Boris Johnson slams videogames

[MicroNut]

I wonder if this ignorant sob knows that nip and nippers is slang for someone of Asian decent.

Whom if he cares so much about numbers should
know what those numbers say about Asians , Education and Video games.

[woods05]

First of all, there is no chance that he will be able to stop video games. There is nothing he can do about it.
Second of all, he doesn't have any proof that video games can cause deficency in education.
And again, what is he going to do about it? Is he going to come to everyone's house and take away all video games?

[cador]

Another out of touch idiot blaming Video games when they should really be looking and education and upholding the law, always a $#@! trying to make a name for themselves.

I find it ironic that your criticism of Boris Johnson is grammatically incorrect, thus proving his assertion that video games cause illiteracy

[dejkirkby]

Boris Johnson is atotal idiot. He single-handedly slated a whole city before having to give a formal apology, he has become obsessed with being on television, fronting a program called "Have I Got News For You" several times. He is just an attention-hungry buffoon, with little more to do than cause controversy and blame someone else for the failings of politicians on the youth of today.
Britain is in the midst of a education crisis and it seems politicians are looking for easy targets to blame instead of doing the right thing and looking in a mirror.

[homebrew1973]

Boris Johnson is atotal idiot. He single-handedly slated a whole city before having to give a formal apology, he has become obsessed with being on television, fronting a program called "Have I Got News For You" several times. He is just an attention-hungry buffoon, with little more to do than cause controversy and blame someone else for the failings of politicians on the youth of today.
Britain is in the midst of a education crisis and it seems politicians are looking for easy targets to blame instead of doing the right thing and looking in a mirror.

99% of politicians are how you describe them ;-)

A good thing to do if you see him or his colleagues is laugh at them, tell them they`re just different masks on the same face and that they`re greedy, selfish corrupt liars and you`ll never believe them then watch how much they shrink....

[Dave the Rave]

I agree with Mr Johnson on this one. Is it also a coincidence that the levels of child obesity are higher than ever?

[NeoXCS]

A game is still essentially doing the same thing as a book usually, they are telling stories. Books may give you help with grammar and such, but who is to say games aren't helping you learn something. I myself have learned many words I never would have not playing games. Some games are puzzle games challenging your memory and your problem solving skills. These in essence are helping you learn and develop your mind further than even books can. Why cant everyone just relax and stop whining about video games being such a blight on the world?

[robman84]

Obviously if kids spent *all* of their time doing sedentary activities (videogames, TV, reading books) then yes they would become obese and socially inept. The point is that they don't *just* do those activities, and it is up to the parents (I am one) to restrict the amount of time kids spend stationary and encourage them to get out and do excercise in a social environment.

Last time I checked, home videogames had been popular for about 35 years, TV about twice as long and books a fair bit longer still...

The reasons for dropping literacy and numeracy rates are bugger all to do with any of the sedentary activities and everything to do with the education reforms that started in 1988.

[Amethyst]

Sinjinn and NeoXCS, you're both kind of missing the point of his rant.

Neo: "A game is still essentially doing the same thing as a book usually, they are telling stories. Books may give you help with grammar and such, but who is to say games aren't helping you learn something."

Sinjinn: "Has he not seen someone read a book? They just sit there and twitch . It's the same thing, almost exactly. Information enters the mind through the eyes and the mind absorbs and reacts to it."

He's blaming video games for the rise in illiteracy, something a good book may help mend. In a way I agree, too many people game more often than they read or write. But I could also blame television, art, socializing, work, and physical activity.

Sure, it is possible for a video game to teach, but traditional studies are much more efficient and responsive.

"These possessions are not so much an index of wealth as a cause of ignorance and underachievement and, yes, poverty," he continued.

Unless he is referring to the bank bomb that is PLAYSTATION 3 (just kidding), I will assume this is a summary of his "butterfly effect" logic train. If a kid plays video games then he won't read as much as he should and will not attend a proper university. Therefore he will not be able to achieve a successful career and in the end we will have more burger-flippers.

If I may add; poverty makes for higher birth rates. Video games are making babies.

The "butterfly effect" is fun. *farts against the wind*

"The nippers are bleeping and zapping in speechless rapture, their passive faces washed in explosions and gore. They sit for so long that their souls seem to have been sucked down the cathode ray tube.

"They become like blinking lizards, motionless, absorbed, only the twitching of their hands showing they are still conscious. These machines teach them nothing. They stimulate no ratiocination, discovery or feat of memory."

What the f'ck? He goes from angry politician to master wordsmith during the blink of an eye. I guess he twice cracked that thesaurus to prove his intellectual superiority. :rofl:

[samidgley]

You've got to love a bit've Johnson though.