Jack Thompson Has Defense Department in His Sights
Jack Thompson Has Defense Department in His Sights
December 27, 2007
Is there an "unholy alliance" between the video game industry and the U.S. Defense Department?There is in the mind of Jack Thompson.
The anti-game activist sent out a press release this morning claiming that he would turn his attention in the New Year to the U.S. military's foray into the video game space. From Thompson's press release:
One of the consequences of this collaboration [between the DoD and the game biz] is the increasing number of commando-style assaults by young video gamers, such as the recent “mall massacre” in Omaha, Nebraska.
GP: ...ummm, evidence? Any basis whatsoever for such a sweeping condemnation?
Virginia Tech’s Cho was an obsessive high school player of the military-themed CounterStrike, according to the Washington Post.
GP: Gov. Kaine's blue ribbon Virginia Tech Review Panel reported that there was no evidence that Cho played anything more sinister than Sonic the Hedgehog. The Washington Post deleted its initial reference to any supposed Counter-strike play on Cho's part. Thompson is well aware of that, but continues to cite the initial - apparently erroneous - report.
Researchers have proven the long-term effect of immersion in interactive violence...
Perhaps. But Thompson doesn't say what those researchers may have proven. There's certainly no study which draws a link between game violence and actual violence, although that's the implication in his press release.
What is increasingly clear is that the unholy alliance between the game industry and the DOD is teaching an an entire generation of kids that war is glamorous, cool, desirable, and consequence-free.
Believe it or not, there is actually a formal working relationship between the[DoD] and the game industry at the Institute for Creative Technologies [ICT] on the campus of the University of Southern California. US Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma is its most unabashed and enthusiastic supporter.
A recent poll shows that more than 60% of the American people want a federal law that prohibits the sale of extremely violent, mature-rated video games to minors. How upset will American parents be when they find out their federal government, rather than being part of the solution, is actually part of the problem?
GP: While the use of the freely-distributed America's Army PC game as a recruiting tool is somewhat controversial, there aren't many other publicly available games with any kind of DoD connection. I reminded Thompson that all of the America's Army games, including the more recent console titles, are T-rated. He replied:
America's Army is not the only such game, ace. Pay attention.
GP: Well, we are paying attention, which is why Thompson's move in this direction is surprising. In addition to America's Army there are a pair of Full Spectrum Warrior titles. And that's about it. Thompson, in fact, mentioned FSW in a follow-up e-mail. It's true that the strategy franchise is M-rated, but the player's character directs a squad and doesn't actually handle any weapons. ICT developed that game in versions for both the military and commercial game market.
There is and has always been an overlap between the military and consumer markets. Products developed for one often find their way into the other. What's more, the military is making increasing use of game tech for training purposes.
Aside from that, the small universe of games with a DoD connection doesn't seem like especially fertile ground for a Thompson-style jihad. There are no crazed axe murderers, no hookers to rob, no carjacking, no simulated drug usage.
Comments
Jack thinks he can take on the US Defense Department? This'll be good.
So, how long until we hear a verdict on this ass-hat's disbarment case?
It will be like lining up Napoleonic soldiers against an Abrahms Tank... won't be pretty.
I wonder sometimes what goes on in JT's brain. I mean is it like Caboose from Red Vs Blue, or like the Milkman Conspiracy from Psyconauts?
Perhaps JT should say that there is a conspiracy between the Illuminati and the gaming industry next, or perhaps the Templars and Hershey's chocolate, or any number of wild ass, base-less claims.
Seriously though, Jacks still spouting off the same old "facts" and "statistics". Doesn't he realize by now 98% of all statistics are made up? Including mine?
Blatant misinformation, insinuation, accusations without supporting evidence, citing of discredited reports.. aren't these the things a professional, especially a lawyer (Not to mention a rational adult) are supposed to avoid?
And he wonders why there are bar complaints against him. Speaking of those, anyone have an idea of when that trial's supposed to pick up again?
and of course most of JT's facts have been made up by him personally in order to give him an excuse to get involved in certain case. Next thing you know he's going to say that the kid killed by that tiger played Zoo Tycoon and was abusing his animals in the game.
