Jack Thompson Rides Again...
...and gets sniped off his high horse by none other than G4's Adam Sessler.
http://www.g4tv.com/attackoftheshow/blog/AOTB/post/629272/Jack_Thompson_vs_Adam_Sessler.html
...owwwwwwwwww.
Frankly, I think Mark Friedler (who was ignored for most of the debate, probably because he was the only one not interrupting other people) had the best point. It is up to parents to teach their kids right from wrong. Let's face it, if kids don't learn their moral code from their parents, they're going to pick it up from somewhere else - movies, TV, video games, even books. Anything and everything can influence younger kids.
My brothers and I are perfect examples. When we were kids, our parents pounded morality into us and the most violent video games we ever were allowed to play were Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Clay Fighters. Fantasy stuff, really. You know what? We didn't want anything else.
Nowadays, now that my little brother is fourteen, we can play pretty much anything. My parents still disapprove very much of games like GTA (as do I, but that's probably because I'm a chick), but they understand that playing these games will not suddenly inspire my brothers to go out, butcher people, steal cars, and work for the mob.
Jack Thompson needs to figure that out. We've had this argument before on Ctrl+Alt+Del forums (http://www.cad-forums.com/) time and time again. The best quote came from a user called Lady Lager: "Video games don't cause violence, stupidity does."
This also drives home the point pretty well. (http://www.ctrlaltdel-online.com/comic.php?d=20051012)
The whole point is, it's up to the parents to be the guiding influence in their kids' lives. Everything else is - rightfully so - secondary. Friends, media, it doesn't matter what else, no outside source should be teaching your kids what's right. That's your responsibility.
If you can't handle it, well then maybe you shouldn't be a parent.