Games Are 'Poison,' Says Hugo Chavez

[Ter]

Source: 1up.com

Say what you want about Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez's politics, but it's pretty clear that he doesn't like video games. AFP (via GamePolitics) is reporting that Chavez recently took aim at games in his weekly radio show, calling the PlayStation "poison" and saying that it leads children down the capitalist "road to hell."

"Those games they call 'PlayStation' are poison. Some games teach you to kill. They once put my face on a game, 'you've got to find Chavez to kill him,'" he said.

Chavez went on to lambast games in which players "bomb cities or just throw bombs," saying that they are sold by capitalist countries "to sell weapons." He also said they "promote the need for cigarettes, drugs and alcohol so they can sell them."

This isn't the first time Chavez has vilified video games. Supporters of the president have accused Mercenaries 2: World in Flames -- which depicts an invasion of Venezuela -- of trying to drum up support for a real attack. And in October, Venezuela's parliament approved a law that would allow the government to outlaw "bellicose" games.

Chavez said Venezuelan companies should be making "educational games." At this point, they sure won't be making anything like Modern Warfare 2 anytime soon.

Read more: http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3177641

[YOY]

1. Ah Hugo...

n/t

[Occulus]

2. Someone should mail him a copy of Portal n/t

[YOY]

4. La Torta no esta veridad!

Funny thing is...nobody I know even played the game that pissed him off so badly.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

3. I think video games are a waste of time.

Besides the violence, etc. of which he complains.

How many kids will play Guitar Hero when they could be learning to play a REAL INSTRUMENT????

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

7. When are you going to stop posting on a message board

and start talking with real people?

[Ter]

5. Now he's truly hit a nerve

I have been a gamer since 1979, it's my first love. If he bans video games, who will still defend him?

[Systematic Chaos]

16. Hear, hear! I became a pinball junkie in 1978, at the age of 9.

Started on the video games the following year with the releases of Space Invaders and Asteroids.

I feel that without video games, my hand-eye coordination would likely be as shitty as my whole-body coordination. I'm a clumsy ox, to be honest.

I'm glad that video games have been a part of my life for over 30 years.

[The Green Manalishi]

19. There are plenty of folks on this board who think he can do no wrong.

The same people who never got over Che worship.

[EFerrari]

23. Well, no, there aren't. But there are people who sure like to claim that.

:)

[demigoddess]

6. hyperbole, but not too far off the mark. When they use those games to train

military members to kill. and personally I think young people could spend their time is better ways.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

8. The last thing we'd want is for the military to be trained to kill people.

[demigoddess]

21. so you want people who are not supervised or psychologically tested to be

trained to kill in the same way that we expect military to be trained?? Do you want to meet these people on your street corner, at night???

[Pavulon]

9. This just gets better and better.

waiting for the bootlickers to come and talk about translations and evil press.

[Chisox08]

10. Somebody is mad because he is getting dominated

by cursing 12 year old kids on Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 on Xbox Live

[ChangoLoa]

20. HaHaha

Personal experience?

That shit happened to me man, those cursing kids deserve the worst.

[HuckleB]

11. How is this LBN?

It's just Chavez pushing the press' big buttons. He likes his publicity, and the press like to give it to him. Does DU have to help out the process, especially on a tirade so tired as this one?

And, yeah, I know I am being a hypocrite by posting to this thread.

[bemildred]

12. This is a dupe, and not LBN. nt

[old mark]

13. I wonder how he feels about electric guitars

especially very loud ones.....



mark

[Warpy]

14. HAHA! Somebody should introduce him to Second Life

where people pay real money for imaginary stuff. That would make his head explode completely!

I can understand his paranoia over a right wing fantasy game that invades his country, though.

[Ian David]

15. If he expects his armed forces to stand a chance, they need to grow up playing the things. n/t

[billymayshere]

17. LOL!

I just manhandled Hugo and his crew on mw2!0OkaisersosieO0 got the winning kill with a headshot!

[sakabatou]

18. I'm gonna burn that strawman of yours, Hugo

[EFerrari]

22. Obama: Turn off the video games!

http://ve3d.ign.com/articles/news/37855/Obama-Turn-off-the-video-games