
*sit*
Besides, that was only the kid's side of story. We don't even know if Thomspon's kid pulled a tactic like showing a fake ID or something just to say he's 17. And granting w/o accepting for the sake of argument, how will this benefit Jack? In my point of view, this is like an empty threat to that PhotoShop "cease and desist" thing. Nothing will happen and Jack just wants to be noticed by the public.
Actually its not even that. Its Jack blowing $50 on something that proves absolutely nothing and will not be able to use as evidence in anything whatsoever. He proved that one employee in one Target was negligent. Big deal. And beyond that what evidence do we have that this even occurred? Yeah, his word really isn't worth very much.
So essentially, Jack is $50 down and thats about the gist of it.
Tell him to get on Live.
I'd also like to caution, in advance, any and ALL readers that if John Bruce slips in and does what he did the last time and posts phone number and name information on the cashier, that they NOT swamp the business with harassing phone calls at the bidding of John Bruce. If anyone should investigate the claim, let it be a mainstream media journalist or a specialist news media journalist, such as Dennis. John Bruce encouraged harassment the last time. A clearly unethical act. But if anyone actually fell for it, that's THEIR fault, not his. I know most here are intelligent enough not to call, but thought I'd say it anyway.
BTW, Dennis,... :: snicker ::... nothing about the cashier... :: chortle ::... having... :: LOL :: ... a piercing? ROFLMAO!
Sorry, I'll behave now. :D
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
A shame, since by the UK ratings (15) he'd be fine playing Halo 3 at least :)
nice job JT, you must be proud
So, Jack, tell us more about this "today" person.
I agree with you. I also think that Jack Thompson is lying, just like he is lying about how he is going to shut down Best Buy. This new press release Jack Thompson is saying (about his son buying Halo 3), is more of his "Antigamer Propaganda".
What a liar you are.
GP: As you know, there ARE NO ADS on GamePolitics... I make no money based on traffic. We had plenty of traffic during the 18 months that you were banned.
And I'm a liar?
Why do you keep thinking this is a victory against the game industry? It was a Target employee, not a Bungie employee, that sold that game to your son, and human error does sometimes occur.
The very fact that you think yourself a "crusader" for good, and then you turn around and consistently use your own child in the twisted little games you like to play goes to show one thing - what a complete and utter amoral twit you are.
I also call into question "first try," as you, sir, are a well known liar, more than willing to twist facts to your own needs. We've said it before, and we'll say it again - come November, you're out. Oh sure, you'll cry foul and conspiracy and any other number of things.
But by that point you'll also have turned everyone who may have been a friend to your cause against you, spreading the half truths and turning things to suit your own purpose as you do. No one will back you anymore. Just think on that.
Oh what a barrel of yuks this man is, contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
1. What evidence does Jack Thompson have, other than his word, which we know is less than accurate and truthful most of the time. Did he video it? A receipt on its own doesn't count.
2. Did Jack stand with him as he purchased the game, or was he in a different location? Standing with him as he makes the purchase is essentially agreeing to the transaction.
3. Did he use the "Lil Jackie Visa" or did he use cash? Where did a 15 year old get the cash from to be able to purchase this game?
4. Why is this game rated mature in the first place? It is rated 15 in the UK. Maybe we're just far too liberal for Jackie's liking.
5. Were the $20 bills real money, or did he replace Andrew Jackson with a picture of a gay-orgy?
And the big question
Why haven't these stores in Florida got a photo of Jack and Jackie Jr with "DO NOT SERVE THESE PEOPLE" behind the counter? I certainly wouldn't serve anyone with that wild stare and obvious instabilities. He might cut himself on the edge of the CD as he tries to taste it.
Come on Jack, you should know words alone aren't enough, you need some evidence. Video proof. You word against Target and the minimum wage employee is just not enough.
But, at least Jack is taking on the right people, the retailers and not the games themselves, regardless of the legality of the enforcement of age ratings.
From now on, every time I see a story about him I will immediately envision a snickering lawyer in a courtroom waiting for a Judge to open a legal docket, much like a child waiting for his neighbor to come out and stomp on the bag of flaming dog poo. I'll avoid the pornography jokes, though it takes all of my willpower. Besides, the previous story is much more amusing than a parent who, for his own agenda, exploits their child.
