Video Games

[FMCoug]

This is from the same talk I referenced in the other thread about sleepovers.

I would like to share with you a letter from a heartbroken mother. Her teenage son gradually lost the Spirit and drifted away from Church activity. She explained how this happened: “All throughout my son’s teenage years, I worried and tried to stop him from playing violent video games. I talked to my husband and showed him articles in the Ensign and in the newspaper that cautioned about these games. But my husband felt it was OK. He said that our son wasn’t out using drugs and that I should stop worrying. There were times that I would hide the controllers, and my husband would give them back. It began to be easier for me to give in … than to fight it. I really feel that gaming is just as addictive as drugs. I would do anything to prevent other parents from going through this experience.”

This one actually bothered me a bit. I have no idea what video games the kid was playing or the whole story (and it doesn't sound like Elder Lawrence does either) but isn't it just as likely that the conflict with Mom about the video games, her hiding the controllers, etc. is as much what drove him away from Church activity as it was the games themselves?

[UtahDan]

This is from the same talk I referenced in the other thread about sleepovers.

This one actually bothered me a bit. I have no idea what video games the kid was playing or the whole story (and it doesn't sound like Elder Lawrence does either) but isn't it just as likely that the conflict with Mom about the video games, her hiding the controllers, etc. is as much what drove him away from Church activity as it was the games themselves?

This makes me wonder whether SuperGabers has ever written to the brethern during our marriage to toss me under the bus. Super?

I actually think the bigger problem with some gaming is its addictive quality, regardless of content. Just like alcohol and other things it is fine for most people but a real problem for a small percentage.

[FMCoug]

I actually think the bigger problem with some gaming is its addictive quality, regardless of content. Just like alcohol and other things it is fine for most people but a real problem for a few.

I agree with you on that. And it may very well be the case in this instance. We just don't know. I just see it as another jump to conclusions. I'm not a gamer FWIW.

[jay santos]

This is from the same talk I referenced in the other thread about sleepovers.



This one actually bothered me a bit. I have no idea what video games the kid was playing or the whole story (and it doesn't sound like Elder Lawrence does either) but isn't it just as likely that the conflict with Mom about the video games, her hiding the controllers, etc. is as much what drove him away from Church activity as it was the games themselves?

This was my reaction.

The story is obviously fake. First, it's a ridiculous story. But let's assume it's possible. The person looks in the Ensign to choose which general authority to send the letter to, they scan the list and choose Larry Lawrence?? Is this guy Richie Rich's nemesis or something?

[Solon]

This was my reaction.

The story is obviously fake. First, it's a ridiculous story. But let's assume it's possible. The person looks in the Ensign to choose which general authority to send the letter to, they scan the list and choose Larry Lawrence?? Is this guy Richie Rich's nemesis or something?

When I was a kid, my LDS neighborhood was up in arms about role-playing games like Dungeons and Dragons. In fact, my mom knew this story about a guy in a friend's ward who had a cousin whose mom threw away the game one night in a fit of puritanical rage. Of course, the next morning, the game had reassembled itself back into its box (did D&D come in a box?) and was sitting atop the garbage can, ready for the teenagers to play some more.

Clearly, Satanic forces were at work.

[Uncle Ted]

Yes, I might have to agree somewhat with Elder Lawrence with this one. Too many kids are addicted to virtual fantasy world of video games when they could be doing wholesome scouting activities where they get to shoot real guns. Why do it virtually when you can do it live and in color? I owe my love of guns to the BSA and a scout leader that was a former sniper in the Army.

[TripletDaddy]

That is how I wound up playing in the NFL. It started with a little Madden, then before you know it I was acting out, mimicking the things I saw in video games and performing them in combines and secret workouts for team scouts. Eventually, I woke up one day to find myself playing in the NFL and making millions of dollars. I blame this on video games. I think parents really underestimate the control video games have over our lives.

[RC Vikings]

I'm not a anti gamer because of what it puts in their mind as much as what it keeps them away from. When my boys were young I came home from work on a beautiful summer day and they were downstairs playing a video game, well Dad went nuts and that was the last time that happened. Also I could never get Super Mario past some mine field and that made me hate them also.

[creekster]

I'm not a anti gamer because of what it puts in their mind as much as what it keeps them away from. When my boys were young I came home from work on a beautiful summer day and they were downstairs playing a video game, well Dad went nuts and that was the last time that happened. Also I could never great Super Mario past some mine field and that made me hate them also.

Lol. This reminds me of my experience. I liked video games until I got to a level on Aladdin back on Sega Genesis that gave me motion sickness and it was all she wrote. After that i decided they were a waste of time.


btw, Jay, he didn't say the letter was addressed to him.

[cougjunkie]

Lol. This reminds me of my experience. I liked video games until I got to a level on Aladdin back on Sega Genesis that gave me motion sickness and it was all she wrote. After that i decided they were a waste of time.


btw, Jay, he didn't say the letter was addressed to him.

I used to play that game all the time.

[creekster]

I used to play that game all the time.

Are you trying to prove that poor mother's point?

It was my mistake here. It wasn't Aladdin. I forgot. It was Toy Story. In Aladdin I kicked my 8 year old's butt all the time. But on Toy Story i got motion sickness from the level with the aliens inside the claw machine and I pretty much haven't been back to video games since then.

[Jeff Lebowski]

We resisted going down the video game route for quite a while. We finally succumbed (xbox 360) in spite of my friend's warnings that we would come to refer to it as "the homework destroyer". My kids have handled it reasonably well, but I will never forget one evening when three beautiful and outgoing young ladies came to our house to visit my son and his friends who were playing Halo or something on the xbox. They came in and stood behind the couch in the home theater room where the boys were playing and chatted for a bit. My knucklehead son and his friends didn't even turn off the game. Not only that, they (of course) kept completely focused on the TV and grunted out one-syllable responses to the girls, who were suggesting various alternate activities for the evening. Finally, the girls looked at each other, shrugged their shoulders and walked out.

Damn. Youth is wasted on young people.

[cougjunkie]

Are you trying to prove that poor mother's point?

It was my mistake here. It wasn't Aladdin. I forgot. It was Toy Story. In Aladdin I kicked my 8 year old's butt all the time. But on Toy Story i got motion sickness from the level with the aliens inside the claw machine and I pretty much haven't been back to video games since then.

I never played Toy Story. But I did own Aladdin. Flying the magic carpets was fun.

Nintendo had a game called Little League Baseball. My dad and I started a series against each other and would play a few games a night. I think the final series was somewhere around 300 wins a piece when I upgraded to the Genesis. He could never get used to the bigger controller and quit playing after that.

[RobinFinderson]

Video games are awesome. LR pointed out to me the other day that we only own one game (Little Big Planet) that isn't rated 'M'. Almost all of the best games are rated 'M'. That is just the way it is.

Lebowski, it sounds like your XBox360 just saved your son from premarital sex, so you should be thankful for that. At least that is what the girls always wanted from me when I was that age. Thank goodness I had a NES to help me be a good Mormon boy. Nothing to keep my eyes off the girls like a little Duck Hunt.

[DrumNFeather]

The new Tiger Woods game is out on Tuesday, perhaps parents are worried about the new hooker feature.