How to Deal With Violent Video Games

There has been quite a bit of news lately about violent video games and if stores should be banned from selling certain games to children under a certain age. The big story has been the download for the new "Grand Theft Auto" game that lets the player pick up girls on the street and have sex with them. Here in Illinois a law was just passed baring stores from selling violent games to children under 18. Store owners can be fined or even serve jail time. Other states have tried laws similar to this one and they have all been struck down as unconstitutional. Hopefully Illinois law will have a similar fate. First, government does not belong in the job of parenting. Our governor says that parents need all the help they can get to make an informed decision. There is already a ratings system for games. If parents cannot determine if a game is appropriate for their child based on the ratings than they have a few issues that no law is going to help. They are just bad parents. The current ratings system is good enough. People need to stop expecting someone else to raise their kids and do their jobs. You had the kid now raise him or her properly. If you don't want your child to be playing a game then don't buy it for him. Pay attention to what games your kids are playing. Any idiot can tell just by using common sense that a game called, "Grand Theft Auto" is not a game that a child should be playing. It has the mature rating for a reason. Get involved in your kids lives and raise them and quit expecting the government to do it for you. Second. The easiest way to get around this law is to have someone of legal age go and by the game . Who says an older friend of even relative can't pick the game up.
Third, Doesn't law enforcement have better things to do than to go around making busts at video stores for someone selling a game? You would think they would be more concerned about people who commit real crimes? Nice to know the crime rate in our country is so low they can waste valuable time and resources going after these awful game sellers who are corrupting the minds of our children. Apparently they would rather ignore the drug house where drugs are being sold to go after someone selling a copy of "Grand Theft Auto" to a teenager who's parents should not have let him buy the game in the first place. Nice to see we have our priorities in order. Finally, "Grand Theft Auto" could not have asked for better publicity. Thanks to these so called parents groups this game has become more popular because they drew more attention to it. My solution is simple. Probably too simple for some people. It is called, do your job as a parent and monitor what your kids are doing and you won't have to worry about what your kids are playing because you will be involved in their lives. Try being a parent and stop expecting the government to do your job.