Guns: Don't Blame the Video Games

In the wake of the Sandy Hook Massacre, once again, people who want to blame anything else but the easy access to guns have brought up an old straw man: Video games. They claim that there are video games -- including the popular Grand Theft Auto series, one of whose covers is shown above -- whose violence leads children to become violent, and act out their fantasies in real life.

Do you think video games have too much influence on kids? Let me use my own experience, from the 1978 debut of Space Invaders until my 1987 graduation from high school, as an example.

I played Pong, a game similar to tennis, but I've never qualified for Wimbledon.

I played Space Invaders, Missile Command, Galaxian and its sequel Galaga, but NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) hasn't hired me. (I know, the initials don't really reflect the acronym.)

I played Centipede, but I've never been hired by an exterminator. Nor have I ever wanted such a job.

I played Joust, but I've never been hired to work at Medieval Times, or any Renaissance Faire.

I played Techmo Bowl (and, in the 1990s, the even more fun Cyberball 2072), but the New York Jets have never put me on their coaching staff. And when you think of who they have hired...

I played video games based on Star Trek and Star Wars, but neither Rick Berman nor George Lucas has ever hired me as a consultant on their respective franchises.

I played Castle Wolfenstein, but the History Channel hasn't asked me to participate in any of its World War II documentaries. (I'm not saying I'm blaming aliens, but... )

I played Crush, Crumble & Chomp! and Rampage, but no one's ever hired me to work on a monster movie.

I was a whiz at Spy Hunter, but the CIA hasn't shown the slightest interest in me. (Which may be a good thing.)

And, let's not forget, a lot of those games involve shooting at living things, and otherwise causing destruction. I once wrecked a car, but it certainly wasn't intentional.

Blaming violent video games for real-world violence is ridiculous. And it needs to stop. The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is stopping him from getting the gun.