The Tokyo gubernatorial race continues to go from bad to worse with one of the candidates publicly stating he will ban “violent” games if elected, saying they create murderers.
Kanagawa governor Shigefumi Matsuzawa has previously banned games he objects to, but his bid for Tokyo’s governorship sees him explicitly saying that he sees the position as the key to eradicating violent games and so eliminating the scourge (admittedly a rather mild one in Japan) of youth crime:
Of all harmful information, the worst is that containing violence.
Games like ‘Grand Theft Auto III’ award points and allow advancement for murdering people, and there are cases of these games lowering inhibitions to killing and ultimately stimulating people to murder.
To stop this scourge spreading through the youth of Kanagawa, I reformed youth protection ordinances to ban the sale of these games.
If possible, I’d like to bring restrictions in Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba and Saitama into line with each other. It’s not right for us to ban these games in Kanagawa only to have youths able to buy them in Tokyo.
It should of course be noted that in Japan games are already under the heel of a fairly draconian “voluntary” censorship regime.
With any ban in Tokyo a de facto national ban, Japan’s troubled gaming industry may soon find itself under even more pressure.
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OMG, this is like a fashion, isn´t?
yeah, looks like "ban" is the new fashion in Japan...
I can't wait 'till they'll make a mistake and "ban" something that they actually need/like... hahaha
Politicians just sniffed out what might get any sort of approval.
(mostly from grumpy elderly part of population)
So of course they'll try to use those ridiculous means to get elected.
Ban this, ban that...I say, ban yourself. That would spare all of us that needless drama.
I demand proof!
Exactly, Morgadeth...
No proof, no ban!!!
But ignorant individuals such as the likes of him and the people who vote and support him are just condemning themselves to their box without even looking up the scientific evidence of what they are banning...
All these slimy politicians and their ilk are driven by baseless emotions, paranoia, hysteria, immorality and their own selfish reasons to ascend the power ladder of the world...
Forever doomed in their own obscurity...
This isn't about 'Protecting and promoting the healthy development of youth', this is all one big move to gain power over the people and the way they live their lives...
Even if he gets voted and does ban violent games among other (2D) things, people will still find a way to import and play games like the GTA series...
Deluded fool...
Deluded fool...
Tekken 4? 444F so, kudos for you ^^
Why don't we ban hollywood and hitory when we are at it?
This is the same guy who went on TV talking about how violent games are turning kids into criminals while standing right next to a graph showing the decrease in criminal activity among youth.
Oh just what the world needs, more idiots that don't understand what they are banning.
Brain deformed Idiots really need to stay away from politics, seriously. All they do is doing pointless ban that won't even work and making super duper hilarious propaganda to win elections (Hello Malaysia and your rehashed Anwar-x-Saifool BL fanfic.)
why Malaysia involved in this? don't start post warfare here.
Simply because the current leaders in Malaysia are idiots as well.. the same thing goes to all the local TV stations who enjoy smooching the gov butts.
so true,so true
Mr. Politician: I will ban games
Mr. Peoples: what? no!
Mr. Politician: exactly! that's why you should vote for me
Mr. Peoples: oh ok...
(2 months later)
Mr. Peoples: wait? what? were we fooled?
Mr. Politician: haha stupid assholes with massive brain ping
Mr. Peoples: ok I go find my overlooking view
[Mr. Peoples was reported dead after jumping from an old skyscraper]
P.S. These old farts should check their facts. It was long proven that in a worst case scenario, violent games cause a two sided effect: let people blow their steam off in a 2d world, agitate brainless people to kill/rape/run for governor.
In a normal case scenario: decrease crime rate.
Games have nothing to do with crime rate.
There's crime because there are people that can't properly educate their children. And of course there are just people who are sick in their brains.
So ban getting children altogether. Let's wipe all humans, without humans there's no crime, right?
Wiping out humanity is a crime
It won't be a crime without society existing anymore. Rules and laws exists for societies.
exactly,games prevent crimes.they will be so occupied in their comforting house,playing video games.The real reason the crime rate raising is because of parents do not lend you some money to buy games not because of copying dangerous scenes from games,cuz they just being too cheap.
The media tricked you!
This is not so different from communist china is it?
Oh he wants to ban all games with violence in them?
So no more RPGs, since you beat up monsters and all.
No more shooters. Only party games will be left.
