Games & gear: Video Games, Am I wasting my life?

Video Games-drugs & gambling

Video Games are a big waste of your life. Sure there are positive characteristics, but just because a drug has positive characteristics does not make it good or that it won't waste your life using it. My parents have always told me video games are like gambling; an addiction in itself, not a waste, but more of a risk, where in which the player may lose their life! Drug dealers may argue that dealing is the only way to make a lot of money with no education or other requirements, and drug lords are certainly successful at acquiring large amounts of money, to a certain point of course, and crime does not pay kids.

While video games may increase hand to eye coordination and even reflexes, among other positives, it is unhealthy to sit in front of a computer doing repetitive motions day in and day out.

Rules change while playing online, and regulations set forth in your home, RV, school, or church (religious institution), are not applicable on the internet! Profanity and all sorts of mental anguish are allowed to be transgressed and even sometimes a strategy for online players. After all, figuring psychological warfare is only part or "in the game".

Although there may be more positive aspects to video game play than most would like to admit, like my mind has not completely melted yet, and I am a more technology forward individual than the next person I meet on the street, and I stress I am not a geek. Social interaction outside is much healthier outside than it is from inside your own room/office.
A book can be written on how positive video game play is for people in remote, or constrained people.

Video games have nothing to do with violence. We live in a violent world, not to mention an inconsiderate person is most likely to get me angry and not someone online and video games will have absolutely nothing to do with me getting angry at someone outside of a game. If anything, video games are a safe place and a better place to get angry at someone, because there is absolutely nothing one can do hurt someone else 1,000 miles away (instantly anyhow). Unless of course, they act, get in a vehicle, travel (while mean not playing video games), and perform many actions to commit that violent act.

Like watching TV, parents must monitor their own children and regulate them however they wish under their own house rules, but should not abuse their rights as parents onto anyone else online, they have no jurisdiction outside their own home. Renting servers and restricting speech is pathetic in my book, and if you don't want to communicate or deal with people online, don't pay hundreds to rent servers and swing your paycheck out at people. For example, war games are violent, if you don’t want your kid to play a violent game, don’t buy a game, in which killing everyone else is the game (if someone was going to shoot me, I might swear at them).

Everyone that buys the $5.00-$60.00 (plus tax, shipping and any other fees, months, year. Etc…), should not be subjected to bans and other stupid moral codes, other than one great code called no-hax/cheats or the other big rule, don't interrupt the game (chatting is allowed, just no spamming, that may get too annoying and should be stopped). As one of the only other positive characteristics of gaming, especially online, is the social interaction between people across vast distances.

Oh yeah, not to forget to mention fun, fun, fun in the glow of the LCD created sun. Video games, inhibit productivity, if not stop it completely. But, provide a wonderful colored distraction from a very not so pretty, not so forgiving world. You make a mistake in a game and you lose a point, while in a bar you may lose your life, among other hazards.

Balance is not the answer either, it is like starting a kid out on weed and saying heroin in low dosages is ok. All decision making is left with the individual, games cannot be blamed for anything and should not. All morals and behavior must be influenced by the parents and teachers, oh yeah, and by the cops, politicians and any other authority figures that may be around. I AM NOT IN SUPPORT OF ANY LEGISLATION TO STOP VIDEO GAMES.

Unless your kid is an artist, or programmer, or some kind of mathematical genius, video games have no usefulness other than to pass time. Playing them in competitions sponsored by corporations that try to addict as many people as possible to video games is really not the best career path. Video game tester is not exactly a job that requires much motivation; you might as well be a drone. And, any useful corporate job requires not only a very good understanding of the product, but a very good education. I am not going to employ anyone in my Billion dollar software company who has no higher education or that can demonstrate some sort of demonic borne skills in programming to addict other kids to video games.

Sure, you could open your own business and cater to local video gamers, but that is too much like opening a comic book store for me. I would also like to wish the family and friends of the missing CNET employee. I am unaware of what happened; I just caught something about his disappearance on CNN.