Another week gone by, another child killed on our streets. It seems that in some parts of Britain, children are at war with one another, writes Blogger Emma Suddaby.
So what’s new? We’ve always had gangs of kids, smoking on street corners, forging childish alliances and fighting battles over territory.
But these days battles are fought for real - with knives that cut and guns that go bang and where whoever’s playing dead, probably is . . .
So what’s going on? What has desensitised our children to the horror of violence so dramatically in recent years?
I think there’s no one answer, but rather a terrible constellation of causes, a drip-drip of negative influences and environments that, between them, have helped to shape a generation of confused, detached, hopeless and angry kids.
Family life has changed, with many children no longer having the luxury of a mum and a dad, with all the emotional balance and practical support that brings.
Many new laws and directions have been passed in recent years with the aim of protecting children. Instead, they’ve only succeeded in raising kids above the law, and in making adults utterly powerless to respond to this danger.
And last but not least . . . the computer game.
Now, I’m not going to moan about them generally but what I find hard to believe is how easy it is for any child, of any age to get hold of a game where the end goal is to hurt, maim, kill and steal from as many people as possible.
I’m not going to mention any names, I don’t need to, there’s a whole raft of similarly sinister games out there.
And though they all carry age limits, that’s not really a law that can be enforced except in the shops that sell them - once home, curious fingers will surely find them.
All I know is that something grave is happening to Britain’s children, something that is sucking the joy and innocence out of them and filling them full of adult problems that they don’t yet have the maturity or the perspective to deal with.
I don’t even pretend to have any answers, I am as horrified and bewildered as every other adult when I hear of another teenage tragedy.
But while the experts argue about the reasons, and then about possible solutions, I find myself wondering if I’m the only person who sees a link between the availability of these appalling games, and the subsequent rise in violent youth crime.
If I’d had a go on one as a youngster, I wouldn’t have slept for a week, the scary images would have invaded my safe, sweet world and given me enough nightmare material to last a lifetime.
It worries me that any child could be so hardened to the dark underside of life, that playing at spilling someone’s blood and then stealing their car, could be fun.
Now that’s what I call desensitisation.
- Inspirational Emma Suddaby shares her ” highs, lows - and various murky places inbetween” - with her blog. Emma, a finalist in the 2007 Shropshire Star Woman of the Year competition, was diagnosed with aggressive, destructive rheumatoid arthritis at the age of 22. She later won a dream flying scholarship with the charity Flying Scholarships for the Disabled and now holds a National Private Pilot’s Licence.
18 Comments
she said she wont moan about them, but she is, shes moaning that they have age limits and that young kids are playing on them, so what, its a computer game, if the parents buy it for them then its the parents fault, not the people that make the games!!stop trying to put the blame on games. When it just comes down to bad parenting, kicking them out on the streets and letting them do what they want to do!!
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You make some valid points and raise very interesting questions.
For your own peace of mind remember that “Britain’s children” is not one homogenous group. Dont become desensitised because of the media that you are exposed to and realise that things are not as bad as it may appear.
SOME children are being hardened to the dark underside of life.
SOME children play these violent video games.
SOME youths are violent.
SOME childfren no longer have the luxury of a mum and dad.
SOME children smoke on the street corners.
SOME children fight over territory.
There are many more wonderful, assertive, intelligent, caring children out there as well.
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Definitely on the right track. Add to the equation the isolation of staying indoors and the lack of exercise involved in playing computer games and there you have it, I think.
Another excellent blog, Emma.
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You’re not alone in wondering whether there is a connection between video games and troublesome youths, but you are a bit behind the times.
The Byron Review was issued back in March after a 6 month consultation period which investigated this very topic. It’s findings - that there is no clear causality between the two. However, we all know that absense of evidence is no evidence of absense, so in a way, as in we can never be 100% certain about anything - the jury is still out. Equally, in the way that whilst we can’t be 100% certain, we can be near as dammit certain, any link seems highly unlikely.
