Child's Play Breaks a Million Bucks

Utoxin noted that Child's Play has raised the bar for their annual games for hospitals charity. They say "Not only did we break the million dollar mark, but we decimated it with our new total of $1,135,000! This significant achievement made this holiday season a happier, brighter one in our fifty partner hospitals. To everyone who has contributed to this amazing milestone, thank you! The hospital wish lists are still online, and some have seen new items added. While we try to get lots of new games and more to the children in time for the holidays, the hospitals have a need for equipment year-round. Likewise, we will continue to accept donations through Amazon, PayPal and the mail until next year's fundraiser kicks off."

What Are They Talking About?

[Anonymous Coward]

It did better than that! It grossed $44 million world wide [imdb.com]!

decimated?

[Swampash (1131503)]

It's like... donations made a quantum leap! What a sea change!

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[kalidasa (577403)]

"Decimated" means "killed every tenth," in other words, "lined everyone up and killed every tenth person in line." I suppose you could argue that $1M equals 90% of the actual total received, but I wouldn't use that particular metaphor myself.

Re:decimated?

[VirusEqualsVeryYes (981719)]

"Decimated" means "killed every tenth," in other words, "lined everyone up and killed every tenth person in line."

That's the ancient, root definition, referring to the killing of every one man in ten of a mutinous Roman legion. The current English definition has been generalized to the destruction of some percentage of something.

But it's still inappropriately used in the summary. Commence the "!decimated" tagging...

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[ubrgeek (679399)]

You're absolutely correct. And now that you've also managed to raise $1,135,000 for charity, we're more than willing to use your definition of the word ...Oh, wait ...

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[mi (197448)]

referring to the killing of every one man in ten of a mutinous Roman legion.

The current English definition has been generalized to the destruction of some percentage of something.

It is a foolish generalization, and decent-educated people ought to reject it. It is "generalized" by ignorant people (like the guy in the article), who don't even realize, that the dec-prefix in this word is the same as in, for example, decade.

And if you are going to argue, we should accept it because of "common (mis)use", th

Doctor Who got it right

[Anonymous Coward]

What's amusing is that when The Master orders the population be decimated, he then further explains that he wants one tenth of the population killed.

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[WilliamSChips (793741)]

By the end of the universe, "decimate" has drifted in meaning to "cut into ten pieces".

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[mecenday (1080691)]

Since when does a word only take a single definition?

I'd say it's similar to how "virus" is generalized to include "trojans" and "worms"... or how "hacker" is used for "cracker" in main-stream speech. I don't think it's really misuse to use them more generally, and I don't think people who distinguish the terms are just being pedantic jerks.

When you use the more specific version, you are now into jargon territory. It helps you be more precise, but you have to realize that you've stepped outside general spee

Re:

[heinousjay (683506)]

You don't have to point out the other usage every single time it's used in another way.

But then how will the grammar nazis compensate for never touching a woman?

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[veganboyjosh (896761)]

But then how will the grammar nazis compensate for never touching a woman?

"But then how will the grammar nazis compensate for never having touched a woman?"

Fixed that for ya...oh wait...

Re:

[Ninjaesque One (902204)]

Common use is the only way in which words are formed. Even a coinage depends on its common usage in order to flourish. Therefore, what you are suggesting to do(to reject common usage) is to stagnate our language, make it a breeding ground for foul things. Better to stir it a little, and at least enjoy it for the little while it lasts. The dictionary-makers define misused, as of a word, as a word said to be misused. If there is no intent to create a word or new meaning(since the old meaning is ancient, the n

Re:

[Wavicle (181176)]

It is a foolish generalization, and decent-educated people ought to reject it.

Yes, quite right.

Now, why don't you take all this energy you have and go around shouting about how the word "gay" is misused to mean "homosexual."

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[xouumalperxe (815707)]

It is a foolish generalization, and decent-educated people ought to reject it. It is "generalized" by ignorant people (like the guy in the article), who don't even realize, that the dec-prefix in this word is the same as in, for example, decade.

And the same prefix as DECent, DECadent, DECaffeinated (ooops, the prefix is actualy de-), DECant, DECal, right? Er... except none of those use the dec- prefix, most (but not all) having de- prefix for negation -- which is actually not that far-fetched a misinterpretation of the etymology of 'decimate'. So get off your high horse.

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[petes_PoV (912422)]

The current English definition has been generalized to the destruction of some percentage of something.

