Obama: "Turn off the video games and pick up a book."
- Thread starter Saucycarpdog
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What if I don't care about books? It may be useful but if I'm reading something I don't like, I'm not gonna pay attention, I'm not gonna learn anything new and I'll just feel like I've lost several hours of my life in which I could have done something fun. Don't I read enough in school? Isn't it enough that I have to read like 20 literary pieces (Some of them aren't book ... I forget the word for that) during my summer vacation?
I'll read a fucking book whenever I have some desire to do so! Telling me to do something I don't want to makes me even less excited about it.
I'll read a fucking book whenever I have some desire to do so! Telling me to do something I don't want to makes me even less excited about it.
It would be nicer if he told off all the soccer moms of the USA to stop being such irresponsible parents perpetually squirting out entitled little shits who scream down their mics in FPS games.
...Besides interactivity, what the hell is the difference between a book and a well written game? NONE. People always seem to miss this and it ALWAYS annoys me to hell.
By playing video games I was interested enough to read all of the Mass Effect books,the Assassin's creed books, and a few Halo books.
For the moment, I have to agree with the man. Although video games can be helpful, I still believe a good book is much better for educating and stimulating a child. Still, video games pretty much take the cake in matters of pure fun, you just got to find a good balance between playing and reading.
However, I believe video games are starting to be more educational (some of them at least..)
The folks at extra credits did a video about changing the education system, with ideas on how to include gaming into it. There's a teacher that plays sessions of minecraft with his young students, teaching them to not exploit too much of the resources. Finally, I've come across a documentary game called "the cat and the coup". It's only 20 minutes long, but its free on steam and presents the fall of president Mossadegh in a very compelling fashion.
Anyway, that is all I'll contribute to the discussion
However, I believe video games are starting to be more educational (some of them at least..)
The folks at extra credits did a video about changing the education system, with ideas on how to include gaming into it. There's a teacher that plays sessions of minecraft with his young students, teaching them to not exploit too much of the resources. Finally, I've come across a documentary game called "the cat and the coup". It's only 20 minutes long, but its free on steam and presents the fall of president Mossadegh in a very compelling fashion.
Anyway, that is all I'll contribute to the discussion
Most of the people I know outside my immediate family do not read. As in, ever. They are barely able to decipher the scrolling feed under the 6:00 newscaster, let alone tackle a real book. I find this unutterably sad.
I read every day. The wall behind me is completely taken up by giant custom-built bookshelves. Granted, much of what's in there is more or less uninformative fantasy -- Pratchett, Brust, Weber, etc. But there's also The Ascent of Science, Moby-Dick, Theories of Personality, Frankenstein,a criminology textbook, and a few dozen other such items. Even fiction can be very eye-opening when it's written by the likes of Asimov or Gibson.
A high literacy rate is one of the cornerstones of an advanced civilization. It's a shame so many of us are so backward.
Edit: I agree we should play games in moderation but I don't agree they have nothing to teach us. System Shock taught me the value of thrift. Left 4 Dead taught me the value of teamwork. Portal taught me to rethink everything I knew about geometry and spatial relationships. I grant that most games give a poorer time-to-knowledge ratio than, say, history class, but they're far from worthless.
I read every day. The wall behind me is completely taken up by giant custom-built bookshelves. Granted, much of what's in there is more or less uninformative fantasy -- Pratchett, Brust, Weber, etc. But there's also The Ascent of Science, Moby-Dick, Theories of Personality, Frankenstein,a criminology textbook, and a few dozen other such items. Even fiction can be very eye-opening when it's written by the likes of Asimov or Gibson.
A high literacy rate is one of the cornerstones of an advanced civilization. It's a shame so many of us are so backward.
Edit: I agree we should play games in moderation but I don't agree they have nothing to teach us. System Shock taught me the value of thrift. Left 4 Dead taught me the value of teamwork. Portal taught me to rethink everything I knew about geometry and spatial relationships. I grant that most games give a poorer time-to-knowledge ratio than, say, history class, but they're far from worthless.
Shows how little he knows about what are called "games." What he should have said was put down COD multiplayer and play Deus Ex, or the Longest Journey, or some other game where the story is the focus.
You know what? No. I don't like reading, and you can't make me like it or do it for that matter. What I do in my free time is my business and none of yours. If you like to read, thats fine, go read. I don't like it. You know what I like to do? Play video games. I think a lot of them give a great story AND a way for you to tell your own story. I don't see books or movies doing that.
Cormack McCarthy, Robin Williams, Steven King, Geoffrey Rush, Steven Colbert, and many others have been on "The View." It's a shitty show, but judging someone or having been on it seems a bit rash.Lt. Vinciti said:
I like him saying this right after Al Gore was the Key Note speaker for a Video Gaming conference.
Obama: "Turn of the damned video games, you rascaly kids!"
Gore: "Gaming has really arrived as a medium!"