A new bill that is designed to “protect children and strengthen families” has been signed into law by California Governator Arnold Schwarzenegger and could mean $1,000 fines for anyone selling ‘M’ rated games to teens. This means no more Grand Theft Auto for teens. The thinking goes along the lines that if you play hostile games as a kid you’re more likely to be hostile to real people later in life. Not to get into a social debate here, but isn’t it the parents’ responsibility for what the kids play, rather than government? We played “war” as kids where we “shot” each other as we ran around the neighborhood. But does that mean we’re cold blooded killers now? No.
The law only impacts those who sell the games though. If Junior gets a copy from out of state, they’re not punished for playing it.
Michael is a senior editor with Network World focused on deciphering the strategies of many core high-tech vendors such as Cisco, Arista, Juniper, HPE and IBM. Michael has been writing about the industry for more than 33 years and has won coverage awards from ASBPE and FOLIO. He has a BA in Journalism and Technical Writing Certificate from The Pennsylvania State University.
