Good news for all you British gamers wanting to play Grand Theft Auto 4! A bill to increase censorship of violent films and games in England has failed. However, it wasn’t so much defeated as time simply expired in the debate over the issue. That sounds somehow appropriate on such an issue.

The bill would have allowed more appeals against rulings on products by the British Board of Film Classification. However, it simply never won the support it needed. The bill was brought by Julian Brazier in response to games such as Manhunt 2 and films such as Eastern Promises. So, there will be no additional censorship for now in England. (more…)

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New Mexico is considering a tax on video games and televisions. The proposed one-percent sales tax would go toward funding outdoor educational programs for kids. When one considers that a one-percent tax even on a $3,000 top-of-the-line HDTV would be only $30, it doesn’t sound too bad. However, it misses a bigger issue.

Such an electronics tax is pure and simple social engineering. Depending on your personal beliefs you may find differing levels of social engineering acceptable, and that’s fine. The bigger issue is that it’s fairly selective social engineering. The idea is sponsored by The Environmental Alliance of New Mexico as a means of getting kids out into the environment and learning about it. So there is a very clear environmental bias to the issue, but what about kids’ health? (more…)

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