Well I haven't had much to talk about and quite honestly I've been under some stress at office over the past few weeks so to come home and fight with the children for the machine and then force a post hasn't been the way to go just yet. Don't worry about it, I'm working on the solution. I bought my router and I see from the tracking that it has been delivered to my mailbox service in Miami so in a few days it will be in Jamaica and I can start messing with stuff that doesn't trouble me :).
Yesterday there was this big discussion at office about our justice system here at home. I won't get into the detail but to say that it has stemmed from the recent release of Mr Adams and the other police following a jury trial in December. I can only state that I think the verdict was arrived at after much thought and based on the depth that the jury went to obtain information I would hope that their verdict was fair and reasonable. I can only hope that all involved are able to live in free conscience at the end of the day.
BBC has done us badly and honestly we may have done it to ourselves. What am I speaking about?......Read more here. Them boys going on really badly and it need to stop now.
I was kinda shocked yesterday at the kind of video games available to today's teens. My son borrowed this game called Grand Theft Auto San Andreas from a friend and has been playing it for a few days now. I can safely say that i can now understand why it is under so much discussion. The game is horrific. It has all the elements of criminal written all over it. It portrays quite abit of the mentality of society today. The guns the violence the crime from prostitution to grand theft auto and murder. What struck me was when he "stole" a car and somebody ran him off the road, his reaction is to get out and "pop him with some shots". I just kinda sat there. and looked. I am insisting that he returns the game to his friend. Reality though is that in a few months he is legally an adult and I can only then insist that I don't want it done in MY house. He is a pretty decent young man though...riddled with all the teenage worries but hasn't gone too way out on the limb. Straying from the point.....If these games are market driven how then can we be any better off if we continue to fuel the essence of the problems with this kind of gaming. Some argue that "It's just a game"...it is not just a game, it models behaviour that children emulate. It may be marked mature but then what about the adult that is playing in the presence of the 5 year old who then says...."shoout him daddy" when a real incident of poor judgement in driving happens on the road. He has seen it done like that in the game so why not in life. My teen is learning to drive and I constantly remind him that it's not like GT4, the cars don't bounce off each other in real life. (Not that he drives to deserve these comments, but I am not taking any chances :) ) .
I think we have major issues to deal with in today's world. But I also see the small issues that we need to address and one can only think that if we start to manage the small issues then the larger ones may be more manageable as well. This article for instance shows something that should never happen at the international level.
My last thought goes to constitutional rights in the US. I have seen laws enacted and enforced over that last few years that essentially promotes the rights of those persons who feel that religion has no place in society. Their judicial system seems to be upholding that concept. My question is...By upholding the views of these persons are they not now trampling on the rights of those who hold the view that religion does hold a place. Can we now sue the various entities because I as a Christian have lost my constitutional right to say public prayers in school?
Do we have a case?
Anyway enough from me this morning...have a great day all.
8 comments:
It's sobering to see how we are viewed in the eyes of the world. What a paradox, we manage to be so great (Bob Marley and other entertainers, Asafa Powell and other athletes, bobsledding and dogsledding etc) and then now we also manage to be 'murder capital of the world'...
I see your point about GTA san andreas, but alot of the teens i work with live that life every day. one said to me the other day that she doesn't think she'd have a problem working on the crime desk because she has been walking past dead bodies on the way to school since she was young.
so although we shouldn't just let kids run wild, here in jamaica, life is larger than that game for a wide cross section of our society. you can only wonder what 2006 is going to bring.
Its a tough world out there and must be tougher parenting children.
Ain;t that the truth with Christian rights-maybe the day will come when different persuasions will have designed prayer rooms:)
In America we still have the right to pray in school. We can pray wherever we want. We can't proselytize, we can't force others pray, or even force anyone to listen to us pray. I don't think our rights as Christians are being trampled on. I believe we have to keep the govt out of the realm of religious influence otherwise which religion should they promote? Choosing any one will invariably take away the rights of the others. I don't see religion ever being removed from society. The people are the society. The govt can't be allowed to influence because then they will want to legislate and we'll end up reliving the crusades.
hear you loud and clear on Grand theft auto and the ilk. thats why i wonder why they just blame urban music for the crime when these terrible games and movies as much if not more to blame.
oh ya see the latest US religious controversy with some show called Book of Daniel. people can take pot shots at christians with no hassle but let someone say something about someone who's gay and all of a sudden they will claim you're worse than hitler.
I've played Grand Theft Auto myself, and i must say it's not for kids, teens, nor impresionable adults. Some time I do wish i could pop a cap in some of these drivers on the road!!!
Man the US is like the mother of all Heden. They want to ban prayer and worship in schools but the want to embrace homosexuality.
Bwoy, Scratchie, you say you don't have much to say then out you come with the most thought provoking post I have read in 2006!
Anytime you don't have anything to say, run the pickney dem off the computer, y'hear!
I hear you on the grand theft auto. What do you thing about the Star Wars XBOX games? They are shoot 'em ups too, (you know, the rebels against the Empire, the "good" side against the "dark" side of the force, not really gory. What do you think? Can kids play that or not?
Re the murder capital ish, well, we probably are. If we are not, then we are in second or third place and we are working hard to up our game.
I believe that the jury did what they could with the evidence presented, but I also believe that there was some manipulation of the jury and that witnesses were threatened, etc. What to do? Yard is a lawlwss, corrupt place. Who don't like it, leave. Can't do much else.
Re the EU poster, I believe that the artist was saying that all the countries of the Union were prostituting themselves (at their citizen's expense) in order to be a part of the Union, and therefore the Union would eventually be nothing more that one big prostitute, lying there with her legs splayed. I think it is artistic, but some artists are on the edge (as always) and some will not like their artwork. Remember the statue in Emancipation Park?
On the religion issue in the U.S., I am not sure that I agree with you. In plenty cases, the religious set seems to be taking over the country for the worse, IMHO.
Hey all, not been able to post all weekend sake of the scrap iron called car but will do later.
@MB, don't know much about the XBOX games. I'm a GT 1, 2, 3 & 4 person. I can't handle the others so it's just round the race tracks for me. This one caught my eye because of the graphic shootings and cursing.
ShellyP and MB I hear you on the religion thing. Not advocating that things stay as they are what I'm getting at is the swing from one extreme to another (or so it seems).
@slybabyk my point but I think all this started when we let the small things go. Now it doesn't matter. On WJ some time ago there was a discussion on a bicycle man that got killed by a truck and it was as if there was rejoicing because all bicycle man do is make trouble on the roads. I just thought it in poor taste but it is also a reflection of how young people think. They have been socialized to accept random shootings and death as normal daily activity.
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