(posted under my full name per Mr. Thompson's request, normally post under the alias of GameDevMich)
I would love to hear what his son has to say about all this, and he proably does post on some forum somewhere, careful not to say who he's related to. But if Jack is like every other uber-conservative religous freak parent I've dealt with, he proably does't let him even use the internet.
We already know retailer policy compliance isn't 100%. The FTC said so and no one from the industry or otherwise has debated it.
Andrew Eisen
Thompson *clearly* has used the Family Settings on his son's 360 to ensure that his child will not be able to play Halo 3, and learn a $60 lesson to not pay for games he can not play.
After all, since console makers have given us, as parents, the resources (and thus the power, imagine that!) to control what our children are doing, then this is of little consequence.
You see, all my life I've felt that people who used children to advance their agendas are the lowest of the low. The kind of people who ought to have child services kick down the door and take their children to a reasonable home.
I don't believe for a minute that your kid bought it. I'm more than willing to believe that you stood by his side and said 'yeah, it's cool, give him the game, I know why its rated M'. You see Jack, you are a liar. And liar's don't change their stripes, nor do they prosper (if you don't believe me, review your record of court successes). Oh wait, you can't. You don't have any in the last 10 years!
So go fuck off Jack. You're washed up, and you using your kid to further your assinine agenda is the lowest thing you've ever done.
You're a snake and a liar,
Austin Lewis.
Jack, you are a hypoctite.
Jack, you are a bully.
Jack, you are all things you claim to hate.
Get a life, and go get the Unabomber's manifesto. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Target has a prompt that comes up at the point of purchase AT THE REGISTER. Nice to see JT explioiting his son though.
This is non-news.
I'm more inclined to go with Tim Buckley's theory for Jack's motivations. At this point, it's the only one that makes any sense!
Bathing Suit Area (08/08/2005)
If you're going to police grammar, you do know that proper sentence structure requires capitalization of the first letter of the first word in the sentence...
E-tard? Very professional Jack.
Correcting one's grammar while labeling them as an e-tard is very paradoxical, albeit entertaining.
(as per Mr. Thompson's request, I have posted using my full name. My normal posting alias is GameDevMich)
Yes, "today did" might be technically correct in some settings, but not this one. One does not usually "do" a sting, but rather "conducts" a sting. So, Jack would've been better served by saying "...today conducted a sting..."
However, given that he refers to people as "e-tards," we can't expect too much, notwithstanding his law school education, such as it was.
@ Jack
Where did you learn the term "e-tard" anyway? I've only ever seen that in online gaming contexts. It seems strange that you'd have adopted the customs of the culture you so obviously loathe, but, then again, you're out buying video games and surfing for gay porn, so... I'm not sure what to think anymore.
"...is technically close to being correct," =)
(as per Mr. Thompson’s request, I have posted using my full name. My normal posting alias is GameDevMich)
You know... a decent, moral, loving and educated parent wouldn't allow his underage kid to buy this if he didn't want them to have it. Looks like all JT did was prove he is a crappy parent. Congrats I guess.
Parenting 101 JT - Remember, its ok to tell your kids no sometimes.
I'm curious - what does your church think about all this? Does your pastor know that you're looking at pictures of gay porn and buying awful, morally depraved games?
Probably not, though.
If he doesn't, Target should have the video of the purchase. Now whether or not they'll let him actually have the video is another story.
-P
the only e-tard here, would be you.
Probably "AmendmentOneHooah"
One has to wonder: Would that fact that he keeps 'going' be because he's full of crap?
Get over it. Jack Thompson is news because he WRITES LAWS TO BLOCK GAMES and tries to blame games for murders. As he likes to point out, he's also been in the mainstream news (Not just that FOX bullshit). When he's not actually in court to legislate games, he's a great stress reliever and entertainment figure. I for one love to these articles and look forward to watching him blow his legal career to smithereens.
If you don't give a damn about Thompson's antics, DON'T READ THE ARTICLE.
and while I'm at it... @Jack: You just absolutely refuse to believe the truth. Look around dennis' website. What do you see? Links to other pro-game groups, his archives, his forums, etc. I have yet to see an ad for anything. If you're going to be a crusader of truth, learn how to speak without lying through your teeth. Thanks.
