God Damned Young People and Their Video Games Make Me Furious!
The problem with young people today is that they play video games.
Back in my day, we didn’t have video games. My friends and I had sensible toys like BB guns and bowie knives. Wholesome toys that instilled decent values and prepared you to be a productive member of society.
But these young people today…all they do is play the damned video games. Night and day. They’re burrowed away in their dimly lit basements, rotting their brains, ruining their eyesight and developing skin tones normally reserved for corpses and naked mole rats.
It’s insidious and dangerous. All this foolhardy “gaming” is turning them into gormless butterballs while, at the same time, deluding them into thinking that they’re actually capable of doing things.
Well I have news for them. They may be able to throw a 50 yard pass on the “Madden Football,” and kill a man with their bare hands on the “Splinter Cell” but turn the games off and these young people would be hard pressed to pick their own noses without an instruction manual, cheat codes and parental assistance.
The only positive is it keeps them off the streets and out of the way of decent old folks out for a Sunday stroll.
Here’s a video game they might want to try – it’s called “If You Really Want to be a Navy Seal, Get Off Your Ass, Go Outside and Get Some Exercise Junior.”
The way I see it, the best you’ll get from playing 150 hours a week of “Halo” is eye strain, a fat ass and a case of inoperable stupidity. But in the long term, what it’s really doing is creating a generation of anti-social weirdoes, violent sociopaths, introverted nut bars, twitchy endomorphs and good old fashioned useless nerds.
And when they take the helm of this fine country, these young people will be well and truly lost if it doesn’t come with a video game controller.
They play video games. That’s the problem with young people today.
The Problem with Young People Today Is... 
you make very good points, don. on top of all of that, don’t forget how much it will cost society when they all go on disability because they have cramped thumb syndrome from maneuvering the damned controllers. i just hope for their sakes that they never have to hitchhike in the future.
Thanks Nonnie and nice to see you back.
The way I see it, their horribly disfigured thumbs will be the least of their problems. In fact, it may be a blessing when they all turn into violent sociopaths. Without functioning opposable thumbs it should make it a little harder for them to wield firearms (real ones, anway).
Best regards,
Don
i love video games i play like 24 hours and im pro i play cuz i like kicking ppls ass
Your comment, is so amazing
What?! I’ve been playing video games constantly since Grand Theft Auto came out and I haven’t killed anyone since…
You’re are right in a way. I think some of these guys vicariously live their lives through sport video games since they can’t play worth a lick in the real world.
Video games do develop good hand and eye coordination though.
Nice to see you Sensico.
Glad to hear your keeping the murderous impulses in check as of late.
And thanks for bringing up the hand eye coordination. It’s likely true that video games do improve hand eye coordiantion but, for me, the question becomes – what good does it do you if you all use it for is to play more video games?
Hammering a nail is also good for hand eye coordination. Playing Jacks too. Baseball as well.
Always a pleasure to hear from you Sensico.
Best
Don
(*-*)games i love games i play gta and kill anyone i c cuz thay dont c it comeing its funny when thay fall and crack thayr face open lol
ya luv when blood splatters takin a 9mm and pistol whippin those bitchez cause of radio games
I agree that too much video game-playing is terrible. My brother does nothing but play video games and weighs almost 130 pounds. He’s 9 years old…
I play video games, but less than even an hour a day. In fact, sometimes I go days or weeks without playing them. I’m not addicted at all. I work out and read stuff online much more than I play video games. I’m pretty balanced, I think.
So all in all, I say we agree on this one, Don!
Gerard
I think we are three in a row now Gerard. You’ve gone beyond “honorary curmudgeon” and are moving into “associate senior” territory!
I hope you can have a positive influence on your younger brother. It’s all about balance, lad, as you yourself say.
Good to see you again.
Don
Summer is here and instead of running around enjoying being free, kids are sitting around staring at the boob tube, texting, or playing video games. What would these kids do without something electronic to entertain them.
Now, if you will excuse me Mr. Mills, I need to change the channel on the TV and set my DVR.Then, I have to email my sister some pictures I took with my camera phone. I also need to download some new songs to my ipod. Maybe later, I’ll pay my bills online and then to relax I may play a couple of hands of video poker.
Have a good day blogging, Don.
Thank you Mrs. Collins,
I noted a bit of cheekiness in your reply but I’m not going to call you out on it.
I’m more concerned about this gambling business.
It seems to me that you young people gamble far too much. Lotto tickets, on-line poker, the football pool and cock fights.
In my day you took one gamble, and that was at the alter. Because no matter which way the chips fell, you stuck with the hand you were dealt.
Always nice to hear from you Mrs. Collins.
Avoid an inside straight.
Don
kill my slef
Well video games never made me wanna kill anyone…………but listening to people moan about them does. (no threat intended) There were just as many murderers about “back in the day”.
Thanks saintnefarious,
Appreciate the paranthetical assurance that you’re not going to kill me in my sleep. Always good to know where you stand – I’m sure you’ll agree.
Anyway, I wasn’t moaning so I assume I would have been okay anyway. I like to think I “rail” not “moan.” I hate moaning. Always have.
Funny you raise it because moaning’s a trait I associate largely with teenagers. Seems to me they are always moaning and groaning about some form complaint. Anyway, that’s an argument for another day.
Nice of you to leave a comment, saintnefarious. Appreciate hearing your point of view.
Don
I’d opt for the good old fashioned useless nerds.
Many thanks for stopping in Cappy.
All the best
Don
Dear Mr Mills,
Once again you have eloquently expressed my sentiments exactly, regarding pathologically gormless, lazy, lard- assed, basement dwelling, anti-social young people who waste their lives playing video games all day and night.
I could call them denizens of the deep, except that would be an insult to Giant Squid.
The evidence that the perpetrators of mass shootings at High Schools is directly related to their addiction to playing insidious violent video games is overwhelming and indisputable.
In my day, we didn’t have mass shootings at High School. The worst thing that could happen was flatulence by a student in the classroom.
