OK so I am going political again. In Utah the Legislature is in session. It always makes me uneasy when they are in session and do not have enough to do. Today's debate on HB353 was incredibility frustrating. It is labeled truth in advertising but it is really a bill aimed at regulating the sale of video games. The video game industry has been working very hard to keep M rated games out of the hands of minors. In Utah secret shopper stings have reveled that retailers have a compliance rate of %94. So how do our leaders reward their efforts, they pass a bill that opens them up to a civil lawsuit if one of their employees breaks the rules and sells a M rated game to someone under 17. I was especially embarrassed by Sen. Chris Butters repeating the story of Devon Moore, a kid that killed 3 police officers and then blamed the video game for his actions.
Many retailers take a pledge with the ESRB that they will not sell M rated games to minors. The easiest way for them to avoid the liability from this bill is simply not to take the pledge. The government is stepping in to regulate an industry that is already making many efforts to regulate themselves.
It is pathetic that we can not hold people accountable for their actions in our society. If someone kills another person nothing made them do it. They did it and need to be made to account. It is absolutely reasonable to expect parents to be parents and regulate what their children buy and play. The government needs to stop trying to save us from ourselves and allow people to be held accountable for their actions.
So I broke a rule and blogged angry but it is time for us to wake up and let our government know that they need to butt out of our lives and spend their time solving real problems
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