Do Violent Video Games cause Mass Shootings? Do Violent Video Games cause Violence?
With another absolutely horrendous week passing in the United States of America we are left facing a very common problem: pop culture being scapegoated for important issues. This time violent video games are again being blamed for causing devastating events. Walmart have quickly made the decision to pull adverts for video games containing violence and some stores have even pulled the boxes from their shelves, leaving them looking rather bare.
Essentially only sports games remain. Even The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is gone. However this incredibly chilling back to school advert remains…
The mass shootings in the US all have causes. Trying to find a blanket scapegoat is a very dangerous ploy. The President and his advisors should be aware of this. By choosing one scapegoat so many issues, such as institutional racism, poverty, mental illness, education, availability of weapons and many more are being entirely neglected.
Are video games in any way to blame? Well I’d argue they aren’t and I’d love to share my personal stories (and I know everyone has one) of how a game has done the opposite. They’ve distracted my mind from negativity and helped me grow as a person. There’s even the whole, if GTA makes me a murderer argument does FIFA make me a footballer? There are so many nuances to what is at heart a desperate last ditch attempt from a weak President to place blame on an easy target instead of trying to implement meaningful change. We’re lucky that there’s an industry icon able to step in and provide what constantly eludes the bumbling President: facts.
Facts are facts. pic.twitter.com/sSEbdYZcgE
— Reggie Fils-Aime (@Reggie) August 6, 2019
As Reggie Fils-Aime shows it is the country that has an issue. Video games are a worldwide phenomenon but yet mass shootings remain a US staple. These details are what the President and his teams should be investigating, instead hateful rhetoric seems to be the primary tactic. The President won’t listen to facts though. He won’t bother with numbers. He’ll continue to use language to unite individuals in hatred of any target he can find. By playing into the agenda Walmart have set a potentially dangerous precedent. The possibility of media censorship in the so called land of the free is very real and for causing that I’d just like to say: Fuck you President Trump.
Thankfully he’ll never see this, my house definitely would not survive a drone strike. Although whenever he brings nuclear war I’ll have a pip-boy ready, this Numskull Designs incense burner will probably get me a few caps as well.
