May 19. For most gamers, this will probably be the single most important day of 1999, with the possible exception of December 31. What I find amusing about it is that I know I don't have to tell any of you why this date is so important. But for me, there was a day almost exactly one month previous to that other infamous date which I will most likely never forget. April 20 - the day two teenagers expended over 900 rounds of ammunition and 20 explosive devices in the middle of their high school.
By now, most of you are probably moving your mouse up to hit the back button on your browser. You've heard and seen enough about Littleton, Colorado to last you a lifetime. To be honest I couldn't agree more. Someone could toss photographs of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold in front of me, and I would be able to name them both without a moment's hesitation.
"So, what," you ask, "does this have to do with gaming?" The answer is both everything and nothing.
The connection begins and ends here: Harris and Klebold wore black trenchcoats. To the disappointingly naïve and out-of-touch members of the news media and the religious right, this connection is all there needs to be. To a surprisingly significant number of these people, black-trenchcoat-wearing teenagers (Had to be careful there; if I had left that first hyphen out, you would have thought I meant black kids who wear trenchcoats) are by default goths, and goths are by default gamers. What you and I know is that this theory holds about as much water as a spork.
And why should we care what the media thinks? Because it is the media that shapes a great deal of public opinion about such things. It is the myths and misconceptions put forth by the media and the religious right (not necessarily in conjunction) which have ruined the image of gamers. And that's what this column is all about - image. Nevermind the title at the top, that was just the name of an Aerosmith song from a few years back and I thought it might make a cool title.
Seriously, folks, this is something that we need to think about. How many of you really want to be categorized with Harris and Klebold? Or maybe you would prefer to be lumped in with Rod Ferrel, the Kentucky "Vampire killer". I hate to say it, but the association is there and it's solidifying. A sizeable portion of the undereducated public honestly believes that role-playing games are not only bad for you, but that they lead to violent behavior.
Even as I wrote that last bit I was thinking, "What a load of baseless crap." However, I'm not going to write that. Not only because it would be crude, but because I prefer to fight fire with water. The simple fact of the matter is that murders, even the most heinous ones, are committed by people from all walks of life with all kinds of interests. Klebold and Harris came from stable, reasonably wealthy families in a posh suburban town where crime is most likely minimal. They expressed interest in racism, fascism, bomb-making and guns, and they were social outcasts. They were not gamers. Rod Ferrel came from an impoverished, single-parent household. His mother was unable to control him, and his primary interests were drugs, sex, death and the occult. Rod was also a social outcast, and he was a gamer. Where is the connection between these two sets of murders? It sure as hell isn't gaming.
Naturally, these two cases cannot be taken as a fair sample of all the thousands of murders committed in the United States each year. But it still proves my point: role-playing games are in no way a valid scapegoat for murder. There is no set pattern, no one thing. Ask a criminologist (I did) and they'll tell you the same thing. Murders are committed by doctors, lawyers, janitors, video store clerks, young people, old people, drug addicts, etc., etc. The list goes on, and yes, it includes gamers. But it also includes every other social category you can think of. Let's open our eyes, people. Before we start placing blame on something we don't like or understand, let's look to ourselves first and see if maybe we aren't the cause of the problem. After all, when you point your finger at somebody else, three more fingers point back at you.
In the meantime, as a gamer (and one who has never fired a gun in his life, much less owned one) I plan to do my part to see that the image of role-playing games and gamers everywhere improves. I've been asking myself: what is it going to take to set this right? What can I do to make people realize that gamers aren't as bad as society seems to think we are? The conclusion I've reached is this: I can be myself. I'm no social outcast. I'm not a freak of nature, I'm not obsessed with death, guns or the occult. Hell, I don't even believe in magic, dragons or ghosts. I love kids and I've been working with them since I was younger than both Eric and Dylan.
Role-playing games are an outlet for the imagination. They are a lot of fun, and occasionally time-consuming, but they in no way affect my ability to function as a part of the society in which I live. A lot of people think the games I play are stupid and a waste of time, but that's okay because I have the same opinion about a lot of things that other people do for recreation. It is a matter of opinion, but I don't let it affect the way I perceive an entire group of people because I know that it doesn't affect the way they interact with society. In this way, it is no different from collecting comic books, hunting or car racing.
We as gamers need to break out of the stereotype surrounding us and show the rest of society that we really are no different from them. That's what it takes.
End rant. Tune in next issue for something a little different. I'm hoping to actually talk about gaming next time.
