Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift Cards Meant for Needy

January 9, 2009 -

Apparently the corrupt Baltimore politics portrayed in the HBO series The Wire wasn't all that far from the truth.

State prosecutors charged today that Mayor Sheila Dixon (D) cashed in Best Buy gift cards donated for needy families for her personal use. Among Dixon's alleged purchases were a PlayStation 2, an Xbox 360 and a PSP. It's unknown whether she is a gamer herself or if the systems were given to others.

Dixon also faces charges of perjury and misconduct in office.

Via: Baltimore Sun

Thanks to: GP reader Dan Pittore


Comments

Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

If you are not sick or very old you can make do with fans, but frankly in some aeras its pushing it.

Either you take care of the lesser populations as best you can as a socity ot you let them fend for themselfs and let them build shanty towns from from public view....

 


Gore,Violence,Sexauilty,Fear,Emotion these are but modes
of transportation of story and thought, to take them from
society and you create a society of children and nannys.


http://zippydsmlee.wordpress.com/


Copyright infringement is nothing more than civil disobedience to a bad set of laws. Let's renegotiate them.

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Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

Raise a family on low income for a few years and I'll give your opinion some merit.

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XBOX LIVE GamerTag: Harry Miste | Steam ID: Harry Miste | PSN ID: HMiste | EYE. HAVE. YOU.

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Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

And also something that shouldn't be taken by politicians like this, if people so choose to donate best buy giftcards to the poor... 

Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

If you are old or sick AC is much needed.


Shearing/Downloading will never be a mainstream market.


Gore,Violence,Sexauilty,Fear,Emotion these are but modes
of transportation of story and thought, to take them from
society and you create a society of children and nannys


Copyright infringement is nothing more than civil disobedience to a bad set of laws. Let's renegotiate them.

---

http://zippydsm.deviantart.com/

Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

Sign me up for the class wars.

Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

It would've been nice if she had bought the consoles for the needy... Still wrong though.

Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

I think giving 2 times the cash equivalent would suffice as a replacement for the cards.  What the hell needy person needs to be wasting time with electronics when they need to find a JOB to not be needy anymore in the first place.  If anything I almost have to support these actions because they were Best Buy gift cards for the needy. 

Yes, they could be used for the kids, but with our luck, the people will just turn around and try to sue the game industry for creating an 'addictive' game that is rated M for a child that is 8 years old.  All in all, I can not totally smash her for her acts because of the fact there isn't much that needy could buy with them anyways that would help their situation, especially that cash couldn't do anyways.  Who the hell is giving out Best Buy gift cards to begin with?  These people need outfits, food, and the ability to pay bills, not electronics.  They can get a damn job, and quit being needy to get those types of things.

Being in a family that would have qualified as needy at one point in time, and never collected on it, this just goes beyond logic to me to rationalize the need of electronic store gift cards.  That is like buying a homeless African child a copy of GTA.  How is the child going to play it without 1 electricity, 2 a game console, and 3 a TV.  Granted, it would be useful for the people to have a TV, but there are some at Goodwill stacked up that work, even though most of them would need the converter box.  Still, not an absolute need, and I would still say raw cash, clothing, and help with bills to help encourage to get a job to be more important.  (I kind of rationalize it like, why are people in prison playing video games?  They are in jail, and it should be a punishment.  Would you send your child to his room in trouble and still let him keep his game console in there?  We need to discourage illegal acts, and stuff like that just encourages homeless people to do illegal stuff just to have a home and food.)

On topic though again, if she didn't put at least the equal amount of cash in there, then that is 100% wrong, but if she donated money to replace it so that it could be more helpful to the needy, then I have to encourage it.  Still, the theft is wrong, but it could work out.  Even if she bought those for the needy, TVs with an antenna to get the news would be more helpful than game consoles. (And having someone who is soon to be part of the family living off of the government right now that has a $40,000 2009 car, and everything paid for her, and the family wants her to go away other than the person marrying her, that its a mutual feeling in the family against people who live off of the government when it isn't needed, and those who are need to be honestly looking for a job...  Also had a co-worker at one point in time that worked for as long as she had to to get herself fired to get unemployment, and played that game for 30+ years...  sickens me...  perfectly capable people just refusing to work...)

