2002 RES R-80-02 - Laserfiche WebLink

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 RESOLUTION NO. R-80-02 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL QF THE CITY OF COLTON EXPRESSING SUPPORT FOR H.R. 4645, THE PROTECT CHILDREN FROM VIDEO GAME SEX AND VIOLENCE ACT OF 2002. WHEREAS, the City Council acknowledges that 92 percent of children ages 2-17 play I video games or computer games and that approximately 20 percent of adolescents can be classified as dependant on video games; and WHEREAS, there is an increasing amount of scientific evidence that indicates that playing violent video games is positively related to aggressive thoughts, behavior and delinquency; and WHEREAS, the Columbine High School killers were avid video game players as was the German student who killed 16 people last Spring; and WHEREAS, last year the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) conducted sting operations to determine how accessible "Mature" rated games were to minors. Games rated as "Mature" by the Entertainment Software Rating board are intended for audiences 17 years old and over. In December the FTC released their findings which indicated that 78 percent of children between the ages of 13 and 16 were able to purchase or rent "Mature" rated games; and WHEREAS, the established voluntary rating system has not prevented children from buying or renting games that depict characters having sex with prostitutes, assaulting innocent bystanders, car -jacking soccer moms, using illicit drugs, committing mass murder, and killing police officers; and WHEREAS, on April 19, 2002, the United States District Court in St. Louis held that video games are not a protected form of speech, and that even if such games are protected under the First Amendment, the government has a compelling interest to protect the physical and emotional health of children and to assist parents to be the guardians of their children's well being; and Page