For once, from first hand experience, I can completely deny Mr. Thompson's allegations and dismiss then as ignorant.
Exactly - if Jack were really interested in the truth, you'd think he would have used our oft-repeated rebuttals of his weak arguments to reformulate the basis for his attacks. In light of his inaction on that front, we can reasonably assume that he is either a) incapable of rational thought, or b) not interested in the truth, just interested in a dollar value with a healthy number of zeros at the end. Neither speaks very well of his character.
But then we already knew all that.
It takes a special kind of fool to ignore reality when it's standing right in front of your face, but Jack Thompson has done this consistently.
I see he has upgraded his description of Counter Strike as well to "military themed" instead of "murder simulator"....changes to fit whoever he is trying to bilk money from.
Where is the unholy alliance between the game industry and the DOD? Only in the mind of JT
I can't wait to see how this conspiracry theory will spin to once JT starts to get his ass handed to him by the DOD.
Or gets him abducted in the middle of the night by a shadowy goverment agency.
But then again, better to have him live in humiliation, I think.
Don't forget no cop killing.
But on another note, I am liking Inhofe more and more. First he gets GreenPeace mad at him and now John Bruce. Love it.
I can't wait to see how this all plays out.
Like GP said, the reference has long since been deleted. Here is the one sentence that Thompson is basing his whole "Cho played CounterStrike" theory on:
Several Korean youths who knew Cho Seung Hui from his high school days said he was a fan of violent video games, particularly Counterstrike, a hugely popular online game published by Microsoft, in which players join terrorism or counterterrorism groups and try to shoot each other using all types of guns." -Washington Post
Andrew Eisen
Jack Thompson reminds me of a quote that Benjamin Franklin once said.
"Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain and most fools do."
Okay, first of all? America's Army is old news. I think I played it five years ago, or something. Second, you're trying to take on the U.S. government now? What would motivate you to attempt something so idiotic, other than an insatiable desperation for attention?
We're witnessing a DEATH SPIRAL, people. I plan on going up in my SimCopter and enjoying the view.
That's next. If the DoD doesn't submit to his will, then he will sue the whole country because 'obviously' everyone is against him.
I misread that reply for a second. I thought it said Jack would blame the Tiger for playing Zoo Tycoon, lol.
"nothing short of suing an entire nation will"
Don't give him any ideas.......
Don't put it past him.
Which of course explains Cho's obsession with smoke grenades and running while holding a knife and hopping incessantly while simultaneously calling everyone a 'fag'... er...
the DOD is teaching an an entire generation of kids that war is glamorous, cool, desirable, and consequence-free.
Are soldiers actually taught that last bit? That there's consequences to shooting the "other" guy? I'm pretty sure soldiers don't get that kind of knowledge until they're out on the field of battle... And war has been glamorized and made cool since... well... forever. Soldiers were always the hero. The heroic last stand, the heroic charge, the stud in uniform wooing the ladies, the brilliant tactics that save the day and vanquish the enemy, etc... you know "pointy end go in other guy...", "the object is not to die for your country, it's to make the other poor bastard die for his..."
I love how Jack obsesses with this, like it's some conspiracy that the WP decided it wasn't relevant, considering he hadn't played games for 4 years leading up to the massacre. But then I guess he still also believes that Cho's roommates are being paid off by the industry to deny any connection... I guess once you learn how to shoot someone in the face, it becomes like riding a bike, or something...
So does that mean that Dick Cheney trained on GTA?
I'm on to them.
I'm on to everybody!
How retarded can JT get?
Oh bugger, now, you've gone and done it. Just for that he HAS to go and do something even DUMBER...
Tell me about it, I've found that squad tactics are all but useless in most shooters. Setting up base of fire positions, flanking manuevers, and the classic Four F's (find, fix, flank, finish) is almost impossible. Particulary so in online games, where players rush forward like they are hyped up on quat and PCP and don't seem to care if they survive or not.
