Jack Thompson Decides He's In GTA IV

[Eyedunno]

As if it makes any difference whatsoever what religion his is, surely no judge, no matter how religious, would allow themselves to accept that argument.

This is the U.S. though, so you might be surprised. There are all kinds of things that religious people can get away with that others would go to jail for. Deny a blood transfusion to your child, and that's child endangerment, at least... unless you're a Jehovah's Witness, then you're okay, even if the kid dies. Get busted with peyote, and face drug possession charges... unless you're a member of certain native religions, then everything's peachy keen (though personally, I think the drug laws are also stupid, but my only point is to show that there's a double standard).

Granted, this isn't a criminal case, but in today's political climate in the U.S., I wouldn't be terribly shocked if it went either way. I give it a 60% chance he loses, 30% he wins, and 10% some kind of settlement is reached with the bar. I imagine that even if he loses, there are far nuttier states than Florida that he could still possibly get a law license in.

And I don't think the judge being religious has a thing to do with it. Heck, I'd expect the left to cut a wider berth than the right. A conservative Christian judge might impose his own cookie-cutter version of Christianity on this, thinking that making defamatory remarks is definitely not very Christian, whereas a far-left judge might actually buy Thompson's arguments on some sort of relativistic grounds.

[bah]

Thats just crazy hey.
I can understand the native indian drug thing somewhat if they had been doing it long before white settlement, but what does harassing people to stop a video game have to do with Christian heritage? It doesn't have exclusive rights to opposing violence, nor a history clear of inflicting it more so than most other groups.

Surely the majority of people of any religion (or atheists) wouldn't approve of the actions of almost any violent game/movie if conducted in the real world.
I guess when you set up your side as 'good' and the other 'evil' (whether that is true or not) it does make it a lot more accepted in both games and real life. The uproar these days seems to be much larger over games set in a populated city vs a warzone with only soldiers.
But saying I want to go out an kill a hooker after playing GTA because its a 'murder simulator' is as crazy as saying I'll try to take on the Chinese army after playing BF2.

Does Christianity give him a unique ignorance as to the difference between real and make believe, or just a right to be more offended then others and to push that offense on the entire population?
I wouldn't have thought a religious person themselves would make the former argument.

Religion should have no bearing on law and politics (I'm well aware removing its influence entirely is a exercise in futility), but terrorists that justify their wrongs by religion aren't let off and termed 'persons of strong religious conviction leading to well-intentioned mass suffering/death'.

At what point level of severity do they no longer get their own legislated double standard?

[Hawq]

Does Christianity give him a unique ignorance as to the difference between real and make believe

Of course it doesn't, a lot of his fellow true believers share it as well

[grudge1981]

Jack Thompson just needs to get hit by a bus..... from him saying take two sells mature games to fifteen year olds, ummm wasnt that best buy??? and now this HA i honestly wish theyd make that douche in the game more like the real douche, but sadly that would just throw fuel into his fire

[zanco]

Ahaha I just want to play GTA IV to complete that mission.

[BrooksyX]

I think someone should start a paypal donation fund to build a rocket to shoot Jack Thomson into space. Seriously this world would be a better place without him.

F U Jack Thompson!