It seems that the video game industry has taken the brunt of the backlash since the Sandy Hook Shootings. The NRA has made every effort possible to deflect any and all attention off gun control and on the entertainment industry, especially video games.
Communities are banning together to give the gaming industry the scarlet letter. No Limit Arcade owners Mark Battaglia and Kevin Slota in Algonquin, Illinois have removed all arcade games that involve gun violence toward humans. The town of Southington, Connecticut set up a video game buy back program. They were planning to give people a $25 gift card for turning in first-person-shooter video games. The games collected were supposed to be incinerated. This particular buyback program has since been canceled because it was seen as censorship. However, the fact that the gaming industry has been branded so badly that towns are lining up to burn copies of Call of Duty may mean that the gaming industry has already lost the battle.
You have to wonder if the entertainment industry will even be given a fair shake when presenting their case. The Daily Show's Jon Stewart, called on everyone to discuss actual solutions instead of trying to pass off blame. While he did so in his own iconic and hilarious way, he still made a valid point. There are countries that devote a lot more time and money to these games than we do, their children aren't resorting to such extreme violence. When will the finger pointing stop and the healing process begin? We all need to evaluate what is really going on within our homes and our communities. Only then can we have an honest conversation that will enable us to better protect our children and communities.
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