If young people really want to practise their hand/eye co-ordination by killing, raping, mangling, cutting heads off and ripping out spinal chords, why can’t they do some work experience down at the local Butcher’s and at least be doing something useful?
It makes my blood boil, Mr Mills
Dear Ms. Lily,
Could you please let me see that “overwhelming and indisputable” evidence that mass shooting at high schools are directly caused by violent video games. You are completely overlooking the adultification of many of today’s youth. This factor is usually overlooked by (no offense intended) some of the older members of our society. Growing up in today’s world is a completely different set of trials then it was 30 years ago, and even more challenging then 50 years ago. I am not trying to defend the actions of any of the shooters in the mass shooting to which you are referring; I am simply asking you to stop your blatant bigotry and try to empathize with the youth of a harsh, stressful, and violent world.
I will agree with you that there is no clear evidence that video games lead to violence. I will disagree with your assumption that growing up is different than 30 to 40 years ago. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs fits into any situation. The only difference is that instead of having a Firebird with T-Tops to be the big boy in school is to have a Hybrid. The situations in life do not change just the materials that cause it. It’s always been a violent world almost every gerneration has seen a war be it WWI, WWII, Vietnam, Korea, Desert Storm, OIF with others in between such as Grenada and so on. The only difference from back then to now is that the internet has given the world a place to get information faster than it was to get 40 years ago. The information was always there for someone to get but they actually had to research and use the dewey decimal system (not many kids today know what that is I bet) just to get access to information. Also I’m pretty sure your teachers couldn’t swat you on the head now like they did back 40 so years ago. Kids today need to get off there high horse and see they have it easier than it was. Stop watching Cribs and start thinking logically. By the way I am a young adult and I did grow up thinking that my life was different than my parents then I actually listened to them and put 1 and 1 together.
I find you assumptions of our youth’s stupidity quite insulting. And truly, you do not grasps the point of my last comment. Children have been forced to mature much faster then they would have had to years ago. This causes many psychological effects, some of which have yet to be determined. Perhaps it is you who must step down from your “high horse”, but somehow I sense that you are afraid to, incase your own hight is not sufficient anymore? People coming out of college are more prepared to enter the workforce and replace the failing and aging members of our society then they ever have been before. So what if video games dont occur outside? They don’t get skin cancer, great… And ya, some people abuse them by playing in excess, but that is only a very small subset of people who actually play video games. To claim that they are all bad is a horrendous oversimplification. As a self professed “hardcore gamer”, I can tell you that it IS possible to enjoy video games while at the same time being healthy and active. (for your information, im 18, weigh 220, am 6’4”, and have a fat % of 7)
You keep going back to video games are not bad. Sir I have agreed with you on that point. To say that I have to come off my high horse, well sir you have no right to say that. I grew up in a town of 3000, worked in a city of 50k plus. After I get off work I went to my grandparent’s house to help out on the farm. That was during the school year. I also spent my entire senior year of high school in college courses. I then graduated High school and went college plus joined the Army. I skipped out during my first degree to police a country (by the way I was 20) that if I were to mess up I would wind up dead. I then came home finished my degree plus two more and went back to the good country that I had left just 5 years earlier. I also play counter strike a lot and I consider myself a “Hardcore Gamer” as well. I find myself having more in common with older folks because kids my age think like you sir that it’s easy to get a job after college. One of my degrees is in Human Resources and to tell you the truth there is a difference in preparing someone for a job and educating someone. Just because you have a college degree does not make it easy it’s what you did in college with that degree that gets you the job. There’s a business in Australia that actually will not hire a person that has a WoW account. They can do that too since they have studies that prove that the majority of gamers will not put a 100% into there job, because of the need to just get to that next level. I have also never stated that a gamer could not be active I play games with very active personnel. I myself can run a 2 mile course in 14 min not many kids can say they can do that and the ones that can were probably in sports oh and by the way I was also a wrestler in High school that went to districts varsity all 4 years. I also hung around the gothic kids and the ones who were deemed a burden on society. I have seen the points and views of many aspects so you sir do not tell me to get off my high horse. I am a man who walks his horse not rides upon it like someone who could make sweeping generalizations. You sir are only 18 you have yet to see much of this world if you go around making people think that there points of view are insignificant like you have so far in this lively forum I pray that make it through life so blissfully unaware of anything. I was agreeing with you to a point but when a person takes his glove off and smacks me in the face with comments such as yours. I personally wouldn’t buy you lemonade at 6 year olds street stand, but I digress. Yes kids have it rough today but if you go back 40 years there lives were just as hard you just have to look at it from there perspective.
Well said Sgt.C.
And nice to see you again lad.
Don
My intentions were not to insult you. I ask for your forgiveness on this matter. However, my point still remains that life for teens today is not any easier then it was years ago.
I would like to see your research on that point. I’m pretty sure that any problem that a teen faces now has a problem back then that had the same effect on a teen back years ago. Everyone has problems but have you ever heard the saying history repeats itself. I’m not saying that you don’t have problems but your making a deep generalization about todays problems and ones of yesteryear. How are you to step into the shoe’s of an elder and say well my problem is worse. I can say for one thing that problems that existed back then got swept under the rug and today there headlines but being dimissed is just as bad as losing your privacy.
ya
Dear Eric,
Do you think a woman with my qualifications and expertise would dare make a statement like that without doing the research first? I suggest you go to this site and do your own research http://www.justfuckingoogleit.com . I’m sure you will find all the evidence you need there.
As for young people today having “harsh, stressful and violent” lives, gimme a break.
Harsh is living in a cardboard box on a rubbish tip. Stressful is living in a cardboard box on a rubbish tip without the Internet.
These young people today live in their cosy fully appointed attics / basements subsidized by their parents with intercoms to order food from the kitchen or they order pizza in. They don’t pay for anything….especially not all the illegal downloading of all their movies,music,porn and video games. The only stress they have is if they accidently press the wrong button and lose all their files and/ or if the downloading is too slow.
