Are gamers really "old," fat and sad?

I just read an article from Reuters entitled, "Average gamer is 35, often overweight and sad: study." The tease for the article was at another article I was reading and read, "Are gamers old, fat and sad"? From the article:

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Video games might be regarded as an obsession for youngsters but in fact the average player is aged 35, often overweight, introverted and may be depressed, according to a U.S. study.

Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention looked at the behavior of 552 adults aged between 19 to 90 from the Seattle-Tacoma area.

They found 249 of these, or around 45 percent, were video-game players, with men accounting for 56 percent of these.

The researchers found that the men who played video games weighed more and used the Internet more than other men.

Women who played video games reported greater levels of depression and poorer overall health than non-gamers with researcher James Weaver and his colleagues suggesting video gaming for adults may be a form of "digital self-medication."

They said women in particular may immerse themselves in brain-engaging digital environments as a means of self-distraction.

First of all, 35 is not that old. And second, what's wrong with being an introvert? Some of us are introverts, some extroverts, and frankly, I don't think one is better than the other. Finally, maybe playing video games is better therapy than sitting around ruminating about one's problems or doing something destructive. Maybe games are one way that introverts can exert some control over their environment. Maybe digital "self-medication" is not such a bad thing. Who is to say playing videos is harmful? Especially after this study showing that games are not related to violence.

Frankly, given the way that our society treats those who are considered "old, "fat" or not as extroverted as others would like, maybe video games are not such a bad idea.

"People see a naked woman and they smile," he said. "They see a penis and they freak out."

This is a quote from a photographer who is snapping pictures of nude models around NYC (caution, nude model at the link):

A strip club isn't the only place in town you can see a pole dance -- amazed passengers on an L train watched in awe as a naked young woman competed with straphangers for space on a pole.

The performance by actress Jocelyn Saldana, 19, lasted just 30 seconds, and some of the passengers probably thought they were hallucinating or dreaming.

Most were blasé. But one woman started screaming and an elderly man next to her got the shakes.

That free show in mid-June -- as well as similar ones from Times Square to Chinatown -- were the creation of photographer Zach Hyman, 22, whose portraits are never under-exposed.

Apparently, it's harder to photograph naked men in public to be included in this "free show":

Alex Reisner, a 20-year-old Columbia student, had a very appreciative audience when she disrobed in Chinatown.

When Hyman snapped her jumping in the air in the middle of the street, the crowd burst into applause.

"There was so much adrenaline," she said. "I was bouncing around for the rest of the day. I told him I want to pose nude every weekend."

Hyman noted that "photographing females in public is easier than males.

"People see a naked woman and they smile," he said. "They see a penis and they freak out."

I am going to play a little naive here and ask you, dear readers, why you think this is so?

Michelle Malkin has an update on the Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom trial in Knoxville. More here at the Knoxville News Sentinel site.

Ivy league college bubble bust

John Wasik, author of a new book, The Audacity of Help: Obama's Economic Plan and the Remaking of America has a good article at Bloomberg news up today on the Ivy League college bubble:

A high-priced college may not be worth the price of admission.

As the economy forces more students out of the classroom and graduates into under- or unemployment, a college enrollment bubble may be starting to deflate.

The recession, combined with rising college costs, has accelerated a college affordability crunch that is exacerbated by shrinking family incomes, diminished home equity and reduced household wealth.

As many as one-third of all private colleges surveyed by the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities said they expected enrollment to drop in the next academic year.

The author has some good advice for those who will be going to college during this bubble:

If you are planning ahead, an even more important number to watch is the rate of tuition increase, which has averaged 7.3 percent annually for state universities over the past half- decade. Your college-savings portfolio rate of return will need to match or beat that number if you are going to keep up with the cost of college -- no easy feat over the last few years.

You would be particularly challenged to match the tuition increases in Hawaii and Kentucky, which have averaged more than 12 percent over that period.

An even simpler approach is to shop for a lower-priced college, search for grants and limit your debt as much as possible. That way, even if the job market is sour upon graduation, it will be less of a financial burden while you wait until all of the other financial bubbles have fully deflated.

Washington Examiner: For the Left, war without Bush is not war at all:

Not too long ago, some observers worried that Barack Obama would come under increasing pressure from the Left to leave both Iraq and Afghanistan. Now, it seems those worries were unfounded. For many liberal activists, opposing the war was really about opposing George W. Bush. When Bush disappeared, so did their anti-war passion.

I just saw on Drudge that 710 military deaths have occurred in the Afghanistan region thus far, yet the news on this topic currently is rare. It only matters if a Republican is in the White House, it seems.

Why shouldn't white men be angry?

Neo-neocon: "They're white. They're men. They're angry at Obama. Why, they must be angry white men."

And the rest of us who are not men who are against Obama's policies, we're white men too!