Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) criticizes video game violence, says guns are no more dangerous than hammers

[okaawhatever]

Source: Tennessean

Blackburn said on CNN”s “State of the Nation” that she is hearing from “teachers, mental health professionals and doctors” that something needs to be done about the level of violence in video games, specifically referencing the “Call of Duty” shooter games. She noted that the right-wing extremist who killed 77 Norwegians in a shooting and bombing in 2011 had played “Call of Duty” as a training exercise.

(The gunman also testified in court that he played a lot of “World of Warcraft” but added that WoW was “simply a hobby.”)

“I watched some of these last night, in preparation for this segment and, Candy (Crowley), as a mother and a grandmother, I was astounded,” she said, addressing the show’s host.

Blackburn also called for a review of mental health services and psychotropic drugs, while arguing that guns were no more dangerous that hammers, hatchets or cars.

“Let’s put these issues on the table and have a good solid conversation about it.”


Read more: http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/marsha-blackburn-criticizes-video-game-violence-on-cnn/

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Perhaps we should send the soldiers from your district (Ft. Campbell) to Iraq with hammers and hatchets and use that money for mental health services.

[KamaAina]

1. I could argue that Blackburn is no more dumb than a box of hammers

but I'd be wrong.

[indepat]

14. Masha doing her best to outdo, out-crazy, out-ludicrous Heron Bachmann?

[John2]

58. Palin, Foxx, Bachman, Taitz

they all have something in common.

[valerief]

25. +1

[putitinD]

29. aw, you beat me to it

[4_TN_TITANS]

32. Trust me, she makes hammers look like Graduate students. n/t

[Paladin]

51. Nicely Put. (nt)

[bongbong]

2. They're everywhere

I had a Delicate Flower here on DU clompare pool noodles to guns, as far as their ability to kill.

Yes, and he was serious.

Delicate Flowers are unhinged.

[JoePhilly]

3. She's as DUMB as a hammer ... so she has THAT going for her.

[upaloopa]

4. By issues does she mean guns too?

I don't think so. Gunners best arguments involve fear and distractions.
Oh my we are going to lose in 2014 if we talk about gun control and those antidepressants are what's causing the killings.

[Politicalboi]

5. Well then let's take away

Big clips, and make them hammers.

[Downwinder]

6. I hit my finger with a hammer and it is still there.

[Botany]

7. Right wing talking point .....

http://arkansasgopwing.blogspot.com/2013/01/fbi-more-people-killed-with-hammers.html

[NYtoBush-Drop Dead]

60. arkansas should spend more money on dental care

Then whatever rags are posting this shit.

[The CCC]

8. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) criticizes video game violence, says guns are no more dangerous than hammers

That woman is an idiot. The misuse of any tool can be dangerous. While a hammer can be used as a weapon. A gun can only be used as a weapon. They're not hammers.

[dipsydoodle]

9. Thought the title said hampsters

Which seemed a bit odd.

[atreides1]

10. We could test her theory?

With her as the test subject!

[DainBramaged]

11. There is a hammer missing from the box shipped to Tennessee

and it looks like it ended up in Congress.

[catnhatnh]

12. Snopes on firearms and blunt instruments-Blackburn Lies.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/guns/baseballbats.asp

[robbob]

42. I see how they did it....

If you leave out handguns (which in most inner-city and robbery related violence is probably the weapon used) and focus on "rifles" then maybe those numbers make sense, but according to the FBI over 67% of all homicides are firearm related.

[Redfairen]

13. "Hammers" = the new Breitbart meme (links)

Blackburn is picking up on a new talking point. Tex. Rep. Louie Gohmert was selling the same line last week.

http://www.salon.com/2013/01/07/conservatives_demand_hammer_control/

The meme seems to have gotten started with this Breitbart piece from Jan. 3rd. Expect a lot more GOP talk about hammers.

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/01/03/FBI-More-People-Killed-With-Hammers-and-Clubs-Each-Year-Than-With-Rifles

[okaawhatever]

15. ROFL: Top 2012 campaign contributors: Bayer, Psychiatric Solutions, Merck, CVS/Caremark

Bravo Health, Community Health Association, AstraZeneca, Mednax Inc, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, American Hospital Association, Int'l Academy of Compounding Pharmacists, National Healthcare Corporation

[City Lights]

16. She is such an idiot.

[frylock]

17. then why don't these idiots defend their families with spoons, hammers, and cars?

we're constantly reminded that these items are every bit as lethal as guns, so why not just use them for home defense?

