tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28957011.post-2162027703206291432008-05-06T13:16:00.000-04:002008-05-06T13:16:00.000-04:002008-05-06T13:16:00.000-04:00Hmm. But here's a little nugget of provocative stew to chew on:<BR/><BR/>VIDEO GAMES THEN: Cute little ghosts and cartoon aliens skitter around the screen eating mushrooms or shooting colorful lazer beams at each other.<BR/><BR/>RAP MUSIC THEN: An often creative, if not also often cartoonish, artistic subcultural musical phenomenon.<BR/><BR/>VIDEO GAMES NOW: Dismemberment, decapitations, gore, satanic imagery, ultraviolence, simulated virtual sex, crime, and instant gratification.<BR/><BR/>RAP MUSIC NOW: Imagery and lyrics that blur the line between machismo posturing and violent gang warfare; a subculture that glorifies criminality, quick and effortless self-enrichment at all costs, degradation of women, and eliminating (in a number of cases, literally) one's "musical" rivals; the trappings, fashion, <I>weaponry</I>, mannerisms, and behavior of which are emulated and celebrated by a rapidly growing population of young people of every race and class.<BR/><BR/>Not to get all <I>Jack Thompson</I> on everybody, but there is something going on here, doesn't it seem? When politicians started having musicians arrested and banned for fear of the influence their work would have on "impressionable kids," I was right there in line signing petitions in support freedom of expression. Years later, we have kids with ridiculous platinum grills in their teeth and chrome plated .45 gats shoved in their droopy basketball shorts, wilding on their girlfriends and ultimately heading toward a choice between dying like Tupac or dying like Biggie.<BR/><BR/>It makes me wonder if there wasn't something to all the congressional hearings and Tipper Gore press conferences back in the day. Clearly, pop culture exerts a powerful influence on people, <A HREF="http://www.usatoday.com/news/offbeat/2007-12-29-fake-essay_N.htm" REL="nofollow">sometimes in surprising and devastating ways</A>.<BR/><BR/>I grew up on Wizards and Ozzy Osborne. I turned out okay, despite all the hand-wringing and gnashing of teeth that I and all my long-haired metal head friends would grow up to become devil-worshiping baby murderers.<BR/><BR/>This and future generations are growing up in an increasingly "virtual" world that is not, and can not be controlled, supervised, or regulated. All we can do is hope for the best.VOTARhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09372090112513792949noreply@blogger.com