Entertainment Consumers Association president Hal Halpin has issued a statement following the tragic events that took place yesterday at Northern Illinois University.[blockquote2] We’d like to extend our condolences to the families, friends and classmates of those who were affected in the school shooting at Northern Illinois University.
Separately, we are disgusted, but no longer shocked, to find that anti-game activists are again rushing to conclusions about what drove Stephen Kazmierczak, the clearly disturbed 27-year-old who police say was responsible for this tragedy, to commit such an act.
Blaming video games for the behavior of the mentally-challenged is vile on many levels. And, as Generations X and Y mature, it is extremely likely that just about all of us have played at least one video game at some point in our lives.
Drawing a parallel between games and violence without any substantive proof is sensationalism for its own sake. This is a sad event, made worse by the irresponsible actions of attention-seekers and the media that has given them a platform for their reckless venom.[/blockquote2]A nicely written statement. Sadly, it will likely remain ignored by the likes of Jack Thompson, who today was quick to pin the student's actions on violent video games without finding any conclusive evidence to support his reckless claims.