Hillary Clinton Joins Joe Lieberman To Resurrect the Culture Wars

I guess this must be one for those of us who spent the 90s wanting to throw large objects through the television set as we watched that sanctimonious, finger wagging, judgmental scold Joe Lieberman on the floor of the Senate joining with the Republicans to derail the constitution over Bill Clinton's zipper:

Senators Joe Lieberman (ID-CT), Sam Brownback (R-KS), Evan Bayh (D-IN), and Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) called for a thorough review of the video game ratings process in the wake of "Manhunt 2" receiving a "Mature" rating. In a letter to the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB), the Senators detailed how the change in rating opened the door to widespread release of the game, which depicts acts of horrific violence.

Well that is just peachy. Do we suppose Hillary sat down and actually played Manhunt 2 on the campaign trail in order to arrive at this conclusion, or did she just take Joe's word for it, much like she did when she voted for the Kyl-Lieberman amendment that others have quite rightly pilloried her for? Because Joe, you'll recall, was a useful idiot for the Bushies when they discovered Iran had no nuclear weapons program and they had to find another reason to bomb them into the stone age -- something they neglected to tell the public about. And despite the fact that Clinton's excuse for voting for the AUMF was that she had "bad information" from the Bush Administration on the Iraq weapons program, she decided to trust them -- and Lieberman -- and amp up the Iran war rhetoric.

One wonders at what point she will stop following Lieberman over the cliff.

Wired magazine:

I agree that the current ratings system and all its consequences needs to be seriously re-evaluated, but not in the sense that Clinton et al apparently do, which is that Manhunt 2 never should have been released.

The uncharitable amongst us might conclude that this is simply a cynical ploy on Clinton's part to pander to old people, upon whom her Iowa chances depend. I'm sure that's not the case. Which is why I'd like to resurrect a suggestion from last year that Clinton find her voice and condemn the violent religious intolerance expressed in the Left Behind video game.

Jon Hutson describes the game:

Imagine: you are a foot soldier in a paramilitary group whose purpose is to remake America as a Christian theocracy, and establish its worldly vision of the dominion of Christ over all aspects of life. You are issued high-tech military weaponry, and instructed to engage the infidel on the streets of New York City. You are on a mission - both a religious mission and a military mission -- to convert or kill Catholics, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, gays, and anyone who advocates the separation of church and state - especially moderate, mainstream Christians. Your mission is "to conduct physical and spiritual warfare"; all who resist must be taken out with extreme prejudice. You have never felt so powerful, so driven by a purpose: you are 13 years old. You are playing a real-time strategy video game whose creators are linked to the empire of mega-church pastor Rick Warren, best selling author of The Purpose Driven Life.

Christian, Muslim and Jewish groups denounced it at the time of its release, but out of Clinton and Lieberman, who have made themselves the scolding nags of video game morality, why -- not a peep.

Some might find this potentially much more dangerous than Manhunt II, given the fact that people who act out on suggestions made by video games are relatively few, but people are dying in the Middle East at an alarming rate because politicians like Joe Lieberman have decided they will manufacture reasons to wage war there if none exist, and amping up religious bigotry among young people sets an excellent stage.

Since Mitt Romney has said that there will be no Muslim members of his cabinet (though the New York Times hasn't quite tripped to that fact yet), I think it's an excellent time to show that Senator Clinton's views regarding religious tolerance are deeply felt and not just some Sunday morning prayer group she attends to further her political ambitions. If she's in the video game denouncement business, she needs to denounce this one, too.

And if she's really a political leader capable of leading the country she can demonstrate it by getting ol' bipartisan Joe to join her. May make him a bit uncomfortable showing up at the next Christian-Zionist convention and confronting all those tough questions from the Rapture crowd, but hey, Joe has made a career out of telling the right lie at the right time.

I'm sure he'll have no trouble.

