Alright it is rant time again.
If you read Slashdot, you may have seen the article about Bill O’Reilly slamming the PS3 launch and video gamers in general. His guest Blois Olson of the National Institute on Media & the Family wins the blame it on the geeks award for this quote:
“The have-nots are growing. Why are they growing? Because the skill set that is necessary to earn a decent living is being deemphasized in a fantasy world of football games and shooting zombies and all that…. Now you have the ‘knows’ and the ‘know-nots’, because if you spend all your youth being prisoners of machines….. you’re not going to know anything…. You’re gonna fail.”
Bill O’Reilly Slams PS3 Launch, Gamers, iPods, Digital Tech (not in that order)
Now let us start with the premise that the have-nots are growing because they don’t have the skills to get good jobs. Why can’t Johnny program Java? Because he is too busy with being locked in mortal combat with an animated Zombie. This must be it. This is what is keeping him out of college. I sure if Johnny put down the PS3 controller and get off the welfare he could find time to go to Harvard like they have wanted him too.
However, just for a moment let’s think about who the have-nots are. Chances are they make below the median income (duh?), which in the state Texas is just 54,554. That is about $3,000 for rent, food, gas and extras like a car for a family of four. Well I can tell you, that isn’t going to cover many classes at a state school let alone a private university. Reality is probably worse then that; the lowest 20% have a median income of less then $18,500 before taxes. Imagine feeding 2 kids on that let alone buying a PS3.
I can understand why people find video games a good target for the criticism about violence. But to say that people are economically by playing video game is flat arrogant wind-bagging. Your youth is not being spent as a prisoner of a machine. That machine has a power button and plugs into a wall. I spent most of my youth playing in my room with clay and Lagos. It wasn’t until I started playing video games that got any marketable skills. I thank God I didn't sit around and watch TV all the time!
The problems of our society are too complex to muddy the waters for your own purposes. Stop blaming computers or music or books. People created these things and people use them. When something goes wrong it is not the too by the user. If Johnny can’t program Java tell him he can create his own Zombie game if he learns and yes the zombies may have big breasts. It is the price we pay for motivating people to be better.