Just wondering why "guns" are the hot topic? We have video games that glorify mass killing. You have adults down to grade school kids playing these games hours a day, 7-days a week. Do we not put two and two together? Guns have been around much longer than video games, yet in my day (I'm 49) this mass shootings were basically unheard of?! Yes, I remember UT tower shootings. Can you think of another?
I'm not against video games, but you can't blame guns and not behavior. In my opinion, countless hours of video that trains attitude, reaction, and d-synthesizes emotion ....that is a much bigger concern to me than guns!

Agreed!

Are parents doing a worse job than my generation, or the one before, or the one before? I don't think my wife and I are doing a bad job at all. I do think children are now exposed to too much too early in life.

I know my son has more time in a deer stand or behind a firearm than he has so far on his xbox. Makes me proud.

Another very popular past time for many younger people that goes along with video games are paint ball games where kids spend lots of time and money getting very good at actually shooting each other. But as popular as this game has been over the past 15 yrs or so I don't know that we can say that it has caused an increase in violence. But maybe...

Shooting games are just one category of games.There are puzzle games,word games,educational games...etc. Using the same logic it can be said that people are supposed to be smarter with the availability of games.

Here is an example of a great video game which does not promote any violence.

My son to. He would rather shoot,hunt, fish, or just be outside doing whatever.

I'm not sure if it makes people smarter. There are many ways to be smart. My grandfather had to start working so young he went to one day of first grade and that's it. He couldn't read, he could add and subtract but not mutiply and divide. But he was smart. He could build things, mechanic, drive anything with wheels and the list goes on. I still remember things he taught me before he died when I was 16. I also think there are video games and educational programming that may speed development. I see it every day in my 4 year old daughter. He vocabulary and problem solving skills are astounding.

I believe the violent video games have an equally negative effect on boys and men. I believe they desensitize them to the violence and bloodshed. I remember the first bloody death I saw as a fresh 19 year old fireman. It really rattled me, especially since the deceased was also 19, involved in a head on collision. I've seen the new 19 to 25 year olds come through and I don't think they are as sensitive to it.

Well let me bring a younger opinion to this. I am in my mid twenties and when I was a kid it was get out of the house and do something and work. But we did also have video games. There was a good balance there. Personally I enjoyed outdoors more than video games. Still to this day I have an Xbox and some of those shooting games that i play every now and then with my little brother. He is 5 and its impressive how good he is!

Here's the problem. That's all the boy wants to do! And now that my parents are older and he is the 4th child they let him do whatever. Me being the oldest it kinds pisses me off but I just laugh and go about my business. Video games don't make kids kill people. I see murders at my job routinely. It may not help the situation but its not the sole factor. It's morals and knowing the difference between right and wrong. That's what these kids aren't getting taught.

I tell my brother, this game is imaginary! This is not real and this is not how we act in real life. He knows this and acts like he should. Fortunately I don't have to worry about my daughter playing call of duty, but as a parent it would be my responsibility to teach them that this is all fake! Just my take on it and I do agree with kids should put the iPad down and pick a fishing pole or something !

I grew up in what most people consider to be te first real video game generation. I'm 30 now. I also didn't have the pleasure of growing up in the country so my suburban life is probably more typical to most kids to today. I also grew up with being raised by my VERY old school WWII/Korean depression era grandma. That said...

To me the root of most societal problems with kids, and yes especially urban/suburban kids, is that parents just don't care enough about being parents. They either care too much about being liked or being preceived as understand OR just not caring about their kids.
You know what my parents never cared about? Being my friend! Being liked was 100% irrelevant to the overall equation.
You know what they did care about? Turning me into to a well rounds, self reliant human being.
In regards to video games, we had them and we played them. But my brothers and I very well understood
a) that this was really just fantasy and fiction and real life doesn't work that way. and
b) the video games were not our given as given to us by our maker. It was pruely a prevalige that was graciously