Jane Hamsher blogs regularly at firedoglake.com

Comments

[TerryS]

Furthermore...
One of the big arguments in defense of violent video games is that they are designed and played by adults. Well you can't have it both ways, you can't insist that violent video games are designed for and played almost exclusively by adults, and then turn around and complain when retailers who cater to families don't want to carry the games.
If you want to experience violence porn, then fine. But I don't see the sex porn industry whining because Walmart or Target refuse to stock their videos. If these violent video games (violence porn) are purely meant for adults, then why not market and sell them the same as regular porn.
Adults have the money and freedom to support a vibrant porn industry. There is no reason that *adults* can't support a vibrant violence porn industry. There's no reason to demand that violence porn be sold by every game retailer.
Here is the wikipedia description of the original Manhunt:
"Aside from the sensitive subject matter of Manhunt (snuff films), the controversy surrounding the game stems from the extremely graphic manner in which the player kills enemies. The game has three 'levels' of executions: hasty, violent, and gruesome. Hasty kills are quick and the least bloody of the three, while violent kills are considerably more gory, and gruesome kills are over-the-top executions. Furthermore, the game encourages players to execute enemies as brutally as possible, and awards players who do so with higher scores. Cash's violent killings in the game are also extremely graphic, both visually and audibly (e.g. a victim will gag when he's being choked, muffle and vomit blood while he's being suffocated etc., in a lifelike manner). Some examples of Cash's executions include decapitation, suffocation with a plastic bag, and jamming a crowbar into a victim's head."
Note, in the case of the original Manhunt Rockstar Games courageously held onto their Adult Only rating. This allowed violence porn aficionados everywhere to vicariously enjoy gruesome and torturous killings. There is nothing stopping them from doing the same thing with Manhunt 2.

[TerryS]

A couple of things....
First of all, the subtitle of this piece says "Hillary wants to censor video game violence".
Just to be clear, Hillary is NOT calling for censorship of what games *adults* can buy, she (and 3 other senators) sent a letter to the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) asking that they reconsider giving Manhunt 2 a Mature rating (for those 17 and older) instead of an Adults Only rating (those 18 years and older).
Even if the ESRB took their advice and changed the rating to Adult Only, it would
still be perfectly legal for the publisher of Manhunt 2 to sell this game to adults AND to children. The ESRB rating system is completely voluntary.
So why all the wailing and gnashing of teeth over the ESRB? Because most retailers want to stay on the good side of parents, and thus will only sell games that have a ESRB rating. Plus, a lot of retailers won't carry Adult Only games. Plus Nintendo and Sony won't allow Adult Only games on their platforms.
This is the free market in action, NOT censorship !!
Rockstar Games (the publisher of Manhunt 2) and other publishers of violent video games are upset, not because of any love of free speech, but because they know a lower ESRB rating means less *profits* for them.

[Doubtom43]

Who designed this game?

[realitytrumpsbull]

Violent video games: If you haven't done so
already, sit down and play Grand Theft Auto:
Vice City. Learn key skills like marksmanship,
improve your physical fitness, battle it out
with the cops, run people over, go on a virtual killing spree, steal a bunch of stuff including
fancy cars, fly airplanes, do all that cool
stuff, find all the cool surprises, including
the jet pack and the minigun, wreak havoc
at every turn, and get filthy rich. Then
read the news. Kind of puts things in a different perspective. Well, the Army has a video game too. Welcome to the 21st century...

I guess you could call video games an art
form, and art imitates life, and vice versa.
But in Vice City, kill or be killed, gangs
and cops and and and, it makes you think.
Computers are wonderful things, and they can
teach us lots and lots, but in some ways
they really rip the lid off of Pandora's Box,
there. Can people resist the pull of pure
evil, greed and lust to power, or will they,
like CJ, strive to become the biggest dog on
the block, with the most money, the most guns,
the fastest cars, countless houses, and
'win' the game? Or, would the wiser choice
be to turn a bunch of this stuff back OFF,
and play a game of cards instead? Hold onto
your hats, this century's going to be interesting...marines have their Alien II lander, now...just need to find the laser
rifle...and the powerups...bonus level...

[lovethesinner]

I AM STUNNED. (seriously) There actually is a game that does all that? This game is the most anti-american thing I've ever seen.

Thanks, for bringing this to my attention, Jane. You certainly have a point about the hypocricy of rating Manhunt II while allowing "Millenium Crusades" to even exist.

But, seriously, it's more disturbing to know that no one is calling for this thing to be banned, or that it isn't front page news. As child abuse, this possibly surpasses sexual molestation.

