SCENARIO A:
A new computer game available free on the Internet promotes and encourages violence against characters in the game, which are deliberate stereotypes: submissive and sexy women, evil middle eastern terrorists, lazy minority members, and others. The violence is of course only game violence, but it is especially realistically portrayed. A large city experiences several cases of violence that are directly related to the computer game. (The perpetrators state that they had played the game and decided to act out the game "for real".) One city charges the game maker with inciting violence and with a number of other crimes. In the trial, the prosecutor points specifically to the fact the the violence is "encouraged" and to the fact that the the actions in the game are more realistic than in any other current similar game. The game maker rests on its free speech rights, saying that only a few people seem to have committed any violence; they likely would have done so with or without the game, and even if these few were directly inspired by the game, the game maker's free speech should be more important. After all, it is only a game, they argue.
SCENARIO B:
A U.S. telephone supplier manufactures a new cell phone that uses encryption to provide users with near-perfect security in their communications. Soon there are cases of drug lords, organized crime figures, and terrorists using these secure cell phones to evade wire taps ordered by courts. The U.S. government demands that the company cease manufacturing the phones, but the company refuses. In presenting the case to a judge, the government specifically mentions national security concerns. The company argues that there is little if any effect on national security, and that success in the commercial sector, particularly overseas, should be more important.
Assignment:
Write a one-page essay about either Scenario A or Scenario B. In either case you should give reasons for favoring the government or the individual company. You can give balanced reasons on both sides, or you can forcefully support one side over the other.
Ground rules for your essay (mostly as before):