I can't believe it. I am sooo addicted to chess.com recently... Anyone else having these weird feelings?
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/06/ama-retreats-fr.html
After planning to add game addiction to a list of psychiatric disorders, the American Medical Association is now quickly backpedaling, accompanied by the theme tune from Benny Hill. In a statement released Thursday, it points out that almost all children play games and that it's up to parents to make sure their kids aren't overdoing it.
"The American Medical Association (AMA) today called for more research on the long-term beneficial and detrimental effects of video game and Internet use, as well as a review of the current video game ratings system."
The problem here isn't hard to unravel: the AMA knows it will look stupid if it persists. Common sense suggests that playing games is much like television, sports and other potentially obsessive activities, and we should be wary about letting it become a psychological crutch. But describing this with the language usually reserved for ailments concerning drugs, alcohol, sex, and other hardwired bugbears of the human condition, opens the doors to almost any compelling activity potentially being cast as a pathology. This would have certain legal and medical consequences.
Chess addiction, anyone? I'll need disability benefits and insurance coverage for that, kthx.
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