I say let him try. I'm sorry I don't have popcorn. As if Microsoft ignoring him wasn't enough, now we get to watch DoD go through him like an elephant through a wet paper bag.
The DoD is to blame for the evils of those killer training video games?... er wait is it the games that are responsible for training the killer DoD types?... er um DoD members must play so they are evil and will attack malls?....
um Games have Guns, the DoD has guns. It was the guns all along... the guns must be playing the evil games... and controlling their users
Did what was left of his brains explode is was it only mine trying to figure this out?
So is JT essentially calling all military personnel murder trainers? Since he lumped the entire DOD in as a whole.
Wow, thanks for the support Jack. I will have to pass this story out to my fellow soldiers.
Global warming is a cover-up for the US's plan to dig a hole to China and dig out their foundation. To hide the fact that they are digging the hole they are dumping the dirt and rock into the ocean. That is what is really causing the oceans to rise. The Government made up the whole global warming thing to hide that fact.
actually this is gonna be friggen beautiful
OMG! You mean teen killers have skillz in... small squad tactics?!?!!??
*imagines the next one to snap standing behind a small group of little plastic men*
"Gogogogogogogo! I said go! Why won't you listen to me!!! Argh! Where's the 'go there' button!"
Judging by the attrocious grammar in your last sentence, I think it is your brain that exploded while trying to figure out the John Bruce theory. ;)
“It will be like lining up Napoleonic soldiers against an Abrahms Tank… won’t be pretty.”
Don't underestimate those bayonets. They can gum up those treads if you get enough stuck in them. And Abrahms aren't designed for close-quarters combat. He'd have better luck with one of those Israeli tanks, the ones with the machine guns on all faces.
Nope, it's because John Wayne conspired with the video game industry using astral projection based on experiments conducted by the DoD involving the Philadelphia Experiment which was derived from alien technology from Roswell who had come here to investigate the Tembliska Blast after being summoned by the Knights Templar in 1191 who were trying to use the Ark of the Covenant as a radio to God.
Any other conspiracy theories that can be thrown in there?
I've said too much...
As for the the topic in the article, I guess all I can say is "Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot". The DoD works with Boeing, are they training our airline pilots for combat? They also work with vehicle manufacturers, does that mean my car is a death machine waiting to happen?
DoD =/= Brainwashing and combat training for tweens. It's just another example of the military exploring all of their options and getting involved in cutting edge technology. Big whoop.
@GryphonOsiris
Seconded, LOL.
Beware of the nails in your desk.
Don't ever, I mean it, EVER, try to see what they are made of.
And that taint in the mirror? Can you see it? Then you are... done for. That's the best I can say. Don't imagine anything, it'll be worse.
War has been glorified in movies since even the earliest days of silent film (see: Cecil B. DeMille's "Birth of a Nation" or Buster Keaton's "The General"). Move up into John Wayne or Clint Eastwood territory, and it gets even more glorious.
Strangely enough, video games got invented and we still played the same outdoor games.
Number of murderous rampages I've gone on: zero.
Don't answer questions you don't want the answers to... Ok maybe you do, but I don't.
@ All
This appears to be just another attempt to get himself in front of the media. Maybe he thinks since the Iraq war is such a hot political topic he'll get airtime for his conspiracy theory? Unfortunately someone forgot to explain to him it takes some fact and LOTS of plausibility for a conspiracy theory to live. The fact is the US military is scrambling to find new ways to recruit and working on supplimenting the low recruiting numbers with automated field units (aka remote controlled vehicles). So, with that in mind, a conspiracy by the DoD to use video games to train and recruit is, well, unfounded or simply bungled.
Ugh. In my opinion JT needs a hobby beyond video game litigation with no foundation.
*Don't ask quetsions you don't want the answers to...
I know I recall somewhere that HE was the source from which the Washington Post drew their information, since he said it on television, and then he used them to quote from, even after they withdrew the statement.