I’m sure Mr Mills can describe living during the Great Depression. Now that’s what I would call “harsh and stressful”.
Excuse me madam, but how, pray tell, am I suppose to know that you are a woman of with such “qualification and expertise”. Also, why don’t you do some research as well? Stress based on survival, or first-order priorities, use a completely different catecholamine then second-order (non survival related) priorities. The body is much better at handling first-order priorities then it is at handling the second-order ones. In the “Great Depression”, the stresses were mostly first-order. Today, almost all of the stresses are second-order. Ironically though, this style of living is more dangerous then the first situation.
Sorry but just fucking google it is not a valid answer
lily. EVRYONE on the internet belives that they are a expert and
ANYONE with enough intelligence knows not to belive evrything they
hear on the internet. I also sure hope you dont use that kind of
language and profanity in real life. And while yes there is
research done for that there has also been research done that says
that gamers play for the thrills not the kills. The peaple who do
shooting were usually mentally unstable BEFORE they played games
and there parents should keep them awayfrom those games. Its
actually made increadibly easy these days when all you have to do
is press a couple buttons and there now they cant play rated m or t
games anymore. Or you know they could just not buy them games in
the first place. The problem with kids these days is there parents
who wont learn this or just wont do it because they have no
backbone.
Thank you, Lily.
I do look forward to your comments. And you’ve done an admirable job in sorting out our young friend, Eric. I appreciate it.
Always a pleasure.
Don
Hahaa!! Nice post. And close to home, too!
The absolute WORST decision my wife and I made was purchasing the Wii for our two boys. Although the 14-year old is mildly amused by it, our 9-year old talks about (and wants to do) NOTHING else. E.g., (you can replace anything within the [brackets] on any given day):
“I unlocked [Durmoblaster] on the [5th] Level of [Kronk]! Watch! Let me show you!!” are his first words to his mother in the morning.
I recall when something like, “Good Morning, Mom!” was more the standard.
I feel like picking him up and shaking him, yelling, “WE — DON’T — CARE!!! NOW GO OUTSIDE AND RIDE YOUR BIKE!!”
Although, truth be told, he’s a bit frightened of his bike — falling down and potentially getting a scrape is almost too much to bear, especially since there’s no “RESET” button to be found.
I remember when being outside on my bike was the ONLY thing I wanted to do when I woke up.
When did parents allow all of this to change?
Since when did “develops good hand and eye coordination” get lauded so highly when sitting on one’s ass (except possibly when practicing a musical instrument)? I mean, they’re staring at an electronic screen!
Is this some sort of future-related job skill? I can see it now: “Can’t do math? Don’t know how to write? Socially depraved? 110 pounds overweight? Hmmm… That’s okay. How are your Nintendo skills, son?”
Hell. Maybe I’m the one who needs a RESET button.
You bastard! Your son is getting a sense of accomplishment from the video games that he OBVIOUSLY doesn’t get from his parents. How about you pay attention to him at some point in the future? Sounds like he just wants to make you happy.
hahaahaha
Thanks for visiting danielnotdan and pay no attention to young Eric. He’s getting a little worked up. It appears that while video games may enhance “spacial awareness,” “strategy” and “hand eye coordination” they don’t do much to enrich a young person’s sense of humor.
Nice of you to stop in.
Don
Nice one Don. I use to play video games ALL day. You could put me in front of a TV and give me a controller and I was done. Thankfully that is behind me. It is definitely addicting and time consuming.
Nice to see you again Eric R. Glad to hear you’ve moved on to better and more productive pursuits.
Always good to hear from you.
Best regards,
Don
Though I respect your opinions, I have to disagree with you on many levels. You are speaking of a very small minority of the subset of the young population who actually plays video games. The majority of us are atually quite productive members of soceity (perhaps more so then you are?) but choose to enjoy our free time by engaging our minds in an active process, rather then just sitting around playing with knives and guns. Also, you are overlooking the numerous studies that have shown that video games improve communication skills, long term/short term memory, strategy, hand-eye coordination, and spacial awareness. Get that from a bb gun. Granted, there is a problem with overuse of video games, but as it seems to be with everything in life…everything in moderation.
Also, take a look at http://www.worldcoast.ca/files/images/violentgames.preview.jpg This is a graph of the number of violent crimes per 1000 people (on average) (published by the government) versus years. Interestingly, the years when and since the violent games first came out, the number of violent crimes have decreased (almost by 50%)
Hi Don,
I am absolutely agreed with you. It is waste of time of life. God gives us our lives not to be gamblers. To pray, to work, to help.
But problem seems a little bit worse. Who has taught young people to play video games? Who did not forbid them to play?
Your dad would not allow you to turn a computer at all. Why adults today so weak? It seems that they have no will at all. They don’t want to raise kids. They don’t want to be hard and strict. They don’t want to be parents at all.
And this is the problem of our young people today.
Thanks for visiting Igor.
No idea why young parents today aren’t taking a harder stand on this. As one old friend of mine once said, the currenting parenting style of choice is the “path of least resistance” approach.
Hope to hear from you again, Igor.
Best
Don
Hello Don:
I guess maybe the young people today have that same “need” we had as youngsters, the need to express teenaged “angst.”
But where my brother and I just set up green plastic army men in the yard and mowed them down with rocks while making “booosh! boooosh!” noises (mortarfire), or occasionally beheaded a Barbie in certain wartime scenarios (collateral damage), we certainly didn’t spend ALL day doing it. No we didn’t. It got boring after about 20 minutes, max. We’d go back inside and bother Mom for something to eat. She’d send us back outside.
Well, that was hardly even a point worth making, but there it is.
Dogette
Nice to see you again Dogette,
There’s a point in there alright. Not only were you outside but you were making your own damned fun and using your imagination. What the world needs now is more little green plastic army men.
