mystified

[winterbadger]

US politicians have stepped into the storm over secret sex scenes in the best-selling Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas game.
The House of Representatives has overwhelmingly called for investigation into the companies behind the game.

The uproar is over explicit sexual scenes in the game that can be unlocked with software created by a fan.

Last week the game was given an adults-only rating, leading big US stores to stop selling the title.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4717139.stm

So why are people so outraged about the possibility that teenagers might be seeing (and vilrtually participating in) sex acts, but the same people seem to be perfectly OK with teenagers seeing (and virtually participating in) murder, arson, and robbery?

I'm not advocating a ban on violence in games, but I am advocating calling these self-proclaimed moral arbiters on their hypocrisy. Sex is bad, but murder is OK? It's inappropriate for a high school student to see two imaginary people copulating, but it's not a problem for that teenager to see one imaginary person empty an automatic weapon into another? It seems to me as if these people's priorities are in serious need of a refit.

Comments

[kathygnome.livejournal.com]

I've seen the scene, my partner downloaded it. It's horribly sexist, but not particularly explicit.

Also the game in question was already rated M for mature, meaning that it's meant to be sold only to people old enough to be sent to Iraq. And as one commentator noted, far more explicit material is available to anyone with the internet skills to get the patch for the game.

It's the democrats shooting themselves in the foot again. Youth could be an important vote because of the extremist tilt by the GOP and the war. Instead, they've just totally alienated that segment. And at the same time, they aren't going to impress "values voters."