Makes sense. The constant stream of BS leaving his mouth would keep him at a constant velocity. Not to mention the fact that he has high inertia due to being full of shit.
"e-tard"
Inigo Montoya (The Princess Bride): You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=etard
You fail. Oh, and get used to THAT word (fail). You've heard it a lot already regarding your own life and career. Expect it more and more.
Rest assured, that even if you meant it in that way, there is no factual proof that anyone here uses Ecstacy. Which means you are, once again, making false and fraudulent claims against others. And, as usual, that seems to be an acceptable tactic to be used in the name of your God. And since no honorable, ethical God would advocate lying and deceiving others, I'll repeat my statement that clearly you, and others who follow that exact same God, are actually worshippers of a Demon-Pretender-To-The-Throne-Of-Heaven. I really must contact the leader of your church to verify this. If, in fact, your entire church worships such a being knowningly and intentionally, and is "mentally molesting children" (your phrase I believe) with the obscene abominations of Demon worship, then the rest of your community needs to know. Seriously, worship of a Demon who promotes lying and deceiving others, possibly among other unethical and harmful acts, places the community at large in danger. After all, everyone knows that Demon worship is "harmful to minors". Maybe the DA should seek banning children from your church under the Public Nuisance laws you like to toss about.
(Now, as an intelligent being, I would never really deny any Parent teaching their own children whatever religious beliefs they want, even if it included bigotry, hate, ignorance, lying, and deceiving others, among other acts and beliefs. But, at the same time, I would certainly want to know about such organized teachings so that I can protect my own child by having them stay away from such families that I feel would abuse my own child verbally, mentally, physically, perhaps even sexually. Nevertheless, since John Bruce feels that a theocratic dictatorship run by him is acceptable, it seems only fair to counter his argument with similar ones.)
Amazing how the uninformed use of a single word can lead to a long rant, eh?
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
Just do yourself a favor and come out of the closet and while you're at it stop using your son to do your dirty work for you. You're fucking up his life as it is.
JT: "Get your coat son, We're going to get you a copy of halo 3!"
JT Jr: "Wow thanks dad, my friends will be so jealous"
JT: "And then we can burn it when we're done."
Its like his modest proposal, offering money to charity and then not giving it. Only I feel this is more cruel, its exploiting his own son and both crushing his hopes to play popular games and destroying any chance of a meaningful father-son bond.
Jack, that makes you one huge asshole, enjoy hell when you get there.
Like another person commented here, Thompson probably dropped his son off at several stores before finally hitting paydirt.
So, Jack, tell us more about this “today” person. -LoopyChew
“today” is an adverb in the above sentence. thanks for the proof that games have made you into an e-tard. -Thompson
Ignoring the fact that LoopyChew’s remark was obviously a joke, perhaps you should bone up on your capitalization rules before giving us syntax lessons.
You don’t play games so what’s your e-tardation excuse?
Andrew Eisen
Did you and your son look at some gay porn together when you went back home?
Knock on the door to his room, a frosty can of Pepsi in each hand, and ask him if he'd actually like to play Halo 3, and if you could both do it together. You can bond as you blast your way through Covenant soldiers. You can laugh if the ragdoll physics does something interesting to an alien solder. You can work together as a team to make your way through a desolate battlefield teeming with Brutes equiped with deadly Spike Rifles. You can ruffle his hair when he figures out a difficult puzzle. You be be your son's friend.
Jack, you might actually like it. It's a scary thing, actually liking something that you've been vehemently hating for so long, but just try it out. I'm not trying to be a dick, and I'm not trying to draw you out or anything. My comments are in no way sarcastic, but honest. I may be one of the few gamers in the world who doesn't actually want you to die, but rather open your eyes to all the good things that games can do, and all the good times they can provide.
