Buddhist Religious Leader Says Games Satiate Aggression

[GenHellspawn]

Alright, so some guy says that gaming is not bad. Why should I care?

Seriously, isn't there better news to report on than this?

 

[Booze Zombie]

Alright, so some guy says that gaming is not bad. Why should I care?

Seriously, isn't there better news to report on than this?

It could be compared to a celebrity in the 70's saying that Rock isn't The Devil.
For those who support an object of interest, it's quite uplifting to hear someone of influence calmly say that it isn't "bad".

 

[GenHellspawn]

It could be compared to a celebrity in the 70's saying that Rock isn't The Devil.
For those who support an object of interest, it's quite uplifting to hear someone of influence calmly say that it isn't "bad".

Who cares what celebrities think is bad? Do you really need some figure of authority to come and say that what you're doing is okay before you're allowed to do it?

 

[creatiwe]

definetly better than the "all video games warp the minds of young people" jack thompson attitude that we the western media world has

 

[Wakefield]

See that China. You used to be cool. Buddhism always was.

 

[lizards]

this man is problay one of the best religious officals out there and i salute him for not condemning something that he knows nothing about and for really trying it and deciding against the popular opinion

 

[Steve Dark]

Awesome, now we just gotta get the pope into gaming and we're all set. Maybe he'd find Dante's Inferno to his taste?

 

[Booze Zombie]

Who cares what celebrities think is bad? Do you really need some figure of authority to come and say that what you're doing is okay before you're allowed to do it?

It's not like it hurts to have well known and respected people saying something's okay so other people leave you alone about it.

 

[Casual Shinji]

It's impossible to hate Buddhists, 'cause they themselves don't hate anything as far as I know.

Except maybe China, a little bit. Just a teensy weensy little bit.

 

[GenHellspawn]

Because it's nice to hear that not every person of interest is saying games are evil. It's good to hear we have some supporters. I mean after years of Jack Thompson we'll take anyone we can get really. So stop complaining.

At what point was I complaining? I simply want to know why some talking head coming along and saying "Gaming is okay" holds any relevance to us at all.

 

[bodyklok]

[blockquote]Well, I view video games as something of an emotional therapy, a mundane level of emotional therapy for me. We all have emotions whether we're Buddhist practitioners or not, all of us have emotions, happy emotions, sad emotions, displeased emotions and we need to figure out a way to deal with them when they arise.

So, for me sometimes it can be a relief, a kind of decompression to just play some video games. If I'm having some negative thoughts or negative feelings, video games are one way in which I can release that energy in the context of the illusion of the game. I feel better afterwards.

The aggression that comes out in the video game satiates whatever desire I might have to express that feeling. For me, that's very skilful because when I do that I don't have to go and hit anyone over the head.[/blockquote]

It's a complex subject, but yes I have to agree with this fellow, video games absolutely do effect peoples emotions.

Perhaps not in the way put forward here though, most of the scientific evidence points to violent games actually increasing violence [http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16493-video-game-conditioning-spills-over-into-real-life.html] while non-violent games, e.g. LBP, do the opposite.

Of course the other benefits of video games, like improved eye sight, are very [http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16857-shootemup-video-games-may-be-good-for-eyesight.html] well [http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17311-video-game-makes-hiv-awareness-fun.html] documented. [http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3775-video-games-boost-visual-skills.html]

I think violent games bring violence to the fore front of the mind, perhaps not encouraging it (though even if you played hundreds of hours a week it would never force you into violence (take that Jack Thompson)) but defiantly getting people used to it. As out lined here. [http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8449-violent-video-games-alter-brains-response-to-violence.html]

But like he says, it could be considered a skilful method of meditation and there's no certainty that it will affect anyone in any certain way, to me it is a useful distraction that can take my mind of other things and thus make me feel more at ease, so I have to agree with him. But it's not always true.

 

[Avernus]

Because it's nice to hear that not every person of interest is saying games are evil. It's good to hear we have some supporters. I mean after years of Jack Thompson we'll take anyone we can get really. So stop complaining.

At what point was I complaining? I simply want to know why some talking head coming along and saying "Gaming is okay" holds any relevance to us at all.

Probably because the more mainstream figures that make similar statements to the one this religious leader has just presented, the more likely other high ranking asshats of other persuasions will find something else to bash as the cause of all ills within our society rather than focusing on gaming.

Now that's one possibility, personally I think it's generational and we will simply have to wait for most of the anti-gaming crotchety old farts to die off instead.

That do the trick for you?

 

[Robert632]

wow. i don't know if it's pathetic that a one of the few people who expresses a positive out look on violent video games is a pacifist( Buddhist's are pacifist's, right?), or pure awesome. i'm leaning toward pure awesome myself.

 

[L33tsauce_Marty]

Tomorrow's Daily Mail headline just in...

"Buddhist Monks promote killer games to train Tibetan freedom fighters!"

Or as Fox would spin it: Buddhist Monk promote training simulators to train Tibetan soldiers, and Obama does NOTHING! Polls show we should nuke Tibet.

 

[SilentStranger]

Nothing new there, if it wasnt for video games, my old school would have been a smoking crater by the time I left it.

 

[GenHellspawn]

Now that's one possibility, personally I think it's generational and we will simply have to wait for most of the anti-gaming crotchety old farts to die off instead.

Indeed. It happened with jazz, it happened with rock and roll, it happened with comic books, it now it's happening to video games. Getting worked up about people hating on a new form of media is utterly useless, and I fail to see why I should care about the inverse equivalent.

 

[Mana Fiend]

Huzzah for the Buddhists! I officially love them .
Honestly, if I cared enough about religion, that is the one I would most probably follow.

 

[PyroZombie]

I wonder if there still chance for me to be a monk.