Terror in Erfurt: The Entertainment Impact

Note: This is part one of a special three part tssz|news series to be done all week in the wake of the shootings at a high school in Erfurt, Germany.

Close to the third anniversary of the Columbine High School shootings, shots fire in school halls again–not in America, but in Europe.

A very deadly shooting has hit a continent that has not seen anything near the rash of school related violence–Europe; in a country that has the toughest gun restrictions in the world–Germany; in a town that seemed just as calm and peaceful as any other area–Erfurt.

On Friday, 19 year old Robert Steinhäuser, angered from being expelled at his high school, brought a gun into Gutenberg High School and opened fire before killing himself, killing seventeen people in all. A heroic teacher prevented the shooting spree from being even worse. German Interior Minister Otto Schily plans to give him Germany’s highest civilian honor.

A landscape of flowers and other various condolences now lay in front of the school, with parents, relatives, and friends of victims, as well as members of the school community, still in a state of mourning.

Now, the weekend after the attacks, both those close to the school and Steinhäuser, in addition to the German government, are wondering who–or what–to blame for the outbreak of such horror.

Some believe that Germany’s gun laws are to blame, despite being the toughest in the world. German politicians are now considering whether to re-tighten the gun laws in the country, questioning whether doing so earlier would have prevented the shooting from happening.

Others in Germany are now blaming violent media and so-called “violent” video games–much like how politicans were blaming games for the Columbine shootings in 1999.

Steinhäuser played Counter-strike–a well liked and much used mod of Sierra Studios’ Half-Life. In fact, the mask he wore when opening fire on his former peers was eerily similar to the ones wore by combatants in Counter-strike.

Now, the restriction of violent media and video games are quickly becoming a major subject in German politics.

According to a Deutsche Welle report, calls to restrict violent media began as early as February of 2000. Two years have passed, and not a single piece of legislation has been produced on the matter.

Now, the German Family Ministry is re-issuing the plea to restrict, perhaps even outlaw violent media. German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder will be meeting with television executives on Thursday to discuss a voluntary restriction of violent media.

But talking with video game companies on the matter may be difficult, as very few, if any, main divisions are in Germany.

But Schröder has said that this is not the time to engage in political rifts, despite the fact that the Gutenberg shootings and what to do to prevent such shootings in the future may become a major factor in upcoming German 2002 elections this Fall.

Edmund Stoiber from Bavaria, opponent of Schröder in the running for Chancellor this upcoming German election, is among those making the call for restrictions on violent games and media. He even felt that videos and other media that portray and glorify violence should be “generally forbidden,” as he told German media reporters.

One thing is for certain–the question of violent media and video games and how to restrict them, if at all, no longer is posed to the United States exclusively. What Germany will do with such media in the wake of the Gutenberg shootings is anyone’s guess, though, as mentioned earlier, Germany already has the tightest gun restrictions in the world. It is very possible now that the same types of restrictions could be imposed for violent media and games.

The other possibility to consider is whether political quarreling among German parties, which already appears to be starting, will play a factor in any restrictions. The end result could be one much like in the United States currently–as the debate continues from time to time in Congress and various courts, usually very little changes in terms of restriction of “violent” video games.

Coming up in Part 2: A look back at the impact of the Columbine shootings on the United States and the still continuing effect it has today in the debate between games and violence.