Why do they always want to kill variety?
So literally everything is going to get to banned. I wouldn't doubt Ishihara adding this with his ban. If this keeps up, our kind of entertainment will be on the chopping block for good. Seriously, WTF!? Why aren't there protesters!? Japanese young people need to find who the ***k is supporting these ***holes and boycott the ***k out of them! Something outrageous needs to ***king happen and stop letting these bastards win. Now post that to 2ch, 4ch or Nico Douga or whatever. Something needs to be done now!
you can say fuck, asshole, and even cunt if you want on this site, we aren't pussies.
they're having a contest between politicans, trying to see who will get shot first.
People in almost all countries are too submissive and loyal to corrupt governments (America included)
Haven't been paying attention to current events there have ya?
I think it may be more like having no real alternative. With all politicians having basically the same views there is little choice. At least that's how it is in Central Europe.
I played Super Mario, and I started to jump on turtles and mushrooms, and started to destroy castles in order to find a princess. You'll never get me alive!
as tempting as it is, it would only advance the ban of violent content even faster.
People in any country, not just Japan, have not the spine to stand up for more than 4 seconds for what they believe in.
Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and half of the Arab world say: "Why, hello there mister Anon"
Before or after shooting him?
/Why aren't there protesters!?/
If you need to ask that question, then you don't really understand Japanese culture at all.
"Nobody questions things in this country anymore... everybody's too fat and happy. Everybody's got a cell phone that will make pancakes and rub their balls now, ya know? Way too fucking prosperous for our own good. Way too fucking prosperous. Americans have been bought off and silenced by toys and gizmos, and no one learns to question things." -George Carlin
Substitute "Americans" with "Young People in damn near every industrialized nation", and that explains things pretty well IMO.
Can you explain then? To someone like me it doesn't make any sense.
Japan needs to bring out the ninjas and the samurais and give all those shitty politicians a bad ass whooping!
the problem is that there's too few young people and too much older people in todays Japan...
Too few politically active young people, you mean.
They should ban insolence
They should ban anyone above 70 from living...
All good as long as they don't ban mahjong and minesweeper XF
Watch what your saying. The title "minesweeper" alone is enough to make them think that it's dangerous. Add the fact that a lot of old japanese do not really understand english and may confuse this for mine-planter and you get a ban;]
"I want to ban what I don't like from Japan"
...says the guy in front of signs reading "FREE PRESS Association of Japan".
Oh, the irony.
Wat an ignorant fuck face
THIS GUY F***ING Suck BALLSSSSS
I'd say "Okay, your Fired."
*Fires Sniper Rifle."
Ban that bitch.
Seriously, All these "Bans" are just destroying the Country more and more.
Next thing they will say Mario and Pokemon is too Violent.
If they banned Mario and Pokémon, alongside Zelda, Pikmin and others, they'd be dead by now. Moreover, it'd affect the whole world, not just Japan with its brainless politicians coming up with idiotic bans.
I Fully Agree with you.
Politicians aren't smart.
But somebody THIS Psycho, they just might try to ban it.
They would want to resort to everybody playing Pong again.
Ban all violent games and moar doujin games (*´Д`)ﾊｧﾊｧ
so final fantasy series are done too? don't they kill for a reason. blah
Back in the old days, politicians were aiming to abolish serious stuff like slavery, head hunting, racism, poverty and all that's appropriate.
Now they have nothing else to do other than banning modern media all just for the sake of winning the heart of moral fagging parents.
Why not? It's not like they have anything more important to deal with, like, declining birthrates or Japan gradually losing its position as one of the world's key economic powers.
yet theyre killing manga/anime going to kill video games the two things japan is good at doing on a world wide scale? O.o
personally i cant see how this is going to help japan's economic power recover at all... -.-
I can see a civil war in the future if the Japanese can make it outside.
FIGHT FOR YOUR WIFUS AND HUSBANDOS!
Eh... It would be more of a protest than a civil war but w/e
Two things, you say, but you're forgetting a Product that is both Objective and involves Reassuring amounts of Nudity.
Then they realised it's much easier to address made-up issues instead of real ones...
& as a result, we now have countless people like this this Shigefumi clown...
*sigh* we are all pretty much doomed at this point...
if only we could ban those in government
I believe that requires a little blond pigtailed schoolgirl in a sweater with a giant W going over there with an excessively large hammer.
