The time has come, folks. This is the week that Jack Thompson compares violent video games to polio on broadcast television! Are you ready? We've known this episode of Penn & Teller: Bullshit! was on the way since way back in February but had no idea of when it would air until just today (this Thursday at 10 PM EST -- set your DVR!). If you're looking for some lunacy before the show lands on Showtime later this week, hit the break for a preview featuring the "fire triangle" you see above. Seriously.

Joystiq readers will likely recall that one John Bruce Thompson -- "Jack" to his friends -- was disbarred last year from practicing law in the state of Florida. However, it seems Thompson has maintained that he's still allowed to practice law within the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, which is a federal court.

Enter Judge Federico Moreno, who has issued an order to Thompson, asking him to explain why he should not also be barred from the District Court. The order asks that Thompson submit his defense, along with copies of all documents related to his previous disbarment, within 30 days (the order was issued on June 26).

Thompson, reports GamePolitics, is not pleased, and has since sent Moreno an email "request/demand," asking that the judge provide copies of all communications between Moreno and the Florida Bar concerning himself. Once again, it looks like Thompson's legal career is on shaky footing. Still, we doubt another disbarment will put a stop to Thompson's anti-gaming efforts. The first one certainly didn't.

You don't need another reason to watch Penn & Teller: Bullshit -- its regular skewering of nut jobs is more than enough to warrant your half hour -- but we've got one for you. Our buddy, Jack Thompson, will appear on the show's seventh season, as you can see in the promo after the break.

As you probably guessed, Thompson will be discussing the therapeutic powers of crystal manipulation and -- oh, sorry, wrong episode. No, he'll talk about how bad Grand Theft Auto is and we'll make fun of him for it. Because that's the way it works.

[Via Gay Gamer]

Things haven't been going well for the Utah gaming bill that ex-attorney Jack Thompson penned and, for that matter, the gentleman himself. After sending out an email to a variety of Utah legislators a few weeks back, the man came under threat of legal action from Utah senate president Michael Waddoups. And today, GamePolitics is reporting that the bill's original sponsor, state representative Mike Morley, has written an email to his colleagues apologizing for Thompson's actions (printed in full after the break).

Morley writes to his fellow reps that, "[Thompson] doesn't speak for me nor do I condone or appreciate his actions nor some his tactics," seemingly ending his relationship with Thompson. Unsurprisingly, Thompson has responded to Morley's email (also found after the break), claiming, "Mike Morley's apology is ridiculous. I didn't scandalous [sic] anyone with an image of two clad women." He further posits, "Your family values stance is a sham," refererring to the legislators he wrote. We're not sure of many things in politics, but we are sure of this: You probably shouldn't directly insult the people you'd like to support you. While this is likely the last time you'll hear about this Utah bill, we're 100 percent sure this isn't the last time you'll hear from Jack Thompson.

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Fueled by the recent veto of his Utah game bill and the constant thirst for more, Jack Thompson made an appearance on Utah radio show "Utah Eagle Forum" recently to discuss the merits of the bill and, well, to be Jack Thompson. Claiming the Columbine school shooting occurred due to "training on Doom" and saying the recent school shooting in Germany occurred due to the shooter's predilection for Counterstrike and Far Cry 2, Thompson immediately built a case for the audience to be concerned "why this is so terribly serious, to their own safety."

As GamePolitics points out, at no point in the show does anyone make note of Thompson's lack of an actual license to practice law or of his disbarring. He is, in fact, introduced as "an attorney from Florida." An odd omission considering the theme of the show is "Truth in Advertising."

Hear ye! Hear ye! Joystiq's own legal counsel, Mark "Minister of Mandate" Methenitis, has announced his 1-on-1 verbal brawl debut (that's a certified professional sport, you know) against -- none other than -- Jack "Attorney at Lawl" Thompson during the ScrewAttack Gaming Convention (pre-registration now open) at the Westin Dallas Fort Worth Airport arena on a sure-to-be-historic July the Fourth, 2009. The topic: video game restrictions. So place your bets in the comments section below -- and be sure to check out the pre-fight hype reel posted after the break!

