About 20 people, some carrying signs that read "War is not a game," gathered outside the Sacramento Public Library's main branch Saturday to criticize the library for making war-themed video games available to the public.
The protest coincided with a session at the downtown branch in which anybody 17 and older could walk in and play the controversial and highly popular war-themed video game "Call of Duty: Black Ops."
Set during the Cold War, the first-person shooter game features intense gunbattles, torture scenes and an assassination attempt...
The library is hosting a "Black Ops" tournament on Dec. 11. It has already held tournaments of Super Mario Bros. and Nintendo Wii sports this year, and had an event that included another game in the "Call of Duty" series.
The goal of the video game tournaments is to show that the library "has something for everyone," said library director Rivkah Sass...
James Johnson, 20, of Sacramento was one of the first to grab a controller and start playing.
"Back in the day, I'm sure there were people protesting violence in books, then in movies," Johnson said. "Honestly, this is not anything wrong."
(President of the local chapter John) Reiger said Veterans for Peace will continue to protest the upcoming tournament.
I have only 2 points to make about this. First, Veterans For Peace can bite me, as the basis of their protest is ridiculous. Second, what the heck is a library doing hosting video game competitions?
I know that my local library has hosted family video game times. They used to do a board game session on Saturdays, as well.
ReplyDeleteI don't know about Sacramento, but the number of people who use the library is counted and is vital for funding issues.
"Second, what the heck is a library doing hosting video game competitions?"
ReplyDeleteI think that a number of local libraries are slowly becoming a local social center. One can read/check-out books/videos/CDs. One can also take classes in various crafty-type subjects. I know that the San Jose main branch library used to be a steady haunt for chess players.
This isn't all that big a move from these other activities.
My take is that as long as they keep the book-thing going, this seems like an okay move.
-Mark Roulo
Wow, their point is ridiculous. You would think they would maybe bring up a point that actually warranted a protest.
ReplyDeleteWell, now, would it please the "make love, not war" crowd if they hosted a Jenna Jameson video game competition?
ReplyDelete