Calif. Violent Game Bill Becomes LawThe Terminator himself says: violence ain't for kids.
by David Adams
October 7, 2005 - After a long process of campaigning, opposition, and legislative approval, a California bill which bans the sale of violent videogames to minors has been signed into law. On Friday, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger approved the bill, which levies fines of up to $1000 for violations, and requires that mature games be clearly labeled as such.
"Today I signed legislation to ensure parent involvement in determining which video games are appropriate for their children," said Governor Schwarzenegger. "The bill I signed will require that violent video games be clearly labeled and not be sold to children under 18 years old. Many of these games are made for adults and choosing games that are appropriate for kids should be a decision made by their parents."
Assembly Bill 1179 was written and championed by Assemblyman Leland Yee, who has offered similar bills for several years now. Yee has maintained his interest is not in censoring or limiting the game industry, but in keeping minors from playing mature-themed games without parental consent.
Yee believes the interactive nature of videogames creates a unique danger. "Unlike movies where you passively watch violence, in a video game, you are the active participant and making decisions on who to stab, maim, burn or kill," he said. "As a result, these games serve as learning tools that have a dramatic impact on our children."
Opponents of the legislation, including the Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association (IEMA), an industry interest group, argue that the current ESRB rating system already identifies mature content in games and prevents sale of such games to minors. Opponents also maintain legislation like AB 1179 introduces regulates game media in ways that books, movies, and music are not, and see such laws as a challenge to First Amendment rights.
California is not only the nation's most populous state, but the primary home of the $31 billion videogame industry. AB 1179 will officially become law on January 1, 2006.
Cali game bill is now a law
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This is hardly new, is it?
Games have been labelled as mature for years, the system just doesn't work too well as parents are the primary buyers.
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another reason not to live in CA. hehe. High living expenses, and now videogames are getting new restrictions. Next they will charge rich folk with a tax on humvees.
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meh, no big deal.
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And shops will still sell mature titles to parents of kids to quell their brats' incessant whining. Yay for frivilous laws!
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yay for the government trying to parent your children cause they dont think you can do it yourself. Here is an idea, you can only procreate when you a.) take a class on parenting or 2.) Have an IQ above 42.
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score, i just slid by
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Quote from von*ferret
yay for the government trying to parent your children cause they dont think you can do it yourself. Here is an idea, you can only procreate when you a.) take a class on parenting or 2.) Have an IQ above 42.
You forget that today's parents ("Safety moms" and "Nascar Dads" - and curiously enough usually red-staters) can't parent their kids for shit. They'd much rather let a daycare, television, dvd, or videogame entertain their kid for a good 2 hours so that they can relax or otherwise neglect their child.
All it takes it attention and spending time with your kids. Sure with a household with two working parents that can sometimes be difficult, but you can't get pissed off at your electronic babysitter if she lets your brats hear a cuss word. Get off your collective lazy asses and be responsible parents.
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truth.
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No I dont forget that at all posty, thats what I'm saying though. Parents need to get off their ass and stop thinking that everyone else in the world, including the government, SHOULD be watching their children. Dont blame the person next to you, blame yourself for your faults.
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Quote from von*ferret
Parents need to get off their ass and stop thinking that everyone else in the world, including the government, SHOULD be watching their children.
Same goes for buying action/horror violent movies... porn... booze... hand guns(for protection of course)... yeah, everything a kid could possibly think off.... Yeah, stupid lazy parents and stupid government trying to babysit everything and everyone all the time....
:roll:
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Quote from mawibse
Same goes for buying action/horror violent movies... porn... booze... hand guns(for protection of course)... yeah, everything a kid could possibly think off.... Yeah, stupid lazy parents and stupid government trying to babysit everything and everyone all the time....
:roll:
What are you even getting at here? Your mix of sarcasm and broken English and lack of sentence structure has me reeling.
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That if age restrictions of buying violent games is because parents are lazy then with the same logic we should drop any age restrictions on buying booze, porn, violent movies or whatever because its just parents being lazy anyway.
Pretty immature way of seeing things.
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