When Politicians Tax Violent Video Games 315
talien79 writes "Taxing video games has a storied history in state legislatures. The reality is that video games, violent or otherwise, simply make too much money to be stopped. But taxing them is a viable compromise, a 'sin tax' of sorts similar to that levied on cigarettes. This article reviews the time-honored tactic of politicians pandering to their base: taxing violent video games."
stupid (Score:2, Insightful)
This is how government controls us. (Score:4, Insightful)
Movies? (Score:4, Insightful)
Violent games are never good (Score:5, Insightful)
Good for them. It's not like violent games ever show [wikipedia.org] justified violence [wikipedia.org], or even semi-realistic portrayals of current foreign combat. It's not like there is ever a point of the violence.
Violence is always bad [wikipedia.org]. It's never a good way to put an end to problems [wikipedia.org] people may face.
Constitutional? (Score:5, Insightful)
Would the Supreme Court find a content based tax constitutional? I can see how states would get away taxing all video games, but taxing one type of video game based on its content seems like a first amendment issue. Are there other types of media that get this treatment?
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:2, Insightful)
These are tax proposals by STATE legislatures.
learn2federalism.
Which part of "...not any of your taxes" did you not understand?
Re:Please think about the Porn (Score:2, Insightful)
I think it would be a 69% tax.
Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! (Score:5, Insightful)
My biggest problem with this has nothing to do with where the money is spent. It's with the concept that violence is OK, as long as you're willing to pay extra for it. So next time I pick up a hooker, it'll be OK if I beat her on top of screwing her, as long as I give her an extra $40 or so? Or If I send an extra $40 to the government as a "sin tax"?
If you take the ideas of these brain-dead lawmakers and their brain-dead constituents, this is the logical conclusion.
Also, while we're at it, let's tax movie tickets on a sliding scale based on their rating. G? Pay the sales tax. PG? Pay 2 x sales tax. PG-13? 3 x sales tax. Etc.
yea great idea.. (Score:2, Insightful)
I would also point out that taxing doesn't reduce the amount of violence in the game..
Sounds as effective as the Green tax tbph..
Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! (Score:5, Insightful)
So next time I pick up a hooker, it'll be OK if I beat her on top of screwing her, as long as I give her an extra $40 or so?
You might want to OK the beating with him/her first. Otherwise her pimp Sugar might get wind of it and give you a really bad day.
Re:Movies? (Score:3, Insightful)
Take a good look at all those biblical epics Hollyweird produced in the late 1940s through the 1950s: The Robe, Ben Hur, Samson and Delilah, The Ten Commandments, and others. Hollyweird used those to defeat the censors. It's hard to complain about all those HOT JEZIBELLES and all the MURDER AND VIOLENCE when it all originated in the Bible or in christian fiction. I mean, it's good for the children to see this stuff, cuz' it's from the Bible. So all you censors can just STFU! :)
By the way, the Book Of Revelations is my hands down favorite book of the Bible, old testament or new. There is more sex, violence, depravity, and just plain general sin in those pages than any ten Hollyweird epics.
Re:Constitutional? (Score:4, Insightful)
Well, tax laws can apparently be used to punish you for something you did before the law was passed (see AIG bonuses), so why would the Constitution apply in this case?
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:1, Insightful)
Which part of STATE legislatures did you not understand?
Oh no, I got it. Obama has no control over state and local taxes. However, he should has specified that when he said "...not ANY of your taxes..." He could have said, "...not any of your FEDERAL taxes." or "not any of your INCOME taxes." He didn't. He said, "not ANY of your taxes". This is a classic case of a politician over promising something that he could not possibly deliver. Not that it matters as the FEDERAL cigarette tax kinda blew that promise out of the water anyway.
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Sin tax? (Score:3, Insightful)
See and this is a problem with "sin taxes." A sin tax is just a tax on a socially unpopular item. It's not meant to be a fine, which is a punishment that's used to discourage people from breaking the law.
The reason why sin taxes target socially unpopular items is "divide and rule." In other words, if everything gets a sales tax, everyone complains. If violent video games get a sales tax, only video game players complain. If they aren't a big enough block to vote out the taxers, and the tax holds up in court (I'm not sure that it would, but it might), then the tax gets put into place and allows the state government to collect the revenue.
Sin Taxes, are sold as fines, but it's usually a problem for the taxers if they work as fines (in other words, if people quit smoking, drinking and gaming). Because in that case the tax base starts to shrink and the revenue disappears.
I'm reminded of the story of a town whihc levied a fine on false burglar alarms. Well the town auditor complained when one year the fine brought in less revenue than the previous year. The police chief had to patiently explain to him that the fine was working as intended, and the police were having less of their time wasted with false alarms. The fine wasn't supposed to be about raising revenue, it was to free up police resources to go after actual crimes rather than people who carelessly set off their own alarm.
Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:3, Insightful)
Oh no, I got it. Obama has no control over state and local taxes. However, he should has specified that when he said "...not ANY of your taxes..." He could have said, "...not any of your FEDERAL taxes." or "not any of your INCOME taxes." He didn't. He said, "not ANY of your taxes".
This is a classic case of a straw man. Pretty much everyone understood the context this was in. Except you decide to remove context, ascribe intent to lack of context, and go on your merry flaming ways.
Nice try.
Re:They just want more taxes (Score:2, Insightful)
Um.... (Score:3, Insightful)
What is our government now? The mafia? Seriously. They are essentially saying "Hey, look, we like you, but you're in trouble. Now, if you make sure we're taken care of, nothing bad will happen to you."
When did this become the job of the state?
Re:This is how government controls us. (Score:3, Insightful)
To some extent, you're damn right. There's a very fine line between taxing to encourage certain behavior, and taxing to punish people you don't like.
