back to article Govt advisor calls violent-videogame tax

An advisor to Gordon Brown on knife crime and youth violence is to tell the Prime Minister that violent videogames should be taxed to put them out of the reach of kids. Richard Taylor, who’s son Damilola was stabbed to death in south London nine years ago, this week told MPs that computer and console games are “too cheap”, …

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  1. Roberto
    Thumb Down

    tax ?

    Is there anything that isn't taxed these days?

    Greedy buggers!

  2. Big Bear
    Thumb Down

    Oh great...

    So it'll be knife wielding teen crazies slashing each other for games to practice their knife slashing on?

    Does anyone think rather than kneejerk to everything?

  3. Matt

    blah blah blah

    All that can be said on the 'violent video games make kids violent' argument but on this new twist all I can say is that most parents I know pay for the games anyway so can't see it making much difference

  4. John
    Thumb Down

    Another great government scheme.......

    What a load of nonesense it is to tax certain videogames to keep them out of the hands of kids. So that even perfectly responsible adults who understand the difference between games and reality are also taxed!

    Perhaps it would be more suitable to make the current warning more visable to parents who would likely go to a shop and ask "What is the best game out at the moment for this games console?" Shop assistant will just say GTA or whatever else might be out, some might be violet others could be acceptable for all ages e.g. Mario. However I am not sure all parents understand how much games have changed since they used to play them, if they have ever used them at all. Perhaps bigger warnings or specific alerts at the register to say "Please be aware this is a very graphically violet game and is not suitable for all people and definitely not anyone under (whatever the specific age rating is)"

    It is always very odd to me that people like blaiming video games for horrible things occuring, fairly sure Hitler was not a games fanatic and I cannot see Osama Bin Laden practicing his smack talk on Xbox Live! Some times people are just bad and they might just focus on particular things which could be games, films, books or it could just be their imagination! It is the person not whatever they are obsessed with causing the problem.

    Hopefully the government will understand that and not tax the perfectly safer gamers which would be unlikely to change anything anyway as making something a few quid more just means that someone will obsess over it more and potentially look to other ways to either get the game or money so they can start playing it.

  5. Richard
    Alert

    ... (that is my title)

    *BANG*

    That was me exploding at the stupidity of this.

    There's a simple way if you want to keep violent games away from kids who are too young for them, make sure the parents who buy them READ THE FUCKING BOX THAT SAYS 18 ON IT! How the hell do they not get this?

  6. Mark Carlisle

    Sad

    One would have hoped that the death of his [Richard Taylor] son would have spurred him on to provide a more compelling and significant statement to MP's regarding knife crime and gang culture rather than trivializing his death by implying its all the fault of computer games and cheap games consoles.

  7. Tim Bates
    Thumb Down

    Numbers?

    So what these dumb arses are saying is that many people who play games as teenagers turn into psycho killers...

    Bullcrap!

    I've been playing games almost all my life. Some of the ones I played before I was a teenager would have been considered violent at the time (Wolf3D, Doom, etc).... Yet I have no urge to kill. I've never run around a corner and stabbed a German soldier in the back, or run around with a chainsaw jamming it into the guts of fireball throwing Wookies.

    I would estimate that for every "game related" crime, there is at least 10,000 perfectly normal people. And if someone is willing to commit a violent crime in the first place, what's to say they didn't just steal the damn games in the first place anyway?

  8. David Gosnell

    @ Roberto

    How about a tax on tax, that would be a novel idea.

    Oh, sorry, they do it with petrol and diesel already.

  9. Monkey

    The only people who should be taxed...

    ... in relation to this are the stupid bloody parents who buy 18 rated games for their kids, and the apathetic shop staff who sell them these games knowing full well that little Johnny standing next to mom and dad is the one it is getting bought for, but don't bother to say to them "this game isn't suitable for children".

    And I say this as a parent of a young child asking for everything to play with and a gamer myself for the last 30 years.

    I have witnessed so many times over the year parents buying blatantly unsuitable games for their children, and even heard shop staff say "oh it's not that bad, it's just a video game" (to a parent asking about Manhunt for gods sake for the 12 year old standing next to her!!). If the government is going to try and tackle a problem in such an idiotic manner then at least direct the tax at those who need to accept some responsibility and blame for the actions of their children.

    Your kid hurts someone, or damages property, you as a parent are held to account as well. Don't tax those of us who haven't done a single thing wrong in relation to this. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid statements from the person making it, and stupid, stupid, stupid government for even letting it be made in the first place and holding games up as a root cause of our increasingly violent society.

