At first glance, the recently-passed "cop-killer video game bill" looks like it might be another piece of feel-good legislation, and how many more of those do we need?
The bill, which goes into effect in Washington July 27, makes it a civil infraction with a $500 fine for a retailer to knowingly sell mature video games depicting violence against law enforcement officers to kids under the age of 17. If that sounds detailed to the point of being picky, it’s supposed to. Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson (D-Seattle) wanted to make it as focused and specific as possible so it could pass legal muster when the video industry sues. And the industry is suing.
This bill is solid in its focus and deserves to pass the test of constitutionality. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 7 in the U.S. District Court of Seattle. It’s unlikely most people will remember that date or even the bill itself. But they might if they saw excerpts from the video games this bill targets.
"People don’t get it until I show them the tapes," Dickerson said. "They try to intellectualize it. Then they see the videos."
As if brutally beating bloodied police officers as they lie motionless next to their patrol cars isn’t bad enough, the further the player advances in the game, the more grotesque it gets. Women and minorities are shot, attacked with shovels, set on fire and urinated upon as a voice makes sexual and racist comments.
These video games are not avenues of artistic expression and free speech the way poetry and songs are. They are, as their title clearly describes, games. They are toys that teach young and older children how, in some instances, to operate in "sniper mode."
Dickerson is armed, too, with loads of research detailing the harm done to children who play these games. Of course, not all children who play these violent games will act out, but some will and have.
It’s time for the video industry to regulate itself just as the movie industry did. Ratings mean nothing if there’s no enforcement. Parents must step up and be responsible, too. But many kids have disposable cash to spend on games their parents don’t realize are in their homes. It’s similar to youth buying tobacco without parents ever being the wiser.
What this bill does is bring accountability to video-game makers and sellers, with the hope the industry will start monitoring itself. That’s not too much to ask.
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