[PIGMI] [chris at mccormick.cx: Introduction of an R18+ video games classification]

[Chris McCormick]

On Wed, Dec 08, 2010 at 11:34:49AM +0800, Nick Lowe wrote:
> Hmmm, this reads as much more compelling and informative than my email. 

That's hilarious I was thinking the opposite, that yours was more compelling
and informative.

> Maybe mine was too combative...

I think it was fine and made the point. The important thing is not our
individual emails, but the number of people who write, anyway.

So get writing people! Or copy-pasting anyway. :)

> That said. It's infuriating to consider that one could even contemplate
> using their appointed position to block such legislation given clear
> public (and now government) support.
> 
> It should not be up to us to convince such people of the merits of the
> argument; that should be completely irrelevant given the overwhelming
> volume of evidence and surveyed public support.

I agree that it's extremely infuriating. I think we have to accept that people
will be wrong sometimes, and often very very wrong. We know from the real world
that mass-wrongness and ignorance is actually quite a common thing.
Unfortunately ignorance is not always the fault of the individual, but rather
just the context of their existence. Whether we like it or not I think we have
to accept that the people we vote in will be ignorant and that we have to
convince them on things we care about. Actually I would far rather have an
engaged/enraged citizenry than one where everything just works and they get too
lazy to notice.

Of course, there is being wrong and there is being a cynical politician. I
don't for a second believe e.g. that Tony Abott has not seen the statistics on
refugees arriving by boat, and nobody in their right mind who looks at the
numbers could possibly think there is any kind of issue with Australia taking
refugees. That is purely a political stunt to appeal to a certain demographic
by saying "stop the boats", and a deeply, deeply cynical one at that. Luckily
it did not work.

The great thing about this R18+ issue though is that it has public support, so
there is no cynical popular opinion type move to be made here. I suspect the
ministers in question are actually going from some type of "gut feeling" based
on their ignorance about video games. Luckily, ignorance is easy to combat with
evidence, which is why at the end of the day this will hopefully pass
unhindered.

I guess my view is pragmatic:

 * People will be wrong.
 * Changing their minds is more likely to work if I am very friendly and informative.

Cheers,

Chris.

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