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Video game "loot boxes" may become federally illegal??......

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rstofer:
Somebody, usually an adult, owns the credit card used to pay for this nonsense.  One call to the 800 number on the back of the card can have it cancelled.  A replacement can usually be shipped 'overnight'.

I find the practice reprehensible - Brumby got it right - and if people think legislation is the answer, go for it.

We see something similar with enabled test equipment options that disappear after some trial time period.  Then you can use your credit card to get them back (unless the device can be 'unlocked').  This is usually happening to an adult that has a job and owns the credit card.

Mr. Scram:

--- Quote from: David Hess on June 15, 2020, 05:01:24 pm ---Lawmakers do not have a problem with gambling as long as they get a cut.  Witness the shenanigans with various state lotteries in the US.

--- End quote ---
They tend to do when children are involved. I really have trouble imagining what kind of lowlife scum you have to be to consciously design gambling into a product for children and young adults. "Your own responsibility" also becomes hazy when addiction is involved.

Mr. Scram:

--- Quote from: Smokey on June 15, 2020, 07:49:01 am ---Again, Correct.  I actually have a feeling kids and loot boxes have a lot more in common than people think.  Your genetics and the chemistry in your brain make it essentially biologically compelling to roll the kids dice and you have zero guarantees how your kids roll will turn out.  You may be hoping for an "epic", but that's far from certain and there are no re-rolls.  Maybe if more people had a clearer understanding of the small print that comes along with kids they would make different decisions up front about if that's their best investment.
https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2017/01/13/cost-raising-child


And I feel like you are making some of my points with the comparisons to casino gambling and pervasive advertising and other "adult" influences.  You either learn how to navigate the difficult parts of the world early or you learn it later, and the later you learn these things the more serious and costly the lessons become.  When there is too much of an artificial shelter from all perceived dangers early on (parental or legislative), then you get people who think "adulting" is something that you start learning how to do after you turn 25.

--- End quote ---
For some intents and purposes "adulting" does start at 25 as the brain develops up to that age. We see what look like functioning adults but not all parts are. It's just not as visible. Impulse control is one of the things to develop last and guess what gambling targets? It's not as if we don't protect children from drugs or other activities they're likely to hurt themselves with.

james_s:

--- Quote from: Mr. Scram on June 15, 2020, 09:02:16 pm ---For some intents and purposes "adulting" does start at 25 as the brain develops up to that age. We see what look like functioning adults but not all parts are. It's just not as visible. Impulse control is one of the things to develop last and guess what gambling targets? It's not as if we don't protect children from drugs or other activities they're likely to hurt themselves with.

--- End quote ---

For some "adulting" never starts. My mother in law is in her 60s and is as impulsive as any teenager. She pisses away money like it grows on trees, at one point she inherited more than I've earned throughout my entire career and within a couple of years she was out of money again. On the other hand some young people are surprisingly responsible.

Experience has taught me that you can't save everyone from themselves and you can't legislate morality or common sense.

Mr. Scram:

--- Quote from: james_s on June 16, 2020, 04:24:02 am ---For some "adulting" never starts. My mother in law is in her 60s and is as impulsive as any teenager. She pisses away money like it grows on trees, at one point she inherited more than I've earned throughout my entire career and within a couple of years she was out of money again. On the other hand some young people are surprisingly responsible.

Experience has taught me that you can't save everyone from themselves and you can't legislate morality or common sense.

--- End quote ---
Sure. That doesn't detract from the fact that children and developing young adults are ill equipped to deal with gambling mechanisms. Adults get themselves in trouble with gambling regularly and they stand a much better chance. It's not a matter of "can't teach some", it's keeping them from a carefully crafted trap they aren't supposed to deal well with. It's like spiking the orange juice at an AA meeting and making a business model out of it, except even less fair.

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