TED Community » Dan Chase

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A comment on Conversation: Debate: Video games are the drug of the century

Dec 12 2012: I would categorize video games as addicting, however I would not categorize them as a Drug. A drug is a chemical used for medicinal or recreational purposes that either alter your perception or treat an illness and/or symptoms of an illness. Video games are not ingested, nor do they introduce anything foreign to the body. Categorizing video games as a drug would be a major blow to those who enjoy it both heavily and in small doses. I personally believe that people should be able to do what they want provided they are not hurting anyone around them. Playing video games is not unlike taking antidepressants except that it's harder to quit physically addicting drugs. I would feel horrible if a gamer who games specifically to self medicate was viewed as negative, especially if that same person were to take over the counter drugs or prescription drugs and not viewed as negative.