It IS true that violent crime has been down. By almost 50% in the last ten years. I will put this out there on two fronts, though.
The first thing is simple: What was this kids mental state? I personally don't believe video games actually make someone violent. The evidence of whether or not video games make someone violent is still inconclusive to this day. That's not to say it doesn't have an influence. However, what someone DOES with that influence is not up to the video game. It is up to the person. I highly doubt you can successfully reload a weapon you've never fired before just by watching a video game. You'd have to learn in some other way. And even if you learned from a video game, again, that doesn't mean it'll make you do something. The thing that concerns me is the desensitization by being exposed to too much violence, particularly on TV, Movies, Video games and even books. What you DO with the influence is entirely up to you. Therefore, I can't put the blame on any one medium. Is it really THAT hard to just blame the kid? As media has gotten more violent (in movies, TV, books, etc.) we as a society have actually gotten less violent. In which case, the link to violent crimes must be elsewhere. It's easy to push the blame and responsibility on to something else.
Now on a different front: Bad parenting. Parents can't survey their kids 24/7 but the fact that they didn't even know what kind of games their kid was playing really concerns me. It is almost enough to make you believe these were the kind of parents who let the video game and television babysit their kids. A more responsible parent would've surveyed the content of the video game first. What kind of parent would even THINK that Grand Theft Auto would be suitable for an eleven or twelve year old? You can say the parents didn't put their foot down when they should've. They never surveyed what their child was playing, nor did they ever even question by the look of this article. If video games were an influence, we must be fair and say that the lack of judgment on the parents part is as well. If any parent is telling you they've never had problems with their kid a red flag should go up. Finally, the fact that she had no idea of what the ESRB is or that video games have ratings gives proof to the parent's own ignorance. The ESRB has been around for over a decade now. It's older than the TV ratings system. They advertise it on television, local Gamestops have a pamphlet and there's a website that explains it all. Would've it have killed the parents to just go to the website for five or ten minutes to familiarize themselves. Again, though, the most disturbing thing is that they didn't know what their kid was playing. Just once a parent should've said, "I wonder what's in those video games?"
But again, I'm very concerned about his mental state. For example, the parent jumps all over the video game... but I wonder if the parent even questioned just what her son was doing researching serial killers and talking to pedophiles online when it came to hear attention. In all truthfulness, it sounds like the kid may have actually had some kind of mental illness. And if he did, it means he didn't know the difference between fiction and reality. And if THAT was the case, then we should give credit to the fact that he had a mental illness. Of course, we don't know that either.
It really does seem like video games is the scapegoat in this one. The truth is, the parent really doesn't know why it happened. When we don't know why something happens we want a reason. In truth, sometimes stuff just happens and there's no real reason why. The thought that violent media made him violent is still up for challenge, though. The reason being is that it's very hard to prove. Again, I don't see what's wrong with saying it was the kid's fault. We just want answers. And the easy answer is always to point the finger at blame. Of course, it's very easy to point the finger of blame to something that can't defend itself. Books, movies, graphic novels, video games, rock music. These are mere mediums. Inorganic objects, if you will. But do consider that before violent video games we were FAR more violent. Not to bring the bible into this but if someone says they killed in the name of God would these same people who point to video games want to blame God, then? That's just food for thought. If I'm being offensive, I apologize.
Finally, I wholeheartedly agree, just like most gamers will, that we need to keep unsuitable content out of the hands of children. The ESRB is there for a reason. So that parents can pick and choose games for their children responsibly. It should NEVER be up to the kid to decide what is appropriate for him.
Sorry for such a long post.