[vduhr]

37. I guess they think that

spoons, hammers, etc. can be thrown at 6,000 mph from a distance of 1-2 miles. Better yet, can they throw 900 hammers per minute at 6,000+ mph? The problem with their argument is that, including cars, none of those things were designed with killing in mind.

[BlueNoteSpecial]

18. Video games are no more dangerous than a RW nut job holding a seat in Congress

[triplepoint]

19. MaDUMB Whackadoodle meet Hammer

.
.

.
.
.

[RetroGamer1971]

20. Video Games are regulated. The ESRB ratings system was set up in 1994, to help parents.

The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is the non-profit, self-regulatory body that assigns ratings for video games and apps so parents can make informed choices. The ESRB rating system encompasses guidance about age-appropriateness, content, and interactive elements. As part of its self-regulatory role for the video game industry, the ESRB also enforces industry-adopted advertising guidelines and helps ensure responsible web and mobile privacy practices among companies participating in its Privacy Online program. ESRB was established in 1994 by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA).

Does the ESRB have any restrictions on how a game can be marketed?
Publishers of packaged or boxed games carrying an ESRB rating are contractually bound to follow the industry-adopted Principles and Guidelines for Responsible Advertising Practices, along with numerous additional requirements addressing how rating information must be displayed on game packaging and in advertising and certain restrictions on where ads for Mature-rated games may appear. The ESRB's Advertising Review Council (ARC) diligently monitors industry compliance, and in the event that a game publisher is found to have inappropriately labeled or advertised a product, the ESRB is empowered to compel corrective actions and impose a wide range of sanctions, including monetary fines.

Similarly, publishers of digitally delivered games and apps are strongly encouraged to provide consumers with clear and prominent disclosure of ESRB rating information as well as abide by the various advertising and marketing guidelines to which publishers adhere.

How can I find and use the ratings to determine if a game is right for my family?
The ESRB ratings were developed to serve as a guide to help consumers make informed decisions about which games might be appropriate for their children and family. Packaged or boxed games display an ESRB Rating Category on the front of the box and may also present Content Descriptors on the back. Digitally delivered games, such as those that are downloaded directly to a game system or mobile device, will typically present a game's ESRB rating prior to download. Regardless of the type of product or how it is accessed, complete rating information for all ESRB-rated products is available by searching on our website.


http://www.esrb.org/ratings/faq.jsp#1

[Javaman]

21. The bag of rocks next to her agrees. nt

[Ed Suspicious]

22. Why then, guns are no more dangerous than baby blankets, or marijuana, or ink pens, or ukuleles, or

broken ladders, or black tar heroin, or nuclear weapons!

Get real. There are a couple things on that list I'm sure she would deem righteous to regulate. Each an inanimate object no more or less dangerous than another.

[SCVDem]

23. When Snipers use hammers.......

Let's not forget the Hamilton/Burr duel where they threw hammers at each other.

What an idiot!

[valerief]

26. +1

[Evasporque]

24. Marsha showing how safe hammer is....

[Dem2TheCore]

27. Hammer or AR-15, take your pick Marsha.

Here are your options Marsha:

a) Stand 20 yards in front of me and let me throw a hammer at you, or

b) Stand 20 yards in front of me and let me shoot you with an AR-15.

Still think hammers and AR-15s are the same?

[appleannie1]

28. Sooooooo many people get hammered to death each year.

[MelungeonWoman]

47. And think of all the suicides by hammer!

[Ferretherder]

62. Perhaps SHE was hammered...

...during that interview.

Nope. Stone cold sober and dumb as a dead 'diller on the side of the road with a beer can in its claws.

[Brigid]

30. OK, quick math quiz:

How many people could I kill in one minute with the standard claw hammer I have in my condo? Now, how many could I kill if I went out and bought a military-grade assault rifle?

[SoapBox]

31. ...what a stupid fuck.

Sheesh...what a waste of taxpayer money, she and the other PukeBaggers are.

There should be a law, against this type of waste.

[kooljerk666]

34. Until Long Bows & Cross Bows were invented "Hammers" were pretty nasty.............

http://www.bytheswordinc.com/c-291-war-hammers.aspx

The proliferation of plate armor across Medieval Europe was shadowed by the development of crushing weapons like the war hammer. Since swords were virtually useless against plate armor, mounted knights used short hammers, axes and maces to defeat an opponent's improved protection.

