What a thoroughly amazing topic for discussion. Having played shooter games i am now definately a serial killer, and now playing WoW has obviously made me racist. Often times while out getting milk at the local shop i cant inhibit my killing rage or racist comments. OMG what a load of crap people come up with, reminds me of the rubbish social workers come up to justify why little timmy killed all those school girls, because his daddy was mean to him as a child. Such a load of bullsh@t. Once upon a time cr@p like this would have provoked the saying "omg only in america" but now the disease is spreading all across the globe. Flame On!
I think most people are missing the point of the article, at least what I think the point was. I think the author was trying to make the arguement that these kinds of games desensitize kids/people to racism. In the same way that a person could go from being an upstanding citizen to a murderer by killing a few animals in their childhood. A child who thinks nothing of hating another race for no reason may just grow up to be a racist. I don't think it's that simple, or even easy to become a racist. Becoming a racist takes a long time, experience, teachings, and/or various fears. In my opinion, the idea that WoW is instilling some kind of hate in children is a bit of a stretch.
Perhaps it would be an interesting facet to point out that in WoW, you are not limited to slaughtering the opposing faction. Sometimes, even more times than not, you find yourself fighting the same enemy as the opposing faction. The Horde and the Alliance basically share all end-game instances and raids, and although the territory is often disputed, they share that too. While racism is clearly an aspect of WoW, if you are mature enough, you can maintain a life separate from your game life.
I personally attend a college that is a very well bred mix of cultures, and I often find that the same friends I study with are on the Horde while I fight for the Alliance. It puts irony in the situation, but it doesn't affect our real life friendship in any way. We can still talk about running Raids with our guild such as BWL, ZG... and so on... many of which we both run in similar fashion.
Im sorry, but when i read this article i think i died a little inside. This was the single largest waste fo time i have ever seen given to a video game. You actually think that some 10-15 year old kids will be looking so deeply into the race mechanics that they will pick up on some arbitrary racisim that is only within the game when some asshat puts it there by writing an article or posting on a forum. Seriously it is a game, and a bad one at that (unless you are a 10-15 year old kid and missed out on the EQ 1 haydays). I mean come on stating that WOW is teaching children racism doesnt even make since, how would you equate their learned racism to real life? There are no orcs and humans and what not fighting for control of a contitnent, seriously someone was up too late playing their little game and came up with what they thought was a reasonable idea that in all actuality is completely unfounded and rediculous. Then this assanine idea is given a shred of dignity when a writer with nothing better to talk about on a slow work week or what not decides to take his post one step further and puts it in an article that others had the misfortune of wasting time on.
P.s. My first post on these boards, normally i like to just lurk around read the articles and what people resond with. ALthough this article was just too damn much for me with it's stupidity.
I say...who cares !!! People can find racisim in anything. In fact..there are few such prominant black leaders whose entire job depends on finding racisim. Without racisim some folks wouldn't have a job anymore..they do in fact find and create racisim to protect their livelyhood...but thats a topic for an entirely different forum... I say...good grief...who cares! It's a video game for starters. Sure it's racism...lets not let the pussification of America and it's twisted and hipicritical ( sp?) politics influence the fact that orcs hate humans and humans hate orcs...just because. That is how it is suppose to be. Leave it alone. I say...if someone can't handle it ..then they just need to dig a hole somewhere and stay there...or at least stop playing fantasy mmo's. Thats what I say
and I'll say it again..anytime
Never mind you are from Texas. Not worth it.
LOL..SEE !! Is that any different ? What does being from Texas have to do with anything? YOU sir...are part of the PROBLEM. That is discrimination based on where someone lives. Automaticly devaluing their point of view based not on fact or opinion even but on on WHERE THEY LIVE ! Is that any different than basing it on what color their skin is? or what kind of clothes they choose to wear? You sir ..in one simple sentence...not even a complete sentence at that....exposed your extreme ignorance.
I would have ya know...I am not FROM Texas...just happen to live in Texas..BUT...I would be proud to be from Texas anyday !