That said, as you say video games are classified by the BBFC and it is the responsibility of parents to ensure their children only play games that are in their age bracket. The problem here is that unlike films where one would hope parents follow BBFC age limits (and tend to), it appears they consider games to be ‘only’ games and some ignore the guidelines.
This is hardly the fault of video game makers, but misguided adults. It seems a shame that perfectly respectable adult gamers and the gaming industry suffers.
Refering to games designed for adults as ‘appauling’ however is a bit strong - maybe not to your taste, but nothing more than that.
That’s what I call sensationializing
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I agree completely with the above blog.
Feral packs of children running wild on the streets
and why?
The answer is bad parenting and Government guidelines on censorship.
A well known TV programme at 7.30pm features a man being buried alive by his wife.
Murder, mayhem, drugtaking on Tv after before 9pm.
Computer games and Rap groups full of violence and hatred.
and we wonder how the children are being influenced to behave in this way?
Of course a large amount is down to bad parenting - Parents who do not care a tuppence what the children are doing out on the streets or in the home.
Family life has broken down to such an extant that the majority of families are now 1 parent families.
To sum up we NEED
1) Greater censership by the Government in relation to Computer games, entertainment outputs
2) Parents to be fined for bad parenting. You can be fined for bringing up a dog badly but for some bizarre reason not a child. If that does not work the child should be removed from the parent and the parent sentenced to 5 years in Prison.
We need short, sharpe measures to return our country back to normal.
Parents and Governments are both to blame equally.
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Heard all this before, another out of touch middle age rant. Yyaawwnn.
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David Davies I’m in my 20’s as I imagine a lot of people who commented on this blog on are as well. You should’nt pigeonhole people just to make your points when you have no proof of ages.
The majority of good citizens of this country (No matter what age, colour or creed) are getting fedup with the apparent lack of law and order, and good parenting of children these days.
To lump it all as “middle age rants” show how out of touch you are with the world today.
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Agree with David Davies. SOME of the youth of today have absolutley NO FEAR, NO PROSPECTS and just dont care, and why should they?! The British Justice system is a joke, the poor ARE getting poorer, a BAD generation of poor parenting is up their too. It is resolvable but the Government wont put the money into youth to sort the problems out, lets just hope GUNS dont become as easy to get hold of as knives.
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I played violent video games as a kid. Some of the most heinous, most media-attracting games of the era too - Carmageddon, Grand Theft Auto, you name it, I was maiming people in it.
I’ve never once stabbed anybody, or even been in a fight with anybody. My friends, who played the same sorts of games, can say the same.
The fact of the matter is that this exact same argument was raised by your parents when violent movies and TV shows were aired. It’s nonsense. Those computer games geeks aren’t out there stabbing each other - they’re indoors, playing games.
The kids who are out there waging war with each other are the kids who come from under-privileged backgrounds, live in perpetual states of despair, and feel isolated by the rest of society. You want to sit in your armchair and blame easy targets? Fine, you do that. I just hope that somebody else out there is tackling the *real* problems.
I wonder if violent video games could have been blamed for the vicious, barbaric culture of our past… the kinds of people who found public executions to be a fun day out? In those days kids could go out and see a real-life person being killed right before their eyes! Why weren’t they desensitised to violence? Could it have something to do with the fact that they faced a *real* punishment if they were naughty? I wonder…
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I remember as a child playing violent games,
cowboys and Indians, cops and robbers.
I guess the only difference was it was outside with friends. Today parents have an irrational fear of letting children out of their house, why?