Thanks again
Don
I am truly sorry that you all feel so powerless that you must come here to bitch about it. Well, just rest peacefully knowing that in a short time, you wont be here to worry about it anymore. How about discuss issues that are more important such as.. health care? Soylent green anyone? (yum…)
So stop your bitching and get off your proverbial collective asses and do something to help the world, rather then get off on talking behind people’s backs. You people are the problem.
Holy Hannah,
I step away to fix a bowl of bran flakes and all Hell breaks loose.
Listen, son, I’m no O. Henry but I suspect that “danielnotdan” may have been slightly less than serious in his comment about his son. I don’t usually approve of humor (it’s frivolous and often contains bad language) but there’s no need to launch into personal attacks on him or Miss Lily Fossil.
I don’t read “studies” and I’m the first to admit it. They’re usually written by long-haired eggheads and full of gibberish like “spacial awareness.” (What the Hell is that anyway? I’ve never played a video game in my life but I’m still able to judge the relative distance between my hand and the mug of cocoa on my t.v. tray. It sounds like drug talk to me.)
Anyway, try not to get so worked up, lad. No one is talking behind anyone’s back. I don’t want to set you off but I wonder if those video games are making you a tad jumpy and anxious. You might want to ease off a little bit.
You’ve made a half-way decent argument, son, and you’re obviously a bright kid. Don’t go undermining your opinions with angry assaults on your elders.
An apology wouldn’t go amiss.
Best regards.
Don
It was not my intention to incite anyone to anger or frustration. My whole point for even posting on here is to point out that video games are not wholly bad. (also, spacial awareness is the ability of one to be able to map out their physical body in relationship to their environment; a key aspect to interacting with said environment.)
Eric,
Young people today couldn’t read a map if their life depended on it. They are so addicted to their mobile phones, GPS, Google earth and computers that if you took those away from them, most young people wouldn’t know if they were Arthur or Martha, much less know where they are or where they are going.
Quick point.. GPS is a map.. please, keep up with the times…
It’s PEOPLE.
Don, I still have calluses on my Nintendo thumb from the hours I spent playing Tetris as a kid. So I guess, in a way, video games scarred me for life. Excellent post, as usual.
Many thanks for the kind words Shannon.
Hope those scars heal in time.
Don
I went to BestBuy and tried to get the “If You Really Want to be a Navy Seal, Get Off Your Ass, Go Outside and Get Some Exercise Junior” game you recommended, but they said they never heard of it. If you tell me who makes the game, they will order it for me.
Thank you and have a nice day.
Try the F. W. Woolworth Company. They stock everything you need, lad.
“Growing up in today’s world is a completely different set of trials then it was 30 years ago, and even more challenging then 50 years ago. …I am simply asking you to stop your blatant bigotry and try to empathize with the youth of a harsh, stressful, and violent world.”
Eric: I am simply asking you to get off the internet and get your hiney back into school so you can learn the difference between “then” and “than”.
Language is made purely to express ideas. The difference between then and than almost never stops one from understanding the overall tone and point of the message, therefor, is it really necessary to distinguish between the two? (except in the special circumstances where it does effect the overall message) also, this is kinda off topic? Grammar-nazi?
You gotta love some of these “reality” games like Second Life. People use ficitious money to buy and trade things within the game. Like weapons, goods, and property.
But what’s strange, is how this is being brought into the real world.
For example, off-line, players have made thousands of REAL-LIFE dollars, by selling virtual real estate they own within the game. There are idiots actually paying money for something that dosen’t exist.
People also meet within the game to buy and sell things that they own in real life. Kind of like E-bay.
There’s enough of an underground economy that the Federal govt. was looking at findign a way to TAX this.
Makes me just shake my head.
If this isnt’ a sign of the impending Apocalypse and breakdown of our society, I dont’ know what is.
I will second that on paying for SL (Second Life) stuff.
I do know that there are plenty of companies that use that game for product showings and meetings. It’s actually cheaper for them to purchase the already made land from someone else than hiring a person to be only wise in SL programing code. I even had a college class in which my entire semester was taught in SL to tell you the truth I really missed the connection of seeing students.
I will agree that it does need to be taxed though.
Unbelieveable…
Never heard of Second Life but it used to be that selling virtual realestate got you jail time.
Thanks Friar. Always good to see you.
Don
The End is Coming. Make sure you have the interwebz in yr fallout shelter! Srsly.
In the “showing your age, downcast dept” I was a Galaga addict.
Nice of you to stop in downcast.
Galaga? Never heard of it. But I’m glad it is firmly in the “was” category. I can’t have my primary health care provider sporting any kind of unseemly addictions.
(Speaking of which, you better email me about that rash of mine. It doesn’t look like Lyle Waggoner anymore. It’s grown now and looks like more of a young Harvey Korman.)
Nice to see you again.
Don
Wow your rash haz sum noze on it! Iz it erupting?
“haz sum noz”? is that Latin?
I knew you Doctors had poor handwriting but honestly…
It’s not erupting but it’s damned itchy. I straightened outa coat hanger and just keep scratching away at it. I need some kind of ointment, I suspect.
(You’re not charging for this right?)
Oh man, you are into the self abuse! Make a salve of Crisco, hot mustard, ketchup, and mayonaise and put it on liberally! I will send my bill thru your insurance. Sometimes the kittehs in my head get ahold of the keyboard. Use steel wool to scratch btw, hangers might have been used in some unspeakable act.
Dear Mr Mills,
Please excuse this interruption and me sticking my nose in, but I am concerned about this rash of which you speak and you taking any advice from Mr Downcastmysoul. He sounds like a charlatan to me, flogging off his homeopathetic/voodoo remedies to poor unsuspecting old folks.
He obviously “haz teh kittehs in his head”. Anyone prescribing any medication ending in “z” is to be regarded with the utmost suspicion, as I recently had the great misfortune to find out.
I was prescribed “lulz” by one such wingnut and all it did was give me a terminal case of verbal diarrhoea, which , strangely enough only affects my fingers.
Don
“Galaga” was big in the early 80’s.
downcastmysoul IS showing his age.
(So am I, because I played it too)
Thanks Friar.