In fact...just to prove how ignorant you are.
I was born in Minnisota...raised in California...Lived for extended periods of time in New York City , NY...Boston, MA, Danbury CT, and various places in Florida...while I was in the Navy defending your right to be a dumbass. DOH !
And now currently reside in the wonderful state of Texas where I will likely remain till my dying day.
Please don't do me any favors. What you were really defending in the Navy was America's imperial interests so lets not blow that patriotic B.S. around. I owe you NOTHING for that. You did your time you got paid like a good little mercenary. There is absolutely nothing I need defending from except the paranoid delusions of a nation hyped up on its own military power and brainwashed to think everyone is out to get them.
Second the Texas thing was sarcasm sorry you didn't catch that (our country has failed you by spending more on big shiny navy boats than on school). And trust me I am just as quick to slam SC (actually quicker). The point was that your original remark was horribly racist. The idea that YOU get to decide what people are allowed to be defended by is absurd. Also the crazy assertion that people cannot be upset by discrimination because its part of the "pussification of America" is just an attempt to browbeat people to not publically disagree with you.
This is typical of what this country has become in the last few years. A bunch of blowhard cowboys who care about nothing other than stroking their big missile launchers, asserting that they are the best, and not paying the taxes that keep their country running. Believe it or not many, many, many people live in this country. All of them do not go to your church, live in your town, have the same skin color as you, or worship our bloated military. If someone wants to be offended by something, they have the right to. It does not make them a pussy or anti-American. Just like the religious right has the right to be offended by...well practically everything except the slaughter of other countries civilians, the rest of the country has the right to be offended by statements like yours.
I don't think MMOs are racist. In fact I think that they help alleviate racism because we judge each other without a physical appearance to go by. However if you feel that WoW could lead kids to develop racist tendancies (and it is not impossible) you should say it and explain your point. Don't let narrow minded blowhards like this guy stand in your way.
Sorry to go off like that, but the big macho American line really ticks me off. My uncle was paralyzed from the waist down and lost his sight in one eye when he was beaten for registering black voters in the early 1960s. I grew up knowing a guy who actually put it all on the line to defend the values of these country. I hate hearing these people who thin just because they were in the military that we owe them something for "defending" us.
in regards to people actually thinking that the other faction is "foolish...less mature..." I completely agree. I have played on both sides, and I have chosen horde because I find that whenever I'm on alliance, the people there do seem less mature than me (or atleast just plain annoying) I chose horde because of that; I don't think that because I'm horde.
Our personalities lead us to one side or the other and regardless of faction, that's the way we feel about eachother. I feel that way about many people in my own faction as well, but I have more luck finding people I do get along with on the horde side.
I don't think WoW breeds racism anymore than I think shooting games corrupt and create killers. If someone is going to do something immoral, they will get it from whatever is available: games, books, the news, thier own imagination. For the millions of people who play games for the love of playing them, why bother blaming a game for someone who was bound to do something wrong regardles of where the 'inspiration' came from?
I say...who cares !!! People can find racisim in anything. In fact..there are few such prominant black leaders whose entire job depends on finding racisim. Without racisim some folks wouldn't have a job anymore..they do in fact find and create racisim to protect their livelyhood...but thats a topic for an entirely different forum... I say...good grief...who cares! It's a video game for starters. Sure it's racism...lets not let the pussification of America and it's twisted and hipicritical ( sp?) politics influence the fact that orcs hate humans and humans hate orcs...just because. That is how it is suppose to be. Leave it alone. I say...if someone can't handle it ..then they just need to dig a hole somewhere and stay there...or at least stop playing fantasy mmo's. Thats what I say
and I'll say it again..anytime
Never mind you are from Texas. Not worth it.
LOL..SEE !! Is that any different ? What does being from Texas have to do with anything? YOU sir...are part of the PROBLEM. That is discrimination based on where someone lives. Automaticly devaluing their point of view based not on fact or opinion even but on on WHERE THEY LIVE ! Is that any different than basing it on what color their skin is? or what kind of clothes they choose to wear? You sir ..in one simple sentence...not even a complete sentence at that....exposed your extreme ignorance.