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Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

 Poor people like nice things too ya know.

Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

Which for the truly needed great, but the people living off of the government which is common around my area and other big cities with people just too lazy instead of disabled or have a disorder...  it is BS and they need to get jobs.

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How to set Xbox 360 Parental Controls

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Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

According to the article, these were charitible donations from private citizens, not goverment handouts.

Re: Baltimore Mayor Allegedly Bought Game Systems With Gift

 And their kids should just run around the streets when not at school right? 

 
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TechnogeekIf the developer were male there wouldn't have been a "conversation" in the first place.10/19/2014 - 2:27am
Montetrolls are just at their absolute worst when it comes to women and feminist. You could bet good money that if the developer were male the trolls would be silent and the conversation would actually focus on the journalism.10/18/2014 - 9:18pm
MontePapa: Not the first time we've had a journalism scandals before, but the harassment never got close to this level; the difference with this scandal is that feminists are involved. Without the feminist angle, their would be A LOT less harrassment10/18/2014 - 9:15pm
Papa MidnightMonte: That's honestly rather short-sighted. As has been proven with other persons who have been targeted, if it wasn't Quinn, it would be someone else.10/18/2014 - 6:26pm
AvalongodI think that's part of what gives an esoteric news story like this real life...it taps into a larger narrative about misogyny in society outside of games.10/18/2014 - 3:29pm
Avalongod@Monte, well the trolls made death threats that came to police (and media attention). I think this is tapping into a larger issue outside of games about how women are treated in society (like all the "real rape" stuff during the last election)10/18/2014 - 3:28pm
WonderkarpZippy : Havent tried the PS4 controller. might later.10/18/2014 - 2:37pm
MonteSeirously, If Quinn was not involved and GG was instead about something like the Mordor Marketing contracts, the trolling would have never grown so vile and disgusting. There have been plenty of movements in the past that never sufferred from behavior..10/18/2014 - 1:57pm
MonteWe have seen scandel's before but the trolling has never been as vile as what we see with GG. Trolls usually have such a tiny voice you can barely notice them, but its like moths to a flame whenever femistist are involved.10/18/2014 - 1:53pm
ZippyDSMleeWonderkarp: You might be able to if you had a PS4 controller.10/18/2014 - 1:00pm
MaskedPixelantehttp://store.steampowered.com/app/327940/ Night Dive starts charging for freeware.10/18/2014 - 12:21pm
Matthew Wilsonthe sad thing is there are trolls on both sides of this. people need to stop acting like their side is so pure.10/18/2014 - 12:19pm
MechaTama31So, only speak out on a scandal that hasn't attracted trolls? I wouldn't hold my breath...10/18/2014 - 10:49am
MonteI feel like GG just needs to die. The movement is FAR to tainted by hatred and BS for it to be useful for any conversation. Let GG die, and then rally behind the NEXT gaming journalism scandal, and start the conversation fresh.10/18/2014 - 10:33am
quiknkoldand we dont have a Dovakin to call a cease fire10/17/2014 - 7:37pm
quiknkoldThe whole thing is Futile. Both sides are so buried deep in their trenchs that there isnt a conversation. Its just Finger Pointing, Name Calling, Doxxing, Threats. there needs to be a serious conversation, and GG isnt it.10/17/2014 - 7:37pm
quiknkoldI thought it was a good article. Jeff is right. I feel like GamerGate did destroy its message. I am for Ethics in game journalism, but man. so much hate. and its on both sides. I've seen some awful stuff spewed on twitter. Its a big reason why I exited..10/17/2014 - 7:34pm
Matthew Wilsonwhile he focused on gg, he did call out both sides crap.10/17/2014 - 7:18pm
Papa MidnightThat was a damn good read offered by Jeff Gertsmann.10/17/2014 - 7:17pm
Matthew Wilsonhttp://www.giantbomb.com/articles/letter-from-the-editor-10-17-2014/1100-5049/ deferentially a nice write up.10/17/2014 - 6:44pm
 

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