  |
|
 |
Judge Rules in Favor of Rockstar |
 |
|
| Author |
Message |
PO Info |
 |
Shino
Fade into this fantasy, caught in the web of time
Age: 49
Gender: 
Joined: 15 Sep 2002 |
 Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2006 10:09 am Post subject: |
Sorry for the double post... but here's some good info.
Frak Thompson sends a really 5h177y letter to the judge about the whole situation. I'm just waiting for his licence to get revoked in FL.
I will be happy that day!
| Gamespot wrote: | Report: Judge OKs Bully
[UPDATE] Jack Thompson's attempt to keep Take-Two from shipping out its controversial game apparently thwarted; attorney compares decision to Iran nuclear crisis.
By Brendan Sinclair, GameSpot
Posted Oct 13, 2006 9:17 pm ET
Earlier this week, Florida lawyer Jack Thompson heralded "a historic ruling" to members of the press in a complaint he filed against Take-Two Interactive over its upcoming game Bully. Judge Ronald Friedman ordered Take-Two to provide a copy of the game so that he could review it behind closed doors on Thursday and see what all the fuss was about himself.
"It appears that finally the violent video game industry is going to be held accountable to someone," Thompson wrote in his Wednesday announcement.
However, things didn't go Thompson hoped. This morning, gaming site Destructoid reported that the judge ruled on the matter, saying he didn't see anything that should prevent Take-Two from shipping Bully.
"There's nothing in the game that you wouldn't see on TV every night," Friedman is quoted as saying. The judge added he wouldn't want his kids to play the game, "but that shouldn't mean that the game won't ship."
[UPDATE] Later, in an open letter to Friedman that was circulated to various game-press outlets, Thompson decried the decision using typically fiery language. "What you conducted in your chambers, Judge, was the equivalent of Iran leading UN weapons inspectors around the country taking them to places where the illegal activity was not occurring," he said.
Thompson also had some strong words for the judge himself. "Now that you have consigned innumerable children to skull fractures, eye injuries from slingshots, and beatings with baseball bats, without a hearing as to the danger, let me tell you a few things, with all respect for your office and with no respect for the arbitrary way in which you handled this matter," he wrote. "The way you conducted yourself today helps explain why a great Dade County Judge, the late Rhea Pincus Grossman, could not abide you."
The letter went on to:
a) Accuse Take-Two lawyer Rebecca Ward of "lying in [Friedman's] courtroom when she told [Friedman] that a 'Teen' rating is an age restriction at the point of sale." Indeed, such ESRB ratings are only enforced voluntarily by retail outlets.
b) Blast Friedman for "not allow[ing] a hearing to occur because the media there would have seen how you railroaded this entire matter--at the expense of children's safety." Specifically, Thompson made mention of a Miami Herald reporter in attendance.
In conclusion, Thompson said, "How dare you, Judge, promise a hearing today and then prevent that hearing from occurring. How dare you, Judge, petulantly order the production of the game after it is released on Tuesday morning. I didn't even ask for that. You did that out of spite, and you were smiling when you did that. You really enjoyed that one, didn't you, Judge? Next time you promise a 'hearing,' I'll bring a parent with me whose kid is in the ground because of a kid who trained to kill him or her on a violent video game. Try mocking that person, I dare you."