[Via Law of the Game]

You may think he's a stick in the mud, but Jack Thompson does have a sense of humor. Want proof? Hot on the news of a slaying that may be connected to GTA, JT wrote us to say: "This is a switch, as it is typically the chronic players of these murder simulators that kill people - lots of people. In light of this new and welcome development, Miami anti-violent video game activist today puts forth a modest proposal to curtail sales of the Grand Theft Auto video games: Anyone who shoots and kills a player of the Grand Theft Auto video games gets a) a full pardon and b) a $5000 federal income tax credit because of the killer's successful efforts to reduce pollution."

A hilarious call for mass murder in the wake of an actual tragedy and a classic literature reference? Be still our hearts.

It's game over in Utah, for now. Utah Governor Jon Huntsman (R) has vetoed the video game and movie retail restriction bill, which would have enforced strict penalties on retailers who sell M-rated games (and R-rated movies) to "buyers subject to an age restriction or recommendation."

The legislation (HB 353), authored by Jack Thompson and legislator Mike Morle, recently swept the Utah House of Representatives by a 25 to four margin. According to GamePolitics, Jack Thompson claims the backers of the bill will seek an override of the veto.

In a letter explaining his reasons for the veto, Huntsman says HB 353 would likely "be struck down by the courts as an unconstitutional violation of the Dormant Commerce Clause and/or the First Amendment." Huntsman estimates that a possible "unintended consequence" of passing the legislation would be that the industries most affected could choose to forgo the use of "age appropriate labels on goods and services," because of their voluntary nature -- hurting families in the long run. Huntsman full letter can be read after the break.

Update: Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of the ESA has responded to the news in a comment, found after the break.

After breezing through the Utah House of Representatives with an overwhelming vote of 70 for and two against, HB 353, a piece of legislation authored by Jack Thompson and legislator Mike Morley which enforces strict penalties on retailers who sell M-rated games (and R-rated movies) to "buyers subject to an age restriction or recommendation," found a similar reception in the state senate -- it was approved with a vote of 25 for and four against earlier today.

We now have three consecutive events to eagerly anticipate -- first, the bill must be approved by Utah governor Jon Huntsman before it's officially adopted. Second, the new policy will go into effect on January 1, 2010. Finally, we wait to hear how the ESA will spend the humongous legal fee reimbursement check that the taxpayers of Utah will indirectly cut when the bill is likely found unconstitutional. Perhaps some sort of tropical outing for their employees? We hear the beaches of Costa Rica are simply breathtaking.

Last week, ESRB chief Patricia Vance urged lawmakers in Utah to reconsider a bill that would punish retailers that advertise an adherence to the game rating system when they fail to comply. Proving that we're still in Reality Prime and not some alternate, Cubs-just-won-the-World-Series history, disbarred lawyer Jack Thompson has responded with some of the old classics: Misleading information and scare tactics.

First, let us say we agree with JT's point that he should be allowed to peruse the audit which claims a 94 percent compliance rate for Utah retailers (it does seem high). But scarcely can we nod our heads in agreement before Jack drops a line like, "Testimony in the U.S. Congress has established that the ESRB doesn't even play the games it rates! " No, Jack, it watches video of the games, because members of the ESRB are not Nintendo Game Play Counselors manning the 1-900 line in the late '80s. They're not trying to boost their Gamerscores, they're doing a boobies check.

He then goes on to complain about the lack of ratings enforcement on the internet, which has nothing to do with the Utah legislation. Finally, Jack doesn't address Vance's most compelling point: Retailers who don't attempt to comply with the ESRB would be utterly unaffected. Lest you think we're nit-picking, we've put the full thing for you after the break.

This may sound nutty, but it's almost nice to see that, after all these years, we're not just vilifying Jack Thompson out of habit.

