There's been quite a bit written in recent years about video games causing violence. I tend to disagree and I think that being alive causes violence. Animals kill all the time and it's called instinct. A human kills and there must be a cause!
Hi kids! I'm here to explain to you that people who commit murder fall into two categories: Those who lack the higher brain function to override the basic animal instinct for violence and those who do have the higher brain function and kill for some kind of fulfillment. This only applies to active participation murder. Negligent Homicide is a fancy name for "I forgot to (insert obvious way to prevent death here)". Temporary insanity is not a valid defense, it's nothing more than brain chemistry gone wild and is explained by the next sentence. What is generally referred to as a crime of passion, or murder while under the influence of a mind-altering substance falls into category one. Pre-meditated, planned out, and murders committed as a result of other crimes fall into category two.
That's it. No big secret. Now, defense attorneys love to make category 2 murders look like category 1 murders, or even better make the murder not their clients fault at all! So what's a lawyer to do when faced with a murder committed the day after GTA: San Andreas came out and a month before WoW hit shelves? Hmmm, guy was killed with a sword you say? This is a clear example of Fantasy Role-Playing Games putting a gun to my clients head and forcing him to kill:
Prosecutors say Flemons, then 30, was angry because of constant bullying by the victim, Anthony Williams, and other co-workers at Peerless Metal Powders & Abrasive.
But Flemons' lawyer says he is schizophrenic with a psychotic obsession with fantasy role-playing games, including Dungeons & Dragons.
Opening statements in Flemons' murder trial are expected Wednesday.
Williams arrived at his job the day of the killing armed with a homemade 38-inch samurai sword. Witnesses told police that Flemons appeared to hand Williams a piece of metal in a chivalrous manner, as if challenging him to a duel, before chasing him and stabbing him to death.
Witnesses told police that, after the killing, Flemons bought a beer and cigar at a nearby convenience store. He then returned to the scene and positioned Williams' body as if on a cross. Then he opened the beer and lit the cigar as he waited for the police to arrive, his colleagues said.
In a voluntary statement to police, Flemons admitted attacking Williams in response to constant bullying about his fantasy game obsession.
I miss all the good LARP sessions. All I get are gothy nerds shuffling by, signaling "obfuscate". Now, you may think that this is an example of a category 1 murder, but it's really category 2. The murderer had the forethought to not only bring a sword for himself, but a sword for the victim. I think that it is time to stop giving my co-workers a hard time for being addicted to MMO's though. I'd hate to get run through by a sword wielded by a catass.
Thanks to Dungeon Mastering for having the link to the news item.