The letter can be read in its entirety on Kotaku and Game Politics. Bully ships on October 17 for the PlayStation 2; an Xbox version was canceled earlier this year. |
|
_________________
So many games... so little time
 |
|
|
 |
 |
Wins 190 - Losses 169
Level 21 |
EXP: 11590
HP: 3150
 |
STR: 1050
END: 1050
ACC: 1200
AGI: 1200
|
Bianco & Nero (Sabers)
(500 - 600) |
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
ScrumYummy
bunnyhunches of scrums
Gender: 
Joined: 29 Jun 2005 |
| Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2006 11:05 am Post subject: |
Haha. Yak Thompson, you silly goat >.> I like this that the judge said:
| Quote: | | "There's nothing in the game that you wouldn't see on TV every night," Friedman is quoted as saying. The judge added he wouldn't want his kids to play the game, "but that shouldn't mean that the game won't ship." |
People need to think along these lines when it comes to video games. It all comes down to active parenting. |
_________________
-Scrum-
..it borked. :D |
|
|
|
 |
Wins 23 - Losses 22
Level 7 |
EXP: 2313
HP: 2241
|
STR: 779
END: 731
ACC: 795
AGI: 795
|
Totem Doll (Sword)
(320 - 360) |
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Gryph
Pocket Convoy
Gender:
Joined: 26 Sep 2002 |
| Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 2:19 am Post subject: |
| Gamespot wrote: | | Next time you promise a 'hearing,' I'll bring a parent with me whose kid is in the ground because of a kid who trained to kill him or her on a violent video game. Try mocking that person, I dare you." |
I'd like to see him find one.  |
_________________
 
*Begin cool theme song*
Super! *pose*
Sentai! *pose*
Gryphman! *pose some more with lotsa neat special fx in the bg*
*End cool theme song* |
|
|
|
 |
Wins 7 - Losses 5
Level 5 |
EXP: 125
HP: 2400
|
STR: 400
END: 1000
ACC: 1000
AGI: 500
|
Gryph Bustah (Gun)
(200 - 420) |
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Shino
Fade into this fantasy, caught in the web of time
Age: 49
Gender:
Joined: 15 Sep 2002 |
| Posted: Mon Oct 23, 2006 2:46 pm Post subject: |
And Frak Thompson just keeps trying...
There was apparently a scene in the game where you can actually hook up with a guy in the game and have a "gay" scene.
I'm not really sure why this is a problem. I mean the only people that would actually have a problem with this is someone who is against gays... and honestly... do we really give a @#$@ about Frak ... I mean... them?
So... the question I would pose to Frak about this. So it's ok to have a boy and girl in the game making out for a 'T' rating, but if it's boy and boy or girl and girl, it's supposed to be 'M?' And since when is "making out" sexual content?
Not to mention, they even print that there is "sexual themes" on the box, so even if you do consider making out to be sexual content, they cover themselves. The content is the same, what's the difference if it's deemed "gay or straight."
Also, I'm really sick of his sarcasm in letters to PROFESSIONALS! This guy is supposed to be some big shot lawyer, yet he writes letters to other professionals like a pissed off child. I just don't get it. How does this guy have any credibility at all with anyone?
| Gamespot wrote: | Bully's boy-on-boy scenes causing a stir
Rockstar's latest lets players experiment with same-sex make-out sessions; ESRB says that content was considered in assigning the game a T-for-Teen rating.
By Brendan Sinclair, GameSpot
Posted Oct 23, 2006 1:46 pm ET
Rockstar Games' Bully has been the subject of controversy since it was first announced more than a year ago. The game shipped to retail last week after a failed 11th hour attempt by Florida lawyer Jack Thompson to have it banned.
However, the controversy surrounding the game might not be over with just yet. In navigating the angst-filled halls of Bullworth Academy as 15-year-old Jimmy Hopkins, players can participate in some extracurricular tonsil hockey with significant others. But while these significant others are typically female, there's at least one other boy in the game whom Jimmy can successfully court, as documented by this in-game video from GameBrink.
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) surprised some people last month when it issued a T for Teen rating for the game. The content descriptors listed for the game on the ESRB's Web site consist of crude humor, language, use of alcohol and tobacco, violence, and sexual themes. When asked about the boy-on-boy makeout sessions, the ESRB told GameSpot, "That content was considered in the assignment of the rating."
Thompson addressed ESRB president Patricia Vance in an e-mail he claimed to have sent to "every major news organization in America and the UK," as well as a host of lawmakers and industry representatives.
"Dear Ms. Vance," Thomspon wrote, "We just found gay sexual content in Bully, as Jimmy Hopkins makes out with another male student. Good luck with your 'Teen' rating now, Patty."
A representative from Bully publisher Take-Two had not responded to a request for comment as of press time. |
|
_________________
So many games... so little time
Last edited by Shino on Tue Oct 24, 2006 9:00 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
|
|
|
Wins 190 - Losses 169
Level 21 |
EXP: 11590
HP: 3150
|
STR: 1050
END: 1050
ACC: 1200
AGI: 1200
|
Bianco & Nero (Sabers)
(500 - 600) |
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Shino
Fade into this fantasy, caught in the web of time
Age: 49
Gender:
Joined: 15 Sep 2002 |
| Posted: Mon Oct 23, 2006 4:31 pm Post subject: |
Sorry double post, but I thought this deserved a bump for people who have already read my previous post.