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Interesting comments 9 & 10. I suppose on reflection, quite a lot of youths come into contact with violent PC games, alcohol, drugs, pornography and even crime - and get over it all to enter adulthood without any lasting harmful effects. I don’t think there’s any doubt though, that the numbers who fall into delinquency have increased in direct proportion to the greater ease with which temptations have become more accessible and negative influences stronger. They face many more today than was the case in earlier periods and although they are said to grow up too quickly, I rather think the opposite is true and that they retain their childish impulses and behaviour for far longer now. There are more kids, but less social hardship and less adult guidance too (clubs etc have died off under a welter of CRB checks, excessive insurance premiums and stifling H&S guidance)and what a bleak prospect it all paints for the future. I think there are two possible solutions if only we had the political courage to introduce them. Firstly, instead of filling our prisons (or not, because they’re already full) we should concentrate on rehabilitating lawbreakers. For every hopeless case, there are many more who could become good citizens if shown the path to redemption. Currently, they leave a mind numbingly unstimulating confinement without a cat in hell’s chance of making it on the outside. Reoffending rates are consequently in the order of 60 to 80 per cent. Meanwhile, the armed forces can’t recruit and farmers can’t find labourers. Put potentially suitable candidates for the forces through halfway house training camps designed to weed out the wheat from the chaff. Employ others on farms like P.O.W.s once were and PAY THEM ALL the minimum wage. Employment, personal income, training and prospects beyond jail or live in a cell for all but a few hours a day - Can you see where I’m coming from? As for the other lesser cases, they should attend strictly supoervised training in civil defence under the auspices of the probation services assisted by the territorial forces, volunteers and industry. Give them proper, challenging training in advanced first aid, fire fighting, temporary accomodation construction and maintenance, water purification, carpentry, road construction - the list is a long one and frankly, I think we might have urgent need of such skills one day. Reward them with genuine qualifications, involvement and a sense of civic pride. Maybe I’m rambling in cloud cuckoo land, but what the heck would we have to lose by trying something different?
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I completely agree with everything in the blog. My son is 8 and cant wait to play a particular video game aimed at 18yrs over!! He konws about it knows whats in it but has not played it! If the Game companies did NOT make these games then children would not play them and more to the point their parents wouldn’t be able to buy them even for themselves. Problem solved.
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Lots of interesting ideas to think about.
Thank you, Man, R’t and Bob.
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i wont let my kids play on computers period - and guess what they are lovely
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Make your mind up… do you want kids OFF the streets? If so, then why can’t they play computer games at home? My kids play pc games, they are not out beating up old ladies, nor are they out there taking drugs/smoking/drinking! What’s more…I’m a single parent (Shock horror)
So what’s your answer now Emma? I tell my lads to go out and have fun, they would rather stay at home safe. (Oh and before you jump on the bandwagon again, none of them have any desire to kill/maim/shoot anyone either, and they bash demons and drive fast cars in the games they play too!
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Miss m (comment #12) is onto something there. Stop making any violent games and no-one will be able to play them. I hope that she then extends this to mean any violent movies, music, tv programmes (Eastenders etc), even cartoons are out (those anvils have got to hurt). Would we even be able to watch wildlife documentaries? Don’t want the little children to see a gazelle being killed.
I’m not saying that violence is everywhere so children can do what they like, everything must be moderated until adulthood. Games, like movies, are already well regulated and don’t need banning. Adult games are just that, for adults.
Just because a child wants to play GTA or watch Rambo or Eastenders doesn’t mean an adult should let them. It is the parents responsibility to not let them, and to not let them get their hands on them in other ways.
It seems to me that Emma is making the same mistake with games her mother most probably made with movies, just because you don’t understand it doesn’t mean you can blame it for all of lifes ills.
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Violent games have always been part of a boys growing up. From playing cops & robbers to soldiers and army games. Making pag guns and shooting each other. Computer games are not to blame, take it from a man who has 4 varieties of the consoles in the home and four children who play them. What I believe is the insane practice of removing the tools of decipline so eefective in the past. The headteacher with the slipper, the local bobby who would drag you home for your father to punish. The father who was strong but fair. There is no person in society allowed to decipline a child. Parents now face prossecution for ’smacking’. Take away the deterant and the decipline and children will push there boundaries further and further. I dont advocate physical abuse but I do believe in a physical deterant.
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Its not video games, its not violent movies its mothing like that, todays children are are pain in the ass coz of there parents. I had played many violent games when i was young and everytime i was bad i always got a slap of my mum or dad nowadays if a child acts up in the street or starts hanging with the wrong crowd what does there parents do? Nothing. So there you have it blame the parents not the video games she said “niggling fingers” get the games? its the parents fault that not in a safe place. ore knife crime? blame parents.
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