Just last December 14, 2012, there was another school shooting in the US. I would not go into the details of that incident as it was a very tragic event. But in the end, some people suggest that it was because of video games that led to the suspect to commit the massacre.

Moving back here in the Philippines, a girl named Stephanie Nicole Ella was shot by a stray bullet last New Year’s Eve while watching the fireworks. And then, just last January 4, 2013, there was a gunman in Cavite City who killed 8 people during another rampage shooting. After these incidents, I read an article of an official trying to put the blame on video games for the shootings.

My reaction is of this sort: Oh, really now? Video games? There could be a possibility of influence from video games if in the first place, the shooters were video game addicts who just play games all day long. But no, for the Cavite incident the suspect was a failed politician and as for the New Year’s Eve incident, well we have to wait until they catch the real suspect but, I doubt he/she’d be a video game addict.

In any case, on a personal note, I think that before trying to blame video games for gun violence, I think the government should review the gun laws present in this country. Also, they should make sure that proper protocols are being followed whenever someone applies for a permit-to-own and/or a permit-to-carry license since I know that in this country, protocols can be easily bent for people with money. Also, I hope they do take in to consideration the mental state of the suspects and if they’re into drugs.

I’ve been playing video games for more than 15 years now (from the violent ones to the girly cutesy ones) and these games have had no negative psychological effect on me whatsoever. I just hope that gun laws in every country in our world would be made better for the safety and protection of everyone.

Here are some links related to this blog post:

• Connecticut Shooting: How it Happened
• Video games are to blame for Connecticut school shooting, claims Jack Thompson
• Palace vows justice for shooting victim Nicole
• Failed Politician Kills 8 in Philippines Rampage

_{*Credits to Fish & Bicycles for the post thumbnail.}