Still Free

Yeah, Mr. Smiley. Made it through the entire Trump presidency without being enslaved. Imagine that.

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Rule Followers’ Flock to a Convention Where Fake Violence Reigns

Nowhere is violence in entertainment more prominently on display than at Comic-Con. And yet, historically, all of the attendees have been strikingly well behaved.

“They are rule followers,” Lt. Marshall White, a San Diego police officer, said of the Comic-Con masses. Lieutenant White, who oversees patrols at the convention, added, “To them, the police are superheroes.”

This is the Comic-Con mystery — and it highlights the question at the heart of a prickly debate over violence in entertainment: Is violent behavior in real life influenced by the mayhem that viewers consume on screens big and small?

This may come as a shock to certain people but not only is Comic Con "safe" but at places where real guns are dealt with, like Gun shows and NRA conferences, there are no incidences of violence. None.

Same cannot be said of certain "Bike Week" and "Expo" events. I'll say it as it has been said again, it is not the gun. It is not the video game. It is not the role playing. It is the mentality of the group.