I would have ya know...I am not FROM Texas...just happen to live in Texas..BUT...I would be proud to be from Texas anyday !
In fact...just to prove how ignorant you are.
I was born in Minnisota...raised in California...Lived for extended periods of time in New York City , NY...Boston, MA, Danbury CT, and various places in Florida...while I was in the Navy defending your right to be a dumbass. DOH !
And now currently reside in the wonderful state of Texas where I will likely remain till my dying day.
Please don't do me any favors. What you were really defending in the Navy was America's imperial interests so lets not blow that patriotic B.S. around. I owe you NOTHING for that. You did your time you got paid like a good little mercenary. There is absolutely nothing I need defending from except the paranoid delusions of a nation hyped up on its own military power and brainwashed to think everyone is out to get them.
Second the Texas thing was sarcasm sorry you didn't catch that (our country has failed you by spending more on big shiny navy boats than on school). And trust me I am just as quick to slam SC (actually quicker). The point was that your original remark was horribly racist. The idea that YOU get to decide what people are allowed to be defended by is absurd. Also the crazy assertion that people cannot be upset by discrimination because its part of the "pussification of America" is just an attempt to browbeat people to not publically disagree with you.
This is typical of what this country has become in the last few years. A bunch of blowhard cowboys who care about nothing other than stroking their big missile launchers, asserting that they are the best, and not paying the taxes that keep their country running. Believe it or not many, many, many people live in this country. All of them do not go to your church, live in your town, have the same skin color as you, or worship our bloated military. If someone wants to be offended by something, they have the right to. It does not make them a pussy or anti-American. Just like the religious right has the right to be offended by...well practically everything except the slaughter of other countries civilians, the rest of the country has the right to be offended by statements like yours.
I don't think MMOs are racist. In fact I think that they help alleviate racism because we judge each other without a physical appearance to go by. However if you feel that WoW could lead kids to develop racist tendancies (and it is not impossible) you should say it and explain your point. Don't let narrow minded blowhards like this guy stand in your way.
Ok, lets set this straight....
1) He NEVER CLAIMED you owed him anything. He was just stating you were ignorant... and by going off and calling him a mercinary for THAT, you showed me he was right.
2) He had a DAMN descent point. If you are THAT think skinned that you have to find a way to bo offended by a VIDEO game... just get a damn hobby and leave people who have COMMON SENSE alone.
Oh, please! Now it's the game which is racist? Why is everyone so damn sensitive and then over a game no less.
Personally, I think WoW is way way overrated as being a good game. I played WoW and found it to be not only overrated but felt it was an uneven game with much to be desired. I won't return to play it no matter how bored I am with on-line gaming. But c'mon, now it's a racist game because of it's factions?
The world has gone mad with over sensitivity of all kinds. Just yesterday an ex-NBA player was asked about gays in the NBA. He responded he didn't like it and now it's a big issue and he's labeled anti-gay. That's why there is so much fighting because everyone has thin skin and many people make a big deal over everything. So what if he doesn't like gays, so what's if this game has factions against factions? It's a game and nothing else.
In the war in Iraq, they see Americans as evil and we see them as evil. Does this make it a racist thing? Get a grip people!!
No, WoW is not a racist game, just a boring, grinded filled game with cartoony graphics, unbalanced professions, non paying quest, terribly over-hyped by most of its player base, no housing, expansions filled with just alot more of the same boring quests. This is what WoW is and nothing else.
Comments
Perhaps it would be an interesting facet to point out that in WoW, you are not limited to slaughtering the opposing faction. Sometimes, even more times than not, you find yourself fighting the same enemy as the opposing faction. The Horde and the Alliance basically share all end-game instances and raids, and although the territory is often disputed, they share that too. While racism is clearly an aspect of WoW, if you are mature enough, you can maintain a life separate from your game life.
