Yes we can haz gamer prez?
by James Ransom-Wiley 
{ Nov 5th 2008 at 2:54PM }
Obama first entered our scene in December 2007 with comments presented to Common Sense Media on the topic of game violence legislation on his way to being dubbed the most "gamer-friendly" Democratic candidate. But the President-elect is better known for targeting youth voters with a $44.5K in-game ad campaign during the election season. (And apparently, it worked.)
Obama did urge us to "stop playing Game Boy" and put down the Wiimote (see screencap above -- from his Election Day ad), but the sentiments were geared toward encouragement rather than scorn. 66 percent of voters ages 18-29 (you know, gamers) supported Obama yesterday, according to CNN. Forget a puppy, the next US President can show some love back by bringing Wii to the White House.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Jakka @ Nov 5th 2008 3:00PM
That what we in a non-biased UK call a hypocrite...
Jack @ Nov 5th 2008 4:10PM
What is hypocritical about it?
Metal Geario 360 @ Nov 5th 2008 4:18PM
In reference to his "put down the GameBoy" tactic. I think its a quick way of saying "Go out and vote".
I dont take it as being hypocritical.
Unless your talking of something else i didnt bother to read.
Yer Jakkaf in your own mouth @ Nov 5th 2008 4:19PM
LOL @ unbiased UK.
Right. Bias does not exist there. The United Kingdom is actually a huge black hole for bias.
Jakka @ Nov 5th 2008 4:33PM
The hypocrisy is in the fact that he bashes gaming while at the same time spending 50K on in-game ad campaign.
And yes, telling me "To put my gameboy down" ,even if to go out and vote, is a bash as it implies that gamers are still a bunch of stereotypical fat nerds who spend all their lives in front of their monitors not caring about current affairs such as the election.You don't hear him specifically highlighting activities such as listeining to music or hanging out with friends do you? No, these are normal things to do.President doesn't need to tell "those" people to vote for him oh no!
@ Jaffar someone
Yes, as far as politics go, an average Brit doesn't really care about US Election.
Yer Jakkaf in your own mouth @ Nov 5th 2008 4:52PM
lies.
Jack @ Nov 5th 2008 4:52PM
I'm gonna have to respectfully disagree.
I think by him putting his money where his mouth is and specifically put in game advertising only reinforces his message. He wanted to people who are too enveloped into themselves or their habits to wake up and vote. So again, no hypocrisy.
Now was it a bash? Sorta. Though I suspect some of the people truly offended are guilty as charged. And if you're offended but not a lazy oaf I think you're not being understanding enough. Would you say that their AREN'T gamers out there who game too much and serve too little? It may not be all of us, but it certainly isn't none of us.
And you have to remember too, that all politicians are still pretty clueless about video games and still follow their stereotypes. We need to SHOW them we're not what we think they are. And with President Obama being black I'm sure he knows all about stereotypes. Should we hold him MORE accountable? I don't know. He's still human after all. We all make the same mistakes. It takes patience and understanding.
With already one confirmed video game regulator rolling in his new crew we need to show him that we care about politics. Especially when they start fucking with our games.
Haggard @ Nov 5th 2008 5:09PM
I found pretty much everyone here cared about the US election, and I live up in north england where there's no electricity and we still have outdoor toilets.
But apart from newspapers, media is nowhere near as biased as the US (our news channels do not blatantly lie, for instance) - nor are our politicians so corrupt. Of course they're corrupt, but it's small shit like buying a regular house for someone they're having an affair with or something - not handing out multi-billion dollar contracts to businesses our leaders happen to be friends with.
Poisoned Al @ Nov 5th 2008 5:19PM
"Right. Bias does not exist there. The United Kingdom is actually a huge black hole for bias."
And proud of it! However, I hate discrimination! I believe we should all hate each other equally!
riggs @ Nov 5th 2008 5:41PM
put your gameboy down to go and vote is a bash......right. the only people who would think thats a bash are the ones who play so much that they actually take it personally.
Foetoid @ Nov 5th 2008 6:47PM
Geez Jakka you must be highly sensitive to find that bashing. Typically, gamers spend a lot of time playing games as their primary form of entertainment. Videogames are also primarily played indoors with little movement. So asking gamers to put down thier gameboys to get out and vote isn't bashing at all. None of you would be having a teary if he said 'get off your Jetskis and come and vote' now would you. He was simply trying to say he's in touch with gamers, asking them to get out and vote. It's not compulsory to vote in the US, so you really have to campaign hard and do whatever you can to ask people to get out and vote. Gamers are probably the least likely people in the US to get out and vote thanks largly to the time taken up by the games they play. It's not hypocrytical to say what he said.
LordPaul @ Nov 6th 2008 4:23AM
That's what me, here, in the really not very unbiased at all UK calls someone who didn't read the article & found something to point out that wasn't even there.
cosmicthoughts @ Nov 6th 2008 11:03AM
I got invited to a US election party in London. By fellow Brits. Most of them had obama fever, so I don't think you could say all brits are unbiased - at least those who had more than a passing interest in the subject had a bias one way or the other.
Burritoclock @ Nov 5th 2008 3:03PM
This is the stupidest thing ever posted on this site for a million reasons, not the least of which is that regardless of your political beliefs only a moroon would believe that any elected official is going to be "pro-gamer" or do anything related to video games OTHER than whine about violence or restrict adult games. PERIOD.
H Choi @ Nov 5th 2008 4:02PM
Sounds like someone had a bitter night last night.
Haggard @ Nov 5th 2008 5:13PM
"or do anything related to video games OTHER than whine about violence or restrict adult games."
http://www.gamepolitics.com/2008/11/04/british-mp-keeps-amateur-suicide-bombing-game-perspective
Mr Khan @ Nov 5th 2008 3:04PM
Can't make history with a Wiimote?
