Media blame

TommiGunn31

I am very sick of video games, movies, music and television getting blamed for violence.  People say that all of these shootings call for a ban on guns and different forms of entertainment.  Why?  I don't think they were playing Mortal Kombat during the Crusades or the Civil War.  People seem to constantly blame everyone and everything other than those holding the weapons.

nailah783

I have never understood why people blame the media for the violence in the world. Like Cher stated in Clueless, until the news stops covering all the wars on Earth, then you can't very well expect for the pop culture media to stop showing violence for entertainment purposes. I grew up in a highly populated with violence area in California, but that has not made me want to go out and buy a gun and shoot up a school. I doubt that playing a video game would do the trick.

rbower80

If a movie,video game,media,can simply turn some one bad then I think some one is not teaching our younger generation the difference between right and wrong if they are depending on their teaching and learning is coming from these sources.Is realism and common sense really that far removed from our culture that all we can do is blame objects for our problems.

TommiGunn31

Very well said, both of you.  I think that a lack of common sense is really missing from our society.  It's not just the younger generation, though.  I think that it was said best in Men In Black: "  A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it."

nailah783

I remember once upon a time, a kid jumped off his roof. After watching Superman, he thought he could fly. My step father used to try to use this as an example for the media being a bad influence. I had to tell him it wasn't the media that was the bad influence. It was just a stupid kid whose parents should have been watching him better. Who in their right mind would think they can fly after watching a show or a movie? The same should go for violent media. Maybe even more so.

pafjlh

I don't know about video games and movies, because to me it's up to parents to know which ones are right for their kids to watch or play.  There is a reason why these are rated, but then even adults who have mental issues could get wrapped up in what they are seeing.  But we can't blame those who put these out because there is a market for them and we as human beings have to be aware this is entertainment not reality.  I don't think we can truly make them responsible for the choices some make.  

rbower80

We have the freedom to make our own choices as adults and that is the way it should be,to many choices are made for us already that shouldn't be but that is another subject.We also have the right and duty to make sure our kids learn the difference between right and wrong at home and in our schools.They shouldn't be learning from movies,video games and such,they should be taught that is a form of entertainment nothing more.If we teach them like we should they will know that is not reality and for the mentally ill that is up to family and friends to teach them,we are to quick to blame others and other things for our problems instead of taking responsibility for people them self's.

DoctorWho

"I remember once upon a time, a kid jumped off his roof. After watching Superman, he thought he could fly. My step father used to try to use this as an example for the media being a bad influence. I had to tell him it wasn't the media that was the bad influence. It was just a stupid kid whose parents should have been watching him better. Who in their right mind would think they can fly after watching a show or a movie? The same should go for violent media. Maybe even more so."

I had a cousin that did that, he was a special Ed student.... he thought if he ate a childrens aspirin, like a magic pill, he could fly, he broke his legs, later on, he tried to mash me with a hammer, I knocked him out with a table leg, CLACK !

theboysmom04

People themselves don't want to take the blame for anything. I played lots of violent video games. I was taught the difference between reality and a game. I've never had it in my mind to go shoot up a mall and steal clothes or shoot someone in a corvette and steal their car. I hear a lot of parents say "you can't shelter kids", that's all good and well if the parent is going to teach their child right and wrong. I think a lot of kids are allowed to play and watch what they want at such an early age with no limits that they eventually get to a spot where they can no longer tell real from make believe. So on one hand yes I think the things kids watch and play contribute if they are never taught right from wrong but mostly no I think it's just an excuse for crappy parenting.

joshposh

Video games have nothing to do with gun violence.  I grew up playing these types of games and I turned out just fine.

Everyone has to blame someone else for their problems.  I blame parents for not raising their kids.  Instead of teaching their kids right from wrong, they let movies, video games, and bad influences teach them the facts of life.  

If you child is acting weird, go talk to them and spend quality time.  Don't send them to their room and let them watch television.  Parents need to take responsibility for their child. 

remnant

At an impressionable age, kids are exposed to gun violence through movies and videos. These glorify a macho culture which men are socialised to become. These negative impressions register in the subconscious and in the fulness of time, the pressures of life may lead one to regress to his childhood days. People are overgrown babies and when you add guns into the equation coupled with a myriad of conspiring socio-psychological issues, gun violence is here to stay. Exposure to violence leads to familiarization. The analogy is that of a butcher who finds it easy to kill by stabbing due to exposure to cutting meat. Hope this is not offensive.

explorerx7

It's not a matter of blaming guns. However, without the gun many of these crimes would not have not been executed.Therefore, having a gun could be a driving force behind many of these illegal icedencies

rz3300

I hate when people make that jump too, because that is what it is, a jump.  I think that it is just an easy target for people to have, and it is just something that people need.  They need to point the finger at somebody or something, even though it might not be the right answer.  That said, though, I do think that there probably is some connection between strong violence in the imagery we see and violent acts, but it is far from causal and certainly complex.

lisasian86

If you give an arsonist matches, something will get burned.
It's not the guns fault that people get killed, but if you didn't let people have guns then shootings wouldn't happen.
Don't give an arsonist matches...