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Ralph Nader refers to video games as “electronic child molesters”

January 25, 2013, Author: Ariana Hester

“Now Timmy, show the politician how the violent video game corrupted you”.

At least that’s how I imagine conversations would go if former presidential candidate Ralph Nader had his way.

At the annual Busboys and Poets Peace Ball, Nader went on one of his familiar tirades on President Obama’s inauguration and violent entertainment.

“We are in the peak of [violence in entertainment],” Nader claimed. “Television program violence? Unbelievable. Video game violence? Unprecedented. I’m not saying he (Obama) wants to censor this, I think he should sensitize people that they should protect their children, family by family, from these kinds of electronic child molesters.”

On the heels of the decision by the Obama administration to grant the CDC (Center for Disease Control) 10 million dollars to study the effects that violent video-games have on our youths, we can easily see that every politician wants a piece of the action.

Light Gun games have already been pulled from arcades in Massachusetts and from movie theatres in New York, after complaints cited them as inappropriate. Missouri on the other hand, is debating whether to institute a 1% sales tax on violent video-games.

Now, I’m not saying parents shouldn’t be allowed to censor their own children’s entertainment. As a parent, you have the right to say when and if your child can watch an R rated movie or play an M rated game, but I don’t believe that video-games are the sole instigator of violence. I’m not the biggest FPS fan but I have been known to play a round or two; suffice to say,  never once did I feel the need to recreate my experiences in the real world.

In most of the cases being studied, mental health issues were a common occurrence. Perhaps we need to spend our time and energy on having a better support system for those in need of counselling, and spreading parental awareness for recognizing signs that a child may need extra care.