Rising Gun Violence

I am very concerned about the growing amount of gun violence in American entertainment. I know I hold an unpopular view but I truly believe the horrific incidents of gun violence in movie theaters, schools, and shopping malls are linked to the pervasiveness and permissiveness of gun violence in entertainment. 

I do not claim that people who watch such violence turn into violent criminals. Nor do I think gun rights of responsible gun owners should be taken away. In fact, I believe such rights are guaranteed by the Constitution. However I do think there is some detrimental effect on the viewer who is exposed to a lot of this style of entertainment. Such a person is, I believe, desensitized to gun violence. Also, studies have shown a correlation between this exposure and higher levels of aggression. 

A recent study has established that gun violence in PG-13 movies has grown significantly and are now more violent than even R-rated movies: http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-78139868/

Now movie studios know that they need the teenager market to be profitable so there is an economic incentive for them to push as much adult content into a PG-13 movie as they can get away with. This is why I think the whole idea of self-regulation, via the MPAA, is laughable. But they are politically well-connected and thus better oversight won't happen. 

So what is the Star Wars connection? Well it is something I struggle with. There is plenty of gun violence in the Saga. Yes it involves fantasy-style blasters, but that is more of a technicality. 

I have most of the seasons of the Clone Wars on DVD and now that my son is showing an interest, we are watching them together. It seems to me that there is much more violence than what I am accustomed to in the original trilogy or Episode I. 

Granted the name of the series is called Star WARS for crying out loud so it's not like there should be pillow fights. Yet in the back of my mind I keep thinking that this is much more violence than what I was exposed to when I was my son's age. 

I don't really have an easy answer to my dilemma other than to moderate the frequency of watching these shows. Perhaps the future movies will see more weaponry that is not as clumsy or as random as a blaster but more elegant weapons for a more civilized age. 

One can always hope.