Unfortunately, the only way to get around this issue is to abolish taxes completely. Since that's an impossibility (both for bureaucratic and for survival reasons), we're stuck with trying to walk this fine line.
Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! (Score:3, Insightful)
Yes, it is OK, so long as she agrees to accept $40 for providing the service of punching bag... prostitution is about paying for what you want... it just so happens most people want sex.
Re:Constitutional? (Score:4, Insightful)
Or to put it a different way: since the Congress is now passing blantenly unconstitutional bills of attainder (see AIG bonuses), are there any cases in which the Constitution still applies?
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:This is how government controls us. (Score:3, Insightful)
I think "control" is giving the process a bit too much credit. I don't see it as being that planned out. This seems to be mostly going on at the state legislature level. Whether it's driven by elected state legislators who themselves foolishly believe that society needs saving from cheap violent videogames or if it's driven instead by elected state legislators who merely exploit those who think that way I don't know. But at the heart this is about moral grandstanding, not "control."
Example: FTA
In Louisiana, Rep. Robert Billiot (BILL-yot) proposed a one percent sales tax on televisions and video game equipment. Money from the tax would flow into a "No Child Left Indoors Fund" to pay for programs and activities to mitigate the effects of childhood obesity. The implication being that video games, not poor parenting, is somehow responsible for making kids fat.
He's not trying to "control" the little fat children, he's either badly deluded and actually thinks that videogames are making kids fat, and it's up to him to save them, or more likely, he's trying to ensure that he gets the "pro-family" stamp from the local religious community that butters his bread.
Violent videogames pacify the public, gamers aren't exactly known for being political dissidents. Maybe the recent data capping movement will push some gamers to become more politically active... but in general, no, not about control.
This is both depressing and heartening depending on how you look at it. Heartening that government still is too incompetent and poorly put together to make an effective conspiracy to cover up important truths, or even seperate you from your games. Depressing because government is still too incompetent and poorly put together to do much of anything else good either. Especially at the state legislative level.
Re:You got it wrong (Score:3, Insightful)
I completely disagree. What sin taxes do is ensure that the wealthy get to exercise their individual freedom, while the poor do not.
If you really believe that everyone should have the personal freedom to drink alcohol, or to play violent video games, why would you make exercise of that right dependent on money?
Seems to me we might as well go back to only landowners having suffrage if you believe that. After all, there's nothing wrong with the exercise of rights and freedoms being tied to money, is there?
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:but but but, it's for a good cause!! (Score:5, Insightful)
Okay I am on the opposite side of most people when it comes to video games. I have no problem with mandatory age restrictions on video games. I have no issue with taxing cigs and alcohol. But I have an issue with extra tax on video games. Yes I see how Left4Dead would be unhealthy for an 8 year old to play but for a normal adult it is just fine. Violent video games are no worse than violent movies or books.
If you want to tax a game how about golf? Golf Courses do a huge amount of damage to the environment. How about a $5 a round tax on golf and a $1.00 a ball tax on golf balls.
Of course who will pay the sin tax on game America's Army?
Re:This is how government controls us. (Score:3, Insightful)
The best example is smoking. It's now so expensive to be a smoker that almost everyone is quitting, though I know a number of people who have bought tobacco seed and are now growing their own, like it was bloody marijuana. And it all started with an innocent little "vice tax".
Coming soon, fat taxes.
Cigarette Tax eh? (Score:4, Insightful)
So when you buy that $7.00 pack of cigs, you know that $6.00 of it is taxes right?
So, we can look forward to paying $350 for a boxed title that goes for $50 now?
Fuck that noise.
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:2, Insightful)
All kidding aside, there are many ways to stop smoking, and since this is a frivolous thing in many politicians eyes (as well as a burden to the tax payers that have to pay for uninsured people's health care when they get end stage emphasema from smoking their whole lives), you've got a better chance of having those taxes revoked as you are of getting uncensored internet in China.
Not to burst your bubble, but smokers cost less over our lives. As it turns out, there is little more expensive to health care than being old and smokers just don't get as old. Quick citation. [startribune.com]
A few other things:
1. I have no problem paying a cigarette tax. At least it's a small disincentive for people starting. I have a problem with hypocrisy. Cigarette taxes are hypocritical for two reasons. First, cigarettes, as billboards and anti-smoking groups are quick to point out, are the number 2 cause of death. What nobody seems to acknowledge is that the number 1 cause of death is heart disease. Where is the fast food/excessive-trans-fat food tax? Second, last I checked (could be outdated, admittedly), most states put LESS THAN HALF of their cigarette taxes into health care.
2. The real reason we tax cigarettes, alcohol, and apparently potentially violent video games, among other "vices" is because it generates state revenue from a minority with far less voting power, and as a whole, America is absurdly income-tax-phobic. It serves the secondary purpose of making the sanctimonious jackasses that run around imposing their 'morals' on others happy. THAT is the real reason none of them will be repealed. It has nothing to do with frivolity.
3. While there are many, and improving, aids to quitting smoking, if my memory serves me correctly, there isn't a single product, including things like prescription inhalers, with a 2-year success rate greater than 25%. I'm pretty sure none of them are even 20%, but I'm being conservative in case I'm remembering wrong. It is not statistically acceptable to be okay with raising cigarette taxes on the grounds that people can just quit. In reality, they will either smoke cheaper cigarettes or order them from Russia... much like with a video game tax, people would either increase their piracy, buy more used, or wait for prices to drop. Nobody is going to pass a game up that they want to play because of some stupid tax.
Anonymous for sake of mod points distributed.
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:3, Insightful)
When will they eventually get to the point of taxing what comes out of my butt?
Unless you have your own septic tank, they do.
Re:Tax my Toilet (Score:4, Insightful)