This is SPIRATUAL RAPE.

There ought'ta be a law against this!

[nixau]

Tipper Gore wanted to put ratings on music with foul language and she was slimed by the music industry.

[schmuckwithearlaps]

The definition of a liberal is someone who has never played a violent video game but knows that such games do no harm to children.

[parryisle]

Unlike for NYC Mayor Ed Koch Joe Lieberman has yet to fess-up why he is allied to Bush's War. Perhaps nothing shows contempt more than Lieberman and his ilk uncaringly sending young people into a war to satify his agenda which he fails to come clean on. I don't know if he sheds tears as Mr. Bush does when he sees or visits soldiers who lost limbs, vision, mind or genitalia. But he does look impressive telling us how things have improved in this latest misadventure in the distant sands completely attired in the modern body armor of the laptop bombardiers who venture a visit to the area where they played a major role in devestating beyond repair. Steve, USN WW2

[cacatua]

Joe Lieberman is what is known as a Judas Goat. A Judas Goat is the one that leads the sheep into the slaughter house.

I can't stand his whiney, crying voice.

[talkstocoyotes]

**The uncharitable amongst us might conclude that this is simply a cynical ploy on Clinton's part to pander to old people, upon whom her Iowa chances depend.**

Interesting. When Senator Clinton courts the votes of people who have committed the unforgiveable crime of not being young anymore it's "cynical" and "pandering" but when Obama (a/k/a His Holiness) tries to pander to generational conflicts he gets a pass.

Maybe it's Oprah's ability to heal lepers and walk on water. Hallalujah can ya say amen?

[yooper2]

Why would any thinking person follow anything that the Senator from Conn.(Joe Lieberman) said, period. He should own up to the truth and declare himself to be a genuine Neo-con. He is no more an indepentant the Norman Podhoretz is.

[Silknspark]

Foxy,
If we stand firm -and serve notice we demand no less from all the candidates - yes...it is feasible.
The best part of "manners" is one can exercise them for free, with the side benefit resulting in a magnitude of savings...dollar and human life wise.
Thank you again- for your terrific input.

[FOXYLADY]

RARELY DOES THE NOBEL PRIZE RECIPIANTS AND THE AUDIANCE GIVE A NOBEL PRIZE WINNER A "STANDING OVATION" AFTER THEIR EXCEPTANCE SPEECH...BUT.. FOLKS, THAT IS JUST WHAT THEY DID FOR AL GORE.. IF AL GORE RAN FOR PRESIDENT TOMORROW I BET HE'D WIN!! A FAMILY MAN, HONEST AND CARING ABOUT THE FUTURE OF OUR WORLD AND THAT OF OUR GRANDCHILDREN..........WE NEED THAT MAN

[Silknspark]

For starters, here are a few things - whomever we vote in to be our leader - has a duty to do;
regardless their gender, political affiliation, religious bent or ethnicity.
1) Protect our private property and constitutional rights.
2)Get out of the grant business and stop federal welfare to groups like the Nature Conservancy.
3) Stop stealing (eminent domain) property and gifting it to private entities.
4) Sell millions of acres of public land back into the private sector and reactivate resource production.
5) Stop LOST!
6) Stay our sovereignty.
7) Get out of the welfare business and beef up National security - infrastructure of highways/bridges etc. - fair trade and on.
8) Eliminate "income" tax and bring in some form of "consumption/fair/flat" tax.
9) Embrace the essence of "do no harm to thy neighbor."
10) Most importantly, maintain unfailing decency, civility, manners, honesty, thoughtfulness, obedience to our laws, humbleness, never crude or coarse, cheerful, warm, just, and not be beholden to any human.
In other words, someone we'd be joyful having as a role model for our children.
Thank you.

[Johnz52]

Lieberman is a shill for AIPAC. Hillary knows who weilds the power on Capital Hill so Hillary has hitched her star to Liberman and AIPAC. It's a very simple equation. With this type of combo there will certainly never be any change in D.C. Hillary with the help of AIPAC will find a way to sell the bombing of Iran as well as denying the Palestinians their state. Chaos, death and misery will remain the daily diet in the Middle East. The last thing Joe Liberman, AIPAC and Hillary, by default, want is peace in that region.