As usual, my opinion on the topic of discussion is a hybrid
of the two popular opinions. Today, we discuss the effects of media; does what
we see in the media (aside from making decisions based on facts) affect what we
do?
This is classic question: do first-person shooter games
breed psychopathic mass murdering children? My response: kind of, sort of,
maybe.
I believe that the emotions that drive the actions we are
discussing- shootings, violence, etc. - are naturally built into those who
commit these actions. I don’t think playing a first person shooter makes you
want to kill people. That being said, you usually go the familiar route with
getting things done, so if you are going to go postal and you are a gamer the
closer to a videogame the better.
School shootings aren't the only big issue with life
imitating art. Self-destruction among youth is something I see quite often. Us "youngins"
are confused, anxiety ridden, angry and hyped up like never before. We are
looking for ways to beat on ourselves (it’s the familiarity thing again,
society beats on us, so that’s what we are used to and are comfortable with),
and what we see in movies, TV and videogames is what we go for.
You see it all the time in college- kids partying out,
rampant drug use, caffeine addiction, destructive relationships, and perpetual existential
crisis. It’s not all simply to ruin our lives. Most forego sleep for caffeine
and use drugs to increase productivity; they party to cope with the stress. How
many movies to come out lately have crazy party scenes? How many movies have
youth suffering through crazy hardships to be successful in the end? How many
movies show a youth lost, trying to get their shit straight?
The media shows us a popular way to channel emotions we
naturally have. As far as I can tell, the challenge of being young is a race
against the insanity of youth catching up with us. Does the media speed up or
slow down the clock? That remains to be seen.
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