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Violent video game tax stalls in General Assembly

With the General Assembly session coming to an end next week, an area lawmaker is disappointed that one of her proposals didn't even come up for a public hearing.  Newtown Representative DebraLee Hovey says a bill to put an extra tax on violent video games would be like the sin tax on cigarettes.

 

Hovey says making it harder to buy a gun is only one step to reduce violence.  She is calling for a cultural change to be done through less controversial steps, like warning lables on violent games with a MATURE rating.  The tax on the games would have gone toward educating people about the effects of violent video games and signs of behavioral issues in children and young adults.

 

Hovey says educating parents about the potential mental health implications to their eight year old from playing violent video games is as common sense as warning pregnant women about the dangers of drinking alcohol.

 

She cited countless studies, including a recent 2014 piece out of Iowa State University, as attributing the playing of violent video games with noticeable increases - in both frequency and severity - of aggressive behavior.  This is true particularly among children and teens.  According to that same study, more than 90% of video games rated E10+ or higher contain violent content, which is often justified and portrayed as ‘fun’.   Moreover, Hovey says it is now common knowledge that Adam Lanza was known to play these violent video games for hours a day.

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Dave Rinelli

Local Headlines