MORE FROM HUFFPOST
MORE FROM HUFFPOST
violent video games
There's been three decades of violent video games and as Grand Theft Auto, the reigning king of all of them, releases it's fifth installment; we have to wonder, how have these games actually effected this generation?
It's the year 2016; we are at an age where technology is a society constant. Life at this juncture is practically unimaginable without the technology we enjoy today. In particular, life would not be as it were if not for video games.
Why do news media mangle these issues in sensationalist ways? For one thing, I suspect they didn't bother to read the actual article. But again, I also think it does harken to the emotionally-laden yet nebulous way desensitization is used and misused in the general public.
WHAT'S HAPPENING
WHAT'S HAPPENING
This is indeed a mental health problem, but not the psychosis, depression or irrational hatred found in the few individuals who commit these atrocities. It is American Exceptionalism. Grandiosity and paranoia are mental disorders, not political movements.
Is social media ruining our kids? How much internet activity is too much? What do FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), sexting, and selfies mean for teens?
Yes, there are real sex/violence issues to be concerned about and you don't have to look far to find them. But let's just leave 50 Shades where it belongs -- in fantasy-land.
Here's proof that there really is a special place in hell for people who use selfie sticks.
There has been a lot of attention in recent years to how both scholars and politicians contribute to moral panics, both on a wide array of issues and on the issue of video game violence specifically. The story of Adam Lanza is no different.
Released last fall and created with a budget of more than $100 million, Rockstar Games boasted $1 billion in sales in the first three days of a game that pushes social boundaries by allowing players to kill, steal and destroy in exquisite ways, albeit virtually.
