Politicians are always arguing about the pros and cons of gun control. Every time there’s a mass shooting, the pressure ramps up to increase legislation. I have to agree. Why in the world would any normal human being need an assault weapon in order to get through life? On the other hand, people have always had guns in this country. It’s how the West was won, as the saying goes. But we didn’t always have video games. In the year 2011, the United States Supreme Court ruled that any regulation of the content of video games violated freedom of speech. Consequently, in the past ten years, mass shootings have tripled in this country. It’s obvious: Scotus OK’d violent video games –and it was a bad decision.
This week, a 14 year old girl broke into a Florida home, and used the owners assault weapon to open fire on sheriff’s deputies. Her 12 year old accomplice later told investigators that the 14-year-old had said, “I’m gonna roll this down like GTA,” referring to the video game Grand Theft Auto.
An international study published in 2018 looked at more than 17,000 adolescents, ages nine to 14, over a period of 4 years.. They found that playing violent video games led to increased physical aggression over time. . High levels of violent video game exposure are linked to delinquency, fighting at school and during free play periods, and violent criminal behavior.
In 2017, the American Psychological Task Force on Violent Media found that violent video game exposure increases aggressive thought and behaviors. Such games can also desensitize people to violence. The longer that children watch these games. the more likely they are to have aggressive behaviors, thoughts, and feelings. In addition, they show less empathy and understanding of others.