One of Net's most respected tech news blogs rises to the defense of Harvard researcher Kim Thompson (left). Good Morning Silicon Valley examined game critic Aaron Stanton's recent attack on Thompson's work and found it wanting.

"...there's some legitimate research being done on the potential effects of violent video games on young minds. But it's not surprising when isolated nuggets are seized upon and thrown into the grinder of the debate. Thus we see the work of Dr. Kimberly Thompson of the Harvard School of Public Health used as a punching bag one day and turned into a bit of snark about "ultra-violent Pac-Man" the next. But to its credit, Joystiq followed up with the good doctor, giving her space to explain some of the nuances of her work. And Thompson makes it clear that thinking seriously about this stuff is not child's play..."

The Herald-Review of Decatur, Illinois takes Gov. Rod Blagojevich to task for the half-million bucks in legal fees which the state must reimburse to the video game industry in the wake of its video game law being ruled unconstitutional:

"Remember the big media splash Gov. Rod Blagojevich made when he announced legislation that would ban the sale of violent and sexually oriented video games to young people? Well, the bill on that little media spotlight is beginning to come due.
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Remember Chris Malone?

The man behind the pen behind the Blue and Blonde webcomic created this gem for GP last December.

It's quite timely, given today's Federal District Court ruling that the State of Illinois owes the video game industry more than half-a-mill in legal fees.

So, we repeat...

There is a subtle yet virulent strain of video game bashing that runs through the non-gaming mainstream, day-in and day-out. And it simply drives GP crazy.

It takes many forms, but its bottom line message is always the same: games are bad, games are a waste, games are a drain on society. The latest politician to push this line is U.S. Senator Barack Obama, (D-IL). As reported by the Barrington Courier-Review, Obama spoke at Barrington High School last week.

While addressing students about their future, Obama said he would try to reduce the deficit, improve healthcare, advance the economy and move away from dependence on fossil fuels. So far, so good. But then, needing a cultural whipping-boy to invoke, Obama trotted out video games:

"The bad news is you're going to have to work harder," Obama told the assembled students, criticizing youth culture as "watching TV, playing video games and avoiding tough classes in school."

Obama also expressed concern for American students' collective low scores in math and the sciences.

GP: We have no problem with Obama's setting high goals for young people. But why blame video games? How about talking about some real problems, instead of this red herring?

Sure, there are many problems and challenges facing the United States right now. Most of them were either created by or exacerbated by our elected officials. As such, those issues are uncomfortable for elected officials. So Barack Obama blames video games. And he's far from the only one.

As for low scores in math and science, is that a problem in Japan? No. Korea? No. Are video games huge in those places? Yes.

Please, Senator Obama. Stick to the real issues and don't perpetuate the unfair characterization video games as some sort of cultural drain on American society.

Wow. GP is in the wrong business. Shoulda been a lawyer...

The ESA has just announced that it will seek to recover $644,545 in legal fees expended in its successful effort to block Illinois' video game law on First Amendment grounds.

"From the day Governor Blagojevich announced that he would seek anti-video game legislation, it was clear to everyone that the proposal would be found unconstitutional and would waste taxpayers dollars in a protracted legal fight that would leave parents no better off," said ESA boss Doug Lowenstein.

"... we would have preferred to spend our resources on cooperative programs to help parents ensure their kids play appropriate games, rather than divert money to respond to politically motivated attacks on video games. But the State has left little choice, and this petition is consistent with the rules of the federal courts regarding award of attorney's fees to prevailing parties."
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Video game content has suddenly become a hot button issue in the Hoosier State.

Yesterday GamePolitics reported on Republican State Senator Dennis Kruse' plan to introduce age-based game legislation in the 2006 session. Earlier this month U.S. Senator Evan Bayh (D-IN) joined with Senate colleagues Hillary Clinton and Joseph Lieberman in their proposal for federal video game legislation, the Family Entertainment Protection Act (FEPA).

Today, WTHR-13 News is reporting that Democratic State Senator Vi Simpson (Bloomington) plans legislation of her own when the Indiana State Senate reconvenes next week.

As has been the case in so many other states, Simpson hopes to prevent minors from purchasing violent or sexually explicit video games. The Senator told WTHR-13 that she became concerned about the content and ratings issue while shopping for games with her seven-year-old grandson.

Indiana itself is no stranger to video game legislation - or the inevitable constitutional challenges that follow. In 2001 a federal court judge struck down an Indianapolis city ordinance restricting violent arcade games.

UPDATE: The Associated Press adds more to this story, most notably a quote from State Sen. Simpson:

"We're not setting ages or changing the ratings, we are asking retail agencies to enforce it. Right now, kids can walk into just about any store and get their hands on a video game in which they can shoot police officers, use drugs, steal cars, rape women or even assassinate a president. That's frightening to say the least."

So... add Senator Simpson to the list of critics who fail to understand that the notorious JFK Reloaded is not - has never been - available in any retail store.

GamePolitics has learned that Indiana State Senator Dennis Kruse, a Republican, has filed new video game sales legislation for consideration in the 2006 session.

