If you can't ban them, why not tax them?
If you can't pass a law banning the sale of violent video games to minors, why not just slap on an extra tax? That should discourage sales to minors, right? That's the central idea behind a new proposal slithering out of Oklahoma by House Rep. William Fourkiller (D. 86th District).
According to the new bill, HB 2696, consumers purchasing games rated Teen, Mature and Adult Only by the ESRB would have a 1-percent tax added on to the current pricetag. Money generated from the "Violent Game Tax" would go towards the state's Childhood Outdoor Education Revolving Fund to fight obesity and the Bullying Prevention Revolving Fund.
Fourkiller, whose last name sounds like an Xbox Live alias, claims he was inspired to write the bill based on first-hand experience on how video games can lead to obesity and bullying. "A gentleman shot a police officer and stole his car," he told Oklahoma City's KFOR-TV, referring to a recent incident. "He had been playing Grand Theft Auto."
Fourkiller said that he's not personally targeting the gaming industry, but is quite astonished that an actual game called "Bully" even exists given that bullying is (supposedly) one of the side affects kids face after playing violent video games. But he also acknowledges that not everyone reacts to video games in the same way.
"I believe after hours and hours of watching the screen, playing the video game, being that person and taking on that role, people get desensitized," he added.
If the bill is approved by Republican governor Mary Fallin, all games sold within the state with a "T," "M" or "AO" rating will see a 1-percent price increase starting as early as July 1. The bill was supposedly read before the House on Monday, February 6.
Wired has a copy of the proposal here in PDF format. It's believed that the bill will likely fail even if it becomes a law, a failure based on the ruling by the Supreme Court back in June 2011 which said California could not declare violent video games as obscene to exempt them from First Amendment protection.
So far there's no word on the bill's progress given that it's a day after the reading before the House, so stay tuned. There's also a good chance we'll see copycat lawmen in other states try and pull the same stunt in the next few weeks. Here we go again.
I have a good idea, how about spending a little more time looking at how to fix our economy and get people working than going after one of the only successful markets left in this country.
A video game isn't any different from a board game. If you get mad from losing in a board game, you will also get equally mad when you lose in a video game. It's as simple as that. Different people reacts differently.
I can sorta, kinda, not-really see a tax for mature and adult rated games. Although I'll admit the only reason why I am not completely against the tax is because it is being put to something that is becoming increasingly important in the US.
BUT, I don't live in Oklahoma, so my opinion doesn't matter anyway.
I have a good idea, how about spending a little more time looking at how to fix our economy and get people working than going after one of the only successful markets left in this country.
Welcome to the military-entertainment complex!
Just think, if part time then the salary he would have been paid could be used for better purposes, the days of public servants serving the public are long over, they only serve themselves to our money, wake up people!!!
They want to stop the government from treating the industry as a bunch of criminals sullying the minds of the young, but they treat their supporters like a bunch of thieves who steal software at every opportunity.
Screw you ESA. You're on your own.
But really, stop treating every gamer as potential gun slinging murderer and you'll probably invoke less violent upbringing. Then again, it's oklahoma.
We already have that... is called Commercials, you know those annoying interruptions that we get while watching our TV shows.
Except there are commercials for every type of TV show there is, there are no exceptions, if it's on TV and not a special thing (or a cable channel) it will have commercials so it's not the same as taxing only violent games.