Obama is a 360 fanboy confirmed!
Dirty @ Nov 5th 2008 4:09PM
I knew he was smart.
Foetoid @ Nov 5th 2008 6:53PM
Nah i woulda said blinded by the HDs. Being a Wii gamer would be the smart thing.
Doug @ Nov 5th 2008 7:52PM
I like Wii and 360. OH GOD NO! I'M GREEN! SHIT!
Shagittarius @ Nov 5th 2008 3:05PM
A 1% increase in the youth vote isn't enough to claim in game advertising had an effect. How could you even imagine that turnout came from game advertising?
StrangeBum @ Nov 5th 2008 3:14PM
It's obvious really. It's merely pointing out that all gamers are lonely, socially-detached nerds that never leave the warm glow of their TVs/monitors; and that until recently with in-game Obama-tisements didn't even realize that Election Day was upon us...
Dirty @ Nov 5th 2008 4:31PM
Wait... you mean its too late to vote? That seems lame that they only give you one day. Oh well.
riggs @ Nov 5th 2008 5:42PM
because it couldve been way lower than that?
waves @ Nov 5th 2008 3:05PM
It's September 12, 2001. You're sitting in front of a TV, watching footage of the World Trade Center collapse over and over and over again.
All of a sudden, someone from seven years in the future walks out of a tiny temporal vortex, and tells you: George W. Bush is going to fuck this up so badly that in 2008, the United States of America will likely elect as president a black man whose middle name is Hussein and whose father was Muslim. Oh, and he also admits he's used cocaine.
I think it would have been easier to convince me of the reality of time travel. "No, no, I believe you really are from the future. But the other stuff, that's CRAZY."
Marek Hryc @ Nov 5th 2008 3:21PM
What does a name and religious following have to do with this?
Jakka @ Nov 5th 2008 3:29PM
The fact that Bush's Government + Tabloids hyped up the terrorism and 9/11 to the point where all ,but 10% Smart Americans, believed that every bearded dark-skinned person wearing a "turban-like thing" on their head is a terrorist?
I got the punchline of the joke pretty quickly.
Mat @ Nov 5th 2008 3:38PM
waves,
I for one voted against McCain because his middle name is "Sydney" and I was quite worried he could potentially be involved with those dirty Australians.
waves @ Nov 5th 2008 4:02PM
Just to be clear, my comment was meant to point out what an amazing campaign Obama and his team ran, and the kind of transformation that America has undergone in just 7 years.
I didn't vote based on name or race, but let's be honest... those were obstacles that his campaign had to overcome, and they probably couldn't have won if it weren't for Bush's disastrous presidency.
Haggard @ Nov 5th 2008 5:16PM
As waves himself has said, all those factors are obviously not logical reasons to vote against Obama, but several million Americans obviously do think they are.
BoBoTheChimp @ Nov 5th 2008 3:11PM
Well, guess that puts me in the 34% who didn't vote for him.
3cubed @ Nov 5th 2008 6:50PM
Me too. I think I was the only Mexican at my college that didn't vote for Obama.
samfish @ Nov 5th 2008 3:20PM
Barack Obama for President of the United States?
Yes Wii Can!
Chin-Poh @ Nov 5th 2008 3:22PM
Barack Obama for President of the Wiinited States?
Yes Wii Did!
SpydaKat 17 @ Nov 6th 2008 7:32PM
It's an Obamanation!!
TheUglyDrunk @ Nov 5th 2008 3:22PM
This is going to end well.
HoboJuiceExplosion @ Nov 5th 2008 3:36PM
Who can afford a Wii? I need to prepare to subsidise failure!
The Fuzz 53 @ Nov 5th 2008 3:48PM
At least somebody gets it.
Freelance @ Nov 5th 2008 3:29PM
As of this post, the comments have not been too bad. Maybe America is changing.
Neuromancer @ Nov 5th 2008 3:48PM
Give it a few minutes...
Haggard @ Nov 5th 2008 5:17PM
Obama is an A-Rab and a Muslim and he's not good for america!
Wil @ Nov 5th 2008 3:30PM
I only worry now about Biden's past on supporting RIAA/MPAA bills.
AwesomeTown @ Nov 5th 2008 3:39PM
Yea, me too, but it hopefully won't be too bad, because at least someone is doing something about the RIAA:
http://techdirt.com/articles/20081030/0203582685.shtml
BigD145 @ Nov 5th 2008 3:42PM
What could Biden possibly do? He's only a factor if a bill comes up and he needs to vote the tie breaker. Oh, now I understand. You've been listening to Palin, who thinks the Vice can actually do things in gov't.
Kodros @ Nov 5th 2008 4:04PM
"Oh, now I understand. You've been listening to Palin, who thinks the Vice can actually do things in gov't."
Two words: Dick Cheney
Wil @ Nov 5th 2008 4:53PM
Yeah, I forgot that the vice president just basically sits around and does little to nothing and only really comes in to power if and when the president is no longer able to lead the country. Oh, wait...
The vice president can help draft and push or pull a bill through the house and senate before the president gets to sign it... not to mention that the vice president can persuade or otherwise help guide the president in to making a decision about whether or not to sign a bill in to law or to veto it.
TheUglyDrunk @ Nov 5th 2008 3:31PM
It'll get worse.
Sandmich @ Nov 5th 2008 3:41PM
More video games for the slothful, fewer for those paying taxes to support them.
The Fuzz 53 @ Nov 5th 2008 3:49PM
Okay, 2 people that get it.
The Fuzz 53 @ Nov 5th 2008 3:45PM
I'm glad to say that I wasn't of that 66%. You'll see...