According to an informed source, the Kruse bill appears to have been based upon the Safe Games Illinois Act, which a federal judge ruled unconstitutional earlier this month.

Senator Kruse' proposed legislation can be viewed here.

Chris Malone, who draws the Blue and Blond web comic, has agreed to take a stab at contributing political cartoons to GamePolitics. We like Chris' work and we think you will, too.

Wait... wasn't President Bush opposed to activist judges?

An editorial in yesterdays's Beloit Daily News suggests that pending Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito (left) could be just the tonic to reverse past judicial precedent as well as a recent court decision and revive the sagging fortunes of the Safe Games Illinois Act. The video game law championed by Governor Rod Blagojevich was declared unconstitutional by a federal judge on December 2nd.

The Daily News editors urge Blagojevich to press his appeal of the law's defeat. They also manage to sling a bit more of the "games as porn" rhetoric that has become so common:

"...with the advent of high technology the purveyors of smut are no longer lurking around some dark corner. They are in the house, on the internet and in gee-whiz gadgetry - like video games - parents probably poorly understand and may be ill-equipped to police... The Governor plans to use his bully pulpit to publicize his cautionary message. That will help, by informing parents and shaming some of the responsible stores that might be selling these products..."

"That's why we encourage Blagojevich to pursue his federal appeal. And it's one reason why we believe the composition of the Supreme Court will be enhanced by the addition of Alito, who appears to have a healthy respect for America's traditional values."

Forget New York, New York.

If you can make it in Muskogee, you can make it anywhere. And Doug Lowenstein has. Until the ESA honcho came along, country singer Merle Haggard was the most famous name associated with Muskogee, Oklahoma, pop. 38,310.

Lowenstein's Oklahoma star turn began last week when State Rep. Fred Morgan penned an op-ed in the Muskogee Phoenix. Morgan's guest editorial, titled "Video games offer tutorials in violence" advocated Oklahoma's adoption of game legislation similar to that of Illinois - three days after Illinois' was ruled unconstitutional.

Last Friday Doug waded into the fray with his own op-ed in the Phoenix. The ESA boss made some good points and Lowenstein - unlike GamePolitics - was gracious enough not to poke fun at Rep. Morgan's Illinois faux pas.

So who won the Morgan-Lowenstein duel of editorials?

Lowenstein, by a landslide, according to the editorial board of the Muskogee Phoenix. In an opinion published Saturday, the paper showed an impressive grasp on the issues involved, saying, "...Rep. Fred Morgan... referred to statements by a licensed psychologist who said game violence spills over into action... If that were completely true then schools would be havens for violence. But a national report just last month stated from 1992 to 2002, school crime rate was cut in half, and that figure mirrors a national trend outside schools - crime is down 30 percent."
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Citing the Muskogee Phoenix twice in one week? Hey, GamePolitics goes wherever the news takes us...

Today we're tracking ESA boss Doug Lowenstein's response to an Oklahoma legislator who hopes to recreate Illinois' ill-fated video game legislation in the Sooner State.

On Monday GamePolitics reported on State Rep. Fred Morgan's guest editorial in the Phoenix outlining his plan to model video game legislation on the Safe Games Illinois Act. Morgan is the chair of the Oklahoma House Judiciary Committee.

This morning, the Phoenix carried Lowenstein's retort, which reads, in part:

"Im writing to take issue with some misleading statements that were in Dec. 5 column by State Rep. Fred Morgan... Morgan fails to point out that just as there are books, movies, and magazines for a wide diversity of consumers, so there are going to be video games."

"... there are going to be games created that are not appropriate for children... it's important for parents to check the... ESRB rating and the game's content descriptors..."
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Last Friday GamePolitics broke the news that U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kennelly had found the Safe Games Illinois Act to be unconstitutional. Governor Rod Blagojevich (left), the driving force behind the failed law, has vowed an appeal, even though Judge Kennelly's ruling was harshly critical of the legislation.

A strongly-worded editorial in this morning's edition of the Herald and Review (Decatur) calls upon Blagojevich to drop the appeal. Under the headline, "Don't waste money appealing video game law", the paper's editorial staff concludes:

"A federal judge ruled last week what most of us already knew - the state's new video game law is unconstitutional... (Judge) Kennelly was saying what many have been saying for months. In fact, many legislators who voted for the bill did so although they admitted it was probably unconstitutional. Those legislators felt that it would be politically difficult to defend the vote."

"So, thanks to the governor and a bunch of spineless legislators, the state has been spending tax dollars defending a hopeless case in court. The bad news is that Blagojevich isn't ready to admit this law is a loser. He vowed to appeal the ruling."

"The governor is also saying that he's willing to waste more taxpayer dollars on this unnecessary piece of legislation... Parents don't need the state telling them what's appropriate and what isn't. And we don't need the governor throwing good money after bad by pursuing an appeal of his foolish law."

We're guessing that State Rep. Fred Morgan, chairman of Oklahoma's House Judiciary Committee, doesn't read GamePolitics.

