Jack Thompson

Já há algum tempo eu tenho acompanhando as desaventuras do Sr. Jack Thompson, o advogado anti-game, em sites especilizados em jogos, como o Gamespot. O Sr. Thompson está plenamente convicto de jogos eletrônicos são diabólicos e capazes de distorcer a mente de jovens, a ponto de transformar pacatos cidadões em psicóticos criminosos em potencial.



Entre suas façanhas, ele abre processos civis contra as principais companhias de games, alegando prejuí­zos causados por deturpar a mente de algumas pessoas em casos especí­ficos (como do cara que matou três policiais, um suposto fã de GTA).



Até aí­ tudo bem, cada um tem direito de defender sua opinião, embora a de Thompson seja comprovadamente equivocada. No entanto, os argumentos e o modus operandi do cara fazem pouco ou nenhum sentido. O cara é um wacko total. É só lembrar do caso em que ele prometeu doar US$10.000,00 para caridade caso alguém fizesse um jogo onde o objetivo era assassinar determinados nomes da indústria de games. O jogo foi feito, e ele deu prá traz dizendo que era tudo uma piada. Acontece que o pessoal do site Penny Arcade assumiu o compromisso estabelecido pelo advogado, e doaram eles mesmos os dez mil para uma associação de caridade mantida pela industria dos games.



Eu sou um leigo total em direito, mais ainda na legislação norte-americana. Mesmo assim, eu consigo enxergar claramente as falhas nas tentivas patéticas para as quais o cara apela em sua "cruzada anti-gamí­stica".



Hoje por acaso eu achei esse artigo na Wikipedia e fiquei abismado com as atitudes do sujeito, mesmo já tendo acompanhado alguns de seus feitos. O mais assustador foi esse aqui:



"A gamer named Mitchell S. with the online screenname "Kuja105", who posted on a few online video game forums (including GameFaqs.com and MetalGearSolid.org) committed suicide. On January 2nd, 2006, he posted a message in both forums detailing his intent to end his own life, citing overwhelming complications with school and finances. A very brief period of initial disbelief was followed by a barrage of replies from fellow forum members pleading that he not take his life, trying to talk him out of it. For days, no word was heard from Mitchell. Fearing the worst, members and administration from metalgearsolid.org began searching for contact information, spending hours on the phone trying to get in touch with him. Finally on January 4, Ryan K., an administrator at metalgearsolid.org, got him on the phone and spent hours desperately trying to talk him out of it. Sadly, Mitchell soon ended his own life by consuming antifreeze and painkillers. Later, members from the site contacted Mitchell's family to find out the grave news. They reported it to their online community, and posted a tribute to their passed friend on the front page of metalgearsolid.org.



Mr. Thompson then sent in the following letter regarding the situation to MetalGearSolid.org, one of the forums frequented by Mitchell, where he was known well:



"Your "gamer friend" will find peace through the Lord, Jesus Christ, but sadly it's too late for that.



There is a void in every heart. You can fill it up with the things of God, or the things not of God. This unfortunate soul chose to fill it up with combat games. The playing of these video games is masturbatory activity, meaning senseless self-stimulation. If you gamers could use a dictionary you would know that that term is not necessarily a sexual one.



The real tragedy here extends beyond the life and death of this one fellow. There are literally millions of young people and young adults whose despair is deepend by turning to the things of this world and then finding them meaningless.



All of you gamers need to put down the controllers and get a life. The utter inanity of the vast majority of postings here shows how vapid "gaming" really is.



You are one of the cheerleaders for this wasting of time and the wasting of lives. Do you feel any remorse for having contributed to this "culture of death?" Of course not. Hey, let's all play MORE games, and ignore all the really productive things to do with our lives.



Let's pretend to be shocked that a gamer might descend into deeper depression, as his gamer "buds," knowing he was killing himself, couldn't figure out how to call 911 themselves for him. That would have involved leaving their computers I guess. Sad. Sad for all of you." [3] [57]



On January 20, 2006, MetalGearSolid.org issued their response:



"Once again, Mr. Thompson, you've proven that your ignorance knows no bounds. We're not going to participate in this war you wish to wage against us -- we're bigger than that. We're bigger than you.



This is a case where our tragedy is greater than the sum of our transgressions. The fact that you want to exploit the loss that both we and his family have suffered to forward your own selfish, religiously driven ambitions speaks volumes about the integrity (or lack, thereof) of your character, and it only serves to strengthen our resolve.



You can continue to try and discredit us and insult us, though no true man of God would do such a thing. We pity you and your ignorance, and only hope that someday you can come to terms with and mature away from your bigotry. As Metal Gear Solid fans, we have learned to believe in the best of individuals. We've learned to show charity. We've become better people, and through the loss of our friend, we've become a closer-knit community.



We forgive you, Jack, and we hope that God will do the same for you.""



O cara tá sempre tomando umas invertidas do povo (outro caso curioso aqui), mas não aprende.



Particularmente, eu vejo ele como um indí­viduo absolutamente inofensivo. Ele tem a simpatia de um ou outro membro do congresso, mas acho que qualquer um dotado de uma boa capacidade de discernimento percebe a falta de lógica nos atos do camarada (o que explica por que ele sempre acaba perdendo na justiça).



Nesse meio tempo, eu vou aqui me divertindo com suas histórias.