IGN has a story, citing the Politico, that Biden responded to a question that violent video games can be taxed. The Politico said that Biden responded favorably to the idea.
This is just one of those rare stories where it is more fun to read hardcore tears on the Gaming Message Forums than the actual story. The actual story is pretty bland. Of course, Congress can tax violent video games. The Obamacare case before the Supreme Court established the precedent that Congress can essentially ‘tax’ whatever the hell it wants. The justices have even said they’re not going to go through thousands of pages of a bill to find out what is fair and what isn’t fair in the pieces and parts of it. I like how Hardcore Gamers think they are all lawyers and are already issuing ‘arguments’ in their gaming message forum posts.
Politicians are many things. But one things they are experts on is law. Most politicians are lawyers and all politicians deal with the law (legislators write law, justices interpret law, and executives execute the law). The only entity that gets to tell US Congress whether or not a law is legal or not is the US Supreme Court. And the US Supreme Court has said that they will not block Congress on any tax they make. People need to stop saying ‘Video games were ruled as speech. Congress can’t tax speech.’ It most certainly can. Porn is not prohibited and is defended as ‘free speech’. Yet, porn is taxed more. Strippers are not prohibited and can be defended as ‘free speech’. Yet, strippers are taxed more. One could even argue that smoking could be seen as speech as smoking is quite a fashion statement. Yet, we all know that smoking is taxed out the wazoo.
What amuses me so much is that the Hardcore are not connecting the dots with Biden’s statement. This is not Biden making some joke or a funny or something not related to his job. Biden is a member of the current administration. Biden is not speaking for himself, he is speaking for the administration. This isn’t Biden’s personal opinion. This is the administration’s opinion. Biden speaks for the administration just as Cheney spoke for the Bush Administration, Gore spore for the Clinton Administration, Quayle spoke for the Bush Administration, Bush spoke for the Reagan Administration, and so on.
Taxing violent video games is a politically safe move because the people who play violent video games is a very small minority of the voting population. In fact, video game playing is a minority of the voting population as well. We were at the crossroads with the Wii where gaming could have become bigger than it was. The more people that played games, the harder it would be for any game product to be specifically taxed. But the hardcore are so stupid, they viciously attacked the ‘expanding the gaming market’ move which would make it much harder to tax video games.
Why aren’t violent movies and books taxed? It is because everyone consumes or has consumed a violent movie or violent book. But very, very few voting age people have consumed a violent video game. It is not politically viable to specifically tax violent books or violent movies. It IS politically viable to tax violent video games.
I can’t think of any hardcore video game that isn’t violent. This isn’t a ‘violent video game tax’. It is a hardcore gamer tax. I confess I find a hardcore gamer tax to be appealing. One could argue the hardcore gamer practices vice just as those who engage too much in alcohol and nudie bars. A compelling interest argument could be made that hardcore gaming is a pox on society which should be discouraged for the good of society. Hardcore gaming hurts students trying to get through school, hardcore gaming prevents people from going out and getting a job or be productive, and hardcore gaming prevents men from marrying a (fat) woman (this last reason would be the most motivation for the tax).
Don’t you see, gentlemen? This violent video game tax is also a Bachelor Tax.