If Morgan did read GP, he'd know better than to borrow language from Illinois for his planned video game legislation. Morgan, a Republican, writes of his admiration for the Safe Games Illinois Act in an op-ed piece published today in the Muskogee Phoenix.

In lamenting graphic sex and violence in some video games, Morgan says, "So what do we do? One option is to enact a law banning specific depictions of violence in video games. A similar law was just approved in Illinois, and I hope to use it as a model in Oklahoma during the 2006 legislative session."

Rep. Morgan's time frame is a little off. Actually, the Illinois bill was approved by the legislature on May 28th and signed into law by Gov. Blagojevich on July 25th. The thing that happened recently - last Friday, in fact - was that a federal judge ruled - in very strong language - that the Safe Games Illinois Act was unconstitutional.

Rep. Morgan may need to rethink the portion of his op-ed that says, "I understand there are free speech concerns anytime you restrict any form of expression, but I believe the proposed law will pass the constitutional test."

Ummm.... Not if it's modeled on the Illinois legislation.

Rod Blagojevich isn't giving up.

As reported in today's Chicago Tribune, the Illinois Governor has vowed to launch a "multipronged effort" to ban the sale of mature-themed video games to minors. The governor has already announced plans to appeal Friday's decision by a federal court judge that his Safe Games Illinois Act was unconstitutional.

"This crusade against violent video games is something a lot of moms and dads are going to want to participate in, and express their views on the appropriateness of merchants who would peddle pornographic and violent garbage to their kids," he said.

Blagojevich met with Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) at an event near Chicago. Afterwards he said he will work with her to get her recently-proposed federal legislation passed.

The guv also indicated that he is seeking ways to tweak the state legislation in order to make it proof against constitutional challenges. He questioned Judge Matthew Kennelly's decision, wondering "how the court could conclude that selling pornography to children is a constitutional right."

Blagojevich told the Tribune that plans to "keep the pressure on," and "stigmatize" retailers who don't police themselves. He added that he will not yield and would ultimately prevail.

The Peoria Journal-Star has more.

We meant to run this yesterday on GamePolitics, but the breaking news about Illinois video game law trampled all over our plans...

Persistence paid off for our colleague John Callaham over at GameCloud as he scored a big interview with Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, the driving force behind the suddenly defunct Safe Games Illinois Act. Here are a few quotes from the Guv to whet your appetite:

"Studies show that video games - because of their intense interactive nature - impact young people's brains in a way that music and other more passive mediums do not."

"Unlike similar legislation in other states, we drafted the Safe Games Illinois Act to be as narrow and specific as possible... We are prepared to fight any lawsuits on this matter."

Most interesting was Blagojevich's non-answer to GameCloud's question as to whether the games bill was linked to his possible 2008 presidential aspirations:

"The Safe Games Illinois Act has garnered strong support from parents, teachers, and other elected officials across the country because it is a commonsense initiative that makes parents' jobs easier."

See GameCloud for the full interview.

U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kennelly has ruled in favor of the video game industry in its suit against the Safe Games Illinois Act.

The ruling is a huge victory for the video game industry, including the ESA, VSDA and the Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA). It represents a major defeat for Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (left), who championed the legislation.

You can view the first page of Judge Kennelly's ruling. If you're hardcore, and want the whole 53-page enchilada, click here.
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The next twelve days may well decide the fate of video game laws passed earlier this year in Illinois, Michigan and California.

In Illinois, a knowledgeable source has told GamePolitics that, based on statements from the bench made by Federal Judge Matthew Kennelly, it is expected the judge will find the state's ban on sale or rental of violent games to minors unconstitutional.

Kennelly will also rule on labeling and signage issues regarding violent games. GP's source believes the labeling requirement will also fail on a constitutional basis, since it relies on the same "scientific" evidence as the sales restrictions portion of the bill. As reported previously on GamePolitics, Judge Kennelly's comments during the November 16th hearing indicated that he did not find the state's evidence persuasive.

In Michigan, the state has until December 9th to appeal a preliminary injunction issued by Federal Judge George Caram Steeh .

Also on December 9th, the video game industry will be in Federal District Court in San Jose to request a preliminary injunction blocking California's video game law from taking effect on January 1st.

As reported on GamePolitics, a Federal Court hearing on Illinois' video game content law began on Tuesday. Attorneys representing the video game industry sought a preliminary injunction to bar the Safe Games Illinois Act from taking effect on January 1st, as scheduled.

An informed source has told GP that U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kennelly heard two days of testimony on the scientific evidence upon which Illinois is basing its defense of the law.

Testifying on behalf of the state were Dr. Craig Anderson of Iowa State University and Dr. William Kronenberger of Indiana University. The game industry called scientific experts of its own in an attempt to refute the state's witnesses.

On Wednesday Judge Kennelly heard legal arguments. During that phase of the hearing, he suggested that he found the state's scientific evidence unconvincing.

Most significantly, the Judge promised to rule on the merits of the case - not just the injunction request - by the end of November. This means that we will have a final outcome in the Illinois case very soon.

The Safe Games Illinois Act was signed into law by Gov. Rod Blagojevich (above) on July 25th.