Where that percentage is definitely not generalised, but is specifically 10 percent - i.e. decimate = reduce by one-tenth.

You're right though, it is an inappropriate use of the word

Looks Right To Me

[severoon (536737)]

Well, if you consider the goal at $1M, they accomplished that goal and added $1 extra for every $10 of the goal. That's kinda like killing every tenth dollar in line. I admit, it's a stretch, but seems like an somewhat appropriate (though unintentional) usage to me. :-)

Wonderful

[pedantic bore (740196)]

Bravo! This kind of grass-roots charity warms my heart.

If this sort of thing sounds good to you, check out Rotary International [rotary.org] because they do this sort of thing, on a global basis, year round. There are plenty of other similar organizations; shop around to find one that works for you.

Never makes mainstream news though..

[Anonymous Coward]

..because games are "murder simulators".

I wished this kind of stuff made the news instead of the numerous violent video gamer portraits that are painted by TV and Paper news.

Re:

[ivan256 (17499)]

Presidential candidate Duncan Hunter [opensecrets.org] has raised a million bucks too, and you've probably never heard of him from the mainstream news...

Good Use of Power

[RobBebop (947356)]

I saw this on Penny Arcade the other day, and it is good to see that Tycho and Gabe have used the power of running a top ranked webpage for a greater social benefit.

Kudos the them, and to everybody who enjoys successful and a love for charity.

Contributors

[techpawn (969834)]

Does this count the donation that they made in Jack Thomson's name when he welshed on donating a large sum for making a violent video game to his specifications... Or was that last year?

Re:

[Macthorpe (960048)]

I'm pretty sure that was last year... and if I remember correctly, the donation was made to the ESA, so it won't count :)

I hope they can fix them

[Anonymous Coward]

A million dollars is going to take a lot of money to replace. Hopefully they'll be more careful next year.

You people are sick

[Anonymous Coward]

Congratulations on putting murder simulators into the hands of our kids. I vow to put a stop to this! I won't rest until the people responsible are made to pay for their crimes.

Regards,
Jack Thompson

P.S. Gabe and Tycho just threatened me.

Re:

[Zibblsnrt (125875)]

I know the AC here was posting in jest, but stuff like this has to annoy the hell out of the "gamers are bad!" crowd. Nothing like taking someone's neat little worldview and, to use an inappropriate metaphor given the subject, shooting it in both kneecaps; I can hear the cries of "this doesn't count!" from here. I kind of wonder if the low coverage this sort of thing gets is because people simply don't know about it, or because it would add uncomfortable nuance to the coverage of the whole video game issue.

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[bigbigbison (104532)]

I'm sure that people like Thompson who are blindly opposed to videogames would go straight for Hitler and say something like, "Hitler made the trains run on time but that doesn't make his regime a good thing."

Movies aren't what they used to be

[Peter Cooper (660482)]

Hurrah, can't believe a 19 year old movie has continued to have such good theater attendance to break the record gross for an 80s horror movie. Congrats!

Oh... Child's Play

[SystematicPsycho (456042)]

And for a second I thought Chucky was back.

More games (not just gaming sites) should do this

[bryanbrunton (262081)]

I have a game that donates to charity, more precisely to Heifer International (www.heifer.org). In fact, as I have tired of programming the thing, the donation aspect is one of the main motivators for actually working on it.

It is a clone of risk called Grand Strategy (www.denizengames.com).

Our motto is: Good can come from global domination.
 

Re:Gabe

[ceejayoz (567949)]

I doubt that Child's Play is anything to Gabe but a chance for shameless self-promotion.

Who gives a shit? Sick kids around the world got a million dollars worth of toys out of it.

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[pembo13 (770295)]

While I do not have any idea the issue at hand here, I'm not a big fan of the ends justify the means.... children getting X amount of toys doesn't just make something okay.

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[ceejayoz (567949)]

I'm interested in knowing what possible damage the alleged shameless self-promotion has done to anyone that offsets the benefits Child's Play has brought.

If Gabe were using it to get good PR after beating his wife to death or something, you might have had a point.

Re:

[pembo13 (770295)]

Was speaking in general, know nothing about the alleged issue in this case.

Re:Gabe

[ashridah (72567)]

Actually, I'm pretty sure Child's play was started after Jack Thompson started his raving about how games only create deviants, and the Penny-arcade people wanted to show him up in a way that was more constructive than responding directly to his infantile arguments.

