Frank Zappa, Jack Thompson, and the videogame debate

Straight from Game Politics comes another bit of Jack Thompson-related news. Except the actual YouTube video we’re putting in has nothing to do with Jack Thompson.

Laurens Blei, one of the many GP readers, sent in a link to a 1986 testimony of Frank Zappa. The testimony was for a bit of legislation in Maryland that would have modified their obscenity laws to include music and CDs as pornography. Now, if you view the entire thing, look at it in reference to the new bills against games being proposed in Utah by Jack Thompson.

As Game Politics put it,

Video game legislation drafted by controversial attorney Jack Thompson and currently under consideration by the Utah legislature would have much the same effect on violent video games, equating them with “materials harmful to minors,” such as pornography.

Perhaps the kicker in Game Politics’ article? Jack Thompson likes Frank Zappa’s music.

Personally, Thompson’s viewpoint is understandable. I sometimes wonder if I can properly teach my future children about responsible gaming. Outside influences beyond gaming also affect one’s perceptions, so a piece of legislation, while useful, may in itself only reveal the shortcomings of the system. The problem is in finding ways to teach younger people about responsible gaming in a world where even parents can get carried away by the games they play.

Of course, that’s probably the same problem rock and roll used to face in its infancy, don’t you think?

Straight from Game Politics comes another bit of Jack Thompson-related news. Except the actual YouTube video we’re putting in has nothing to do with Jack Thompson.

Laurens Blei, one of the many GP readers, sent in a link to a 1986 testimony of Frank Zappa. The testimony was for a bit of legislation in Maryland that would have modified their obscenity laws to include music and CDs as pornography. Now, if you view the entire thing, look at it in reference to the new bills against games being proposed in Utah by Jack Thompson.

As Game Politics put it,

Video game legislation drafted by controversial attorney Jack Thompson and currently under consideration by the Utah legislature would have much the same effect on violent video games, equating them with “materials harmful to minors,” such as pornography.

Perhaps the kicker in Game Politics’ article? Jack Thompson likes Frank Zappa’s music.

Personally, Thompson’s viewpoint is understandable. I sometimes wonder if I can properly teach my future children about responsible gaming. Outside influences beyond gaming also affect one’s perceptions, so a piece of legislation, while useful, may in itself only reveal the shortcomings of the system. The problem is in finding ways to teach younger people about responsible gaming in a world where even parents can get carried away by the games they play.

Of course, that’s probably the same problem rock and roll used to face in its infancy, don’t you think?