Bake Cookies, Beat Internet Addiction

Altough addiction to ANYTHING is possible, I don't think that there are really sufficient cases of internet/computer/online/games addiction to warrant such centers.

There are people that has other problems, and use these as tools to solve their problem, like some people that get drunk to forget problems (and these cases, sending them to the anonymous alcohoolics does not help), or in extreme cases, suicides.

I know people that got themselves playing in entire days and nights, like people say a "MMORPG addict", but what they were addicted was not the game itself, it was the community of the game, they needed the other people that played the game and made them happy, while at home they got parents that ignored them, were bullied at school and only got more problems instead of solutions because of their socially defensive behavior.

If you see for example the case of Columbine, yes, they do played too much games and were socially withdraw, but people forget that as they started to accumulate problems, they got punished instead of helped, only spiraling them more.

I saw stuff like that in person (happily, without the shooting), and I am one that sometimes go dangerously toward that path too, hated people search someone to love them, if they find respect on a game that they pwn everyone else, they will stick there, until people keep hating them enough to make them feel that they have nothing to lose, when a person reach this point the result is a suicide, sometimes taking others with them.

The solution for those "adictions" is not a addiction center, it is more care, strong family values, and a educated society that don't act in a extremely individualistic way all the time.

criadordejogos.wordpress.com

So defeat one "addiction" by encouraging another (food addiction) and unhealthy eating practices as well as encouraging scapegoatism rather than facing the real problem of why he choose escapism (in general) over performing certain important tasks such as school work.

Imagine a sign that says "Professionals at work" with a circle around the words and a line drawn through them.

Nightwng2000

NW2K Software

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Nightwng2000 is now admin to the group "Parents For Education, Not Legislation" on MySpace as http://groups.myspace.com/pfenl

Ah of course.  VIDEO GAMES made him flunk out. He didn't just fail at classes and give up, deciding to waste the rest of the semester is his dorm room playing WoW, like another case I know of.

Now, an anecdote.  The following is a real story.  Names will not be given, but I will make them up.  This isn't an embellishment, it is the gospel truth.

An individual, one whom we shall call John, began college in 2005  His first semester, he lived in a lovely suite, one of the few in his dorm.  As such, he had a room to himself, as well as a shared bathroom, kitchenette, and living room.  The first few weeks, he went to class, and struggled to keep his grades at the C to D range.  He played WoW during his spare time, and had a mediocre social life (mainly due to the fact that he was basically socially retarded).  About the time that mid-term testing began, his grades dipped into the D-F range, and he gave up.  He spent all his time in his dorm room, eating cheetos and other packaged chips/cracker sandwiches, and was never off the computer.  Eventually, his parents came to the school, and took his credit card, his money, his laptop, and all his games, hoping to get him to at least attend class again.  Instead, he sold his books to students who had lost theirs, managing to scrounge up enough money to buy a cheap laptop and a CO2 powered airsoft gun, and was caught shooting at cars and people in the parking lot outside of his dorm room with it.  He was expelled for doing so, and because his attendance and grades were garbage.  He was expelled before the first semester ended.

Moral of the story?  Academic failure came first, his jackassery came later.  And no, I didn't witness this whole event; it was a friend's child.  And the story makes me laugh and laugh and laugh

So he's paying $14,000 just to be distracted? He doesn't seem like the brightest bulb...  

Battling game addiction with junk food. Nice concept.

The cynical side of videogames (spanish only): http://thelostlevel.blogspot.com/ My DeviantArt Page (aka DeviantCensorship): http://www.darkknightstrikes.deviantart.com/