Anyway, I think this is fantastic. Considering he's in the middle of his own trial, I'd say that the right people HAVE to be seeing this as it happens, so there'll be no hiding or downplaying his idiotic actions later when he faces the judge (literally).
I thought you had already lost it already but obviously not, or you will not be testing out just how comfy camp X-Ray beds are tonight.
All to true I fear. A meer mortal mind is not meant to understand JBT. Even the attempt is hazardous, with brain damage (and a lack of grammar) at the very least.
@GryphonOsiris
Damn bro you are scaring me. LOL
and you are teaching an entire generation of kids that being a narrow-minded assclown is "cool".
@Dog_Welder
War has been glorified in movies since even the earliest days of silent film (see: Cecil B. DeMille’s “Birth of a Nation” or Buster Keaton’s “The General”). Move up into John Wayne or Clint Eastwood territory, and it gets even more glorious.
---
In a way Birth of a Nation glorified war, but not necessairly true. If anyone is to take this film seriously you should consider its overly racist tones, sterotypes and the reception that it recived with the general american public that included rioting in many cities. Also birth of the nation is partially credited with reviving the KKK as that film was ued at a recuirtment tool for thier causes.
As far as cinema art goes, D.W. Griffith's (director of the film) screenplay revolutionized cinema and helped make feature length films a legitamate venture.
Buster Keaton's "The General" is a film set during the civil war just like Birth of A Nation, but it differs greatly in terms of content. Buster Keaton was much like Charlie Chaplin who were both incredibly popular during the silent film era due to their different by unique styles of comedy acting. The film itself does not glorfy war as much as it is visual humor, as Keaton was known as the "Great Stone Face" and expressed himself physically in order to reach his audience and make them laugh.
As far as John Wayne and Clint Eastwood go, you could definately label them as far more violent and "glorify" war.
I'm sorry if I seem a bit jumpy on this, but I don't want to see two great films that is percieved as glorifying war.
(sorry if there were any grammer problems in this :)
I think Napoleonic soldiers would just stare at the tank going "wtf?" (or whatever their linguistic equivalent was) long enough for it to start unloading on them, then they'd panic and break ranks trying to run away from the "magical death monster that makes the ground and men alike explode" at which point the tank would just massacre them all as they ran.
Anyways, yeah, this is a whole new level of crazy, even for JT. Guess I'll have to keep paying attention so I'll see the next time he out does himself. This topic itself was wild enough I couldn't believe it for a few minutes then had a good laugh when I realized JT was actually serious. Hope the judge over his disbarrment trial sees this, as this sort of behavior is so far out of line it should remove any doubt about JT ever being able to behave himself.
I guess Santa is working in mysterious ways this year, as I was hoping JT would prove to the world he was crazy, and it looks like he's well on the way to doing that.
I am sickened that he brought up the shooting in Omaha, that is digusting and proves (even though it didn't need to be) that he is a massacre chaser. My aunt had a friend injured in that tragedy and why did the guy decide to go into the mall and just start firing? According to Mr Thompson the usual video games, but sadly to his case and that of the people injured and killed it was a guy who was unnoticable and wanted to do something so people would remember him. Yup, some sick dude got the notion that killing people would get him remembered. If you goto Omaha, listen to the local news, or talk to the people, no one talks about it, no one wants to remember him, no one wants to give the man what he wants. Vicitims want to be left alone, like my aunt's friend and in a weird twist of fate, the local news is going along with their wishes and not doing stories on the guy for the same reasons. So you can see why I am so outraged to see Jackie boy bring this up.
I swear if Jack begins to give this man the power he wanted that he would stoop to killing people randomly at a mall, all it does is proof how disgusting and sick Jack is. So yes Jack Thompson, you are a disgusting human being that thrives on the suffering of others and for the first time you've gone beyond a sad little man screaming for the spotlight and have crossed the line in my book, good day sir.
And that is just a peek inside the twisted and trivia filled world that is my head. I'd love to see what the Psyconaut version of my brain is, that would be fun as hell.