So far, Child's play has raised a huge amount of money, and helped make being hospitalized less sucky for lots of children, and given Gabe/Tycho a way to thumb their nose at Jack, which I'm all for. Not that it'll matter to Jack, mind you, since he's a raving lunatic, and incapable of dealing with rational arguments anyway.

ash

Re:Gabe

[immcintosh (1089551)]

While I do not have any idea the issue at hand here...

Just stop right there. There is no "ends justify the means" here. This is a charity event. There is no evil ulterior motive that could make a difference. The ends and the means are the same--people are donating toys to sick children. They're not being robbed blind, this is a willing donation. While it's true that the success has been going to their heads a bit, it's not exactly surprising considering they just raised over a million dollars of charity with their pet project. I think any of us might be a bit arrogant about that fact too.

As for the OP in this little thread... accusing somebody of being a raging egomaniac in comparison to Harlan Ellison is almost mind bogglingly ironic. If it's true this must have been a real case of unstoppable force meeting immovable object.

Re:Gabe

[revlayle (964221)]

Hello??? HARLAN ELLISON! He totally owns everyone in the raging-prick-ego-maniac dept; Gabe had a small victory... but Harlan is still the world's biggest dick.

Re:

[Anonymous Coward]

Hehehe.

From one of Isaac Asimov's books of humorous anecdotes.

A long time ago at a science-fiction writer's convention a few authors were standing around talking when another author walked by. One author explained to the group, "That's the next Harlan Ellison." Whereupon another author said, "Should we kill him now?"

Re:Gabe

[rhennigan (833589)]

Yeah this is exactly the type of thing pricks like Gabe do; help raise over a million dollars for sick children. What a prick...

Re:Gabe

[Anonymous Coward]

Most charity is fundamentally egotistical in nature. In fact, most everything we do is egotistical, even stuff we think of as altruistic. We've just been taught that ego is shameful, and so we dress our actions up in language which hides the self-gratification.

So, frankly, wanking Gabe's ego in exchange for coordinating the flow of $1m of toys and games to kids coping with chemo is a fair trade to me. Does mean I have to like the guy, or hang out with him on Friday night.

Re:

[ZorbaTHut (126196)]

That's just your sucky glass-half-empty attitude that tells you that.

Egotistical people are gratified by helping themselves, non-egotistical people are gratified by helping others.

People choose what they are gratified by--that's what makes them either selfish or selfless, not the fact that they end up gratified.

I don't think this is actually an argument with what he's claiming. I think you're just agreeing with him from a different angle.

Re:Gabe

[Anonymous Coward]

Too bad Gabe is such a prick. ... I doubt that Child's Play is anything to Gabe but a chance for shameless self-promotion.

If only the world was filled with such pricks.

Re:Gabe

[acvh (120205)]

"Too bad Gabe is such a prick. Seriously, not since Theo DeRaadt has the world seen such a total asshole."

Tycho, is that you? Harlan? DivX?

so Gabe kicked your ass at Halo 3. get over it.

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[xant (99438)]

Nah, it's actually Gabe himself, posting as Misfit. [penny-arcade.com]

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[GR|MLOCK (203716)]

You may want to look up the meaning of the word 'decimate' and consider how surpassing your goal by 10% is actually pretty close to the spirit of the word.

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[PatrickThomson (712694)]

Didn't the dollar drop by more than 10% in value in the last year?

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[theantipop (803016)]

Maybe, but it will buy just as many Nintendo DS games as last year.

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[Anonymous Coward]

if 100,000$ isnt that much to you, id be happy to take it off your hands

Re:Um.

[meringuoid (568297)]

I wouldn't call 100,000 or so past their goal "decimating" anything

To decimate is to reduce by one tenth. It was a punishment for mutinous units in the Roman army, where all the men would be lined up and every tenth man executed.

Since their goal was 1,000,000, and they exceeded this by one tenth, their usage of the word 'decimated' is actually not too bad. All too often people use 'decimated' to mean 'completely destroyed', but at least here there's a factor of 0.1 involved.

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[phoebusQ (539940)]

Ego-stroking? You've got to be kidding me. It's more like feeling great about helping others. Did you donate?

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[DRAGONWEEZEL (125809)]

Seriously? Come on.

The one day I don't have mod points. >100000K to be exact which meant > 10%.
That's decimating a goal when it comes to raising money, and more so when your "reaching" for your goal.

This isn't an investment, this is a charity any money raised is a good thing, and they deserve a little stroking.

I say you lend em a hand...