I'm serious, Jack. Try it out. Play it with your son. And when you're done for the evening, reflect on what you guys accomplished. You'll be surprised, and I bet you'll be at his bedroom door again the next night, wanting to continue to finish the fight :)
Laugh your ass off.
i wonder if he makes his son do it, or if he has brain washed his son into hating games and he does it willingly?
either way, his son needs a different dad
That, my friend, was brilliant. I'm also one of the gaming community that doesn't outright hate JT. I actually feel sorry for him more than anything else. What you suggested was a great idea. I add my voice to it and call on him to sit down with his son and play Halo 3, might be the most fun he's ever had.
I'm kinda scared for Jack's kid the same way I'm scared for Brittney Spears' children. I shudder to think how his mind is being contorted without a proper responsible parent.
...how many stores in the Miami area did Thompson visit before finding one that'd sell his kid the game?
TJ: "My dad's been driving me around all day, he smells weird and he's been muttering under his breath about traitors and pigs. I really wanna go home and finish my homework. Can you please just give me the fucking game, lady?"
...
JT: "Did you get it son?"
TJ: "Yeah, dad. They didn't even card me, honest. Can we go home now?"
JT: "AH-HA! I am vivified! Let's go home before your mother realizes I pulled you from school for this... I'll make my Dennis-sweetie write up an article as a monument to my fox-like cleverness!"
...
Ok I get that you are a JT fan, but that doesn't mean we all need to hear when he takes a dump. Can you really call this article news? How many times has an article EXACTLY like this(besides game name) been on GP? Its getting silly...I don't want or need to hear every little detail about JT. Especially something THIS stupid. If I were to do the same thing would I get my own article?
Look I'm all for JT being in an article if its something actually newsworthy, but so much thats not gets through. Don't read the article? Sure I generally skip over them, but when i have to skip over a number of pointless JT articles to get to real news its silly.
Sorry, but I started reading this site because it had relevant articles all the time about things that matter. This while it may be relevant to games it DOES NOT MATTER at all...not even a little.
Dennis if this site went to a news site to a "Jack is becoming even more wacko and some news on the side" let me know. Change the name or the site or add a disclaimer...Then I will know what to expect....
I outright hate Fag Thompson. Not because he is an (ineffective) anti-game Attorney(and your not). I hate him because he is a biblewhore.
At least JT knows what enjoyment is. Larouche doesn't even approve of CHESS.
Jack Thompson is actually completely sane, for the past 20 years he's been trying to see just how far someone who scape-goats something new can go before they get themselves debarred.
He already knows he can lie to judges, people, and basically everyone else, so now he's sending out Gay porn and making vaguely homoerotic comments towards Dennis.
I wonder what's next?
And you have the right practise law why?
I happen to be a Christian myself dude. Lets not insult an entire group of people just because you don't happen to like what they stand for. After all that's exactly what JT himself does.
"'today' is an adverb in the above sentence. thanks for the proof that games have made you into an e-tard."
So what's your excuse, Jack? Were you not taught proper grammar and punctuation in school, because I don't see any commas in your original post, nor do I see any capital letters at the beginning of those sentences. You also neglected to use your own name, thereby making "today" the proper noun in your release, not an adverb.
How your little press release should have read is "Miami attorney and anti-violent video game activist, Jack Thompson, today did a successful sting on Target Corporation." You could also have put your own name in front of your title separated by a comma. I'm surprised you missed an opportunity to write your own name out!
If you're going to attempt to mock someone for having a poor grasp of the English language, you might want to get a better grasp of it yourself. All your press releases read like they were written by your 15-year-old son.
Also, for your "sting" to be successful, it needs to have some impact other than another bill that will inevitably be deemed unconstitutional. The only thing you've been successful at thus far is becoming the butt of jokes for the entire gaming community. Thanks, Jack! Endless hours of entertainment and we don't have to pay you a dime for it! I especially like it when you allow us a little window into your fantasy world where everything you do is "big trouble" for the gaming industry and where you are never under scrutiny. Then again, they say that crazy people don't know they're crazy.
i'm a christian, and i've played quite a few of the games that JT criticises, without moral qualm. when i play online, i see my christianity saying i should try and promote friendly, fair gameplay.
i would hope that no one see's Jack Thompson as a typical christian.
JT uses more offensive language and says more hurtful things than ANYONE i know who says they're a christian. and a few satanists actually...
I'm sorry to hear that.
P.S. Fight fire with fire.
fight fire with water.
