Now that I have some time to get on here and post a blog or two about the things that have been discussed over the past few weeks, I would like to talk about the great video game presentation given by Joe and Casey. I thought the entire presentation was well put together and you both did a very good job of supporting your views on the topic. I would like to however respond based upon the other end of spectrum when it comes to video games and violence. These are just some of my humble opinions in the topic area and I am in no way trying to bash anyone else's views on this.. I would just like to express my view. The first computer game that was brought to our attention was centered around the stereotypes of illegal Mexican immigrants. I believe that it could be offensive to some but I was kind of raised on the idea of "sticks and stones." Being raised this way has allowed me to learn to avoid getting caught up in the "small" things such as jokes and things of that nature. I saw this game as someone's awful attempt to make fun of a group of people that tend to catch a lot of slack anyways. I see this game as kind of humorous not because of the message behind it but because of how something as simple as a video game can create such a stir. If this game was focused on making me the center of the joke I would do my best to almost laugh it off and move forward with my life. Maybe that is the "jock" side of me coming to the surface... There is no shortage of jokes being thrown around a college locker room and if I was to storm out as soon as my name was used as a punch line, I wouldn't have made it four years on the baseball team. Respectively I think that some people, not all, are a little to sensitive at times. I would also like to discuss video game violence and the effects that is has on children. Doing some brief research I was able to see that there has been no scientific connection between video game violence and the violence level of kids. In reality how can a study prove that a child is violent or aggressive because they play Grand Theft Auto? Correlations have been found instead that have determined that violent video games do not make kids violent, instead kids that have a predisposition to be violent are drawn to these games to seek out the violent entertainment. I tend to agree with this statement as well. If an individual feels the need to attack an elementary school I believe that person to have a mental instability that is in no way linked to violent video games. I have personally spent a large chunk of my day playing Call of Duty with some buddies and in no way shape or form felt the urge to attack someone. Why? I am able to understand that the things being portrayed in the video game are fantasy and that things to not operate like that in the real world. The same goes for the Grand Theft Auto games. I feel like people want to blame anything they can before pointing the finger at themselves. If a child is considered violent by no means can that child be labeled depressed or mentally ill; let's just blame it on the video game he/she might be playing. I find this kind of talk to be ridiculous. Someone may feel the need to replicate something they see in a video game but in no way does the violence in the game create a violent person. "Violent juvenile crime in the United States has been declining as violent video game popularity has increased. The arrest rate for juvenile murders has fallen 71.9% between 1995 and 2008. The arrest rate for all juvenile violent crimes has declined 49.3%. In this same period, video game sales have more than quadrupled." I found this statistic while doing some brief research on the topic and thought it to be pretty interesting given the "correlation" between violence and video games. I also believe that parents need to be more involved in monitoring their child's time in front of these games. If there is such a big issue regarding a Call of Duty game or a Grand Theft Auto type of game, DON"T LET YOUR CHILD PLAY THEM. If you choose to allow your child to play a game of this sort you should sit down with them and explain that everything in the game is fantasy and does not reflect how the world works. Again, I respect everyone's opinion and am in now way trying to bash others. I just stand behind my views on this topic and felt like explaining them in detail.