Obama Wants Kids to Step Away from the Console
US president points to games as healthy issue
Barack Obama (you know, President of the USA) has fingered games as a contributing factor to ill health in a speech to the American Medical Association.
The chunk of the speech that applies to gaming, as put up by the Wall Street Journal, goes like this:
"The second step that we can all agree on is to invest more in preventive care so that we can avoid illness and disease in the first place. That starts with each of us taking more responsibility for our health and the health of our children. It means quitting smoking, going in for that mammogram or colon cancer screening. It means going for a run or hitting the gym, and raising our children to step away from the video games and spend more time playing outside."
It's hardly an alarmist outcry about how MadWorld is turning kids into ultra-violent puppy killers, but it's not massively encouraging, either. Once again, a government figure throws dirt at videogames while failing to acknowledge a nation's over indulgence in TV - a decades old blight - or that other contemporary obsession; hunching over the keyboard or cellphone, interacting with "friends" on MySpace, Facebook or Twitter - or worse - reading videogames news websites!
The chunk of the speech that applies to gaming, as put up by the Wall Street Journal, goes like this:
"The second step that we can all agree on is to invest more in preventive care so that we can avoid illness and disease in the first place. That starts with each of us taking more responsibility for our health and the health of our children. It means quitting smoking, going in for that mammogram or colon cancer screening. It means going for a run or hitting the gym, and raising our children to step away from the video games and spend more time playing outside."
It's hardly an alarmist outcry about how MadWorld is turning kids into ultra-violent puppy killers, but it's not massively encouraging, either. Once again, a government figure throws dirt at videogames while failing to acknowledge a nation's over indulgence in TV - a decades old blight - or that other contemporary obsession; hunching over the keyboard or cellphone, interacting with "friends" on MySpace, Facebook or Twitter - or worse - reading videogames news websites!
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Barack Obama
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Comments
SuperSaiyan4 16 Jun 2009 11:15
1/5
This isn't heaven Mr. Obama...Now step away from the candy stick...
Joji 16 Jun 2009 11:55
2/5
Lol. I can see some devs upping sticks and heading for the Canadian border already. You are a good man Mr Obama, and partly right too. But has this man never heard of Wii Fit?
Perhaps you should focus on giving better education, on foods and what goes into them in the U.S schools. When many see what goes into their food, they'll less likely be eating so much crap. Maybe we should send Jamie Oliver to you. I encourage playing outside, but paranoia of the paedos keep them chained indoors. Teach healthy cooking, eating and exercise from an early age.
There's reason why people in places like Italy and China live a long life. Its a balance of good food and exercise. Problem is, the U.S is all about making money, and so long as the crap food industry can lobby those in power, like the health care industry, the people will always be cheated and exploited by both of them. I'd love to see Obama fix this, but their tentcles are so deep now, its nigh impossible.
Perhaps you should focus on giving better education, on foods and what goes into them in the U.S schools. When many see what goes into their food, they'll less likely be eating so much crap. Maybe we should send Jamie Oliver to you. I encourage playing outside, but paranoia of the paedos keep them chained indoors. Teach healthy cooking, eating and exercise from an early age.
There's reason why people in places like Italy and China live a long life. Its a balance of good food and exercise. Problem is, the U.S is all about making money, and so long as the crap food industry can lobby those in power, like the health care industry, the people will always be cheated and exploited by both of them. I'd love to see Obama fix this, but their tentcles are so deep now, its nigh impossible.
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tomfresh 16 Jun 2009 12:06
3/5
as much as I like games, there can be little denying that current media trends have resulted in growing childhood obesity. Its not the diet ask ur grandparents or even ur parents wat they ate. Spam. And corned beef, thats like 20% fat. So diet isn't worse these days if anything its probably better for many people.
Its people sitting on their bums in front of screens and not going outside cos there are pedos out there. Exercise is key.
Its people sitting on their bums in front of screens and not going outside cos there are pedos out there. Exercise is key.
tyrion 16 Jun 2009 14:19
4/5
Joji wrote:
There's reason why people in places like Italy and China live a long life.
I'll give you Italy, but the life expectancy in China is lower than in the US. Good food only goes so far, prosperity and good health care can change your prospects a lot.
Joji 16 Jun 2009 14:41
5/5
tomfresh wrote:
as much as I like games, there can be little denying that current media trends have resulted in growing childhood obesity. Its not the diet ask ur grandparents or even ur parents wat they ate. Spam. And corned beef, thats like 20% fat. So diet isn't worse these days if anything its probably better for many people.
Its people sitting on their bums in front of screens and not going outside cos there are pedos out there. Exercise is key.
Its people sitting on their bums in front of screens and not going outside cos there are pedos out there. Exercise is key.
Its a tough battle. Some kids hate exercise, usually because what they are asked to do, is something they don't like. Maybe treadmills are the answer, or maybe just leave them with the Wii Fit.
My folks are islanders, so a diet of fish was a regular thing I still get today. A diet of Spam might have been good in those years like you say, long before too much tv and games invaded our lives. You also have to consider a post war generation, would have been just getting used to regular amounts of food, post rationing. Over a long period of time, those things aren't good for you if eaten too much.
Did our parents really exercise, though? I've never seen any of mine do anything that we might class as such. What they do, is everyday stuff.
Yeah, there's no doubt that better education about food, helps kids make better choices. And if kids choose the wrong path, then that could be their own undoing later on. That means you get to ridicule them later.