(I believe the good Doctor downcastmysould is a woman, however.)
All the best
Don
I’m a lady “doctor”, and yes, Galaga shows my age. Who is downcastmysould, however, Mista Mills?
@ Fossil: LOL kittehs is one of the few funny things in this dark world.
@downcastmysoul.
Sorry I mistook you for a dude.
Hard to tell, with an Orangutang avatar!
I know, that’s why I put it up there. Been shopping avatars @ other sites…too darn racy for me!
the truth is that in your day you spent all your time hammering nails , if you had video games when you were young you would have played them as much as the youth of today, old people like you ought to remember that the world is in the appalling unfair condition it is because your generation elected and supported people that promoted this. I attend one of the best grammar schools in the uk, i am predicted straight a’s in my exams while at the same time play video games and can run a steady 3 minute mile.
old people can barely walk, have the lowest average iq in the country (what happened to all that supposed wisdom) were sucked in so badly by propaganda that they sat idle while they were collectively robbed of a decent pension and a general satisfactory level of living, i have a life waiting for me in which i can take any door of opportunity i choose, i can be a doctor a lawyer an athlete, an astronaut a soldier a scientist, an author. I’m not unlike the majority of my colleagues and we will capitalize on the long and fruitful lives ahead of us.
your generation however bent the country to its knees with ridiculous choices, your generation entered war like nam for no reason besides grudge and got the youth of the time torn to pieces, you complain about modern music, but it is only in the appalling state it is due to the line of choice you took. you complain about our haircuts but we wear them to show we are not like you.
the truth is old people like to blame everyone else for their mistakes and while you will die in a couple of years having accomplished nothing we will have learned from you and strive to be the best we can be. your a self confessed crabby old fart; yet somehow feel justified in complaining about everybody else
Thank you visiting with me Mr. Player,
I like you boy. That’s one damned fine comment. Well done.
I can tell you’re a smart young man, Dale. But then again, I don’t need to tell you that – you admit as much yourself. Best schools, straight A’s, brilliant athletic, future astronaut and modest to boot. It’s refreshing and I don’t mind saying so.
And you’re right of course. My generation accomplished nothing. Sorry about that. We had a pretty long and ambitious list of stuff we wanted to get done but you know how it is…you get busy, the phone rings, a neighbour drops by and the next thing you know the troops are in “Nam,” the economy is collapsing and it’s time to pass on the torch to sprogs like yourself.
Damned sloppy management and you’re right to be pissed.
(By the way – Have you been studying the Vietnam War at school this week son? I only ask because it’s not the most topical reference a youngster might cite.)
Anyway, I seriously do wish you well lad. Doctor, lawyer, athlete, astronaut, cowboy, scientist, bore, author, supreme overlord, Duke of Snottington – whatever you choose, I’m sure you’ll be a damned success and extremley fruitful as well.
Thanks for visiting Dale. I love you damned young people. You crack me up no end.
Feel free to drop by any time and share your views
Best regards,
Don
p.s. (Nobbly? This your boy?)
Dear Mr Mills,
The pleasure is all mine, kind sir.
Young people crack me up too, especially the modest ones like Mr Player.
As for “nam” as he affectionately calls it, could I be mistaken in thinking Mr Player’s only knowledge of the history of the “Vietnam War” comes from playing violent video games, a myriad of which are based on that particular war?
Heaven help us, Mr Mills.
It may come as a surprise to Mr Player to learn that not all of us “oldies” were in favor of that war. Many of us were conscientious objectors and members of the Peace Movement and it was our efforts that succeeded in bringing an end to the “Vietnam” War, (a.k.a. The American War in Vietnam).
actually i can only name 2 video games off the top of my head that take place in nam.
I’m afraid that you failed to mention World of warcraft in your post. WoW is a MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) that has millions of loyal players. It is online so people are actually playing with real people at all times and it will eat your brain. My girlfriend played WoW for about a year before I finally caved in a made an account.
I almost failed history my freshman year of college. Seriously, a week before school started was not a good time to pick up this game. I know a lot of people who have lost their souls to this game. There was even that girl somewhere in Asia that played so much WoW without getting up to eat, sleep or go to the bathroom that she eventually died! Yes, that is a true story.
It’s really crazy. I didn’t play video games until I met my girlfriend and now I love them– but they do not consume my life. I can’t run a “3-minute mile” like one of the other posters but I am about to graduate college with a teaching license. I probably won’t have much time for games once I’m teaching but who knows– maybe I can toss them into a lesson about moderation. That’s all these “gamers” need to know. Even WoW reminds us of that! One of the game-tips is “Remember to take all things in moderation (even World of Warcraft!)”
Nice to see you again Jenny.
MMORPG? There’s an abbreviation that roles off the tongue. I wonder if it might better stand for “Mindless Malingerers Oughta Reconsider Perpetual Gaming.”
And I’m not sure if I approve of this “World of Warcraft” notion, Jenny.
But, you seem to have the problem licked and if you’re able to teach a single young person a lesson in moderation you’ll always be alright in my books.
Hope you schooling is progressing well and, again, nice to see you back.
Thanks for visiting.
Don
“Language is made purely to express ideas. The difference between then and than almost never stops one from understanding the overall tone and point of the message, therefor, is it really necessary to distinguish between the two? (except in the special circumstances where it does effect the overall message) also, this is kinda off topic? Grammar-nazi?”
Grammar-Nazi? You bet. Correctness really DOES matter when you’re trying to persuade people.
Language is also made for communicating with others, no?
Spewing big words obviously makes you feel superior, Eric. However, your writing shows your INsuperiority, “overall”.
Here’s how your paragraph should have been written (emphasis added):
“Language is made purely to express ideas. The difference between then and than almost never stops one from understanding the overall tone and point of the message; THEREFORE, is it really necessary to distinguish between the two (except in the special circumstances where it does AFFECT the overall message)? Also, this is kinda off topic? Grammar-nazi?”
