Hey! Jacko! You're back! I missed you and your crazy incoherent ramblings. How's obscurity been treating you?

He's a non-issue as he always been. This shit should just be laughed at and dismissed.

EDIT: Anyone see a comparison of his 5PM Shtick to that one Episode of The Twilight Zone (Four O'Clock) where the main character threatens to shrink every evil at precisely Four O' Clock only to find himself shrunk at that hour?

Whilst Jack Thompson is a complete idiot I gotta say he isn't exactly unjustified in his complaint of this mod, hell, even I think it's a fucking stupid idea to make a game based on school shootings.

Apparently Gabe Newell sent this to Jack in his reply

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_n5E7feJHw0

I hate being right all the time.

Uh-huh...

Every time something like this happens, it just gets me more excited for the Duke Nukem launch, and the subsequent inevitable flood of anti-gaming rants.

I actually had to do a memory search on my brain to remember who Thompson was and why I should care about what he said.

I'm still trying to find out why I should care about what he says.

Andy Chalk:

Thompson's letter in full:

"Dear Mr. Newell:

You either know or should know that the more moral midgets who run Checkerboarded Studios have created a mod for your company's Half-Life which they call School Shooter: North American Tour 2012. This mod is a full-blown Columbine massacre simulator which cannot function without your company's assistance and acquiescence.

Attached herewith is a letter from FHE-ASAP that expresses their, my, and others' concerns about this Columbine massacre mod. As you either know or should know, your Half-Life murder simulator was obsessively played, and thus became a training aid, for a) teenaged Robert Steinhauser, who authored at Erfurt, Germany, the worst school shooting massacre in European history, and b) Seung-Hi Cho, who authored at Virginia Tech University the worst school shooting massacre in world history. As to the latter, the sources of this information are the Washington Post and the New York Times. Now some sociopaths have made reprises of Erfurt and Virginia Tech far more likely.

Given the fact that your company has the technological ability to stop the operation of School Shooter, you must undertake steps immediately to do so.

Speaking for myself alone (for now), you have until five o'clock pm Eastern standard time this Friday, March 18, 2011, to shut down this public safety hazard I predicted years ago this school massacre game would arrive. I hate being right all the time.

GOVERN YOURSELF ACCORDINGLY.

Regards, Jack Thompson"

All I saw was:

Ih8pkmn:
Scotty, activate Flame Shields!

I hate to say it, But I kind of have to agree with him.(My spleen expels itself in sheer disbelief at my statement). Ow.

Anyway, I have to agree with him in principle, but not in practice. Valve should take down the school shooter mod. How would you feel if you were a parent who's child was involved in a school shooting only to find out that this game existed? Think about it.

Valve needs to kill this mod. It's disrespectful, and I don't care what the modder says. It's sick.

Face-saver: That V-tech statement in the letter is so full of shit, it's container is also made of shit. Jack, you're a disgrace.

I like things that are sick... There are films, books, and all other media forms that exploit real life tragedies. Why are games so sacrosanct?

Also I don't think that's how all Mods work. At best he could release a Cease and Desist Order (I think). The content is not currently (nor has it ever been) hosted on Steam.

God, I love Jack Thompson. Maybe it's because I find him to be so non-threatening that I've actually developed a respect for the guy. It's like watching an episode of House. You may not believe or agree with a damn word he continually spouts, but you can't help but love and respect his antics (especially his entertainment value).

ThatDudeWithTheCap:
Saying Half-Life is a murder simulator is like saying Silent Hill 2 is a rape simulator.

Am I a bad person for laughing at the idea of that? Because I totally just did. (Always wondered how that game managed to sneak past the radar, though.)

OT: This guy is such an ass. "I hate being right all the time"? Seriously? How old is he? This really does just smack of some pathetic moron desperately proclaiming from the rooftops that he is still important and relevant and we still should totally listen to him PLEASE OH PLEASE. No wonder he's been disbarred, and thank God. That being said, I hope Gabe comes out with something really badass in response. Just to prove a point.

A persistent attention whore/troll, people. Let's move along.

Words cannot express my feelings so i'll have to settle for a facepalm.

Well... time to grab my shotgun. Boys! We're goin' huntin' tonight! WOOT!

No one cares about attention whores like you Jack! Not even your imaginary followers!

What I really want to see is gabe's actual response. Just out of interest.

Or else what is my question.

I almost forgot about it.

Why did Jack have to bring it back up and throw it into light? That'll just make it popular.

Jack your not worth it.

/nuffsaid

This is just sad
http://cdn1.knowyourmeme.com/i/7282/original/Facepalm.jpg

Allow me to activate my flame shield before I say anything.

Thank you Mr. Thompson, I just lost ten dollars because of you. A few years ago, I made a bet that I would never stand on the same side of the fence of an argument as you. It seems there's a first time for everything. This mod -is- amoral, vulgar, repulsive, and should never have been made, and probably would never have been made by anyone with a sound mind. So, for the first time, I do agree with you that this mod should not exist.

That being said, you live in a country that honours its freedoms very highly (or at least, used to.) To censor this game would trample upon some of the founding principles of the country you claim to defend. And that is unacceptable, I do not approve of this mod, and I know I am not alone, and I'm glad you have voiced your disapproval of it, but threatening the company that created the software this mod was created with is as inneffectual and juvenile as trying to blame the Wright Brothers for the September 11th attacks, or blaming spelling mistakes on your pen or keyboard. Valve made the tools, this mod is being created by someone who has no affiliation with hte company, just as a photographer doesn't work for Nikon or Canon, these people do not work for Valve, and so Valve has zero control over what their product is used for.

In short, your strongly worded letter is as effective at getting your point to the right ears as my strongly worded forum post is here.

Oh Jack!

*put hands on hips*

*Cue laugh track*

This is the first time I agree with this game hating... um... (insert mean name here), the mod looks to be -->very<-- offensive to any of the schools who have suffered the shootings, but don't attack Valve! go for the mod. Their the ones who are making it.

("As you either know or should know, your Half-Life murder simulator was obsessively played, and thus became a training aid, for a) teenaged Robert Steinhauser, who authored at Erfurt, Germany"

So a game where you shoot slow moving zombies and jumping aliens is just like shooting a bunch of humans? pfft)

they shouldnt get rid of the mod, they should change it. call it: the most dangerous game.

situation: you are a millionare hunter on your own island. you gave jack thompson 2 hours to run. you have to hunt him down. the entire time you chase him he screams "I KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN!!!"

edit: wait... no... he would probably try to sue you. change the name to tom jackson and hope that counts for plausable denyablity

I don't think I need to add anything new; some of the posters have encompassed my feelings pretty clearly on this issue. But does the Block Quote have quotation marks???

Hit-Girl said it best:

"What a douche"

I highly doubt that Valve is responsible for the content that someone else has likely created. Also, Jack here is full of shit, and couldn't bring down the hammer on Valve if he tried. Though I must say that this mod is in incredibly poor taste. I do hope that it disappears.

Were I Newell, I would send him one official, formal letter:

Dear Mr. Thompson

No.

I love the use of the term "author" as a way of saying "committed an act of mass murder." It's got a beauty to it. So refined. Now when I tell people I'm going to be an "author," I can do it with an evil smile.

Ever notice how all the cool people get killed in car accidents but the douche-bags live forever?

*blacksout from stupidity*