Today, of course, the gaming sites all over the net are ablaze with the news that Wacky Jacky Thompson walked out of his own hearing yesterday, angered that the judge wouldn't let him read his long-winded, rambling manifesto about why it's so unfair that he's more than likely going to be disbarred for 10 years, and of course, the massive tsunami of schadenfreude over the whole mess threatens to sweep everything before it. However, before you pop the cork on that champagne you were saving for the day that you could cry "Ding, Dong the Witch is dead!" just pause a moment. Let's be honest here, it's really not going to change all that much. Don't get me wrong, I get as annoyed by Jack Thompson as anyone else does. I agree with his main goal of keeping violent content away from young kids. I've got no problem with that whatsoever. However, I have always found the way in which he chooses to go about it completely reprehensible. Do I think he deserves to be disbarred? Yeah, he probably does. Admittedly, I have a very limited knowledge of legal proceedings, but it does seem to me, just looking at things logically that the way Thompson chooses to act is just not the way a responsible litigator should behave. But there's been more than enough talk about that. What I'm saying here is that even if he is disbarred, it's not going to make him magically disappear. Yes, he won't be able to file suits, argue a case, or do many of the things he does now, but he can easily get someone to do it on his behalf. Plus, if you think he's not going to appeal, you're crazy. How successful his appeals will be remains to be seen, but having observed the man's behavior through the media for a few years now, I'm pretty confident that he's going to milk it for all it's worth, still spouting the same kind of thing he's been spouting, he'll just probably do it through another lawyer. And of course, he will still be darkening our TV screens and bookstore shelves. The only real difference will be, as I saw someone say on a Thompson story a couple of months ago that instead of being referred to as a "First Amendment Lawyer", he'll be referred to as a "First Amendment Activist or Expert". Hell, he might even get hired at Fox News as an analyst, because they know he'll get ratings and cause all kinds of attention. It's like the man once said, there's no such thing as bad publicity. Like I said, it's really not going to change much, because as much as the gaming community dislikes the man, there are plenty of people on the other side of the issue that like him and will still want to hear what he has to say and will support his God Given Crusade to stamp out objectionable content in the media. Because we just HAVE to protect the children. Oh dear GOD won't someone PLEASE think of the children?!

Sorry, got a little side-tracked there. Yes, losing his license to practice law will hinder Thompson a little, but it really won't do that much to change things. Sorry to rain on your parade, but he's not just going to roll over and die. He may be misguided, he may behave in incomprehensible or odious ways, he may even be insane, but at the end of the day, he believes that he's right. He believes that what he has to say is important, and he's not going to stop saying it just because he can't be a lawyer anymore. Yes, this is a step in the right direction, but we have to face the cold hard facts that that's all that it is, a step. And even if, by some miracle, he does go away, someone just like him will pop right up to take his place.

So go ahead and celebrate a bit at the karma tornado showing up and stomping on Jack Thompson a bit. But don't forget, this whole thing isn't over yet, not by a long shot.

Carry on Smartly.