I personally attend a college that is a very well bred mix of cultures, and I often find that the same friends I study with are on the Horde while I fight for the Alliance. It puts irony in the situation, but it doesn't affect our real life friendship in any way. We can still talk about running Raids with our guild such as BWL, ZG... and so on... many of which we both run in similar fashion.
"An enemy of my enemy is my friend"
1) Maybe SOE did SOMETHING GOOD after all! HOLY SHIT!
2) Yes, I WOULD play WoW if I could defect. I dont know that I would, but I love the idea of the option.
3) May WAR have this! (With the obvious exception of Chaos... once Tainted, you really cant come back)
4) May ALOT of developers be listening to this thread... this is an idea ALL can benefit from.
Now as to to the main topic.. *laughs* Im sorry, but I have a hard time believing a game can teach racism...
P.s. My first post on these boards, normally i like to just lurk around read the articles and what people resond with. ALthough this article was just too damn much for me with it's stupidity.
LOL..SEE !! Is that any different ? What does being from Texas have to do with anything? YOU sir...are part of the PROBLEM. That is discrimination based on where someone lives. Automaticly devaluing their point of view based not on fact or opinion even but on on WHERE THEY LIVE ! Is that any different than basing it on what color their skin is? or what kind of clothes they choose to wear? You sir ..in one simple sentence...not even a complete sentence at that....exposed your extreme ignorance.
I would have ya know...I am not FROM Texas...just happen to live in Texas..BUT...I would be proud to be from Texas anyday !
In fact...just to prove how ignorant you are.
I was born in Minnisota...raised in California...Lived for extended periods of time in New York City , NY...Boston, MA, Danbury CT, and various places in Florida...while I was in the Navy defending your right to be a dumbass. DOH !
And now currently reside in the wonderful state of Texas where I will likely remain till my dying day.
Please don't do me any favors. What you were really defending in the Navy was America's imperial interests so lets not blow that patriotic B.S. around. I owe you NOTHING for that. You did your time you got paid like a good little mercenary. There is absolutely nothing I need defending from except the paranoid delusions of a nation hyped up on its own military power and brainwashed to think everyone is out to get them.
Second the Texas thing was sarcasm sorry you didn't catch that (our country has failed you by spending more on big shiny navy boats than on school). And trust me I am just as quick to slam SC (actually quicker). The point was that your original remark was horribly racist. The idea that YOU get to decide what people are allowed to be defended by is absurd. Also the crazy assertion that people cannot be upset by discrimination because its part of the "pussification of America" is just an attempt to browbeat people to not publically disagree with you.
This is typical of what this country has become in the last few years. A bunch of blowhard cowboys who care about nothing other than stroking their big missile launchers, asserting that they are the best, and not paying the taxes that keep their country running. Believe it or not many, many, many people live in this country. All of them do not go to your church, live in your town, have the same skin color as you, or worship our bloated military. If someone wants to be offended by something, they have the right to. It does not make them a pussy or anti-American. Just like the religious right has the right to be offended by...well practically everything except the slaughter of other countries civilians, the rest of the country has the right to be offended by statements like yours.
I don't think MMOs are racist. In fact I think that they help alleviate racism because we judge each other without a physical appearance to go by. However if you feel that WoW could lead kids to develop racist tendancies (and it is not impossible) you should say it and explain your point. Don't let narrow minded blowhards like this guy stand in your way.
in regards to people actually thinking that the other faction is "foolish...less mature..." I completely agree. I have played on both sides, and I have chosen horde because I find that whenever I'm on alliance, the people there do seem less mature than me (or atleast just plain annoying) I chose horde because of that; I don't think that because I'm horde.
Our personalities lead us to one side or the other and regardless of faction, that's the way we feel about eachother. I feel that way about many people in my own faction as well, but I have more luck finding people I do get along with on the horde side.
I don't think WoW breeds racism anymore than I think shooting games corrupt and create killers. If someone is going to do something immoral, they will get it from whatever is available: games, books, the news, thier own imagination. For the millions of people who play games for the love of playing them, why bother blaming a game for someone who was bound to do something wrong regardles of where the 'inspiration' came from?