Now that the Utah video game bill, authored by disbarred attorney Jack Thompson, has passed the state's House of Representatives, the ESRB is taking the opportunity to write an open letter to the parents and leaders of Utah. Written by ESRB President Patricia Vance, the letter concludes that the proposed legislation seeks to fix a system that isn't broken. The letter proposes that instead of attacking retailers with the possibility of a lawsuit or fines if they sell M-rated titles to young gamers, that Utah should encourage and educate parents to utilize the tools and rating system that the ESRB already provides.

Vance's letter states that a recent audit of video game retailers in Utah found they already voluntarily enforce store policies regarding M-rated games 94 percent of the time. Nationally, the Federal Trade Commission found that video game retailers went from turning away 15 percent of underage customers in 2000 to 80 percent in 2008. The letter notes this is higher compliance than those found in the sale of movies, DVDs or music. Read Vance's full letter to the parents and leaders of Utah after the break.

HB 353, a piece of Utah legislation which enforces stricter penalties against game and film retailers who sell M-rated and R-rated content to "buyers subject to an age restriction or recommendation,' and which was authored by Rep. Mike Morley and former Miami attorney Jack Thompson, passed through the Utah House of Representatives yesterday by a vote of 70 for and two against. It will now make its way to Utah's state senate -- should it pass there as well, it will go to the desk of Gov. Jon Huntsman to be signed into law, which will go into effect on January 1, 2010.

The bill passed by an overwhelming margin after a number of amendments to the legislation were approved by the House. The amendments were largely tacked on to the bill in an attempt to lower the hackles of disapproving retailers -- for instance, one addition keeps retailers from suffering the harsher penalties if an underage customer lies about his or her age when purchasing a mature product. In response, we anticipate Utah's fake mustache industry to see a threefold rise in revenue during the next fiscal year.

Whoever said being a Bar-licensed, practicing lawyer had anything to do with amending existing laws has clearly never met Jack Thompson. Thompson's most recent game bill, authored by Representative Mike Morley and Mr. Thompson, was resoundingly passed (at 10-3) by the Business and Labor Committee of the Utah House of Representatives yesterday. What does this mean for Utah residents? Well, nothing yet, as the bill is now headed off to the full Utah House of Representatives for consideration.

If the bill goes into law, however, retailers of all varieties in the state (from big-box outlets like Best Buy and Wal-Mart to independent theater owners) will be facing a $2000 fine for every documented sale of mature-rated content to a minor. We wanted some clarification on the law and it's possible ramifications, so we went straight to the source. After the jump you can see for yourself everything Mr. Thompson told us about his recently penned bill.

Each week Mark Methenitis contributes Law of the Game on Joystiq ("LGJ"), a column on legal issues as they relate to video games:

Right on cue, after this week's previous LGJ, Jack Thompson's Utah bill finally made its public appearance. Surprisingly, the bill amounts to only 4 lines of text that will be edited into Utah's existing Truth in Advertising Act, a form of deceptive trade practice regulation. The entire relevant text of the statute is:


So what does this mean for the industry? I believe this bill has far more bark than bite, but it's more complex than a simple analogy. There are some potential consequences for electronic retailers based on this new potential regulation, but it also looks like this provision leaves a number of major loopholes that retailers can take advantage of. As the bill hasn't passed yet, this all may be moot if the Utah legislature opts against the regulation, but it's certainly worth analyzing in the interim.

Penn & Teller are taking aim at the video game violence controversy in an upcoming episode of Penn & Teller: Bullshit! -- an ongoing television series that debunks misconceptions and popular fads.

Earlier in the week, Penn Jillette revealed the video game themed episode had begun filming, via Twitter. Guests interviewed for the episode will include Grand Theft Childhood co-author, Dr. Cheryl Olson, along with her husband and writing partner, Dr. Lawrence Kutner. Disbarred Miami attorney, Jack Thompson, will also be featured in the episode.

A Penn & Teller producer told GamePolitics the episode would likely air during the summer, but did not reveal a specific date. We can only hope that Penn gives Thompson a suitable tongue lashing or that the magical duo makes him disappear. Either way, we're good.