Vocal game violence critic to debate Activision VP in March

Activision vice-president George Rose will debate California state senator Leland Yee on March 17 at the San Francisco Commonwealth Club. The two will spar on the topic of restricting sales of violent video games, with Yee, a vocal critic of games in the past, presumably taking the negative side, and Rose the affirmative. Yee was the author of California's violent video game law, which was challenged and generated a case that was argued in front of the Supreme Court last year.

Stanford Constitutional Law Center director Michael McConnell will join the two men in the debate, while John Diaz of the San Francisco Chronicle will moderate. Tickets are $20 for non-club members, $12 for club members, and $7 for students. The venue opens its doors at 5:30. Here's their summarization of the debate:

"Do violent video games present a danger to national safety? Should selling them be restricted, as with pornography? Critics argue that there is a link between children's exposure to violent video games and their increased likelihood to commit violent acts. In a time when it is very easy for individuals to carry out senseless acts of violence, the state government has passed a law that bans the sale of video games deemed “ultra-violent” to children under 18. AB 1179 was signed into law by Gov. Schwarzenegger in 2005 but is not in effect because of an injunction. The Supreme Court has heard arguments and will soon decide how far the government should go to protect the well-being of our children in a case that touches on free speech, national safety and the rights of video game manufacturers and retailers."