In a column in The Shreveport Times (which Burrell likes to refer to as The Times) he speaks about U.S. federal judge, James Brady, over-turning Burrell's Jack Thompson-supported state law (HB 1381). The law would have enabled judges to rule on whether a video game was too violent to sell to children. HB 1381 was made law in Louisiana in June 2006, and over-turned as unconstitutional in November the same year.
Let's look at that again: a judge, in the USA a politically appointed figure, given the power to censor anything and then fine people if they sell or distribute the banned item. Freedom of speech anybody? Good on you Judge Brady.
Burrell will not let it lie and tells The Shreveport Times readers the following today:
SPOnG has contacted Representative Burrell in an attempt to put a number on the 'many killed or maimed'. We thoroughly expect the tragedies at Columbine, Emsdetten in Germany and even the recent Virgina Tech shootings to be thrown back into the frame.
"The unsuspected cost of $100,000 to taxpayers for legal fees (to get HB1381 reinstated) is but a small price paid to save the life of just one child, given the many killed or maimed, linked to the mind-altering harmful ultra-violent video games. Oftentimes, the fight to protect our constituents and their children against the predatory tactics of the video game industry goes on behind the scenes. The only information the public sees is a negative perception from these greedy individuals who don't mind using the law for continual use of legal corruption of young minds; our desperate attempts to save children and offer the families more parental control and a better quality of life are circumvented. Therefore, we must find ways to place legal restraints on such a "self-regulated" industry while they veil themselves behind First Amendment protection."
Roy, parents who bother to get involved can and do actually have parental control.
"Personally, I have no qualms with this industry if they would adhere to their own "self-regulated" rules: Do not sell harmful mature video games to minors! But the facts are they still do, according to Federal Trade Commission surveys. This must stop! One expert, Pat Brown, a national top criminal profiler and parent, said that these video games are causing our children to become psychopathic killers by 9 years old. Others, such as Dr. Phil McGraw (psychologist), Bill O'Reilley (Fox news), professor James Alan Fox (criminal justice expert) and Candice DeLong (retired FBI profiler) echoed similar sentiments.
Pat Brown, who gives the following advice on her website, "Next time an 'expert' says he will offer his opinion, tell him you would rather have a full and clear explanation of all the issues involved; THAT might be worth the money." We have contacted Ms Brown in order to clarify the assertion that children are being turned into psychopaths by the age of nine.
None of the other 'experts' are directly quoted in echoing similar statements regarding the childhood onset of psychopathy. However, both Fox News 'voice of no-spin' right-wing demagogue and expert only in self-promotion Bill O'Reilly and TV funnyman, sorry, psychologist, Doctor Phil, fit snugly into Pat Brown's warnings against experts.
Burrell continues:
"Psychopathic killers are not born, they are made!
Comment: As much as there is certainly a point to be made against video games, here Burrel obviously lacks knowledge about psychopaths. One can be born a psychopath too.
Maybe our judge and news editor should tune into the national cable stations and consider using their professional tools to assist in areas that will help stop senseless activities and deaths due to extremely violent information being fed to our children." Good, in a single, vacuous and fact-free eight word 'bite' Burrell has apparently resolved a question that's befuddled sociologists, psychologists, anthropologists, biologists, social scientists and others who bothered to study the issues for more than the time required to get elected. "Psychopathic killers are not born, they are made!" There you go, everybody studying, time to sign on the dole.
The pay off, asking judges and media to tune into cable television to, "stop senseless activities and deaths due to extremely violent information" is certainly on a par with the general analysis of what makes people kill each other.
We await Burrell's response with no particular expectation of clarity.
they certainly fit naturally there, as in all those cases the perpetrators were avid gamers -- as they were in nearly all cases of school shootings.