When we fight fire with fire, everyone gets burned.
In my eyes your are a fellow gamer first. I don't care what you worship or about who your savior is.
When we put Things before People, that's when we're failing as christians. the point of games is to play and have fun, God or faith need not impact at all in the gaming community, but the values i play by, as a christian gamer, i would hope, ensure that everyone has a GG.
You know who you are..
My VERY conservative, CATHOLIC step-grandmother encouraged her children to play video games and enjoy things like fantasy books and art. While she didn't encourage violence or swearing, and she did make sure they weren't running around blowing #(*$ up at 5 years old, she still encouraged them to enjoy the things they wanted to and has always supported them.
Get your facts straight, it's not the Christian's that are doing this, it's Jack Thompson. He's out for publicity and money, not to protect Christianity and all it holds dear.
This has nothing to do with Christianity, so get your facts straight.
.....He really HAS gone bat-shit crazy.
he mentioned as so the other day.
i know some very friendly Muslims as well.
beliefs dont make people bad, Jack's belief that games cause deaths doesn't make him bad, Osama Bin Laden's belief that acts of terror are they way to go, doesn't make him bad.
what makes people bad is WHAT THEY DO.
i am, by nature, a very violent person, in practise, its been years since i fought anyone in anger.
"But - and you knew there was a but, right? - GP does not permit comments which are threatening, menacing, racist, harassive or libelous in nature. We reserve the right to delete such comments."
i point out the words menacing and raicist. possibly harassive as well.
I'm not friendly! lol In all seriousness. Just let me troll Jack back in peace. He needs to learn that if he is gonna dish it out he needs to take it ( in the butt). My views on religion leaked out a little bit these past few posts.
I'll focus:
@Jon Bruce
I HOPE MANHUNT 2 IS NEXT JACKO. Seeing a copy of that in your son's innocent little hands is more evil he'll encounter in one week than at a public school.
I've regressed. Accept my remorse and don't ban please.
You can probably save your breath dude. I'm fairly certain we could present him with the cure for cancer and a cold fusion clean energy technique and he'd just call us "overeducated".
Oh well, its time for lunch!
'overeducated'?! good grief, is there such a thing? *eyeroll*
he might, actually...
How is it that what you are doing to your son is not child abuse?
According to Florida law you are violating:
Statute: §§ 39.01
'Mental injury' means an injury to the intellectual or psychological capacity of a child as evidenced by a discernible and substantial impairment in the ability to function within the normal range of performance and behavior.
'Neglect' occurs when a child is permitted to live in an environment when such deprivation or environment causes a child's physical, mental, or emotional health to be significantly impaired or to be in danger of being significantly impaired.
Surely you love your son enough to stop forcing him to go into stores and buy "hardcore pornographic and violent material", as you yourself have called such things. You should be ashamed of what you're doing. Take a step back and realise that no one will ever take your poor son seriously, and that he probably gets beat up and mocked by all the other kids. Its time you grew up and realised how much you're hurting him. You're not even doing it FOR him anymore. . .
Poor little kid.
1. love your name
2. you're absolutely right. either its child abuse, or he doesn't really believe what he's saying.
Yeah, but if they made Jack's kid cry, He would sue them for harassment.
He actually HAS. Dennis wrote an article sometime back - I forget the specifics, but it was regarding some sort of legal keynote/address. The guy speaking had a qualifications list longer then my arm. At one point he'd been considered a strong candidate for the supreme court. He laid out in some detail his position on the issue. Wacko-Jacko actually commented and called him, what was it? "an overeducated tool of the right wing?"
I can only begin to imagine what his problem with the guy must be, I gather they crossed paths at some point and puppet-show-jack things he's the better of the two. Maybe the guy doesn't use enough gay porn in his court docs or something.
Are you letting your son play those games? You should. You've already blown the money purchasing them, why let them go to waste? If you're such a good parent, I'm certain your son can handle Halo 3 and you could always *gasp* talk to him to learn how he feels about the game. I'd bet you would be surprised.
Bonus points if you take up a controller and play Co-Op mode with him. It might... Oh, I dunno... be a bonding experience with your son. You might even learn something. Like, how to play well with others.