PC Gaming

Jack Thompson has entered the chat?

In a civilized society, the cure for radicalizing speech is more speech, particularly discourse. Besides which we already have plenty of evidence that violent video games don't radicalize. (Though, to be fair, terrorist operatives find pre-radicalized people and point them towards targets via social engineering.)

Someone who is already dangerous may play violent video games to help cope. But withholding them doesn't address the problem, just as withholding porn doesn't make people less sexually frustrated.

Then there's the matter that drone operators recognize and feel the effects of having killed, and get PTSD and burnout in ways that video game players killing shadows do not. The high turnover and mentalmhealth crisis of drone operators demonstrates to us simulations don't cross that critical line.

COD is modeled (more or less) on war settings, but so are the Tom Clancy games, So is Six Days in Fallujah and Spec Ops: The Line which are distinctly anti war. And as Penn and Teller brutally demonstrated, there is a huge visceral and emotional difference between shooting guns in games, and engaging with the real thing.

We know how to address amuck killers. We know reducing rampage killers is not just in addressing gun culture, but also addressing precarity. But neither of are political parties is willing to take that step. One is, indeed, banking on War Boys voting them into power, sight unseen, but then signing up as brownshirt goons by the legion.

Turning your ire on video games is quaint and misguided and plays right into their hands.