Last Sunday morning, a Utah police officer chased a car that blew through stop signs and narrowly missed a pedestrian. Imagine the pursuing cop’s surprise when the car came to a stop and out popped a 7-year-old boy.
On Thursday, Captain Klint Anderson of the Weber County Sheriff’s Office spoke of the incident to Fox News. Young Preston Scarbrough told police he had taken the family car because he didn’t want to go to church that morning (he later told his mom he just wanted to give driving a go).
Fox News: “How did he even learn how to [drive]?”
Anderson: “Well, we’re not exactly sure except that his father has grounded him from one of his video games which involves operating vehicles so…”
Fox News: “Something like a Grand Theft Auto, something like that?”
Anderson: “I have no idea. I didn’t ask the father what game it was but some of those video games are pretty realistic.”
The following day, the Scarbrough family appeared on NBC's Today Show. Preston’s father, who initially thought the police sirens outside were coming from one of his boy’s video games, confirmed that the little lawbreaker had been grounded for four days with no TV or games.
We’re going to throw away those driving video games for sure.
Preston, for his part, explained how he learned to drive.
Watched my mom. Watched my sister.
Video of the Today Show segment can be seen here and here.
-Reporting from San Diego, GamePolitics Correspondent Andrew Eisen…
Comments
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Wow... lemme say you just convinced me with that infallible and complete logic.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
He committed grand theft auto?
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Riiiight because dual analog stick control is EXACTLY the same as a steering wheel and foot pedals.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
I'm not saying he did, but it is possible he had a steering wheel/foot pedal controller.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
well obviously, that's why when you go to get a drivers license they just have a bunch of game kiosks with GTA 4 on them. XD
but seriously how stupid would you have to be to believe that videogames can teach you how to drive? And not even a driving sim game with the fake steering wheel!
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
"but seriously how stupid would you have to be to believe that videogames can teach you how to drive? And not even a driving sim game with the fake steering wheel!"
I learned to drive in an arcade, pumping quarters into Atari's Hard Drivin'
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
aww I friggin loved hard drivin! That game seriously helped me too!
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
"but seriously how stupid would you have to be to believe that videogames can teach you how to drive?"
Exactly as stupid as you have to be to believe that videogames can teach you how to operate a firearm.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Both can give a good general idea if properly demonstrated onscreen and the observer is intelligent. But if all is just left to "pull trigger for desired response" then you're correct.
And of course watching it in real life would be more academic than watching it through a small 2D window, which he even admits is the source. Still, I haven't played the game where you have to escape Sunday church.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
There must be an internet rule similar to rule 34 and 35 that handles that sort of situation?
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
I've been waiting to see this story pop up here, when I first saw the footage I thought "I know what's going to be blamed, GTA", and guess what? It has. I love the way when someone said about driving games they automatically assume GTA because of its controversy nature, the media are desperate to link anything to that game.
The only games he could've learnt to drive from would be the racing games if he had the steering wheel and pedals to go with it, but he would still have to learn how to start the car and such which isn't shown in computer games.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
True. And I've just popped back from the Google News search using the kid's name.
For the most part, the stories are rather tame in nature. No real overreaction to video games. All of them cover all the bases. Didn't want to go to church. Wanted to find out what it was like to drive. Learned watching mom and sis. Grounded from watching TV and playing video games for 4 days (just one of any number of tools for punishment, so I don't complain about that as I use it on my own son). And, yeah, the implied condemnation of driving games by threatening to throw them away. But, since the kid admitted that he learned to drive by watching mom and sis, I think THEY should be the ones to be worried.
The articles that allow comments are pretty much equal to the articles. A couple of ignorant boobs are blaming video games without thinking about what you just pointed out about the inability to actually LEARN the operation of a vehicle from a video game. Most, however, are arguing that the Parents themselves should be punished severely.
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
http://www.facebook.com/nightwing2000
Nightwng2000 is now admin to the group "Parents For Education, Not Legislation" on MySpace as http://groups.myspace.com/pfenl
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
and I would like to point out that it's faux news that's blaming GTA in the store.
We know how "fair and blaanced" it is... you know with the leading quesitons and stuff...
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
About as fair and balanced as a white supremecist group. :p
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
I've heard some white supremacist groups being more balanced than Faux News.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
He didn't want to go to chuch. In fact, he tried to escape before being forced to go.
Clearly a sign of being abused at church. Abuse victims will do ANYTHING to get away from their abusers.
There have been a great many new stories, even in recent times, of verbal, mental, physical, and/or sexual abuse by members, even leaders, of religious orders abusing young people. And many stories of the highest levels, including the nation sized insane asylum known as the Vatican, covering up those abuses and even advocating and encouraging those abuses.
The blame of video games was clearly to cover up yet another act of abuse going on in the sociopathic realm of religion.
Protect the Children! Legislate religion!
This message brought to you by the "Religions As Scapegoats, Hooah!" organization.
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
http://www.facebook.com/nightwing2000
Nightwng2000 is now admin to the group "Parents For Education, Not Legislation" on MySpace as http://groups.myspace.com/pfenl
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Mental abuse from a Church?! How absurd!
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Sexual Abuse from a Church?! Preposterous!
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
You know that is really offensive. Going to church at such a young age can be scary simply because the parents will drop the kid off in a class meant for that age group. Sometimes kids still haven't gotten over the fact their parents aren't there with them. Anyway this is a secular society so nice try legislating anything. Please keep your comments to yourself if you have nothing intelligent to add.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Come on now... Your sarcasm detector can't be that broken...
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
My sarcasm detector isn't broken and I still found that to be in very very poor taste.
Come on, guys. I fyou want people to respect you a little repsect back never hurts.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
You want bluntness? Here's bluntness:
When it comes to the likes of people like Fred Phelps, Eric Rudolph, The Pope, or any other individual and/or organization who uses their religion to force their dictates (note once again the difference between having and sharing opinions and beliefs that may be willingly agreed to or ignored or whatever and demands that others MUST follow and accept those opinions and beliefs), their bigotries, their dishonor, their lack of ethics, their, in a certain individual's words, "mental molestations", as well as justification for verbal, mental, physical, and/or sexual abuse upon others, adults OR children, make no mistake, I feel NO respect for them and desire NO respect from the likes of them. And it doesn't matter what religion it is. Even the likes of Osama Bin Lauden fall into the same catagory as those just mentioned.
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
http://www.facebook.com/nightwing2000
Nightwng2000 is now admin to the group "Parents For Education, Not Legislation" on MySpace as http://groups.myspace.com/pfenl
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
*slow clap*
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Wow, now I feel stupid. Um yeah....
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
:: Pats xMrAx on back. ::
All is well. :)
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
http://www.facebook.com/nightwing2000
Nightwng2000 is now admin to the group "Parents For Education, Not Legislation" on MySpace as http://groups.myspace.com/pfenl
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Sorry about that. Probably got a little too heated there.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
*woooosh*
^ sound of sarcasm flying over your head
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
I know that was probably supposed to be satire, but who knows maybe he was being molested by a church employee.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
It's really easy if you drive an automatic, just set it on drive and then go. If the family drove a stick, the kid wouldn't be able to drive off as easily, or at all.
Re: Did 7-year-old Learn to Drive From Video Games?
Clearly he should divorce his wife and put his daughter up for adoption. We wouldn't want anyone to influence him into driving again.