UPDATE!
Frak accused of Contempt!
I hope the SOB goes to prison and loses all credibility!
| Gamespot wrote: | Thompson to be accused of contempt?
Take-Two lawyers reportedly ask that the incendiary anti-tame attorney be brought up on charges related to his outburst following a judge's ruling on Bully.
By Tor Thorsen, GameSpot
Posted Oct 23, 2006 4:08 pm ET
For years, Jack Thompson has been famous--and infamous--for his own personal brand of heated rhetoric. Often using biblical references and the odd bit of apocalyptic language, the Miami-eara Attorney has called for the banning of numerous games, including the Sims 2 and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
The latest title to earn Thompson's ire is Bully, Rockstar Games' critically acclaimed adventure game which follows a teenage trouble-maker through the travails of boarding school. Earlier this month, Thompson tried to have sales of the game, which has sparked controversy for its depictions of teenager-on-teenager violence and boy-on-boy heavy petting, halted on legal grounds.
As part of his efforts to halt sales of Bully, Thompson petitioned Miami Judge Ronald Friedman to view the game before it went on sale last week. However, when the judge approved the game for sale, Thompson went ballistic, accusing the judge of "smiling" as he approved the sale of a game which would inspire teenagers to commit acts of violence as extreme as murder.
Now, it appears Thompson's sharp words to Judge Friedman may land him in hot legal water. According to the blog GamePolitics.com, lawyers for Rockstar Games parent Take-Two Interactive are asking that Thompson be held in contempt of court for his comments to Judge Friedman.
Lawyers from the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, law firm Blank Rome, which Thompson has publicly accused of organizing a conspiracy against him personally, have reportedly filed a "Petition for Order to Show Cause" against Thompson. If granted, the petition would compel Thompson to appear in Friedman's court to explained why he shouldn't be held in contempt of court--a charge that carry a hefty fine and imprisonment of several months if Thompson were convicted.
While potentially serious, the charges have not yet been leveled at Thompson. However, that has not stopped the attorney from preemptively attacking Take-Two in a flurry of e-mails sent out to media outlets." The motion to show cause filed by defendant Take-Two is a transparent, panicked attempt to cover up the misconduct, including the fraudulent misrepresentations to the public and to this Court, by its employees and its counsel, Blank Rome," Thompson said in an e-mail.
"If this court in any fashion proceeds toward issuing a show cause order, given its utter baselessness and the bad faith goo in which it slithers, then Thompson will add whatever judge should do so as a defendant in the aforementioned federal civil rights action," he said, referring to the case he brought to halt Bully's sale. (Emphasis in the original.) "Plaintiff has seen arbitrariness from judges before in his thirty years of practicing law, but nothing close to this. If the federal judiciary must restrain this Court and punish it, then so be it." |
|
_________________
So many games... so little time
|
|
|
|
|
Wins 190 - Losses 169
Level 21 |
EXP: 11590
HP: 3150
|
STR: 1050
END: 1050
ACC: 1200
AGI: 1200
|
Bianco & Nero (Sabers)
(500 - 600) |
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Ultrawolf
Mr. Roarke
Gender:
Joined: 04 Jul 2003 |
| Posted: Mon Oct 23, 2006 4:38 pm Post subject: |
Honestly it's kind of rediculous. I've been playing Bully and while I'm not overly fond of GTA, I dig the niche that Bully has made for itself. It's alot of harmless fun with all the goofball stuff in the game. (Trading transister radio parts for fighting lessons from a vietnam veteran/hobo who lives behind a broken down bus = Awesome). It's like Dennis the Menace grows up and goes to high school. |
_________________
Welcome... |
|
|
|
 |
Wins 115 - Losses 130
Level 17 |
EXP: 831
HP: 2800
|
STR: 1000
END: 900
ACC: 1100
AGI: 1000
|
Legacy (Shotgun)
(400 - 550) |
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
|