Sorry… Can’t take you seriously. But, have fun arguing and spewing (incorrectly) your big words for the day, and showing your [ahem] all over the ‘net. Makes you feel pretty smart, huh?
Mr. Mills: I apologize for my snarkiness here on your forum. I’m enjoying your site here, a lot.
I have PMS today, and I just think one (wanna be) pompous know-it-all deserves another sometimes I think.
Thanks Annie,
No need to apologize for snarkiness. In fact, I encourage it. (And my grammar isn’t always what it should be so feel free to split my infinitive any time you like.)
But PMS? Another abbreviation! (PMS is an abbreviation and not an acronyn right?)
First a comment with MMORPG and now PMS.
Premeditated Menacing Snarkiness, I assume?
Thanks again Annie,
Hope to hear from you again.
Don
Don, you and your readers may find something of value in this rant:
http://www.donaldnealmckay.com/mainSections/StingingCommentaries-3.html
Your site is a wonderful legal catharsis.
Don
Thanks Don,
Fine name you have there, lad.
I’ll be sure to check out the link right away. I appreciate your stopping in and sharing it with me.
All the best,
Don
oops typo i last message meant 6 minute mile
Mr Player’s comment that “the truth is that in your day you spent all your time hammering nails” almost left me speechless.
In my day we didn’t have video games. We spent daylight hours outside playing, that is, AFTER we had done our school homework and our chores.
Those chores included helping with the housework; washing and ironing, folding and putting away clothes, shopping, cooking, vacuuming, dusting, polishing and doing yardwork like sweeping verandahs, cleaning windows, raking leaves, mowing lawns (with a push mower), washing the car and running errands for our mother.
In the summer, we would go to the swimming pool and swim a mile before breakfast, a mile at lunch time and a mile after school, as well as play water polo twice a week, compete in the swimming races on Friday nights and travel away to swimming carnivals at weekends. Not to mention water ballet and diving competitions.
In the winter, we played very rigorous hockey games after school, four days per week and in tournaments on Saturdays.
(I also studied Pianoforte and the Theory of Music, outside of school hours which meant three lessons per week before school and 30 minutes practice after school every day for 10 years.)
Play time was very precious when we were young so it would be put to good use and when we weren’t building elaborate play houses with our friends in the neighbourhood we would be riding our pushbikes for miles and miles around the countryside.
When the weather forced us to play inside, we had hobbies like collecting stamps and coins which improved our knowledge of the world. We played chess and other board games which taught us cooperation and games that physically improved our hand/eye coordination like darts and hookey. And of course, we read books.
All this made us strong in body and mind and strengthened our characters and probably accounts for why some people of my generation have little time today for overweight, incoherent, foul-mouthed, ignorant young people who laze around playing video games all day and night supposedly developing their “spatial awareness”.
It makes my blood boil, Mr Mills.
I have something for you on my blog.
Very kind of you Eric. Many thanks!
Don
agreed! and I have to add that this was the first time I’ve ever seen the word “gormless” typed in a sentence. I learned that word from my hubby years ago (he’s English) and we both love using it when speaking. 🙂
Nice to see you Yorksnbeans. Always been partial to the word “gormless” myself. Written or spoken, it sure paints a picture.
All the best.
Don
I don’t think these young pups have it any harder than us older dudes had it. All the whining about a scary world that seems to be falling apart is a lot of nonsense. We dealt with WW II, the Cold War, Korea and Nam. Talk about scary …
I have a step-teenager who lives in his room, works electronics every free hour and, you guessed it, has mediocre grades. He also exhibits all the behaviors studies outline that befall teenagers who are addicted to electronics: he’s anti-social, self-centered, argumentative, anti-authority, has a short memory span, is indifferent to school, wouldn’t know a book if he stepped on one, is disinterested in life around them, is woefully ignorent of anything outside his room and without focus. Everything – other than the electronic nirvana – is either “boring” or “annoying.”
He’s a bright, good-kooing kid who can win you over with a smile but he’s just disassociated.
Step-parenting is always awkward as anyone who has been one knows. I suppose keeping peace is the easier path but then his mother, while she agrees, seems incapable of setting guidelines.
I think back on my own growing up. All my parents had to do was frown and I got it right. The crusher: “you disappointed us.” Got it!
No more. We’re too busy “understanding” Johnny and worrying we may bruise his fragile ego. Today, you look at a kid cross-eyed, and you may have the cops, a social worker from Children and Youth or school authorities breathing down your shirt collar. And kids know they have that power.
Parents need to take back parenting. As long as we pay, you behave. You put your feet under my dining room table, you play by my rules.
Thanks Newmexicofats.
You raise a lot of good points and relate a tale that, I fear, is becoming all too common.
Nice of you to stop in and visit.
Don
I dissagree Don, the hand-eye coordination that they receive makes them BETTER at active, activities, not worse.
Nice of you to stop in basicstopro,
I can’t agree with you lad. And don’t know how you’d provide it. Seems to me that young people don’t take part in “active” activities anymore.
Anyway, appreciate hearing from you.
Best
Don
I agree with you 100 percent Donald. These damn youngsters don’t know a thing about real life and all they want to do is hide on their Warcraft Worlds and their Gamestation 3’s. I have 5 grandkids and alls they want to do play on their boxes and not do a damned thing when they come over to my house to visit.
I have tried talking to my lazy, good for nothing children about getting them into a fine military academy, but they apparently said that I ruined that for them and they are scarred for life.
What these youngsters need is discipline and to do what I did and enlist in the military at the fine ripe age of 16, that’ll keep em off the ol idiot boxes.
By the way Donald, did we serve together, you look mighty familiar…anyways, its time for my nap.
Nice to meet you SgtMaj Walter Smith,
You’re damned right, of course. Discipline, structure and more discipline is what these young people need.
Good luck whipping those grandchildren into shape. I suspect that if anyone can do it, it’ll be you.
Best regards,
Don
p.s. I don’t recall ever making your acquaintance. Something tells me I would have remembered you.