Let's give them something to worry for.
this is what happens when you give stupid people power... they rule with ignorance, usually blaming something else for their own shortcomings and to shift attention away from the real issues.
Reporter: "So what are you doing to fix the economy?"
Politician: "Banning violent video games for sale."
Reporter: "You do realize that hurts the economy..."
Politician: "..."
it seems like old people tend to show a level of ignorance that may possibly be the end of human civilization as we know it...
the near future of Japan looks grim...
Japan is doomed, as they have to vote between an idiot and an imbecile.
Wait, did he say "Grand Theft Auto III"? That's SO 2002!!
We need a new law that bans old people from taking government position
@Elc
On that note, I remember Galileo Galilei once wrote, "Old age weighs heavy on my mind, as I struggle to understand concepts I easily understood before"
Perchance this same languidness also plagues the minds of the old brats in charge of the Japanese government.
Democracy sucks...
If IQ-tests were to be made more accurate, all democratic governments should pay for yearly nationwide tests and give the citizens more or less 'votes' depending on their intelligence. This could also be used to prevent those scoring less than a hundred (Ishihara/Matsuzawa) from standing for election.
With today's democracy, no ones got the guts to make that kind of change happen, though. Especially since the ones likeliest to vote and stand for election might not be the most 'gifted' of us...
"Back in the old days, politicians were aiming to abolish serious stuff like slavery, head hunting, racism, poverty and all that's appropriate."
maybe back in those days, banning/govnerning those things made ppl had the same thinking as we r now... i.e y arn't they dealing with serious issues, politicians r just taking fun out of life.
and in the yr 2050, ppl might think "Back in the old days, politicians were aiming to abolish serious stuff like loli manga, violent games, otakus and all that's appropriate."
if its meant to happen, it'll happen.
slavery
head hunting
racism
poverty
serious shit. to go on, they need to go away
loli manga
violent games
otakus
creating more of the above 4... seams like we are trying to create problems so real politicians in the feature have shit to fix.
since the banning of games and manga, i think head hunting is my new hobby. =)
im taking up breading my slaves in new and interesting combinations, and coming up with new goofy names to call them.
Ignorant Troll is being ignored :P
...also, your sockpuppet doesn't fool anyone.
Slavery, head hunting, racism, poverty and all that stuff have actual victims: the slaves, those killed, the minorities, the poor, etc. People suffer because of those things.
Gaming, watching anime, reading manga, etc. harms no one. Nobody is hurt during their creation, and people aren't forced to play watch/read if they don't want to.
Arguing that they must be banned because young people can't separate fiction from reality and will therefore be turned into criminals is just stupid. It is those old politicians who seem to have problems separating fiction from reality. They just fear modern media because it's new and they are unable to adapt to those things we have now. That's why they say nothing about old shit like, say, water guns. The whole point of a water gun is to "shoot" your friends and unlike GTA they are made specifically for children! Maybe they should ban them for "lowering inhibitions to killing and ultimately stimulating people to murder."
"if its meant to happen, it'll happen."
That's a pretty apathetic way to say "I'm too lazy to change my reality and fight for what I want".
Apathy and Conformism are the actual plague of today's youth.
@Anon 10:22
12:43 proves the problem with your little theory, slavery, head hunting, and racism all involved other people. Enslaving others to your whim is a lot more worse than going home to play Saints Row by yourself. The reason we see it the old days bad now is that we got smart and realized we were causing harm to others I'll see that as bad. But banning games and anime based on a theory that couldn't be true, they're wasting there time picking on minor issues. Here something that they haven't fixed since the old days...POVERTY.
@anon 12:43
as a person from this generation, i'm not saying those proposals from the politicians are correct or justified, much like particular grps of ppl prior to our generation enjoyed their slavery, head hunting, racism, (indirectly causing others to) poverty ect.
@giovi
"The reason we see it the old days bad now is that we got smart and realized we were causing harm to others.."
what makes u think we won't be 'smarter'? if somehow unfortunately that these bans goes thru, i can safely predict that ppl in later generations will simply adapt to these changes and won't find major problems with it. much like we don't see not being able to enslave others being a problem for us. because times have changed and ppl will continue to change. the most important thing is that ppl will adapt, and from history ppl adapts quite easily.
anon 10:12
Japan sure is fully packed with old people that the young people can't do anything to stop it