I really don't know what else to say. GP did a great job of rebutting JT, and ApokalypseNow said what I would have said. I guess I can only express my opinion, which I did in the first sentence.
Not just Fail, but EPIC FAIL.
in other news,
Warrior culture has been around for, oh, several thousand years. Videogames...not so much. You want to bitch about mediums that make war and violence attractive...call the MPAA and take a bite out of them. The line about glamour, cool, and risk-free sounds like a movie to me. No interaction, no failure, no lost time, no lost life, etc. Yup, sounds like Hollywood.
/rant on
And where does this prick get off chatting up the Nebraska shooting. I thought those cards fell at the feet of a religious zealot of a parent, a troubled teen who had a bevvy of priors in violence and theft, and a lack of medication and treatment that eventually led to a doc holiday-esque shooting spree where he didn't care if he lived or died, but that he would be remembered forever. Games didn't make that little pissant shoot up the mall, a F@#$ed up mind and narcissism did.
Last thought. The funny thing about video games is that you are remembered for saving the world, being a hero, righting wrongs, etc, etc, etc. Last I checked, all the asshats that ever shot up schools or malls were looking to be remembered. They've all said it. Every 'goodbye note' and every bit of footage from videos that were made held that little bit of gold.
Infamy for the rest of eternity is better than being nothing for life, but we all remember their names and what they did. How many Honors students can you name? How many student athletes that have done community service can you name? How many good kids go through this world every day, doing the right thing, playing video games, and not shooting up the local community go unnoticed? Yet, we remember these bastards that decide to go on a shooting spree because they want to be remembered. For a moment in their lives they are somebody, and have created something that will be recalled long after they have died. So, who, really, should we be giving a damn about? The little bastards who shoot up a mall, or the ones who truly deserve a place on the front page of the newspaper. Frankly, the shooters should have an obit, small obits, and nothing more.
/rant off
Yeah, right Jack, you go ahead and beat America. Good luck with that.
Thats real sad to hear.
I still think Mr. Thompson's idea would be great for a movie. A sort of iRobot meets the Manchurian Candidate...I have to start writing this stuff down. If Napoleon Dynamite can do well, imagine what this will rake in.
Though upon deeper thought (dangerous when dealing with JBT) he would then be a paradox.
If he always failed, would he not then fail at failing?
This latest bit of his seems to prove differently. He is apparently incapable of not failing and the universe is saved.
But the question is; If he's a failure at being a failure, does that make him a winner or a loser?
Neither are like the jingoistic WWII movies that cropped up on the 50s and 60s, but that was also a different era.
War movies from the past couple of decades have gone out of their way to show the horrors of war. Again, the cultural tone changed thanks to the Vietnam War. I used to know a couple of vets who were on the Normandy beach. One refused to go see "Saving Private Ryan" because he really was trying to forget about being there. Another who saw it said it was the closest any movie had ever gotten to what it was like, but it still really wasn't close (the real event was far worse).
December 27th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
@ Icehawk
But the question is; If he’s a failure at being a failure, does that make him a winner or a loser?
===========================
I think it makes him the number one loser.
Games didn’t make that little pissant shoot up the mall, a F@#$ed up mind and narcissism did.
Pfff, when did such things as FACTS ever stop JT? Truthiness is what matters... ;)
Cho having suffered social and mental difficulties since very early in his life. Note that John Bruce skips way into Cho's High School years. Ignoring and attempting to get others to ignore those long term issues.
Cody Posey's long term verbal, mental, physical, and near sexual abuse. Yet, once again, John Bruce wants that abuse ignored in favor of his own personal, religious, and political agendas.
Hawkins, the mall shooter, also suffering from long term mental illness and possible drug abuse. Such evidence revealed in the recent public release of various documents: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22402970/
It would seem rather... odd... that John Bruce would push his Press Release so close to such a release of documents. Perhaps he's attempting to cover up this information by drowning the general public with misinformation, lies, and deceit, which is par for the course really.