Hey grandpa, you’re wrong. Video games can be beneficial too. All the strategy games I’ve played taught me more history than in my history lessons. From what I saw, you only mentioned the bad things about video games. I’ll leave you to think about the good ones. However, excessive video game playing is indeed unhealthy.
Also, I see no reason for video games to make you angry. Go play one for a change, then speak about us ‘God Damned Teenagers’.
Hey Sonny boy,
First off – I’m not your damned grandpa. Unlike you young people I know who my offspring are and I can tell you outright that we’re not related.
Now that we have that cleared up…
What’s wrong with you boy?
You’ve learned more history from video games than from books or school? Yikes. Tell you what. I’ll try to think of the good points of video games if you try to think on what’s wrong with that statement. Deal?
Hell, maybe we shoud just forget about schools and books altogether. Apparently everything we need to know we can learn from Donkey Kong and Supermario.
Nice of you to stop in lad.
Don
Hi Don
I might be a little late in commenting on this blog as you’ve moved on to a few more wonderful blogs, but I just feel the need to comment.
As an older gamer myself I have to say I disagree with most of the comments posted here that are against video games. I have personally found that getting to know the video games and playing them with my sons has allowed me to get to know their world better. They really appreciate me taking the time to learn about their games and to play along in their games. It’s also led to better communications with the boys. Because I’ve taken the time to understand their world they take the time to listen to me when there’s more important topics of conversation to be had.
When I was growing up ‘family games’ were Euchre, Bridge, monopolgy when the weather was bad and baseball, swimming and skiing when there was time to be spent outdoors together. Our family is the same today – we play baseball, cards, ski and swim together and I believe a lot of that comes from building trust and relationships on many fronts with my kds – including video games.
…just saying…it’s not all bad.
RLP
Very good blog, but I have to say that I disagree completely with video games being such a drastic problem. The biggest issue with video games, along with so many other things in our world is a lack of understanding, on both sides. People who criticize video games sometimes come with the least understanding. They see video games as nothing but trivial games that do nothing for a person.
But video games aren’t just those anymore. Like everything else, they’ve gone under a revolution. It’s no longer just hitting a virtual pixel back in forth like PONG, or dodging barrels in Donkey Kong. Gamers are now allowed to experience stories, truly in depth stories, the likes of which can be seen in books and movies. The only difference? The gamer IS the the character of the story.
Not to mention the art. Anyone who believes that some video games are not considered works of art need to have their heads examined. The work it takes to create detailed environments that are meant to absorb the gamer into a world of fantasy are truly spectacular.
Now, the issue is moderation, education, and just good old fashioned parenting. You want the children to play less video games, “experience” the world? Don’t blame the children. Blame the spoiling parents.
Now as for the “anti-social nerd” stereotype. Really? With programs like Xbox live, and various other networks that use the internet, video gaming has become one of the largest social networks in the world, connecting millions of players together. Talking, playing, laughing, it’s all there.
I have played games all my life. On average I play at least 2 hours a day, if not more. Yet, I still hang with my family, my friends. I still maintained A’s in high school, a current 3.4 in college. Video games are not the problem, they never were. It all comes down to what we are taught as children. Video games aren’t destroying this generation any more than rock and roll did in the 50’s.
That’s my two cents, or maybe just a dollar.
Good blog though, Don.
The other problem (not mentioned) with young people is that they think Lady Gaga is real music….
Actually “Don”, I’m 14 and I play video games. I am at 120 pounds, lean, and play basketball and am currently on my school’s cross country team. I also spend 3-4 hours of video games a day, on top of my homework, cross country, basketball, and at home chores and I still get to bed at 10:30. I have healthy breakfasts lunch and dinners every night and am in perfect shape. You’re ignorance astounds me to say the least. I think you are just one of those gomers who believes that everything should stay just how it was back when you were kids, well guess what Don nothing is going back to the way it was. With video games, Television, Internet, Phones, and Texting, the future will be a very dark place if you keep trying to live back in the 50s. Learn to accept that kids are growing overweight due to the un-necessities that children rely on like television and games but also understand it is not their fault, never blame the kids, if they were raised poorly then their lives will turn out poorly for them.
Basically, get over it. Things aren’t changing back to when your day was, move with the future, let it happen.
I’m with you on this one. I’m 17 and I’ve never touched a video game in my life, mainly because my parents were horrified at the thought of me becoming a typical video-game-addicted teenager. I’m amazed sometimes at how obsessed people my age get with their video games. They’re furious over losing one level. It’s just a game! And with all these PS3s, X-boxes and such. Why just not pick one and stick with it? Are they really that different in the long-run? Their parents need to be more like mine. I didn’t know what a video game was until I was around fourteen, and had never seen one until age sixteen. I’m not sitting in a basement playing video games all day, I’m actually doing productive things that could help me in life.
Hello again Mr Don Mills,
Another thing i don’t get is why people have a problem with young persons playing video games all day, some even make money of it, while there are people running around a stupid ball (Football/Soccer, Basketball, etc) and earning millions for it when a Police Officer, Firefighter, Doctor and anyone else that actually contributes to Society are more deserving of that money and instead earn a shit pay…
You might say they train a lot, they do exercise, well so does every gamer that plays competitively, you won’t see a loser or a fat guy on a Video Game Championship…
u ppl are losers how can u say games are bad just cuz u have no life
For once, Im with you here. I cant tell you how many times Ive had to pull all nighters while my fellow human being were at home doing jack shit. Or jacking off. Videogame companies need to impose a maximum time allowance per week for gamers IMHO.
Someone is finally addressing a large issue with my generation.
I really think that much of the vitriol the older generations levels towards video games is due both to the fear of the unknown and a pathological need for younger people to grow up under the same conditions as them. I may yet be young in years, but should fortune ever smile on me long enough to provide me the conditions in which I might become a parent, I should like to think that I will appreciate my hypothetical child and their generation on their own merits and not solely on the degree to which their upbringing mirrors my own.