  10. Ascylto

    And ...

    If they are caught playing these games AND eating chocolate at the same time ...

  11. Alasdair Fox

    Real life vs.Virtual

    Wonder if anyone's considered the fact that a teenager playing his Xbox is one less kid running around the streets shooting people in the ass with his air rifle?

    There weren't any realistic and violent games around when I was a kid, and yet a lot of kids were still likely to be playing about with air rifles, slings and knives, and violent behaviour still occurred.

    Of course, it must have been the 'video nasties' that we were all watching. Are they putting a tax on violent films / television programs then?

    Another generation, another scapegoat....

  12. Monkey

    ... and another thing!!!!

    Surely if this person is saying that violent games must be taxed to price them out of the hands of children, isn't this stating that the reason these games are so readily accessible to them is because they are walking into shops with their pocket money and buying them of their own accord without assistance from parents... As in the legal restrictions put in place to stop this happening aren't working.....!

    Now I'm NOT saying that. I'm not saying that game shop staff are flouting those laws all the time, but this 'suggestion', if it can even be called that, is in fact saying this. Something I'm sure a lot of shop staff would have something to say about.

    I'm on a roll today!

  13. Ali
    Thumb Up

    This sickness is enemic in society

    I've never understood how people can get such perverted pleasure from these sick vile games and films. A tax on such filth is a step in the right direction, but I'd like to see them get banned. Knife and gun crime in the UK is becoming the norm. Is this acceptable? No. Then why is acceptable to allow kids to shoot and kill in a 'game'?

  14. Monkey

    Ali

    ... That's right. You tell them! Damn right, blame someone, or something else entirely. Why bother examining the sociological reasons or making the strong correlation to a lack of accountability for one's actions in the media, in school, in work or amongst one's peers, or one's parents, so obvious in society the last five to ten years?

    You go for it. Blame anything but those responsible. It's all all so much more.... convenient and easy isn't.

    And if you're going to expose yourself with such idiotic statements, learn to proof read first...

  15. John

    @This sickness is enemic in society

    Perhaps we should also ban science fiction. These horrible people great creatures that were not made in the eyes of god, you must have a sick mind to create anything like this! While we are at it I think that we should also ban historical books that include any pictures related to war or any form of violence(interestingly I guess that would include the Bible), because you have to be wrong in the head to want to see or read anything about someone who has experienced pain. You should not learn anything about World War I or II, as to be interested about anything Hitler did would be wrong!! All news reporting on any violent act should also be banned! In fact let is us ban anything that involves pain so, no tatoos, no piecings, no rugby, no martial arts, no contact sport what so ever, all forms forms surgery and injections should also be banned as this might hurt even if it is for the best overall.

    Everyone should ONLY want to stand holding hands in fields of flowers, anything else is WRONG!!!!

    OR

    Maybe some people can tell the difference between fantasy and reality!!!!!! Yes you do have to be ill to want to do certain things in real life!!!! However that cannot be compared to wanting to see what happens if you can draw faster than Billy the kid in a western game or wanting to see if you can jump over that garden restraunt with your car, even though you know you probably can't! You know why? because it does not matter!!! All anyone does in a game is change digital code. No one is hurt and no one is killed. So it is not really the same as killing a school student or being a war crimimal in REAL LIFE!!!!!

    Ali perhaps you cannot tell the difference between the two BUT most people can!

  16. adam
    Thumb Down

    We're all evil gamers!

    Another knee jerk reaction. Of course I feel very sorry for Mr Taylor as he did lose his son in what I can only describe as horrendous circumstances but the issue is a little bit more complex then he thinks.

    Games are already expensive, actually more expensive than they've ever been. We already pay VAT on them so slapping another tax on them would seriously hit gamers and the industry alike.

    Games such as GTA, Saints Row, Manhunt, FEAR 2 are all 18 certificate games so why do some parents think this is OK for their kids? The mind simply boggles where these people are concerned.

    Parents need to educate themselves to the kinds of games their kids are playing. If they find their kids are playing games they shouldn't be then it's time for good old discipline to say hello. If parents want to educate themselves there are gaming sites out there that cater for parents and have a full breakdown of the games content. Is it that hard to use a search engine?

    Education is only part of it, parents also need to be involved with their kids game playing. Don't just give them a console, a TV and let them sit in their rooms but the thing in a family room where they can be kept an eye on. Even play games with them.

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