&size=large

Take about 10 seconds to kill some one with one of these.

[vduhr]

38. But now

count off 10 seconds and tell me how many people can be killed with a gun, especially an assault weapon. Hint: The answer is not 1.

[kooljerk666]

61. if I had my way, NO semi anything with more than 10 shots...........

actually no semi anything. This would be portrayed as extreme.

In the 1970's i was in the NRA and Ayoob Massab (sp) was big time expert in combat hand gunnery. In his books the average gun battle between cops & their foes was 3 shots.

Cops used .357 magnum revolvers, 87% fatal in 1 shot.

In NYC a few months back, 1 guy went into the Empire State Bldg & shot 1 guy, dead. After leaving he was followed by civilians & they pointed him out to cops.

Approx 1/2 doz cops got into a shoot out. They fired approx 160 shots. They hit 9 civilians.

I can shoot better than that & I have not touched a gun in 35 years (air rifles & such do not count).

Turn in all clips & magazines that hold over 10 shots or have your home treated like a marijuana farm.

Cops should not even carry these things & should be able to shoot revolvers accurately or not be issued a gun.

Sorry if I came off pro gun, I sure as hell did not mean to.

[JaneQPublic]

33. Fine, then let NRA members defend themselves & hunt with hammers. (nt)

[cstanleytech]

35. Are we going to put it "all" on the table or

does she mean all as in we are only going talk and blame video games until the heats taken off on any talk to ban certain guns and or hold gun owners more accountable?

[vduhr]

41. I was just on Facebook

having this same discussion with a friend. Everyone that joined the discussion seemed to be using the "mental illness" meme, along with all of the other problems involved, but were unwilling to include guns as part of the problem (except to argue that assault weapons were no different than any other gun - funny that not one of them saw the irony in that argument ).

[obama2terms]

54. You should look at Blackburn's facebook

She's pissed off quite a few people. There's a few nice words here and there but mainly angry messages.

[hughee99]

36. It is basically true, provided the gun has no bullets in it. n/t

[MurrayDelph]

39. How many

hammers can she throw at a target before reloading?

[obama2terms]

40. Will this stupid witch just shut up!

[JDPriestly]

43. If guns are no more dangerous than hammers, why are there more deaths from guns than hammers?

Same for knives.

It may be in part because shooting a gun is so much simpler and so much less risky to the shooter than hitting someone with a hammer or attacking them with a knife.

[Uncle Joe]

44. This thread needs a theme song.

Thanks for the thread, okwhatever.

[okaawhatever]

45. Ha ha that's great! n/t

[Greywing]

46. Actually I was thinking more along the lines

of the Beatles ... Maxwell's Silver Hammer

[Quasimodem]

48. She is sort of correct ....

... if you include the hammers in guns as well as carpentry hammers.

[Rain Mcloud]

49. Chicanery!

Look over there.
Don't look at me!

[DRoseDARs]

50. I just finished playing the campaign of Saints Row the Third. A hammer was about the only thing I...

...DIDN'T kill people with. Funny, I don't feel like mowing people down with my Explorer. Or beating people senseless with a shark. Or engaging in Lucha Libre (Mexican wrestling). To say nothing of playing the Half-Life series, or the Battlefield series, or Doom, or Wolfenstein 3D, or...

[Odin2005]

52. Gee, I don't see these pearl clutchers criticize kids playing war outside.

All these anti-video game idiots seem to be Boomers.

[bowens43]

53. the gun nuts are getting dumber by the day......

what a complete freak

[Hayabusa]

55. I have counted the number of "M" rated video games

or their equivalent (pre-ESRB) off the top of my head as 36. I'm sure there would be much more if I actually dug through my computer games (man, I need to organize those better). That said, the number of violent crimes that I have committed are 0... If guns, the tools actually used to kill things, are no more as dangerous as hammers, surely a CD, DVD, cartridge or floppy disk (yep, I still have a couple of those.)

Please, give this a rest. People have been trying to pin violent video games to real world violence for over 20 years now and there's never been an outright link established. And what links have been found point more to the mental health side of things.

[PatrynXX]

56. since when does a hammer remove part of a penis and a nut? other than simply trying to hammer one.

besides it's easier to take out and idiot with a hammer than a gun

[joelg]

57. dumber

So Blackburn is dumber than a bag of guns?

[John2]

59. Don't mistake being

dumb for rightwing propaganda. She is part of the Teabagger club.