You want to know something? As a child, I was a compulsive gamer. I started at three years old and this hobby that bordered on obsession lives on in me yet. Let me tell you something about my experience of being a schoolchild, because those murky recesses of your mind might not have seen much use for a long time. Intellectualism isn’t merely discouraged; but persecuted. The educational establishment will support you only for as long as they can groom you into their ideal case study, their perfect statistic. There are teachers that care, but the influence an individual can have is limited. Collectively, nobody is interested. Academically, until the very end, I was as much of a high achiever as one might expect from a pupil of a public school.
The majority of children were barbarous and ignorant, blind and apathetic to the long term damage their emotional barbs can inflict. Particularly into the teen years, many were dullards; more interested in drugs, sexual experiences and the subculture of the day than in any conversation of substance. I probably wouldn’t have minded or noticed so much were they not to have taken it upon themselves to make me a complete social pariah.
But video games, much like many forms of art and entertainment – books, music, and films – provided an ideal avenue in which to escape. Yet I feel the word ‘escape’ doesn’t capture the true nature of what such an experience can potentially be. It allowed my imagination to flourish and encouraged me to ponder poignant truths of life as portrayed through fiction. It is true that not all games aspire to this ideal – many do simply offer visceral thrills or addictive gameplay – but so too are there games I would consider significant creative achievements. Take for example the console RPGs Xenogears and Valkyrie Profile, the CRPG, Planescape: Torment, or for a more cinematic approach, the Metal Gear Solid series.
There were even social and competitive opportunities through gaming. I have competed in regional and national tournaments for one game in particular and through this online community have had the opportunity to meet a number of people from different countries who were far more pleasant and interesting fellows than anyone I could meet on a street corner or in some sports club that meant nothing to me.
It’s true that gaming can be insular in some ways, and is not necessarily productive from a societal standpoint. However, I am not so conservative in views as to prescribe a universal way of living. As an adult I now have more freedoms and the ability to touch peoples’ lives in a way that I will never do from the other side of a screen. However, I don’t believe I will ever stop gaming completely. It’s better than some of the alternatives, at least, and far more engaging.
All of that said, what I don’t mean to do is come across as disrespectful. I will not insult you by pretending I can imagine what it was like to live through a war, nor do I think it is fair to judge the product of a markedly different society from the one we currently live in. Many things, you got right; notably, lifestyle. However, the intellectual and creative opportunities provided to people in the modern world I feel outstrip those of days gone by. I’d like to think I understand where your sense of outrage comes from. Just don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater, or your bias betrays you.
video games aren’t the problem. close-minded people are. catch the hint. I’m 48. I don’t even play video games, but this is flatout stupid. my son grew up playing them, and learned how to DOS, and program from helping build online servers with a gaming community. he is neither anti-social, nor an “idiot”. as for the people that can’t read a map, without using a GPS as the other mentioned.. a GPS is a map, our technology is evolving.
i think you need to liberate YOUR lifestyle, and get off your high horse. kids pulling weeds all day will not help them. as long as they can function and get a proper education, and job it doesn’t matter. open your mind a bit, and realize your generation is long gone.
Made for you.
Mr.Mills, I don’t like video games. I don’t like toys. I prefer books. I’m 11. So where’s your evidence that ALL young people play games?
Hey there. I’m a seventeen year old girl. My hobbies include reading and writing (supernatural/fantasy fiction is my favorite), drawing, singing, acting, a bit of sewing…if it’s in the arts, I’m probably interested in it. I usually end up walking to wherever I need to be, I hang out with many friends all the time, and I get awesome grades in school with plans to attend university after I graduate.
But…I also play video games in my downtime! None of the overrated games like Call of Duty or Grand Theft Auto. I play games that feature captivating stories and fun characters. It’s like reading a book or watching a movie, but it’s interactive!
What I’m trying to say is…don’t assume that everyone who plays video games is a deadbeat loser who has never seen the sunlight. And don’t view all video games in the same way either. There are games with rich, vibrant art, enthralling stories, and which leave you with life lessons that, at the end of the game, leave you thinking about something meaningful in life…and then you have Call of Duty.
Hi Mr. Mills,
I agree with you on this one, although it tiffs me a bit the way you say we are “all” like this. I would never waste my money, time or effort on stupid simulations. I’d rather live my own damn life. I hope you don’t truly think we are all this pathetic…
The next time I play online, I’m going to try calling someone a “twitchy endomorph” and see if they get offended.
I agreed a lot, it is terrible to play video game for a long time, you miss a lot of other interesting things, it is not good for your health and development. You can consider game as a tool for entertainment, but not be addicted in it.
I completely agree with you Don. I am 24 years old. I have never agreed with video games and the stupidity and laziness they cause. I recently had to move into my mothers house, because My husband and I are in the midst of selling our house in a different city, and have to stay here until the end of march. Since the day I showed up here, all I’ve seen from my 16 year old brother is endless video gaming day and night. He yells so loud on his microphone it keeps the entire house up. The most annoying part is I have a 9 month old baby, and my mother “cleverly” decided to put my baby in the room across from my brother. She gets no sleep whatsoever because he’s blasting his video games and yelling so loud it’s impossible to ignore it. When i bring it up to my mother, all she ever says is ” Your brother is trying to make a living off of charging people for money to listen to his video game rants on youtube.” She actually believes this is going to get him somewhere. The only time he ever leaves his room is when my mother gets back from work and all he says is ” I’m hungry, I want McDonalds.” then preceds to go back into his room to yell violent things and swear at people on the games. All he is capable of is shouting random insults that don’t even make sense at people, especially me. Oh, and the best part is he dropped out of school at 13 years old and hasn’t done anything but play his games and get constant appraisal from my mother for every stupid thing he does. While I’ve finished college with two degrees, started my own family, got a job and kept it simce I was 16, and all I get from her is ” your stupid” ” Your crazy” “Be more like your brother” and so on. I am honestly sick and tired of these kids thinking it’s okay to leach off of their parents and never do anything with their lives.