Topic : 06/03 Virtual Chaos

It isn't the GAMES fault.  My goodness people.  Okay YES the games are fun, and mildly addicting, so what?  When did that give people a right to avoid responsibilty and blame their lives woes on a game.

Yes it is the fact that they are playing said game too much that is ruining their lives.  But no one is forcing them to play.  Okay so they are addicted, I guess I can buy that.  So pony up, take responsibility, and get help. 

I've played WOW *world of warcraft* for a few years now, and yes at times I probably played more than I've should.  Then again the last two years or so I've played hardly at all.  Why?  Oh I don't know I had a baby, I'm participating in my daughter's school, and class stuff.  Bascially I'm prioritzing!!.   I'm deciding whats important and whats not.  This is comming from someone who used to raid into the wee hours of the morning at times, with a daughter who was bound and determined to wake up at seven or eight am.  Did she not get fed because I stayed up to late?  Did she sit in a wet diaper till noon so that I could catch up on lost sleep NO NO NO.  I got my tired butt out of bed, and faced my responsibilities, and the consequences of staying up to late.

Whats wrong with society is that people don't want to take the consequences of their actions.  By saying that this game is the source of their problems you are giving them an out.  They can now say, "See it isn't MY fault, its the game."

Do I feel for the mother who lost her son.  Yes of course I do.  Is it horrible for his life to be cut so short, of course it is.  But come on it wasn't the GAME itself.  She says he was happy and well adjusted before, obviously not as well and adjusted as she thought or he wouldn't have killed himself over Everquest.  If you look at how many people play and claim they "are addicted" whether seriously or in jest if it was the GAME killing people you'd hear about it more often.   I'm I saying it is the boys fault?  That his suicide was right, or his "punishment" NO.  He had problems, he needed help, and he didn't get it.  Its horribly sad, but it happens.  If it wasn't Everquest or some other online game that took over his world it would have been something else.

And as for the wife whose husband needs to get off his butt, stop playing and get a job, she should stop paying for his account.  As a world of warcraft player I know you have to pay a montly fee that either gets deducted from your account every month, every three months, six months etc, however you decide to pay for it or you buy a gaming card.  If he has no job/money then she should stop giving him the money to play.  Cut him off at the source. 

It's time for people to stop misplacing blame, and fess up to life and responsibilities.  Everything in moderation right? 

Addiction is addiction, no matter what form.  Some people are addicted to drugs, alcohol, the usual suspects.  Others are addicted in less known forms such as shoes (my specialty), or prehaps butting into other peoples business.  We all seek avenues of blame, whether it's the drugs, alcohol, internet, our parents, our husbands/wives, etc., rather than deal with the real issues that are present in the relationships. (Husband/wife, parent/child, etc.).  I don't buy the couple on the show that claimed that when the husband wasn't on the game he was the perfect hudband/dad.  It may be what they want to believe, but I don't think that's the case.  More than likely, if it wasn't the game it would be something else.  What about the husbands that spend every weekend at the golf course, or spend all their money on NASCAR stuff, or stop by the bar every evening for a few before heading home?

My husband began online gaming (Everquest 2) and would spend hours on the game.  You know what?  I joined him.  Granted, we don't have little children.  Our son at the time had graduated high school and was attending our local community college.  To begin with we had to share one gaming computer.   We bought a second relatively quickly so that we could play together.  We both enjoy it and if we spend lots of time on the weekends playing the game, so what.  We have never been a couple that went out alot, often refering to ourselves as modern day hermits.  Introverts to the core, we prefer a quite home life.

I do see the problems in those families profiled on the show, but the games are not the cause.  They are only a manifestation of a deeper problem.  If you don't want to spend time with your wife, an online game is a great way to avoid her.  So is the local pool room, the local pub, the bowling alley, a friend's house, etc.  The fact that the one wife allows it to go on to such an extent (husband stays home with kids while she's at work) shows that she is an enabler, or prehaps she has too many issues herself to deal with that confronting the problem headon is too much to handle.  Personally I would crack the computer open and rearrange some of the internal pieces! 

Gist of this reply, quite trying to lay blame on inannimate objects.  To blame a game, you must include the computer/game station it's played on.  To blame the computer/game station, you must include the electricity powering the system.  So, ultimately, it's the fault of Benjamin Franklin, who, because he discovered electricity, caused these people to become addicted.  Quit making excuses for the poor state of your life.  Get over "if"- get on with "life".