Critic blames video games for cop killing increase

by Alexander Sliwinski { Oct 2nd 2007 at 12:28PM }

Cop killings are on the rise in the US and Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, a law enforcement trainer and author of On Combat and On Violence, blames video games. Some quick stats before we go into Grossman's statements. There have been 54 officer killings this year, a 60% increase from last year and the worst since 1975 when there were 99. Too bad they couldn't blame video games back then. Or could they have?

There's some more reasonable assessment of why there's a cop killing increase in the Time article, but the most controversial is certainly Grossman's comments. He believes criminals have become desensitized to opening fire on a police officer due to the "cop-killer, criminal simulators." He says that in meth labs and gang houses they'll always find video games. He says, "The video games are their newspaper, their television, their all-consuming narrative. And their video games are all cop-killer, criminal simulators." But wouldn't criminals be more inclined to play games like that in the first place? Anyway, like we pointed out before, rates were still higher in 1975. Then again, 1975 was apparently the first year Pong was introduced to homes.

[Via GamePolitics]

Tags: cop, grossman, killing

Related From Joystiq

VGA 2009: Claudia Black talks about our favorite subject, Claudia Black
8 days ago
Voltron game forms the head on iPhone, mobiles
19 days ago
Smithsonian exhibit 'The Art of Video Games' opens in 2012
19 days ago

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Anni @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:31PM

Damn! Usually Hip-Hop took the rap for this one.

(pun intended)

Dio @ Oct 2nd 2007 5:04PM

*rimshot*

CaptainAmericaX @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:33PM

Or maybe because most cops are corrupt poor excuses for human beings...

No offense to the few decent ones out there that are just trying to make our country (USA here) a better place...

NoHitHair @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:15PM

I can't remember a time where I or anyone I know could place even modest trust in an officer of the law. Where I live police are better known as bullies than anything as honorable as civil servants. Anyone remember "To punish and enslave" printed on the side of Barricade's patrol car in Transformers? I hardly believe that was devoid of any social commentary.

That's beside the point, however. Blaming something as impertinent as video games is nothing more than a red herring designed for a naive simple solution to an otherwise complex problem. If cops are being killed it's more likely a result of increased crime caused by financial disparity rather than some random inspiration to kill derived from a game.

dan stabbingworth @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:42PM

I agree, it has to do with how little respect people have for police officers now.

Imagine that you give a number of undereducated people who couldn't get better jobs a gun and just about unlimited power. Hmmm, will they abuse it? It's not hard to see why people have little/no respect for the police.

sheppy2.0 @ Oct 2nd 2007 6:58PM

Wow, I can honestly say it's people like you that make police work a very difficult job. And yet you'd be singing praises if they prevented a killer from killing and raping your sister.

Get with the times. A vast majority of police forces are drastically improving. This isn't Rodney King era anymore and it's high time you people start realizing that. And hell, even Rodney King era wasn't Rodney King era. Those were a couple bad people and that happens in every group.

While I wish I could respect your opinions on this, I know a couple policemen personally and from being spit on to kicked in the nuts, to being offered blowjobs for letting a speeding ticket pass only to get accusations of rape when they declined, being a policeman is possibly one of the most dangeroyus and apethetic jobs there are. Take speeding, for example. Everyone hates a speeding ticket and will instantly scream and cuss and talk about "real criminals" when they get a ticket. And yet should a speeder plow into the side of your friend/family/lovers car and instantly kill them, you'd be condemning the very same actions you decried as bullshit when you were the victim of these preventative measures.

In all honesty, this whole "fuck the police" attitude needs to stop. Not every cop is Mark Furman. But every cop gets accused of that when they get called in on a domestic abuse. And when a cop dies? What kind of sick fuck celebrates that? Majority of these killings occur during either routine shit (speeding ticket) or drug related busts more typically Crystal Meth. And this is the behavior that's frowned upon? Giving out tickets to prevent accidents and busting meth labs? That's real worthy of dying, man.

Frankly, you people sicken me and the sooner some meth head whacked out his skull breaks into your house and shoots your family for a handful of money to buy more meth, the better.

jorojoserojas @ Oct 2nd 2007 7:02PM

Sheppy, other than your ending there (I wish no harm on anybody), I completely and utterly agree with you.

snupher @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:37PM

This is just yet another story on ignorant people looking for someone to blame. Of course, they look at what entertaining outlets lead them to think. So, instead of looking at real reasons, like, I don't know, kids being drugged since birth and other factors, they blame video games. Jack "Antichrist" Thompson would be proud.

vinny @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:37PM

Jack Thompson is a critic now?

FOXHOUND @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:07PM

He will once he gets disbarred. :\

JodyAnthony (FDF - Hedonism Bot) @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:39PM

more like "critic wants to make people pay attention to him for the first time ever by making shit up"

Sean @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:39PM

blah blah blah.

spiral-soldier @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:40PM

What did videogames give to people, who are already presumably capable of murder, that makes them more inclined to kill cops than usual? Do the games make them think it's easy? I see no way a game could make you specifically more inclined to kill cops.

Judd @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:41PM

I'm sorry Joystiq, but posts like this are just preaching to the choir. Actually, it's your job to report game related stories,so it's nothing you're doing wrong but the inevitable onslaught of "video game violence is not real violence" comments are coming. http://www.joystiq.com/2007/09/14/new-jersey-parents-fret-over-wiis-gun-like-zapper/#comments

I mean WE all know this,what's the point of telling each other? Wouldn't the message be put to a much better use if we try to explain our views to those who disagree with us?