Quite frankly, the distance between John Bruce and LaRouche is getting closer and closer. Well, LaRouche has a thing for the British Empire. Maybe John Bruce could increase his attack on Japan. After all, it was he who claimed "Pearl Harbor II".
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_McCarthy
As it is, Jack is more like a certain psychiatrist who rallied people and the government against the evils of corrupt media influencing children into being more aggressive:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredric_Wertham
However, Jack Thompson is, in all reality about as effective as a certain cartoonist who is basically opposed to, well, anything and everything:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Chick
Truthiness ftw :-)
The fact that JT still continues to play the V-Tech card is moving from disgraceful to hilarious. Perhaps he should comment on the devout christian kid who shot up that church.
As we have all noticed ever since he was filed for a Dis-barment hearing he has been getting more and more vocal and even more wild in his anti-gaming statements. Filing pictures of gay porn in suit documents, wild accusations that attempt to tie together to separate groups/things, filing to add more and more offenders on to his case(s), and so on. Call me crazy but i believe that he is trying to jam the already slow moving cogs of the judicial system by overloading it with his BS. This may sound like a conspiracy theory, bordering on the level of insanity or something to that nature, but I still cant help but believe something to this effect.
This is something I said to many war protesters that ask for immediate retreat.
Doesn't work, the entitlement feeling is too strong.
He'd stay in the green zone and would balme the suicide bombings on video games anyway.
I'd love to see him try to preach his 'good word' to the die hards over there. Hell, they might even become best buddies since their POV's are so aschew.
Jack seems to enjoy putting oil on the fire. In a few months the judge will be saying "Bravo Jack. You just disbarred yourself."
There is. Sowhere on orbit...
........
...........
HOLY FUCKING SHIT. Did Thompson's therapist fuck around with his meds for shits and giggles? This is completely and outrageously insane. Now Thompson is going to try to go against the federal government itself with shaky facts and downright lies with more holes in it than a colander? The claims he made are going to take the defense department about 5 seconds to refute. Cho didn't play Counter-strike, that was retracted by the Washington Post. There is no evidence of a causal relationship between the Omaha mall shooting and games (I'm leading towards depression and child abuse on that one). And there has been no link at all whatsoever between games and violence.
Also I would bet good money that many of that 60% of Americans who believe that there should be a federal law prohibiting the sale of M rated games to minors likely (and erroneously) believe there is a similar law for R rated movies. Its a VERY common misconception. And if 60% of Americans want such a law then 60% of Americans want an unconstitutional law. Therefore: tough shit.
Congratulations on throwing your career in the shitter Jacktard. The welfare line is on the right.
If you are on trial for disbarment for a certain behaviour,
YOU DO NOT go out and commit the SAME ACTS that put your license in jeopardy the first time, ESPECIALLY while the judge is still deliberating!
This guy is friggin nuts and needs to be disbarred for the sake of the rest of the legal profession.
I do not believe I that there is a single sentence of his statements that doesn't violate some rule of Code of Ethics. Incluing "Hi, I'm Jack Thompson"
But of course, Jack can't get himself any allies, since he's wrong on the facts, and comes not from any genuine concern over dismantling the power and influence of the military, but from a kooky conspiracy-land, a repressive moral ideology, and overall abrasive righteous assholishness. Gosh Jack, you were so close. I wonder how much it's going to matter though when the Florida courts are finally finished with you. Perhaps you should start thinking that it means more, because credibility will be *all* you have left.
What good will come out of all this Jack?
Honestly...
Really GP, are you just trying to keep the ECA members entertained? The entertainment value of the ECA's fixation on JT is significant but I'd much rather make a difference in the politics surrounding video games. It is kind of why I joined in the first place.
It is getting pathetic. If we continue focusing on individuals such as Jack Thompson instead of the government then Gamers are going to LOSE. Even Lyndon LaRouche is more of a threat. You must realize that Jack Thompson has problems convincing anyone in the court that his claims are legit. Remember where the REAL threat is located. Washington is where the effort should be. There are a great number of other issues we should be dealing with none of which include the likes of Jack Thompson.
