Hillary contra porn: A good cause for 2008

According to the L.A. Times, Hillary Clinton has "called for a federal investigation into a downloadable modification that turns the best-selling computer game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas into an interactive porn movie". (See here.)

Well, good for her. Seriously. I'm something of a cultural libertarian, as many of you know, but there's really no excuse for this. Many video games are bad enough as they are without the addition of explicit pornography, and the Grand Theft Auto offerings are among the very worst. If you don't believe me, go check them out and get back to me. In the meantime, answer this: Do you want your child -- do you want any child, for that matter -- playing a game where you can pick up a prostitute, do her in the back of your car, shoot her, and take your money back? Yeah, that's what Hillary's talking about. "We have reached the point where video games with truly pornographic and violent content are being peddled to our children," she said. Something needs to be done about it, and, whatever one thinks of her proposals, at least she's raised the issue.

I realize that she's already running for president and that 2008 is, in political terms, just around the corner, but there's nothing wrong with pressing a good cause.

(For more of my views on "culture," see here. With liberty must come responsibility.)