Zertoss @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:43PM

Believe it or not, some of those people who disagree with us read these stories and comments.

GRANTED @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:41PM

tijuana must be like a gamers' mecca.

Zertoss @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:42PM

Let me get this straight. You find video games in a METH LAB, so you want to blame THEM for the criminals' behavior?

Anni @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:49PM

This observation is ten kinds of hilarious!

Savok @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:43PM

They expect drug dealers to be playing Yoshi's fucking Story or reading a good book?

Here's why more cops are dying, they're being taught how to think by complete fucking idiots who waste time with this bullshit rather then actually improving techniques and tactics.

upz @ Oct 2nd 2007 2:02PM

I can't wait for the day they bust a meth lab and find some Nintendo Wiis. I mean, everyone has one of those, right?

G$ @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:47PM

I bet videogames caused this incident to occur{sarc.}
(http://cbs3.com/topstories/local_story_275120926.html)

Clack @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:21PM

Sadly the owner of the pit bull will probably end up doing time over the whole mess just because the officer was a clumsy oaf.

Fernando Rocker (NDF - Water Ring) @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:49PM

The people who think that videogames is the cause of violence is more annoying than my trolling.

Us hardcore players we are more intelligents, and we can easily tell the difference between the virtual violence and real violence.

upz @ Oct 2nd 2007 2:06PM

I am definitely more intelligents.

plyx @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:54PM

Hug Da Police.

blooh (CDF - Ass Ring) @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:56PM

pong is worse than gta

quick, someone tell jack to try to ban pong

blooh (CDF - Ass Ring) @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:58PM

i bet his son could buy it in a store too! OMG!!

James @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:01PM

Pong isn't worse than GTA...

blooh (CDF - Ass Ring) @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:09PM

did you read the article? pong caused twice as many officer deaths as gta

James @ Oct 2nd 2007 12:57PM

I agree with the critic.

Brandon @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:09PM

I have noticed a signifigant rise in the amount of turtle smashing and mushroom stalks in my town. DAMN YOU VIDEO GAMES! DAMN YOU TO HELL!!

Alex @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:10PM

Causation, correlation, it's all the same, right?? Sales of ice cream cones cause murders...duh!

Alex @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:15PM

Maybe the reason Cops are being killed more often is because they're abusing their power more often and society is fighting back and not taking any more of their $hit.

Sean @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:16PM

"He says that in meth labs and gang houses they'll always find video games."

haha.. yeah, it's the video games that are the problem, not, you know, the meth.

John Perkins @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:18PM

The reason there is a rise in cop killings is more due to the fact that there are more cops and more criminals. I don't doubt that violent video games help desensitize people who already have violent tendencies, but they don't turn normal people into killers.

The biggest problem we have right now is that anyone can have kids. Drugged out criminals on welfare are popping out kids left and right who are destined to become drugged out criminals. You give a drugged out criminal on welfare a copy of GTA, and they could easily get stoned and relate real life to the game and have no problem shooting a cop. You give some 12 year old who is in a loving, supportive family GTA, that isn't already imbalanced as some people are just born nuts, and they would never think of shooting a cop in real life. It's never crossed my mind and I've played violent video games for over 20 years.

People like this are not helping. Hiding from the real problem and pointing fingers isn't going to fix the issue. You get rid of every violent game, movie, book, tv show, news cast and there will still be violence in the world. You work on fixing some of the social problems the world has, and you'll make a large dent.

Shagittarius @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:28PM

I wouldn't think to blame this on the unreasonable sentences for drug offenders or the fact that they can pretty much plan on being shanked or getting raped in prison for 10-20 years.

No its definately the video games.

HEY!!!! @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:41PM

people have to understand that violence is human nature as much as it may suck there will never be peace.

Jay @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:44PM

Alternative theory: There are more people, more weapons and more cops, hence more cops being killed.

It's like saying car accidents have increased because of Ridge Racer. No, they've increased because there are more cars on the road. Why do people always look for the more difficult answer when the obvious one is just as good.

Grant @ Oct 2nd 2007 2:08PM

i agree, i wanna see a per capita figure.

WiNG @ Oct 2nd 2007 1:59PM

Hey I do wonder though, how come there are very few games where you play as a cop?

Other than SWAT and a couple lightgun games, you rarely play as a cop in games, just military or covert ops.

I would love to play a game where I have to chase down speeders or stop bank robberies and whatnot. You know and truency checks.

Ska Oreo @ Oct 2nd 2007 2:05PM

Because playing by the law is BORING!!! unless you're a crooked cop, like Vic Mackey.

WWVMD!!!

AirIntake @ Oct 2nd 2007 3:41PM

Max Payne was a cop.

Ska Oreo @ Oct 2nd 2007 5:27PM

Yeah, but keep in mind that his family was gunned down and that he was actually fighting against the law.

JP @ Oct 2nd 2007 2:03PM

I'll probably catch hell for this but on the real...
To dismiss the entire notion is short sided.
For instance...A guy street racing with a buddy here in Houston a few weeks ago couldn't make a turn he had performed in Midnight Club and ended up forcing his buddy into the bayou...his buddy died.
My son plays Madden. He started his first season of football in middle school and he learning to play his position (CB) by applying some of what he has learned on Madden into reading offenses. Nothin wrong with that...but it a video game that influences.
So to say that violent video games don't influence a segment of the population because you are a hardcore gamer and know better is short sided....it is possible that some people can't or don't distinguish between reality and fantasy....and become numb to the violence ....