I couldn't disagree more with Hal Halpin in terms of Jack Thompson being a threat. He is a washed up lawyer that will literally try anything just to be a pain in the ass to the gaming industry. Other lawyers know this, judges know this and anyone that is involved with Video Game Politics will know this. He has a personal vendetta against video games and that simply doesn't stand ground in court. It never will, he fails before he even tries.
What we should be doing is focusing on education and our constitutional rights as gamers, game developers and consumers. Artists, laborers, worker bees or whatever else you want to label yourself as so the mainstream media and ultimately the public will begin to lose their ignorance. Once people understand that video games ARE NOT only for children and that fine artists produce these games have the right, according to the constituion of this nation, to develope these games for whatever audience they please then the public will forget about Jack Thompson. Define the target audience and then provide the education on the issues and let them decide for themselves.
Cursing him durring interviews and on articles like this means nothing but good press for him. This bickering back and forth is what gives him the strength to continue. We should be completely ignoring him and providing people with our possition which should be presented in a professional manner. Get people to relate to us so we can move on instead of wasting time bickering back and forth and calling eachother jackasses. We sound like a bunch of drama queens from middle school god damn it.
So my fellow ECA members I'd like to say I still support the idea of the ECA. I've written e-mails and messages to Hal and other officers of the ECA to see how I can make a difference and volunteer my time at gaming conventions such as GDC and AGDC even though I'm paying really good money to attend. Hell, I'm even working on starting a ECA chapter where I am located. I'm surprised how quickly I get a response. Its awesome that they are they dedicated to actually read messages. But I do not agree with this Jack Thompson issue, we are going about it the wrong way.
Fact is I really like the idea behind the ECA and I want to actually be apart of something that is going to make a difference. But this fixation on washed up lawyers is not what I'd call a productive means to bring about real change. I dont want to be a member to say I've given money to bring about change, I dont want the benefits or discounts, I don't even want a custom ECA banner or a membership card. I want to actually change something, not write about how much of a dickhead Jack Thompson is. ANYONE can write articles about how Jack Thompson is worthless. Either way I'm dedicated to bring about change that game developers and gamers deserve and I'm just looking for the opportunity to do so.
"There comes a time within everyone
to close your eyes to what's real
No comprehension to fail
I vacuum the wind for my sail
Can't be the rest
Let others waste my time
Owning success is the bottom line.
Like a knife into flesh
After life is to death
Pulling and punching the rest of duration
NO ONE can piss on this determination." - Phillp Anselmo (PANTERA)
Actually I couldn't disagree more. Thompson is a threat, just not the obvious kind. He represents a more subtle threat, and one that's a lot more sinister in its own way.
What's he doing is an age old tactic of winning people to your own way of thinking. Repeating a lie over and over again until the lie is accepted as truth. We all know that the VTech killer, Cho, didn't play Counter Strike or other such games. Does the grandmother in Chatanooga, TN know? How about the mom from Tulsa, or the dad from White Plains? He's, currently anway, a lawyer and there are many people who will put stock in what he says because of that, there are also people who will believe him because of his CLAIMS (and I emphasize that word) to be a Christian.
It is incumbent upon us, as the gaming community, to use our voice here, and elsewhere to expose the lies and make people aware of the mistruths that are being spread about us.
Why is it ok for the military to do this?
Suggesting that the Department of Defence is in part responsible for teenage killers? Genius touch. I can't see any negative consequences coming from that statement whatsoever.
Its ok because its still free speech. Young people aren't stupid, if they don't want to join up then playing a videogame certainly won't brainwash them into doing so.
"Think about logically for a second... Japan attacked are base and where in which country our most murder simulators created? Japan!"
Also Video Games most notably GTA were responsible for the Holocaust and not Hitler like Take 2 and Midway would lead you to believe.
Lastly 9-11 was the direct result of Microsoft Flight Simulator and Ace Combat.
