Regarding the Second Skin video and a few other chapters of the book: In Culture Jam, the author spoke about MUD's and how they can control peoples lives and even become an "addiction." As a human being, I find this pretty pathetic. I'm not trying to put down anybody that plays these RPG games online as i have played some myself, but find it almost irritating that some people can use that as an excuse for a lifestyle that really doesn't amount to much. The typical hermit. Millions of people play these games and use them as an escape from the problems of reality. I believe it is a way for them to subconsciously gain approval from themselves and it sort of implants this thought in their brain that they are honestly achieving something great. In my opinion, it is the de-socialization of people at its finest! At the rate the world is going, many people will live their lives with hardly any face to face interaction. How are young children growing up that see this going to be able to communicate, make friends, and in the long run find jobs if they have no people skills? In the video, it talks about a few couples that had met online and ended up falling in love. These people took a huge gamble and completely changed their lives for someone they met through an online video game. My question is, if these people are content with living in these online fantasy worlds, when they meet someone are they having feelings for the real person or just the character they see in WOW? It seems to me as if its an easier way of finding a partner without having to search for the right person. Are people really becoming that lazy? What do you think?
Friday, January 28, 2011
Blog 2
Every new chapter I read in Culture Jam, in a very blatant way, points out problems in society that many people choose to ignore. A lot of these problems even I ignore which is not where i want to be ha ha. In Media Virus, there was one quote that i believe sort of summed up the chapter and a majority of people as a whole. " We don't want to take any advertising that's inimical to our legitimate business interests." - NBC commercial clearance manager Richard Gitter (page 32) This was regarding a non-profit group trying to raise awareness about that growing problems with the logging industry in Canada. When i read this all i see is a company saying, " We will show what will make us money. Values and ethics mean nothing." Why do you think our society as a whole has placed money over doing what is right? Where did we take the wrong turn? I myself cannot answer this because it is well beyond my understanding what would possess people to worship a green piece of paper over peoples rights and morals. " In the former Soviet Union you weren't allowed to speak out against the government. In North America today you cannot speak out against the sponsors."(page 33) Pretty ridiculous, but true in a sense.
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Lots of great questions here! I'm still thinking about this one: "When i read this all i see is a company saying, 'We will show what will make us money. Values and ethics mean nothing.' Why do you think our society as a whole has placed money over doing what is right? Where did we take the wrong turn?
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comments about the videos. I don't understand how people can revolve their lives around them. I know plenty of people who plays these games and their lives are nothing like this. I can see that a game can be addicting but i do not understand how it can take over your life that trees dont even look real and that animation starts to look more real to you. I believe that there is some type of other issues with the people that this happens to. I think when the man left his pregnant wife and took sick time off of work to go play the game for two days straight it really just made me mad. This is not obsession or addiction that is being plain ignorant and avoiding responsibilities of life that you must face as an adult.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking the same thing: people use this as an escape from the real world. People can't deal with their normal lives and they use these "games" as an escape.
ReplyDeleteI like how you compared the quote about speaking out against the Soviet Union government to speaking out against sponsors here in the US. It really is a similar situation and no one seems to think there is a problem with it. Also, I think the question you ask about people falling in love while playing video games doesn't have a cut and dry answer. I do agree that it is a combination of laziness and lack of social skills that makes people resort to "falling in love" via video games.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about the people in those online games as being pathetic, in my blog I almost said the same thing.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. It does implant the thought that we are actually doing something worth while. The truth is is that it's also us implanting the thought in our own heads and allowing it to stick there because we hate ourselves for sitting in front of the computer for so long doing pointless things. After a while of telling ourselves lies we actually start believing them. It is kind of pathetic to see how we live our lives compaired to ancient philosophers and great artists. Society had been deteriorating and becoming attached and obsessed with something that is untouchable or unreachable (make believe worlds, the internet, etc)
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