Church of England: Violent Games a “Bubbling Sewer”
In a debate held by the Church of England synod (read: council), members condemned the availability and loose restrictions on violent games. Former Tory MP Tom Benyon, now angry religious man, cried that “there is a bubbling sewer of gratuitously violent and sexual pornography and games all around us”. Attempting to describe their so called “pernicious effect”, he referenced a family member who had nightmares after seeing “a so-called game”. Dragging the experience into the melodramatic, he claims that “the images remained with him for months.”
Benyon offered, though apparently cut short of airing, an ol’ time gore compilation comprised of out of context ultra-violence from a selection of modern media. In an outstretched challenge to those of bolstered stomach he dared “I have all these terrible games collected and if anyone has the courage to watch it, please do so.” The tape was comprised of footage from an unspecified era “Mortal Combat” [sic], the untraceable “killing and burning of a woman in Fatality” and scenes confusingly lifted, within the context of the debate, from the film Saw III.
The synod suggests overhaul in the Government’s media regulatory system with Benyon asserting that “This is not just a matter of conscience and morality. It’s a public health and an economic issue.” Thankfully, for those scared by the existence of “playing football with severed heads”, regardless of changing societal attitudes to censorship or marketing, the Church council promised to keep an eye on the games market, presumably inciting fearful quakes in developers’ boots nationwide.
Religion should not play a part in a country’s media availability or censorship. While concerns about children’s access to violent material is no doubt a parental concern for many, it should not be a Church of England issue what is and isn’t passed for consumption. It is near conclusive in research by the un-hysterical that digital gore is not a contributing factor in real world violence. It’s just sad that continuing, arching power falls to these whiny God-men not so much as to make a genuine governmental difference, but to allow them a permanent credence with which to preach outdated views to vulnerable individuals.
Via: The Guardian
News Tags: Church of England, God, Mortal Kombat, violence
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And here I was thinking that they were getting saner, what with the gay clergymen pension equality and the announcing that science is perfectly compatible with religion, but there’s always the damned nutters in the synod with their censorship and moral panic.
I hate it when these religious types spout crap about our beloved games. They’re so biased. For example they’ll give examples of Grand Theft Auto or Dante’s Inferno gameplay forgetting the other games like Super Mario Bro’s or Eyepet. Both of which are family oriented.
Well, at least a sewer has some kind of practical purpose.