Pac-Banned
Have you ever played Pac-Man? Not me. I LIVED Pac-Man, bro. My best friend and I would plunk every quarter our mothers we had into that machine, and we focused on that gluttonous yellow sphere and his spectral tormentors with all of our might. Of course, we were five, so that focus only lasted for about ten minutes. But the flashing lights probably doubled our usual attention span. I really miss playing that game. I’m almost tempted to put on my best tissue boxes on my feet, and go to the bar near me that has it. I would use my exorbitant blogger salary to buy one for myself, but the current owners say that can’t guarantee that the joystick has never been coughed on. Would you excuse me for a moment? I need to go drink some hand sanitizer.
It seems that the people of Marshfield, MA don’t have the same fond memories of Pac-Man as I do, because they banned it (and all other coin-operated games) 32 years ago. I’m sure they had a good reason for it. I bet Marshfield kids started mimicking the violent behaviors of Pac-Man and starting eating ghosts. No, it’s even worse? Oh no, please tell me it’s not the scourge of mankind. The awful, the dreaded… TRUANCY!
The games are said to be addictive to youth, who will skip school and spend unreasonable sums of money to play them at a quarter — and sometimes 50 cents — a pop, says Thomas R. Jackson, a retired narcotics agent and the resident who proposed the ban. Further, he says, gambling and drug activity are connected to the video game locations where youth congregate unsupervised. (Via)
The people of Marshfield unsuccessfully tried to overturn the ban in 1994 and 2011. Seriously? Does the town cable provider only broadcast Fox News? Recently, Marshfield resident Craig Rondeau was able to rally local businesses, and force the town to put it to a vote once again. The ban was overturned, 203 votes to 175. That’s right, 175 people in that bustling metropolis still think that coin-operated video games should be banned. I guess they don’t realize that kids can play video games in their own homes, and they never have to worry about running out of quarters. Finally, Pac-Man is allowed in town again, and he’ll have his revenge on those who kept him out for so long. When those folks pass on, he’ll eat their ghosts right before they make it to heaven.
Via Hypervocal