Scenarios such as this one are just as common as underage kids being sold M-rated video games.

If you began reading the article within the above link, you may be a bit confused. At first glance, it appears to be nothing more than another scathing review of Rob Zombie's Halloween remake. But the article itself is a setup. Nothing more than a device to lead to you to the big reveal. The reveal in this case, is the following picture, snapped by the author upon leaving the theater:




It doesn't look like much. Does it? Look closely.

It's a stroller. A double stroller. You know... for two kids.


But enough out of me, here's the excerpt from the article:


"Maybe the picture is too dark. Or maybe it's your unconscious deliberately blocking it out. So I'll tell you: it's a double stroller.

I'll also tell you that after the movie I waited in the lobby to see-- what did I expect? It was a five year old girl and a three year old boy. And an infant. They walked out like it was nothing. A man and woman, in their twenties, both obese-- and since you're asking, both white-- Jesus. Jesus Christ. They walked out like it was nothing.

The other people now in the lobby were murmuring, whispering, pointing. No one was talking about the movie.. --? ---!!! ---???? No one could believe it. Even the degenerates were horrified.

By this time it's about 1230 am. The boy yawns.

I found myself inventing the most insane justifications: they slept through the movie. The parents had fortunately given them all a Xanax-- or maybe they're deaf and blind? Maybe they were under a blanket watching Nemo on DVD."




Take notice, Jack Thompson. Kids are being exposed to mature content every day. Not just mature games, but every form of media.

It's not the fault of the developers or publishers. It's not the fault of the ESRB or the ESA. It's not really even the fault of the teenage retail clerks with facial piercings.

The majority of the fault lays squarely on the parents


Fingers must be pointed at the parents. There is not one thing you can tell me to sway me otherwise. I worked in video game retail for nearly three years, and spent the last year working a popular but unnamed video rental chain. I cannot speak for every retail employee in America, but I CAN tell I have never sold an M-rated game to someone younger than 17. I've never observed a fellow employee engage in this either. I've had children as young as 9 walk up to me asking for a Grand Theft Auto game, to which I turn them away and tell them to bring their parent in. These parents ALWAYS come back with an attitude. "Why won't you sell my son this game?!? He's a customer, too! I want to speak to your manager!". Time and time again, when I explain to the parents exactly why I can't sell their 9 year-old boy or girl a game that features graphic violence, foul language, and the objectification and exploitation of women, they usually turn around and walk out of the store as they lecture the child. I've had a parents come in with Christmas lists, with M-rated games plastered all over it. When I ask them if they know what the game is about, most of them don't have a clue. I lost count of how many parents were told by the child that Grand Theft Auto was "just a racing game."

Of course, there were always the parents who would come in with the child, fully prepared to receive the "You know this game is M-rated for blah blah blah" speech. They roll their eyes, almost insulted by the attempt to inform them of the content in the game they are about to purchase for their young son or daughter.

This attitude isn't what bothers me. What bothers me is that these are the same parents who just don't care what their children are playing. At all. They let their 8 and 9 and 10 year old kids watch and play whatever they want, without any supervision. These parents are irresponsible and selfish, without any understanding of the repercussions such content could have a young mind. These are the same parents who are so quick to blame companies like Rockstar when their kid hauls off and shoots someone with the gun he found under Mommy and Daddy's bed.

I'm not saying M-rated games should be kept from children. Far from it. Sheltering the kid from everything can cause just as much damage as the mature content itself. These parents need to decide if they want their child to play these games. If if they decide to allow little Billy to say, committ intensely NSFW wrench murders in a virtual space, then they must also do their jobs are parents and supervise their children during their gaming sessions.


The developer's job is to make games, not protect your children. The retailer's job is to sell games, not protect your children. The ESRB's job is to inform the consumer, not protect your children.

Parents, it is YOUR JOB to protect your children. Your job, and no one else's.


The Xbox is not a babysitter.