--Lady Yuna
LOL..SEE !! Is that any different ? What does being from Texas have to do with anything? YOU sir...are part of the PROBLEM. That is discrimination based on where someone lives. Automaticly devaluing their point of view based not on fact or opinion even but on on WHERE THEY LIVE ! Is that any different than basing it on what color their skin is? or what kind of clothes they choose to wear? You sir ..in one simple sentence...not even a complete sentence at that....exposed your extreme ignorance.
I would have ya know...I am not FROM Texas...just happen to live in Texas..BUT...I would be proud to be from Texas anyday !
In fact...just to prove how ignorant you are.
I was born in Minnisota...raised in California...Lived for extended periods of time in New York City , NY...Boston, MA, Danbury CT, and various places in Florida...while I was in the Navy defending your right to be a dumbass. DOH !
And now currently reside in the wonderful state of Texas where I will likely remain till my dying day.
Please don't do me any favors. What you were really defending in the Navy was America's imperial interests so lets not blow that patriotic B.S. around. I owe you NOTHING for that. You did your time you got paid like a good little mercenary. There is absolutely nothing I need defending from except the paranoid delusions of a nation hyped up on its own military power and brainwashed to think everyone is out to get them.
Second the Texas thing was sarcasm sorry you didn't catch that (our country has failed you by spending more on big shiny navy boats than on school). And trust me I am just as quick to slam SC (actually quicker). The point was that your original remark was horribly racist. The idea that YOU get to decide what people are allowed to be defended by is absurd. Also the crazy assertion that people cannot be upset by discrimination because its part of the "pussification of America" is just an attempt to browbeat people to not publically disagree with you.
This is typical of what this country has become in the last few years. A bunch of blowhard cowboys who care about nothing other than stroking their big missile launchers, asserting that they are the best, and not paying the taxes that keep their country running. Believe it or not many, many, many people live in this country. All of them do not go to your church, live in your town, have the same skin color as you, or worship our bloated military. If someone wants to be offended by something, they have the right to. It does not make them a pussy or anti-American. Just like the religious right has the right to be offended by...well practically everything except the slaughter of other countries civilians, the rest of the country has the right to be offended by statements like yours.
I don't think MMOs are racist. In fact I think that they help alleviate racism because we judge each other without a physical appearance to go by. However if you feel that WoW could lead kids to develop racist tendancies (and it is not impossible) you should say it and explain your point. Don't let narrow minded blowhards like this guy stand in your way.
Ok, lets set this straight....
1) He NEVER CLAIMED you owed him anything. He was just stating you were ignorant... and by going off and calling him a mercinary for THAT, you showed me he was right.
2) He had a DAMN descent point. If you are THAT think skinned that you have to find a way to bo offended by a VIDEO game... just get a damn hobby and leave people who have COMMON SENSE alone.
Oh, please! Now it's the game which is racist? Why is everyone so damn sensitive and then over a game no less.
Personally, I think WoW is way way overrated as being a good game. I played WoW and found it to be not only overrated but felt it was an uneven game with much to be desired. I won't return to play it no matter how bored I am with on-line gaming. But c'mon, now it's a racist game because of it's factions?
The world has gone mad with over sensitivity of all kinds. Just yesterday an ex-NBA player was asked about gays in the NBA. He responded he didn't like it and now it's a big issue and he's labeled anti-gay. That's why there is so much fighting because everyone has thin skin and many people make a big deal over everything. So what if he doesn't like gays, so what's if this game has factions against factions? It's a game and nothing else.
In the war in Iraq, they see Americans as evil and we see them as evil. Does this make it a racist thing? Get a grip people!!
No, WoW is not a racist game, just a boring, grinded filled game with cartoony graphics, unbalanced professions, non paying quest, terribly over-hyped by most of its player base, no housing, expansions filled with just alot more of the same boring quests. This is what WoW is and nothing else.