I find it very interesting that the media, politicians and video game industry all circle the wagons when video games are linked to violence in our society. I find it interesting for several reasons. First, while these folks deny the link, the U.S. Military is openly boasting about how well these violent games work at desensitizing its soldiers. I mean, if the U.S. Military says these games make it easier for grown, disciplined men to kill without feeling, how is it that a child with much less self-control is somehow inoculated from this influence? But then, given the corporate link between the military and these gaming companies, how is it the Leftists defending the video games do not see the ‘corruption that is going on here? Personally, I understand how this all works. It is part of The Big Lie.
Folks, I am not going to belabor this topic too much. I’ve done the research, I have my sociology degree and I am convinced there is a causal link here. If you use your common sense, you should be able to see there is a problem with the narrative. If the video games help soldiers find it easier to kill, then the video games must also do something similar to the people in the civilian world — especially since many of the civilian games were developed by the military and sold to the video game companies (and vice-verse). No, I’m just going to leave you with these and let you decide what you want to do with them. But know this: I will not be very kind to anyone who tries to tell me there is nothing here unless they have read at least five of these stories — especially the professional articles, such as the one by Psychology Today!
Are Video Games Teaching Children to Kill?
“Violent video games teach kids to kill using the same mechanisms of classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and social learning employed to train soldiers. The major psychological differentiator between a soldier’s training and a video game player’s training is that soldiers are taught to kill while simultaneously being taught strict discipline. This safeguard operates as a secondary safety catch that prevents soldiers from unlawful or unauthorized killing.”
Violent Video Games Can Trigger Emotional Desensitization
“Repeated play of violent video games desensitizes gamers to feelings of guilt.”
Military veteran says video games fueling violent culture
“Lt. Col. Dave Grossman spent a total of 23 years leading U.S. soldiers and is a former West Point psychology professor who has become a noted scholar and expert on human aggression, violence and killing. Grossman, the author of “Assassination Generation: Video Games, Aggression, and the Psychology of Killing,” believes video games and our media culture can be blamed for the rise in violence in our society.”
“This article critically analyzes the U.S. military’s contradictory use of violent video gaming technologies for recruiting young gamers to the military, training soldiers for combat, and clinically treating soldiers for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) caused by military service.”
The Murderous Military Uses Call of Duty for Target Practice
“In 2012, Brock Bastian and several other psychologists ran a study on the effects of violent video games on the brain. Unsurprisingly, they found a deeply chilling result: the games could actually desensitize soldiers and other people to real-world violence.”
“Target practice on hollowed cabbages filled with ketchup to mimic the way a bullet rips open a human head. Marching to chants of “kill, kill, kill.” Video game simulations that reward points for every successful “shot.” These are among hundreds of techniques that experts say can recondition the human brain.”
How video games train the brain to justify killing
“A plethora of studies now associate playing such games with greater tolerance of violence, reduced empathy, aggression and sexual objectification. Compared with males who have not played violent video games, males who do play them are 67 per cent more likely to engage in non-violent deviant behavior, 63 per cent more likely to commit a violent crime or a crime related to violence, and 81 per cent more likely to have engaged in substance use. Other studies have found that engaging in cyberviolence leads people to perceive themselves as less human, and facilitates violence and aggression.”
How the US military is using ‘violent, chaotic, beautiful’ video games to train soldiers
“In recent years, the military has encouraged many of its soldiers to partake in the thrill of violent video games as a way to continue combat training, even when not on active duty.”
Still trust the media and your politicians?