GTA

There's a bit of over reaction to this news:

The oversight board that puts parental ratings on video games took the unusual step Wednesday of slapping its strongest warning on a bestselling title as the game maker admitted putting explicit, interactive sex scenes on the disc.

Retailers began pulling copies of "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" from their shelves after the Entertainment Software Ratings Board revoked the game's "Mature" rating and raised it to "Adults Only." Publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. said it planned to rework "San Andreas" the top-selling video game of 2004 and reissue it later this year.

Ummm. okay.. So, one of their (brilliant) devs embedded a bit of porn in the game, and left the door slightly ajar knowing that an enterprising hacker would throw it open. It's a brilliant move.

But what exactly are we talking about?

"Hot Coffee," by contrast, is an interactive sex game, featuring oral sex and intercourse.

So everyone has to freak out, and the politicians have to weigh in. What about the children they scream? Oh my god!

"It looks like Take-Two Interactive purposefully conned the video game industry rating board and parents across the country," said Washington state Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson.

'San Andreas,' as a top-selling game in the country, now is in the hands of thousands of children who can practice interactive pornography. There should be legal consequences so [the company doesn't] laugh all the way to the bank."

Well, see now, Washington state Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson is a really stupid individual.

The game was rated M, for mature, which means: A "Mature" rating is analogous to an R movie rating, and "Adults Only" is equivalent to NC-17.

So, the game is already rated so that only those 17 and older can get it. You are considered an adult at 18, and probably already know all about intercourse and oral sex, and can buy porn movies if you want. In fact, I don't know any 17 year olds who are not already thoroughly conversant on the topic.

So, what are the consequences? The game company does laugh all the way to the bank, and their next game will sell even hotter because people will want to try and find the hidden porn.

The point here is that once again the repressed people have a totally opposite effect then what they desire. They create the taboo, and therefore reinforce the behavior they are trying to discourage.

This all comes full circle back to the concept of the bat-shit crazy people, and their totally fucked up sense of values. An 18 year old can join the military, and fight and die in a war. Woot, that's great! Right? But - you have to be 21 to drink a beer?

Then, we can't have any video games with sexual content for 17 year olds because they are too sensitive or something? They will just run out and start screwing each other because they saw it in a video game? Are these people really that stupid?

The bat-shit crazy people are not content with the prudish and insane control of their own households. They insist on reaching out to yours and push their insanity onto you. That's why I despise them.

Here's a clue: Every 17 year old already knows about sex, and what's involved. They may not have engaged in it, but you don't get to be 17 years old and not hear every single detail on the school yard playground. Treating it as a taboo only reinforces its mystique and allure.

It is not the game maker that warps the kids. It's the parents. There is no amount of media that exists in the world that can influence a kid beyond his parents. None. If the kid turns into a raving sex lunatic - it's the parents fault. If a kid shoots up a school - it's the parents fault. If a kid turns into a scholar or trailer trash, it's because of the parents.

Some people need to stop trying to find people to blame for their own failings. It's just sex for god's sake. Get over it.