Daddy Gonad Expected To Sign His Baby's Ass Into Law

By Sam Bakken in News on May 31, 2005 7:15PM

Yep, we've decided to add the nickname to our lexicon, but not without a proper nod to its originator. We were particularly partial to "Gov. BJ", but "Gov. Gonad" is just irresistible to us boors. So anyway, moving on...

A while back we told you about Gov. Gonad's efforts to restrict the sale of violent or sexually-explicit video games. Then in March we told you that the bill passed in the House and was moving onto the Senate. The bill passed in the Senate, with amendments, was sent back to the House and on Saturday they approved it 106-6. This makes Illinois the only state with such a law (the First Amendment Center does a good job explaining why).

We can't help but give credence to some republicans that say it was a whole lot o' nuttin' conveniently distracting from more pressing matters. Especially after we called and talked to a couple of clerks at some local video game retailers. We talked to employees of Gamestop, Game Crazy and EB Games, and all of them said they already, for the most part, regulate themselves.

All three have policies requiring them to check IDs when they sell games rated M for "Mature" by the Entertainment Software Rating Board. The clerk at Game Crazy told us they wouldn't sell these sorts of games to anyone under the age of 18 and the EB Games clerk told us they won't sell them to anyone under 17, though he said that will change when the new bill goes into effect. The Gamestop clerk told us they check IDs on M-rated games and R-rated DVDs. We forgot to clarify whether 17 or 18-years-old was the cut-off and when we called back someone else answered and refused to answer the question—protect that juicy info!

The bill calls for retailers to label all violent and sexually explicit video games with a white 2-inch by 2-inch "18" outlined in black. The bill also requires that retailers that sell or rent these types of games display posters saying that the ESRB rating system exists and provide brochures explaining the system. Violators of these two rules will pay $1,000 for each of their first three offenses and $5,000 for each offense after that. For actually selling or renting violent or sexually explicit games to a minor the fine is $5,000.