And somehow Konami killed the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy.
Not to mention that, regardless of what conservatives may say, the armed forces and national guard are stretched very thin, so any tools they can make or use to gain new recruits... that's why it's okay.
Last movie I saw had a full song full of patriotic imagery encouraging joining the forces during the previews. Same thing, less interactive.
My pals Gil (Gilgamesh) and Sam (Sansom) want to tell you the films aren't the very first in that line of bussness.
I still prefer "Trumph of the will" when it comes to films. Better than most, indeed.
It's not because they aren't enough people to take on the job, it's that there never are enough of them.
I give you that there are war scenes in it, but I was looking at it from the icnimatic perspective of what Griffith employed in making those scenes. I think the impact they had was far greater in film narrative than it promotes heroics. I also agree that the soldiers were considered heroes in the context of the film, as people on opposing sides will often honor thier soldiers. We do the same now with honoring our soldiers currently serving in Iraq and Afganistan.
While movies show more of the 'reality' or 'authenicity' or war, and I cannot speak from expereince but I know that it must be a thousand times more terrible thatn what you see on film, the sad part of it is that there is more often than not, a progtaginst protrayed with heroic acts that are exaggerated greatly. I'm glad you cited those films though, they are two of my favorites.
On another note, have you seen the film M?
--
I'm sure this has been asked about, but when does Jack Thompson, John Bruce Thompson's disbarrment procedings continue?
Did you know that the orcs's spears in LoTR were inpired by that film?
Is that true or are you just pulling our collective legs?
Judge Tunis, i believe, is going over all the evidence and should be making a judgement sometime in January, i think.
Wonder if he's in the market for some tin hats?
At least I remember something on the DVD about it. The similarity is in the use of the spears and camera angles to make the crowd seem bigger (and nastier, stronger...) than it is, not in the message.
They look alike at least.
A recent poll shows that more than 60% of the American people want a federal law that prohibits the sale of extremely violent, mature-rated video games to minors.
False. The poll was done by a PR firm trying to solicit business with the ESA.
Source: http://gamepolitics.com/2007/12/06/consumers-govt-should-regulate-games-...
@Terrible Tom -- I think you misunderstand the purpose of this site. Despite the fact that it's owned by the ECA, it's a site about video game politic news. Jack Thompson makes news. This site reports it. I haven't seen any change in the JT news coverage since ECA became the parent company of gamepolitics.com (and I've been reading since long before that happened).
As far as Jack "not being a threat" goes, I fully disagree. The groups you cite KNOW he's a washed up lawyer. I know it. You know it. Dennis knows it. Etc. Those groups are a painful minority of people that Jack reaches, though. Normal people who know nothing about video games (such as my parents) see people like Jack on TV spouting his "facts" and suddenly think video games cause school massacres. I even have friends who KNOW BETTER than to believe people like Thompson, and they even get taken in. (I've taken the time to set them straight.)
Take a look at all of the politicians who now spout the same talking points as Jack. Take a look at the politicians who listen to his lies and try to pass legislation to restrict or ban games. You're trying to tell me that he has no influence?
People might be wising up, but simply ignoring Jack will not make him go away. That strategy was tried by Doug Lowenstein and it failed miserably.
He wouldn't be the first. (Nor the first to succeed, given his track record.)
But this one is just as good as the people who think America started 9/11 to be able to pass the Patriot Act and invade Iraq. Theories that you will have a tough time proving, thus this is another losing battle for our dear friend Thompson.
I mean is he trying to piss off the people that could have his right to practice law revoked or is he just not thinking?
Jack Thompson is just getting pathetic
If this moron actually took on things one at a time like just focusing on the m rated games being sold to kids he might actually achieve something
but no he goes in way over his head and acts like a total idiot making baseless claims and calling gamers a bunch of meanies who dont like him because hes christian
and he calls himself an attorney? hell! id make a better one than him.
seriously im starting to think hes working for the game companys he sues lol(publicity sells)