Today, the Supreme Court ruled against a 2005 California law passed by Governor Schwarzenegger which banned the sale of Mature rated video games to minors.
While some consider this a victory for the Entertainment Merchants and retailers of the violent and graphic games, others are disheartened that this layer of protection for kids was removed in favor of profit.
As you might imagine, I don't agree with this decision. I would always advocate to protect children from the marketing predators lurking behind shinny wrappers and locked store shelves. But, commerce and the law sometimes collude against the most vulnerable beings, and that's when parents must step in.
It would be nice to know that when kids are cut loose in a mall or a store with money in their pockets, that responsible retailers will choose not to sell video games rated M to underage kids.
M rated videos are meant for 18 year olds and up due to the realistic and graphic nature of the violence, mutilations and gun-toting gangsters kids can virtually assume to be while playing these games.
The Supreme Court ruled against holding retailers responsible stating First Amendments rights of minors. Basically, the graphic violence in these games now has the same protection of expression as movies, music and books.
While there is no concrete proof that the images in the shoot 'em up videos influences a child's behavior, there is growing concern among parents that a child might become more prone to violence due to the vivid examples seen in the games while playing with virtual gore.
After today's decision, California parents are ultimately responsible for their child's gaming well being. Caregivers will now have to step up their game and tighten those purse strings to protect their kids from these best-selling games — if a 13 year old doesn't have $50 to plunk down for one of these games, then he won't.
As much as we'd love to enlist the law to help curtail any more violence in child's play, it will be up to parents to continue to monitor their children's exposure to these games.
If you're a concerned parent, there are very simple things you can do to avoid this violence over-exposure:
*Don't buy your kids these games,
*Don't give them the money, and
*Don't cave into the, “but my friend Billy has this game!”
*Preview the games if you are so inclined,
* Talk with your kids about the explicit nature of some of these games.
It can be a disappointment for your child to be the one among his friends not allowed to play with unacceptable games in your home, but this too shall pass.
“We cant' change the world, we can only change theirs“~ Author Unknown
i had been following this a bit. it's sad but you're right – nobody will look after the well being of our kids but us. unfortunate, but true.
You're right. We have to watch out for our own. But the marketing ambush is getting tough to defend against!