Video game addicts can be party animals too

When I was a kid, I usually found myself doing one of two things: playing video games at home or trying as best as I could to attract every girl I saw. Was I a video game addict? Probably. Was a socialite? Yep. And you know what? I wasn't alone.

According to a report from Reuters, Daniel Loton, an Australian graduate student found that "15 percent of 621 adult respondents to an online survey were identified as "problem gamers" who spend more than 50 hours a week playing games."

But only 1 percent of those respondents had poor social skills and shyness, suggesting the cheerleaders in school were wrong: video game addicts are cool too.

Sweet, sweet justice.

The beauty of this new study isn't that it tells us something we didn't already know--I was known as the cool dude on campus for a reason, you know--but it helps us combat the fools who insist that video games are bad for children and hinder their ability to interact in the real world.

Ah, yes, the sweet smell of victory. Remember all the times we were forced to listen to the uninformed drone on about their penchant for "active pastimes?" You know, people like Giles Whittell who wants children to "overdose on wind, rain, mud, gravy, tents, mountains and overcooked bacon. (Oh, and do their homework.)" What wonderful days those were, weren't they?

But alas, we now have some evidence (at the very least) that video games are not the root of all evil and succeeding generations will not be the dolts of the world, but just like you and me--pillars of society (I think).

Of course, we shouldn't get too comfortable. Countless studies will soon crop up telling us why social interaction will never be the same because of video games and we'll be forced to listen to the same rhetoric all over again.

But I don't care because, well, we all know the truth. Years ago, television was said to harm the development of children and yet, that generation carried the country through wars, saw an African-American become a major party presidential candidate, and ushered in the technology age.

If a few crappy TV shows and the Lone Ranger can do that much, can you imagine what a little Mario and Solid Snake can do? The generation that has been reared on video games may be able to fly to Mars, set up a colony, play a quick round of 18 on the moon, and call it a day.

If I've said it once, I've said it 53,000 times--video games are not bad for us, video games are not the root of all evil, and for cryin' out loud, video games will not ruin the world's children.

Now, the RIAA, on the other hand...

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