Posted on 10/31/2002 5:26:28 PM PST by Registered
ex-ex-ex-ex FReeper and legal gadfly Jack Thompson on ABC Evening News
Well, I suppose it was only a matter of time before legal gadfly and ex-ex-ex-ex FReeper Jack Thompson would re-surface in the media. The only question would be who, what cause and how much money he would be suing for.
Tonight, the answer was given to us in a report by ABC NEWS (one of many appearances made by Jack) on the Army's War Simulation software, America's Army: Operations.
Seems Jackpeace (aka BatJack), doesn't want America's youth shooting computer guns or something of the sort. He's been busy working against, that means suing, the gaming industry and now has the Army and this video game in his proverbial cross hairs. This isn't new to the Bat, he's been vocal against these games for some time. A snippet from the link is found below.
"One thing may be said with dreadful certainty: More gunfire will be heard in more schools. Future murderers are being trained this very moment in front of video screens across America." (Jack Thompson of Miami is one of two attorneys representing the families of the three girls murdered in their school in Paducah in 1997)
I suppose we'll soon find out that John Muhammad and his (snicker, snicker) step-son Malvo had a copy of this War simulation game on the laptop found in their snipermobile.
Jack, of course, had the theory that the D.C. area snipers were being influenced by these games and that the shooter(s) were probably hard core gamers:
Florida lawyer Jack Thompson speculated on NBC's Today show Friday that the shooter might be a gamer. Thompson surmised that an inscription on a Tarot card found near one of the shootings -- "Dear Policeman: I am God" -- might have links to gaming.
"You go to video game chat rooms and you have the proclamation 'I am God' all over the place," said Thompson, an advocate of regulations to keep violent video games out of the hands of minors.
The expression is sometimes used by gamers to declare victory and players commonly say they're in "God-mode" when their characters shield themselves or don protections that make them invincible.
Thompson said investigators should consider possible links to shooting games."
Personally, I would have been happier if Jack would have used his time and resources to come out against the military spending 8 million of our tax dollars over a 2 year period of time on a game that should have been developed and marketed by the private sector, than to see him used as Peter Jennings' anti-Gun puppet. As to whether or not these games create or contribute to whackos going out and killing people, I don't know. But I sure know that our military doesn't need to develop gaming software available to the general public at the taxpayer's expense!
So, if you West Coast FReepers get the chance, grab a barf bag and tune-in to your ABC channel to see our once very own Jackpeace (aka BatJack) make his case against those mean, evil, video games. You can also see him shoot and make a few (heavily edited) baskets as he plays a game of hoop against his son in his bare feet. After watching the shots he tried to make, I hope he downloads a basketball simulation game.
For those interested, Jack is listed in the Fifth Edition of the FreeRepublic.com Lexicon
BatJack - Jack Thompson. Florida attorney and former FReeper known for anti-Janet Reno crusades, and for threatening lawsuits against other FReepers. JT was accused of trying to hijack FR and turn it into "JackRepublic.com," a term coined by FReeper Registered (see below). The name "BatJack" apparently resulted from information that Thompson made public appearances in a Batman costume. Thompson was banned once, reinvited and left again. Last Thompson opus thread.
Unfortunately, it appears his last opus was yanked. Too bad, it was a doozy.
All of a sudden, Jack's my new best friend.
You are soooooo right. Actually, the correct term is probably "shaken" as opposed to "shaker".... as in shaken too much as an infant......
the live, coast-to-coast threads are somewhat more challenging to cover, but just as fun to do, if not more so.
You speak in 3rd person often?
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